Roll over lay down

by Rick Johansen

In all, I saw Status Quo on three occasions. Twice in the early 1970s with the original line-up, the so-called Frantic Four, and once in the early 2000s with the remodelled line-up featuring just Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt plus a group of worthies whose names I never knew. On each occasion, they gave it everything. 100% energy and commitment. You were never short-changed at a Quo gig.

Few rock bands from any era could compete with the Rossi/Parfitt/Coghlan/Lancester Quo. They were far more than a three-chord wonder, although the great three-chord tunes were what we went for.

First time I saw them, they were supported by a blues band called Savoy Brown. I remember nothing about the gig but I remember the next time, even if I can’t quite place the year. Supporting Quo were an up and coming band from the USA called Montrose, who had a certain vocalist called Sammy Hagar and had just realised what I still consider to be the greatest hard rock album ever, the self-named Montrose. Whilst everyone (except me) was there to see Quo, they had to work like hell that night. Montrose produced a blistering set that had the whole audience in rapture. To avoid being blown off stage, as Golden Earring were a few years later by a rampant Lynyrd Skynyrd, they had to play at their very best. Did they manage it? You bet.

The much-changed line-up did not look much like Quo, except of course for the ageless Rossi and Parfitt, but they sure sounded like them. And I shall never forget the start of the show. The house lights dimmed, the stage was obscured by a large curtain and then smashing through the silence came the opening chops to Caroline. The curtain dropped and there was Parfitt, strumming frantically at his Fender Telecaster, all on his own. Then the band joined in and I was back in the 1970s. They could still cut it, no doubts.

Today, I read that Rick Parfitt is dead. Countless major health scares including major heart operations and cancer could have slowed him down, but they didn’t. He has died in Spain, following a shoulder problem, from a hospital-born virus. What a terrible way to go.

Quo were regarded as a joke by many music snobs who mocked their simplicity and their honesty, but often the best music appears to be simple. I found their straightforward rock and roll far more approachable than much of the anaesthetised pseudo-rock that has followed in their tracks.

Their best music was long behind them, but when they they still played it felt like it was composed yesterday. You can say it wasn’t exactly original music but is there really anything that new under the sun? I really don’t care whether people thought it original or not and most important of all, neither did the Quo.

Roll over lay down, Rick Parfitt. And rest in peace.

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