They began as a rock and roll freakbeat band called The Spectres. By 1967, with very little commercial success, they discovered psychedelia and changed their name to Traffic (later Traffic Jam, to avoid confusion with Steve Winwood's Traffic.) At this time the line-up also included organist Roy Lynes and drummer John Coghlan. Late in 1967 they recruited second guitarist Rick Parfitt and became The Status Quo, scoring Top 10 singles with Pictures Of Matchstick Men and Ice in The Sun. "Pictures of Matchstick Men" remains the only Top 40 hit single the group has ever charted in the United States. They have never achieved the same level of success there, that they have enjoyed in their home country.
After their second album Spare Parts they decided to change into a heavy boogie rock band. During the seventies they became one of the UK's leading rock bands, gaining a faithful following due to their excellent live gigs. They showed a great amount of energy during this decade and in the early 80s. They and are best known for songs from this era such as Paper Plane (1972), Caroline (1973), Down Down (1975), John Fogerty's Rockin' All Over The World (1977) and Whatever You Want (1979). Down Down topped the UK charts in January 1975 (their only British No. 1 single to date).
Lynes left in 1971, to be replaced initially by guest keyboard players on album, including Jimmy Horowitz and John Parker, and later on a more permanent basis on record and stage by ex-The Herd and Judas Jump member Andy Bown, though as he was contracted as a solo artist with EMI, he was not credited as a full-time member until 1982. Coghlan left in late 1981, to be replaced by Pete Kircher from 1960s band Honeybus. This short-lived lineup played its last gig in 1984 at the Milton Keynes Bowl, and reformed briefly to open the Live Aid charity event at Wembley in July 1985.
That year Rossi recorded and released two solo singles with longtime writing partner Bernie Frost. Parfitt was also working on a solo album which is still unreleased, although some tracks have been re-recorded by Status Quo and released as 'B' sides. Bass player John Edwards and drummer Jeff Rich, both ex-Judie Tzuke Band and Climax Blues Band, assisted Parfitt in the studio.
In the summer of 1985 Rossi, Parfitt and Bown, along with Edwards and Rich started work on a new album. Lancaster, who was living in Australia at the time, took out a legal injunction to stop the band using the Status Quo name on any records. The injunction was lifted after a court hearing in January 1986. Lancaster had had increasing musical differences with the group, notably during the sessions for the 1983 album Back to Back over two tracks which became hit singles for the group around that time. He had written Ol' Rag Blues, but was angered when the producers chose to release a version with Rossi singing lead vocal in preference to the one sung by himself, and he objected to Marguerita Time, which he thought unduly corny and too pop-oriented for them. He remained in Australia, forming a band called Party Boys, who had no success in Britain.
The commercially successful In The Army Now album was released in 1986, and the band continues to this day with the revised personnel. Rich left in 2000 and was replaced by Matthew Letley. Andrew Bown took a year off at the same time for family reasons and was replaced on stage by Paul Hirsh, formerly of Voyager.
According to Songfacts.com, Quo's 29th studio album, Quid Pro Quo, was released in a deluxe format exclusively at Tesco on 30 May 2011. The regular edition was released elsewhere a week later on 7th June. The LP debuted at #10 in the UK charts, the band's best chart placing for an original album since Don't Stop peaked at #2 in 1996.
Although Quo still release new material every few years, recent years have seen them release a series of greatest hits compilations and covers albums. One of the band's most recent original albums, Heavy Traffic, shows a return to classic form not seen since the late 1970s.
Status Quo have often been characterized, perhaps unfairly, as producing very simple songs, always in the same format: 4/4 rhythm, three chord structure. However, the recordings from their first decade demonstrate a diversity in musical style and complexity to rival most of the late 60s UK bands, and several of their singles and album tracks from later show considerable subtlety, not least the mainly acoustic 1979 single Living On An Island, and the 1980 album track, later a single, Rock'n'Roll, which is ironically one of the least rock'n'roll-like songs they have ever recorded.
They have a loyal group of fans in the United Kingdom, where they have enjoyed more hits than any other group in rock and roll history (over 60 as of mid-2005), as well as a big following in Europe, notably in The Netherlands.
In September 2005 a contestant on the long-running BBC television quiz programme Mastermind chose Status Quo as his specialist subject. That same year they took part in the long running ITV soap opera Coronation Street in a storyline which involved them being sued by the layabout Les Battersby.
In December 2005 it was announced that Parfitt was undergoing tests for throat cancer. All subsequent dates of the UK tour were cancelled as a result. However on 20th December it was further announced that the growths found in Parfitt's throat were benign and had been removed.
Quo have even been the subject of a Doctoral Thesis, purporting to demonstrate that their music composition skills could be favourably compared to the likes of the classical music composers, such as Beethoven!
In Autumn 2008 German techno legend Scooter released new single Jump that rock together with Status Quo.
On 1 February 2016, it was officially announced that Status Quo, in addition to the spring and summer dates already scheduled, would tour Europe starting in October. The final dates would take place in the UK towards the end of the year, after which the group would retire from playing 'electric' tours.
On 28 October 2016, Rick Parfitt permanently retired from live performances after suffering a heart attack earlier the same year. On 24 December 2017, he died in hospital in Marbella, Spain as a result of severe infection, after suffering an injury to his shoulder. Parfitt's funeral was held at Woking Crematorium on 19 January 2017. Irish guitarist Richie Malone, who had substituted for Parfitt during some 2016 live shows, took his place on rhythm guitar.
Mysteries From the Ball
Status Quo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Someone is looking at me
Trying to turn me around like an enemy
Trying to turn me away
Holding on tight to the side of reality
Is it a vision I see?
Leading me on to the pictures that I want to see
Magic moments from the past, magic moments
Mysteries from the ball
Back at the table it's getting too hot for me
Ice is afloat on my wings
Caught in the thunder and lightning of everything
Caught in the everyday things
Moving on up is the feeling inside of me
Losing my grip on the floor
Holding on tight to the hand that has given me more
Fantasy lovingly restored to me
Magic moments from the past, magic moments
Mysteries from the ball
Running along on the side of the waterfront
Someone is looking at me
Trying to turn me around like an enemy
Trying to turn me away
Moving on up is the feeling inside of me
Losing my grip on the floor
Holding on tight to the hand that is giving me more
Fantasy lovingly restored to me
Magic moments from the past, magic moments
Mysteries from the ball lovingly restored to me
Magic moments from the past lovingly restored to me
Mysteries from the ball
The lyrics of Status Quo's song "Mysteries From the Ball" seem to narrate the experience of the singer as he runs along the side of the waterfront, pursued by someone who wants to turn him away from something. It seems like he is trying to hold on to reality but also explore the fantasies and magic he seeks. There is a feeling of being caught between what's real and what's imagined, and the singer is losing his grip on the floor, so to speak. He's struggling to keep his balance and stay grounded, navigating a world of "thunder and lightning" that threatens to throw him off course at any moment.
Overall, the song seems to be about the struggle to balance the everyday world of reality with the more intangible, emotional realm of dreams and desires. The singer is surrounded by mysteries that fascinate and entice him, but also threaten to overwhelm him if he can't stay connected to the here-and-now. The lines "Fantasy lovingly restored to me/Magic moments from the past" suggest a longing for something that may or may not be real, yet it's clear that there is a sense of joy and wonder in the singer's experience of these "magic moments."
Overall, "Mysteries From the Ball" is a song that explores the tension between the real and the imagined, and suggests that sometimes it's difficult to discern one from the other. It's a song that invites the listener to consider their own relationship to dreams and reality, and the ways in which the two intersect and overlap.
Line by Line Meaning
Running along on the side of the waterfront
I am walking by the water.
Someone is looking at me
I feel like I am being watched.
Trying to turn me around like an enemy
I sense someone is turning me away from where I want to go.
Trying to turn me away
Someone is making an effort to distract me from my goal.
Holding on tight to the side of reality
I am struggling to stay grounded in reality.
Is it a vision I see?
I am uncertain if what I see is real.
Leading me on to the pictures that I want to see
I am being led towards the things I desire.
Fantasy lovingly restored to me
My imagination has been reawakened in a pleasant way.
Magic moments from the past, magic moments
I am reminiscing about joyful moments in my life.
Mysteries from the ball
The unknown future is something that intrigues me.
Back at the table it's getting too hot for me
I am feeling stressed and overwhelmed where I am.
Ice is afloat on my wings
I am not able to move as quickly or easily as I would like.
Caught in the thunder and lightning of everything
I am struggling to keep up with the fast pace of life.
Caught in the everyday things
I am feeling trapped by routine and mundane tasks.
Moving on up is the feeling inside of me
I have a sense of ambition and desire to progress further in life.
Losing my grip on the floor
I am feeling unsteady or uncertain about my footing in life.
Holding on tight to the hand that has given me more
I am relying on the support or guidance of someone who has helped me achieve success.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: FRANCIS DOMINIC NICHOLAS ROSSI, RICHARD JOHN PARFITT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Paul DuBay
Another excellent Status Quo track! Thank you for posting this song, and also for posting "I Should Have Known" and "Your Kind of Love." Keep on rockin'!
status quo-all
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Beatrice Peter
Love the Mysteries from the Ball ...
Another magical moment with the QUO !
Thanks !
status quo-all
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Beatrice Peter
Someone is looking at me
as I listen
and I love the "Mysteries "
status quo-all
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Henriette Herz
A true rarity..but issued on the new version of the ROCK 'TIL YOU DROP album.
status quo-all
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Khetah Krim
Status Quo is a mystery
Alejandro Chávez Chávez
Si mi padre viviera.... ya estaría bailando.... yo lo sé....