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.
When I Awake
Status Quo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Our scene is over and the whole world knows
Velvet curtains shut the light from my mind
I leave the stage, put my memories behind
How it started with a passing word
How you answered and I liked what I heard
Wasn't long before we fell in love
Velvet curtains draw the show to a close
Our scene is over and the whole world knows
Velvet curtains shut the light from my mind
I leave the stage, put my memories behind
How I started to depend on you
How you tried to be dependable too
But you found it hard to change your ways
And you merely broke my heart
Pretty soon I knew it had to end
Still I fool myself and try to pretend
But what's the good if there's another guy
And he's playing the leading part?
Velvet curtains draw the show to a close
Our scene is over and the whole world knows
Velvet curtains shut the light from my mind
I leave the stage, put my memories behind
Velvet curtains draw the show to a close
Our scene is over and the whole world knows
"When I Awake" by Status Quo is a song about the end of a romantic relationship. The singer is leaving the relationship behind and moving on. The curtains are a metaphor for the end of a performance. The singer is leaving the stage and putting his memories behind him, just as the curtains close on a performance.
The lyrics describe how the relationship started with a passing word, and quickly developed into love. The singer became dependent on the other person, but they found it hard to change their ways, and eventually broke the singer's heart. The singer tries to pretend that the relationship can continue, but realizes that there is another guy playing the leading part.
Overall, the song is about the end of a relationship and the difficulty of moving on. The singer is trying to leave the past behind and move on with his life. The velvet curtains represent the end of the relationship, but also a new beginning.
Line by Line Meaning
Velvet curtains draw the show to a close
The end of a relationship is likened to the end of a show and the curtains are closing.
Our scene is over and the whole world knows
The relationship has ended and everyone is aware of it.
Velvet curtains shut the light from my mind
The curtains that are closing also block the singer's memories from his mind.
I leave the stage, put my memories behind
The artist is moving on from the relationship.
How it started with a passing word
The relationship began with a small conversation.
How you answered and I liked what I heard
The singer was attracted to the other person's response.
Wasn't long before we fell in love
The relationship progressed and the two people fell in love quickly.
And we thought we'd never part
The couple believed that they would never leave each other.
How I started to depend on you
The artist became reliant on the other person.
How you tried to be dependable too
The other person attempted to be reliable for the artist.
But you found it hard to change your ways
The other person struggled to change their habits.
And you merely broke my heart
The artist's heart was broken by the other person's actions.
Pretty soon I knew it had to end
The singer acknowledges that the relationship couldn't continue.
Still I fool myself and try to pretend
Despite knowing the truth, the singer still tries to delude themselves.
But what's the good if there's another guy
The presence of another person in the other person's life makes it pointless to continue pretending.
And he's playing the leading part?
The other person is now enamored with someone else and has taken a more prominent role in their lives.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: CHARLES LANCASTER ALAN, ROBERT KEITH YOUNG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Record Rama
This song alone is worth buying the album for. One of the very best examples of UK psych.
Christoph J. Rohde
Wonderful melody