Latest news with #StatusQuo
Extra.ie
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Extra.ie
Tributes pour in after death of 'iconic' Irish journalist
If memory serves us right, his first HP commission was reviewing Status Quo at the Antrim Forum. After which, there really was no turning back… His death was announced by his brother Colin, who says: 'It is with a very heavy heart that I have to share the news that my brother Barry died unexpectedly and peacefully in his sleep in the early hours of yesterday morning, Monday 26th May at his home in Spain. This has come as a terrible shock to our family and especially to Lola, Frankie and Mary. We all loved Barry very much, and I shared a close bond with him, which is evident in the photo of us together recently at one of his favourite restaurants (Barry is on the right). He will be very much missed by us all.' Born in Belfast, Barry moved down south during the 1970s to study at Trinity whilst also playing with hometown punk band Shock Treatment, and from there headed to London where his byline regularly appeared in Melody Maker. During his tenure in King's Reach Tower, he was a tireless champion of The Pogues and infamously fell foul of Kevin Rowland, who didn't appreciate one of his features. Appointed editor of Smash Hits in 1986, he oversaw the doubling of the title's circulation to 800,000 and then did a similarly stellar job as the man in charge at the film magazine, Empire. Both of these were published by EMAP, who in 1984 handed Barry a Managing Director role. After launching Heat magazine in 1999 and also steering the likes of Q and Mojo in the right direction, he became CEO of EMAP Elan, whose other titles included Elle, Red and The Face. From there, he presided over the 2008 relaunch of the Daily Sport and Sunday Sport and, from 2009, ran his own media consultancy, returned to frontline journalistic duties with The Word and became CEO of the Professional Publishers Association. In 2018, Barry was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by Magazines Ireland and also hosted a publishing seminar in Dublin, where much wisdom was imparted. In 2024, Shock Treatment reconvened and recorded an album, Exclusive Photos, that recaptured all of that old punk magic. Barry McIlheney, the founding editor of Empire Magazine, has sadly died at the age of editor, publisher, broadcaster, and Shock Treatment punk rocker McIlheney served as Empire editor from 1989-1992. We will miss him greatly. Read our tribute:…
Spectator
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Spectator
We've underestimated Francis Rossi
I have a friend who insists that had Status Quo hailed from Düsseldorf rather than Catford, they would nowadays be as critically revered as Can, Faust, Neu! and those other hallowed Teutonic pioneers of unyielding rhythm from the 1970s. Maybe so. Very probably not. Canned Heat and ZZ Top seem more reachable comparisons. But it's true that 'the Quo' have been underestimated and unjustly derided throughout their six-decade career, not least by themselves. The band has happily perpetuated their position as rock and roll neanderthals: a 2007 album is titled In Search Of The Fourth Chord. There was always a little more to it than that. Personally, I have always divined a terrible sadness at the heart of their music. Like most court jesters, Status Quo internalise great loneliness and despair. Consider the regretful pills-and-powder sentiments of songs such as 'Marguerita Time', 'Living On An Island', 'Down Down' and 'What You're Proposing', made all the more doleful by the bleached stoicism of Francis Rossi's pinched voice. Their prototypical heads-down Ur-boogie, meanwhile, is the cosmic hamster's wheel made sound, a pitch perfect aural representation of the existential treadmill. Inelegantly billed as 'An Evening of Francis Rossi's Songs from the Status Quo Songbook and More', this two-man touring show offers a corrective to the established Quo-text, though I very much doubt that is the intention. Having lost his brother in arms, Rick Parfitt, to a heart attack in 2016, Rossi is joined by second guitarist and backing vocalist Andy Brook. Supplied with nifty Fender Acoustasonic semi-acoustic guitars, the pair perch on a couple of red easy chairs, separated by a small table adorned with a green desk lamp.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Singer-Songwriter Pete Palma Debut Album, "Happy Day," is out now Available on All Major Streaming Services and music platforms. Listen Today!
An Empowering Singer-songwriter Pete Palma's debut album, "Happy Day," is available now, blending soulful melodies and thought-provoking lyrics to inspire listeners to break free from social expectations and discover their inner power.—Fearlessly Challenging the Status Quo. TAMPA BAY, Fla., May 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Hands In Motion Music Production & Marketing—Pete Palma's debut album Happy Day drops worldwide on May 2, 2025—a major milestone after years of songwriting, studio sessions, and creative growth. "Working with the legendary, Multi-Grammy® and Latin Grammy® Award-winning Producer, Pianist, Engineer and Arranger Lannie Battistini, on Happy Day was an absolute dream. His expertise and talent brought a whole new level to the album, and I'm so grateful for his contribution. We've created something truly special, and I can't wait to see how it resonates with listeners." Happy Day blends heartfelt melodies with raw, unfiltered lyricism—channeling Palma's lifelong passion for music and his message of personal freedom. The album explores the idea of living an enriching life on one's own terms, inviting listeners to break free from social expectations and rediscover their inner power. Pete Palma's songwriting, both authentic and unapologetic, offers an experience that is equal parts provocative and uplifting. This collaborative project was recorded and produced at Hands In Motion Music Productions in Brandon, FL. Palma, whose voice has been described by listeners as "raw yet familiar," brings a distinct edge that sets him apart from both emerging and established artists. His sound is entirely his own marked by resilience, reflection, and a refusal to conform. Pete Palma's creative journey doesn't stop at music. He's also the host of Operation Status Quo (OSQ), a growing YouTube talk show where he candidly addresses current events, spiritual enlightenment, personal empowerment, and self-care—with a healthy dose of satire and bold truth-telling. Known for challenging mainstream narratives, Palma's mantra—"Shrug off the serious, detach from mainstream imprisonment, and flow with the Quo"—encapsulates the energy that drives both his music and his message. Hands In Motion Music Productions, founded by GRAMMY® and Latin GRAMMY® winner Lannie Battistini, has served the Tampa Bay area since 2006 in music production, artist development, marketing and a music school. Visit Information on Pete Palma and Operation Status Quo, visit: View original content: SOURCE Hands In Motion Music Production & Marketing Sign in to access your portfolio
The Courier
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Courier
Status Quo legend Francis Rossi comes to Perth Concert Hall
'I'm not a particularly good guitar player,' Status Quo legend Francis Rossi whispers. 'I'm better than I was but I'm probably not as good as my peer group, perhaps – well, definitely.' Such self-doubt is perhaps not a quality most people would associate with the once cocksure Francis Rossi, especially those who grew up in the decades when his band seemed omnipresent on radios and TV screens. However, approaching his 76th birthday, Rossi is a much-changed figure from the hell-raiser who lived the rock'n'roll lifestyle to the max with his friend and Quo sidekick Rick Parfitt, who died on Christmas Eve 2016. A sense of reflection surrounds the frontman these days, with memories of past times to the fore both in the part-storytelling acoustic tour that he's bringing to Perth on Monday and in his 'new' album The Way We Were Vol 1, a collection of vintage demos. Having landed his first record deal with The Spectres in 1966 aged 17 and playing live virtually non-stop ever since, it's little wonder that Francis regards touring as his defining lifestyle. 'I remember being very young seeing programmes on TV that were all about travelling circuses or fairs, and they would always travel together in convoy in trucks and buses, so it's always felt like that,' he says. 'Someone asked me a question last night about how kids make it and I said you have to be between diligent and obsessed, and it's become an obsession with me. I just don't really know to do anything else. 'There are bad sides to that and there's the positive side – it makes me happy when I'm doing it.' After years of excess, the singer's London working class upbringing has informed many of his more recent decisions, so rather than expensive hotel stays on his latest tour he recuperates on his tour bus. Playing acoustic gigs with a tiny entourage compared to the mind-blowing logistics of Status Quo ventures means he's in a mainly peaceful place. 'I keep telling the audience how much I'm enjoying myself and I'm worried that it sounds like a showbiz ploy, but it really isn't,' Rossi declares. 'I mean, at my age I would just stay home. It's not that I need the money, but I probably need the audience's adoration, if that's the word. 'I've discussed with my wife when I should stop, because I do have a fear that I may outlive my nest egg. Quo are touring in '26 and planning to tour in '27, so I will deal with that two years down the line. 'It's weird, coming into 76 I suddenly feel like 25 again, like it's something to grow. That might seem idiotic to other people and part of me thinks that way.' 'It has to be the insecure show-off in me that needs to be in front of people to validate his very existence. I'm too old to start pretending that I'm this giant rock star, but I'm a part of the bulls*** that is showbiz. 'I can tell people I'm definitely not as nice as they think I am, because the fans really think I'm wonderful. I can't be, and we do that all the time to showbiz people. 'It's why we get so upset when they do things that let people down by being greedy or sex pests or just grumpy s***s. I'm probably one of the grumpy s***s.' Reflecting on his younger days, he says he was 'putting a front up' in terms of his public persona. 'Now I'm trying to say to people that I'm very much like they are, I just happen to be the one that's sat on the stage at that particular moment,' he explains. 'Quite often a question comes up at whatever venue and they laugh when I say playing here is actually far actually far more important to me than playing Wembley Arena or Glastonbury, where you're being sold something but you don't know what it is. 'I'm far too open sometimes, but that's what I am, and I've not many years left to be genuine with people.' Status Quo started in 1967 as psychedelic hipsters, later morphing into the denim-clad Live Aid-openers who scored such huge hits as Rockin' All Over The World, What You're Proposing and Down Down. 'Most of the things we do on this tour I thought would be impossible, like Roll Over Lay Down and Don't Waste My Time, but something happened,' says Francis. 'The audience tend to listen because if we go quiet, it's f***ing quiet. There have been one or two little worries – at the beginning it was how many stories there will be or whether I'd repeat them, but I just ad lib or something else comes up. 'I try not to think about it until I face the audience, and something happens in that first 10 minutes when I talk to them and then I kind of follow my nose. 'Once or twice I've stumbled and thought it wasn't really working, but that's something I've learned over many years talking for Quo, as it were. You're stood there with maybe 15,000 people and you can sense it's not working, but something happens and you change foot.' Status Quo have played a few times in Perth down the years. 'We used to stop for clothes at a shop in Perth on the way up north,' Rossi recalls. 'They used to get those Arab scarfs, the black and white ones or the red and white ones. We used to use them a lot, and various unusual garments – it was a fantastic shop.' Francis Rossi, Perth Concert Hall, May 19.
Perth Now
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Francis Rossi fears running out of money
Francis Rossi is "scared s***less" of running out of money. The Status Quo rocker, who turns 76 later this month, has no plans to retire from making music or performing live because he is "constantly" worried about his financial security. He told The Guardian newspaper: 'The thing that worries me constantly is: will I have enough money if I stop now and there's no more income? I'm scared s***less of that.' And Francis doesn't know what he would do without music. He admitted: 'I don't know what else to do. I'm obsessed by it all, and I just keep going.' The 'Whatever You Want' hitmaker initially formed his group, who were first known as The Paladins and then The Spectres, with Alan Lancaster in 1962 while still at school and later added drummer John Coghlan and late guitarist Rick Parfitt to the line-up and the quartet set out to emulate the Beatles. Francis explained: 'Everybody liked them and I must have been a wimpy kid, and I terribly wanted to be liked. Still do in some ways. That's quite sad. But we tried to emulate them – that's where we wanted to go.' The 'Down Down' rocker has previously spoken of his tendency to say inappropriate things and a lack of visible grief for those he loved and he's now reflected that a diagnosis of neurodiversity "would explain" some of his behaviour. Asked if he has ever been tested for neurodiversity, he said: 'You're the first person that's ever broached that at all. And now there are loads of things going on in my mind, because that would explain …' Speaking about poking at his mother's body to check she was really dead and making arrangements for his working day when told his father had died, he added: 'I said, 'Is the car coming to pick me up?' And it makes me feel like I'm cold. "But if I'm in a situation and I'm told what I'm supposed to do, I can't do it. I'm supposed to grieve, I'm supposed to say certain things. And I will be thinking, 'I shouldn't say that, that's not appropriate.' "It's interesting, what you said. I never thought about that before.'
