They’ve been Rockin’ All Over the World for more than 60 years.
But when Status Quo rolls into Taunton, Somerset, over August bank holiday weekend, Francis Rossi expects the show there to be their last. “I don’t think we will go again,” he says. “And as far as the rest of the band are concerned it’s the last tour too. I just can’t see us doing it one more time.”
For a band who have been rocking out since 1962 and are one of the most prolific live acts in British history, it’s quite the admission. But speaking to the Mirror in his dressing room before a show earlier this month in Wolverhampton, Francis is quietly at peace with the decision.
And insists there will be no fanfare, and more importantly no fuss, when the day finally comes. “I didn’t want to put this current tour out, saying it’s the last one ever,” he says. “I did it once and was then coerced into coming back, but that’s another whole other f****** story.”
That story was 1984’s End of an Era tour, billed as the last set of gigs from the band before they split up the first time. “We did really split and then one of the managers came to me with a lie at the time that Rick [Parfitt] was in trouble with money again, which was often the case with Rick, so I said, ‘okay, we’ll do one more album - In the Army,” he says.
“Who knows they might offer a huge amount of money to do the Quo again but I don’t think so. I am hesitant to call it the last ever but I just can’t see it continuing to be honest.” Part of the reason he says is the gruelling nature of the Quo tours which often criss-cross the breadth of Europe for months on end.
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Despite looking lean and in great shape for 75, Francis says it’s getting harder to keep up. “It’s f****** hurting this time, physically,” he admits. “We were at rehearsals before this tour and it occurred to me that we started 50 f****** years ago. Thinking about it brought it home my age.
“As much as you can say it’s just a number and you can’t really feel it, you definitely can and you are lying if you don’t. I’ve had prostate problems for a while, and macular degeneration...all old people things.” While the end of Quo might be nigh, it’s not the end of Francis. Next year has been set aside for a smaller, more intimate 34-date solo tour which will see him playing his signature hits, as well as regalling the audience with showbiz tales.
After more than a hour in his engrossing company, I can testify that fans are in for a treat. Quick-witted and sharp as a tool, Francis really does like to talk...and some. And chatting to him, you can’t help feel he is more comfortable doing next year’s solo tour on his own terms than being part of the Quo machine. In fact he says he’s been trying to extricate himself for years but without much success.
“Back in the day, I didn’t want to carry on with the band...even with Rick alive. I didn’t want to be there,” he says. "And then when Rick died it got even worse. People were really offensive to Andrew and John because they wanted the original line-up.” That consisted of Francis, Rick, drummer John Coghlan, and bassist Alan Lancaster. Rick died from sepsis aged 68, in 2016, while Alan died in 2021, aged 72.
Quo now consists of Rossi, Andrew Bown (keyboards, guitar), John “Rhino” Edwards (bass), Leon Cave (drums), and Richie Malone (guitar). “I can’t give the old, hardcore fans what they want, which is the original line-up,” he says .” I keep trying to ignore those people but it’s hard.” It’s clear that he wrestles with wanting to move on from Quo while at the same time acknowledging his history with the band.
Take the new tour, which is billed as an evening of his songs “from the Status Quo Songbook”. “The promoter AEG wants to reference Quo and part of me feels that’s cheating and wants to shake it,” he says. But there is no doubt he is galvanised by the prospect of the solo dates.
Not least as you get the impression that as much as he enjoys the downtime at home in Purley with wife Eileen when not on tour, he isn’t ready for that life yet. “I enjoy the Guardian and Times crosswords, and my jigsaws, and putting on a fire in the orangerie,” he says. “But If I stop altogether , will I then suddenly vegetate? Soon there’s no reason to keep fit and I can see myself getting some form of depression.”
Francis married second wife Eileen in 1989 and he is the first to admit that he wasn’t always there for her, or his eight children. “People ask me if I am a good parent but I don’t think so. I’ve been away most of my life. People may say my career was more important than my children...that’s not how I see it but there is no doubt my career always comes first. It’s all-encompassing.”
His decision not to hang up his guitar is also in part due to finances. When we last spoke two years ago Francis said that Brexit had seen the costs associated with touring soar, particularly in Europe. Since then it’s got markedly worse. “People assume that I have these few million pounds stacked up in my bedroom,” he says.
“I’m not poor obviously but I can’t get over how the f****** decimal point keeps moving. It’s now 40 per cent dearer.” A solo show means fewer overheads and a smaller operation. "We’re all on one bus, and it keeps our expenses down,” he says. “All these things worry me. I don’t think many other artists talk about these things…other artists give the impression it’s all fine, but it’s hard out there.”
If it is going to be the band’s last hurrah, they are certainly bowing out in style as I watch them deliver a near-faultless performance at the city’s Civic Hall later that evening. Later, I join the band backstage before heading to the pub - minus Rossi and Bown - where they are mobbed by fans buying them drinks. It’s apparently a familiar sight after every show.
I’m keen to understand how they feel about the prospect of the band’s touring days possibly coming to an end in a couple of months. “Sometimes I think I would rather the band left with a bang rather than fizzle out,” says Rhino. “But if there was one word to sum up how I felt...it would be proud. We are very much the people’s band.”
And as I watch the fans ply them all with free beer, wine - and even the odd spliff - it’s hard to disagree... “
An Evening of Francis Rossi’s Songs from the Status Quo Songbook and more…” Francis Rossi is embarking on a 34-date tour of the UK from April to June 2025. Tickets will be on sale from 10am on Friday 28 June 2024 from www.aegpresents.co.uk/event/francis-rossi/
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