If you wake up and don't want to smile

Continuing my trip back in time through the album charts

18/02/96 : Don't Stop - Status Quo

Who doesn't love a bit of Quo, eh? Well - quite a lot of people actually. But they opened Live Aid, so we can't be too harsh on the lads and I enjoy them ironically when I'm in the mood for rocking all over the world. However, I'm really not sure I need a whole album. Ach, what am I saying - there is absolutely no danger of me needing a whole album. I actually considered rejecting it because it's an album of covers but I had to subject myself to two Robson & Jerome albums so I think I have to go there - part of me feels it's wrong, but part of me is horribly fascinated as to what I'm going to find. 

And, unsurprisingly, its a bit of a mixed bag - some expected and some not at all expected. "Fun Fun Fun" isn't nearly as terrible as I expected - especially where they try Beach Boy style harmonies. The attempted Steeleye Span harmonies on "All Around My Hat" do not work so successfully though, although the guitars work considerably better than I was expecting. I don't like what they've done with "Don't Stop" and "Proud Mary" but I have to grudgingly admit they were good choices for Quo covers. "The Safety Dance" is an odd choice. but again works considerably better than I was expecting - The Futures So Bright" is another odd choice, but doesn't. 

Being fair (and sometimes I attempt to do so) if one or two of these tracks had been recorded by someone like Del Amitri. I wouldn't have been sniffy about them in the slightest - so I have to admit that it's not universally dreadful. But "You Never Can Tell" is really awful though - it's even got an accordion on it, ffs! And "Raining In My Heart" and "Johnny And Mary" have been absolutely murdered - with no chance of survivors, I'm afraid.  And I do think a whole album of covers is really just cheating - even though some of them are considerably more interesting than I was expecting. But seriously. do you really think we ever owned this? 12/46. 

We're at #3 in the charts this week in its second week of a 12 week run having peaked at #2 last week - generous, methinks. The Quo have had 53 charting albums over 49 years - you can't fault them for longevity (but you do have to worry about their fans). The rest of the top five were The Bluetones (a new entry), Oasis, M People, Alanis and there's one more new entry in the top ten - The Saw Doctors at #6 (which I suspect I might have liked a bit more than this).

Wikipedia has very little on the album other than telling me the reason that the Beach Boy harmonies on "Fun Fun Fun" don't sound too bad is. errr, because they're done by The Beach Boys. Ah - that would explain that then. Brian May and Maddy Prior also appear on the album - as does Tessa Niles, who I didn't recognise by name but she's appeared as a backing singer on a lot of tracks over the years. Funnily enough. there's no critical reception section for the album, but I can report it did surprisingly well in Sweden - #14. 

"Customers also listened to" Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt - never heard of 'em! I thnk it's safe to say the Quo aren't really my cup of tea - I admire them for all they've achieved over the years. but I do think they could have managed slightly more variety. 

11/02/96 - Not great, but not terrible
25/02/96 - I tried to like it, honest!