Great Rock Albums of 1982: Status Quo- 1+9+8+2

Status Quo are yet another British rock band who never quite cracked America. I first heard of them during the short time I was in the UK when I was in the service and then hardly ever heard their name until my arrival in 1986. However, as many of my new British friends were metalheads, they were quick to shoot the band down stating they were too commercial to be metal. It didn't help their case when I heard their two best known songs, "Whatever You Want" and "Rocking All Over the World." To me, those songs gave me the impression of what the Bay City Rollers would have sounded like if they tried to play heavy metal. So, I wasn't very impressed. However, quite recently a good metal friend stated that if you look beyond their singles and listen to their albums, they are more rock. It is that advice, that I listened to the "1+9+8+2" album and am posting about it now.

Let me declare from the start that in my view, Status Quo are not heavy metal. They are more melodic rock bordering on hard rock. The "1+9+8+2" album does have some moments of good hard rock but some of their songs are also templates of their two biggest hits. A perfect example is the opening track, "She Don't Fool Me," which opens with a very promising hard rock intro before venturing back to more traditional Quo ground. The next few tracks sound like templates of those two songs but credit where due, "Jealousy" does have a good guitar solo. The album does seem to go progressively harder after that. "I Love Rock and Roll" (not to be confused with a big hit from another band from this year) is a decent rocker. But the first track to really rock the way I want it to is "I Want the World To Know." That is their most rocking track but the closer, "Big Man" is also a good rocker to take the album out on.

Track Listing:

1. She Don't Fool Me

2. Young Pretender

3. Get Out and Walk

4. Jealousy

5. I Love Rock and Roll

6. Resurrection

7. Dear John

8. Doesn't Matter

9. I Want the World to Know

10. I Should Have Known

11. Big Man

[caption id="attachment_2684" align="aligncenter" width="272"] Status Quo[/caption]

Francis Rossi- vocals, lead guitar

Rick Parfitt- vocals, guitar

Alan Lancaster- bass, vocals

Andy Brown- keyboards, backing vocals

Pete Kircher- drums, backing vocals

The question now is "Are Status Quo the British Nickelback?" I have heard people say that you have to look beyond the songs you here on radio to fully appreciate that Canadian band. The answer is yes but on a lesser scale. The songs on "1+9+8+2" are better than the two hits they're best known for. However, while the album does have it's rocking moments, there are also moments where they sound like their commercial hits.

Next post: Steve Miller Band- Abracadabra

To buy Rock And Roll Children, go to www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/RockAndRollChildren.html

Also available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Froogle and on sale at Foyles Book Shop in London

Triumphs and Tragedy: 1982

You may remember that when I first entered 1982, I spent eight of the twelve months of that year deployed with the marines. The first six months were especially difficult because I was floating about the Mediterranean Sea and Indian Ocean on a ship. So I didn't get that much news especially news pertaining to music. However, one piece of tragic news that did reach my ears whilst on the ship was the death of comic actor and Blues Brothers singer John Belushi.

Unlike the assassination of JFK, Belushi's death may not have been a where were you moment when you first learned about it to most people. While I can say for sure that I was on board the ship when I learned about his tragic passing, I can't say where exactly the ship was at the time. I do know that it was somewhere in the Indian Ocean.

His career may have been short but John Belushi packed a load of things to remember him by during those few years. For us music fans, the biggest contribution to music was most certainly The Blues Brothers. His collaboration with Dan Ackroyd  gave us a brilliant album and in 1980, a hilarious movie with one hell of a great soundtrack. For those new to 80smetalman, I have visited both on here if you want to take a look. Older statesmen like me, however, will always love Belushi for his antics on the old Saturday Night Live show. I will always love his Samurai character. In 1982, a true musical and comical genius was tragically taken from us. R.I.P. John Belushi.

[caption id="attachment_2678" align="aligncenter" width="259"] John Belushi as Samurai in my all time favourite one: Samurai Night Fever[/caption]

Now on to the triumph. This year saw the third Monsters of Rock Festival at Donnington Park. Attendance was up from the previous two years and evidence that slowly but surely, heavy metal was taking over the UK. A small piece of festival history was made that year when Saxon became the first band to play at there for the second time. Headlining was another British band who failed to make it very far in the US, Status Quo. I have to admit, that I haven't listened to them much over the years over the years. Guess I should rectify that. Other players that year included Gillan, Uriah Heep, space rockers Hawkwind and Canadian metal band Anvil. While it would be another year before I would hear about this great festival, I believe that this varied line up would have been a great thing to see and hear.

Like I said at the beginning, my knowledge of musical events is limited due to the circumstances. So if there is some other event from 1982, triumph or tragedy, let me know and I will post about it because it is part of our history. Call this an urgent appeal.

Next post: Status Quo- 1+9+8+2

To buy Rock And Roll Children, go to www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/RockAndRollChildren.html

Also available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Froogle and on sale at Foyles Book Shop in London