Live! (Status Quo album)


Live! is the first live album by British rock band Status Quo. The double album is an amalgam of performances at Glasgow's Apollo Theatre between 27 and 29 October 1976, recorded using the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio.
"The worst album we ever made," said guitarist and singer Francis Rossi. "I always thought we were better than that. Rick Parfitt and I were left to mix it, and we went through the recordings of the three nights we played, only to pick the first one." "I disagree with my old pal there," countered Parfitt. "There are bits of the live album that still give me goosebumps."
The album includes a typically extended version of "Forty Five Hundred Times". "The first part of the song was the song, but we'd make the extra bits up…" recalled Parfitt. "You'd just know when to get softer and then take it somewhere heavier. It was incredible. You'd be swept away by this rollercoaster of music. The only way to end it was to nod, 'Shall we finish it here?'"

Various issues

The original album included the full gig minus the crowd singing "You'll Never Walk Alone" before the encore, but swapped around to accommodate the running times of a double vinyl album. The USA release featured a different cover. The 2005 remaster by Tim Turan re-sequenced the concert in gig order. In 2014, a box set was released that included the live album plus two additional bonus discs. For this release, the original packaging was adapted to the CD format, and the tracklisting went back to the original vinyl order. The unreleased disc 4 "Australia '74" re-used the artwork of the US "Live!" release.

Track listing

Side one
  1. "Intro/Junior's Wailing", 5:16
  2. "Backwater/Just Take Me", 7:39
  3. "Is There a Better Way", 4:30
  4. "In My Chair", 4:00
Side two
  1. "Little Lady/Most of the Time", 7:00
  2. "Forty Five Hundred Times", 16:42
Side three
  1. "Roll Over Lay Down", 5:59
  2. "Big Fat Mama", 5:10
  3. "Caroline/Bye Bye Johnny" , 12:50
Side four
  1. "Rain", 4:48
  2. "Don't Waste My Time", 4:08
  3. "Roadhouse Blues", 14:12

    Remastered CD track listing

Disc 1

  1. "Junior's Wailing"
  2. "Backwater/Just Take Me"
  3. "Is There a Better Way"
  4. "In My Chair"
  5. "Little Lady/Most of the Time"
  6. "Rain"
  7. "Forty-Five Hundred Times"

    Disc 2

  8. "Roll Over Lay Down"
  9. "Big Fat Mama"
  10. "Don't Waste My Time"
  11. "Roadhouse Blues"
  12. "Caroline"
  13. "Bye Bye Johnny"

    2014 box set disc 3: Tokyo Quo

  14. "Is There a Better Way"
  15. "Little Lady"
  16. "Most of the Time"
  17. "Rain"
  18. "Caroline"
  19. "Roll Over Lay Down"
  20. "Big Fat Mama"
  21. "Don't Waste My Time"
  22. "Bye Bye Johnny"
Originally Japan-only live album, recorded at Sunplaza Hall 1976. First international CD release.

2014 box set disc 4: Australia '74

  1. "Junior's Wailing"
  2. "Backwater"
  3. "Just Take Me"
  4. "Claudie"
  5. "Railroad"
  6. "Roll Over Lay Down"
  7. "Big Fat Mama"
  8. "Don't Waste My Time"
  9. "Roadhouse Blues" Part 1
  10. "Roadhouse Blues" Part 2
  11. "Caroline"
  12. "Drum Solo"
  13. "Bye Bye Johnny"
Soundboard recording from Quo tour. A part of Roadhouse Blues is missing.

Personnel

;Additional personnel