Aquostic – Stripped Bare
Aquostic – Stripped Bare | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 17 October 2014 | |||
Recorded | 2014 | |||
Genre | Acoustic rock | |||
Length | 78:39 | |||
Label | Warner Bros. Records, earMUSIC, Edel Records | |||
Producer | Mike Paxman | |||
Status Quo chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Classic Rock | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Get Ready to Rock | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Aquostic – Stripped Bare is the thirty-first studio album by English rock band Status Quo, first released on 17 October 2014. Produced by Mike Paxman, this is the band's first completely acoustic album and the first recorded with drummer Leon Cave. Its cover features a photograph by Canadian singer Bryan Adams.[3][4] The album earned a Gold certification in January 2015.[5]
Background
[edit]"We did an album of our old songs," Francis Rossi observed, "posed nude on the cover, got Bryan Adams to shoot it… Why do you do it? Because it made everyone talk about it… All those songs were written acoustically. It would be great to have new stuff out. But if you and I were the record company, and the manager comes to us and says, 'They want to write a whole new album of acoustic stuff,' they'd say, 'Fuck off, give us the hits.'"[6]
"I went from not wanting to be involved to really liking it," Rossi revealed. "The new version of 'All the Reasons' is as good as the original, or better. The same with 'Rain', which is a song I really didn't think would work in such a format." "The arrangements of most of these songs are vastly different," noted Rick Parfitt, "especially what we've done to 'Don't Drive My Car', which sounds like a cross between Stéphane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt. People will be taken aback."[7]
Performance
[edit]To launch the album, the band gave a ninety-minute performance of the songs at The Roundhouse in London on 22 October 2014. The concert was recorded and broadcast live by BBC Radio 2 as part of their In Concert series.[8][9] The band were augmented on stage by guitarist Freddie Edwards, son of bassist John Edwards.[10][11]
The concert was introduced by BBC Radio 2's Jo Whiley. Its setlist differed from the order of the eventual album track listing.[12]
Track listing
[edit]No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original album | Length |
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1. | "Pictures of Matchstick Men" | Francis Rossi | Picturesque Matchstickable Messages from the Status Quo (1968) | 3:37 |
2. | "Down the Dustpipe" | Carl Groszman | single (1970) | 2:41 |
3. | "Na Na Na" | Rossi, Bob Young | Dog of Two Head (1971) | 2:55 |
4. | "Paper Plane" | Rossi, Young | Piledriver (1972) | 3:38 |
5. | "All the Reasons" | Rick Parfitt, Alan Lancaster | Piledriver (1972) | 3:08 |
6. | "Reason for Living" | Rossi, Parfitt | Hello! (1973) | 3:21 |
7. | "And It's Better Now" | Rossi, Young | Hello! (1973) | 3:41 |
8. | "Caroline" | Rossi, Young | Hello! (1973) | 3:13 |
9. | "Softer Ride" | Parfitt, Lancaster | Hello! (1973) | 2:57 |
10. | "Claudie" | Rossi, Young | Hello! (1973) | 3:58 |
11. | "Break the Rules" | Rossi, Parfitt, Lancaster, John Coghlan, Young | Quo (1974) | 3:09 |
12. | "Down Down" | Rossi, Young | On the Level (1975) | 2:36 |
13. | "Mystery Song" | Parfitt, Young | Blue for You (1976) | 2:34 |
14. | "Little Lady" | Parfitt | On the Level (1975) | 1:52 |
15. | "Rain" | Parfitt | Blue for You (1976) | 3:56 |
16. | "Rockin' All Over the World" | John Fogerty | Rockin' All Over the World (1977) | 2:40 |
17. | "Again and Again" | Parfitt, Andy Bown, Jackie Lynton | If You Can't Stand the Heat... (1978) | 3:20 |
18. | "Whatever You Want" | Parfitt, Bown | Whatever You Want (1979) | 3:25 |
19. | "What You're Proposing" | Rossi, Bernie Frost | Just Supposin' (1980) | 2:04 |
20. | "Rock 'n' Roll" | Rossi, Frost | Just Supposin' (1980) | 2:43 |
21. | "Don't Drive My Car" | Parfitt, Bown | Just Supposin' (1980) | 3:10 |
22. | "Marguerita Time" | Rossi, Frost | Back to Back (1983) | 3:20 |
23. | "Rollin' Home" | John David | In the Army Now (1986) | 4:05 |
24. | "Burning Bridges" | Rossi, Bown | Ain't Complaining (1988) | 3:45 |
25. | "Rock 'til You Drop" | Bown | Rock 'til You Drop (1991) | 2:48 |
Tracks 13, 14 and 23 are bonus tracks and are not on the Spotify version, vinyl LP or on most CD pressings. The medley of "Mystery Song" and "Little Lady" was released on the British CD edition, the German MediaMarkt/Saturn edition, as well as the German box set. The latter, however, included only the standard 22-track CD; the medley was instead included on an extra 7" single that also has the exclusive "Strings Mix" of "Claudie".[13] "Rollin' Home" was part of the download edition.[14][15] All three bonus tracks were performed live at the Roundhouse. The single "Pictures of Matchstick Men" also included a "London Mix" of the song.[16]
Personnel
[edit]Status Quo
[edit]- Francis Rossi − guitars, vocals
- Rick Parfitt − guitars, ukulele, vocals
- Andy Bown − guitar, mandolin, harmonica, piano, vocals
- John "Rhino" Edwards − guitar, bass, vocals
- Leon Cave − guitar, drums, vocals
Additional musicians
[edit]- Geraint Watkins − accordion
- Martin Ditcham − percussion
- Amy Smith − background vocals
- Richard Benbow − string arrangements
- Lucy Wilkins − (leader) violin
- Howard Gott − violin
- Natalia Bonner − violin
- Alison Dods − violin
- Sophie Sirota − viola
- Sarah Wilson − cello
Production
[edit]- Mike Paxman − production
- Gregg Jackman − recording, mixing
Charts
[edit]
Weekly charts[edit]
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Year-end charts[edit]
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Certifications
[edit]Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[30] | Gold | 100,000* |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
References
[edit]- ^ Staunton, Terry (10 September 2014). "Status Quo Aquostic - Stripped Bare". Classic Rock Magazine. No. 202. TeamRock.
- ^ "Album review: STATUS QUO – Aquostic (Stripped Bare)".
- ^ Ling, Dave (31 August 2014). "World Exclusive: Status Quo Stripped Bare". Team Rock. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
- ^ "Status Quo strip down for album". Independent.ie. 1 September 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
- ^ "Status Quo spend landmark 500 weeks in albums chart, figures reveal". Nme.com. 5 January 2015. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
- ^ Glass, Polly (May 2015). "Live! Status Quo". Classic Rock #209. p. 122.
- ^ Ling, Dave (October 2014). "No rolling over, laying down for Status Quo". Classic Rock #202. p. 17.
- ^ "Status Quo Concert Setlist at Roundhouse, London on October 22, 2014 - setlist.fm". setlist.fm. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
- ^ "Status Quo - Acoustic". Radio 2 In Concert. bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
- ^ "Status Quo - Aquostic". statusquo.co.uk. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
- ^ "Freddie Edwards Music - Session Guitarist". Archived from the original on 2 February 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
- ^ "Status Quo Setlist at Roundhouse, London". setlist.fm. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ^ Status Quo - Aquostic Stripped Bare, retrieved 5 December 2022
- ^ Aquostic (Stripped Bare) (2014) | Status Quo | MP3 Musikdownloads | 7digital Deutschland (in German), 17 October 2014, retrieved 17 April 2023
- ^ "Aquostic (Stripped Bare), Status Quo". Qobuz (in German). Retrieved 17 April 2023.
- ^ Status Quo - Pictures Of Matchstick Men, retrieved 5 December 2022
- ^ "Austriancharts.at – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Danishcharts.dk – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Status Quo". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Status Quo – Aquostic – Stripped Bare". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2014". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
- ^ "British album certifications – Status Quo – Aquostic - Stripped Bare". British Phonographic Industry.