The following page contains Gig reports from the 1998 Australian QUO tour
Thanks to the following contributors : Chris Niven , Ashleigh Hind, Mark Thompson , Heather Lord, Jeff Smith
Click here for Pics from the 1998 Australian QUO tour
Melbourne Gig Report -25th
March 1998 by Ashleigh Hind
7:30 Wednesday evening, hoping to
meet a few of the list people at the
bar and the damn bar is closed. Luckily there is more than one bar.
Anyway I met the people I was meeting, and got down to some serious
pre-concert lubrication!
Great to meet a couple of the list
members in person. CHRIS NIVEN WHERE
ARE YOU??????????? We are starting to believe there is no such person.
Only kidding Chris.
Down to business.
Firstly please don't ask who the support band were, because we were all
having such a great time getting lubricated that we didn't bother! I
believe it was the same band as at the Geelong gig.
9:00PM Quotime.
Must have been awfully empty for the support band cause there were lots
of people entering at 9pm. Anyway after about 15 minutes chatting to the
security people we were asked rather politely to be seated for the
concert, right! As darkness filled the hall and a taped rendition of
Matchstick men played through the speakers, a figure appeared with a
white guitar in hand, RICK blasting out one of rocks greatest intros
ever, WYW, Francis closely following then Rhino, Andrew, Jeff, the lads
were here and ready to rock. Needless to say we were not seated for
long. The lads were in fine form obviously enjoying themselves, Frame
was playing up to the crowd as always even to the point of disappearing
behind Jeff and the drum riser to reappear the other side, Rick showed
no signs of last years bypass racing around the stage like a teenager,
Rhino was more animated than last year obviously showing no signs of any
illness that he felt in Melbourne last year jumping up onto the drum
riser as bass guitarist do although he disappeared off stage during
Gerdundula must have needed a pee or something, Andrew and Frame had a
great little "duel" during Roadhouse Blues. Jeff even got into the
act
standing high on the drum kit urging on the crowd. All in all a great
show. For those lucky enough to be seeing Quo for the rest of the OZ
tour I hope the energy continues, cause you are all in for a hell of a
show. The remainder of the concert was, as expected, a class act.
Here is the list, I hope I got all
the songs, someone correct me if I'm
wrong:
Whatever You Want
Softer Ride
Wanderer
Medley:
Mystery Song
Railroad
Most of the Time
Wild side of life
Dear John
Again and Again
Home Again?
Don't Drive My Car
Gerdundula - Where did Rhino get to?
ROLD
Get out of Denver
In my chair
Margurita Time?
Medley:
Living on an Island
Break the Rules
Mean Girl
In the Army Now
Down Down
Don't Waste My Time
Somethin' about you baby I like?
Roadhouse Blues
Encore:
Caroline
Medley:
?
No particular place to go
I hear you knockin'
Lucille
Great Balls of Fire
Rock'n'Roll Music
Bye Bye Johnny.
The same set as the previous night
concert in Geelong I believe. I think
the highlight of the evening, apart from shaking Rick's hand at the end,
was Roadhouse Blues. Shades of Quo of the '70s in that one with the
Francis giving us a little bit, ya' knoa' the bit?? Sensational!
I don't know how others felt but
I thought the numbers were
disappointing, given the size of the Entertainment Centre I thought
there were a lot of empty seats, still the lads were absolutely
fantastic.
Afterwards a few of us went back
to the Hilton Hotel where the lads are
staying. Rhino was in the Bar, I did not talk to him but Peter VL did.
He got Rhino to sign the program, and mentioned that Rhino said the
others were to knackered after the show and would probably not come
down.
Melbourne and Geelong Gig Reports by Chris Niven
have had a great week or so having
been to both the Geelong and Melbourne
gigs and having had the the great thrill and excitement of meeting the band
before the Melbourne gig. We also had the pleasure of seeing nearly all of
the soundcheck in Geelong which was fantastic. Heard a thundering rendition
of Don't Waste, which was not played that night in favour of Burning
Bridges. As you have read, Rhino said they had big problems that night with
some of their gear and Francis lost everything at the end of Softer Ride,
the second song at Geelong. However, they quickly changed his radio mike
and all seemed well on the face of it. As I said earlier, I thought the
band were still sensational despite this although maybe the sound drifted
off a bit at the end. Francis is as ever simply amazing on stage and Rick
is back, and flat out at it. Rhino really is excellent and Jeff Rich is
awesome for a little guy, which has been pointed out earlier by Lee. Andy
of course was an integral part of the fab five.
We spoke to David Walker and Simon Porter before the Melbourne gig who said
the band were unhappy with the sound and equipment problems at Geelong and
that tonight would be much better.
This gig was at the Melbourne Entertainment Centre, in the heart of
Melbourne, right across from Melbourne Park where they play the Australian
Open; Tennis that is. Running alongside is the famous Yarra River and the
night was pleasant with the temperature in the low twenties (Celsius). This
venue is much bigger than last years Palais Theatre, and I would guess
around 5000 people in the gig. Marvellous to walk up to the front of the
building and see the huge Status Quo sign, Yep, they were back!
The crowd was again an extraordinary mix of ages, with a range from seven
to seventy I reckon. My group of about ten or so fans from Bendigo, about
100 miles north of Melbourne, shuffled in with great expectations as we
knew that three of us were meeting the band and that this year, they had
all of their backline on stage.
We put up with the support band, sorry guys, they were only just....Paul
Rogers would have been sensational!!...until about 8.30 pm when we were
supposed to go back stage for the meet and greet.
Finally David Walker marched us around to a lounge area and said wait here
for the band. There were about 15 or so people including the three of us
who suddenly realised what was about to happen. The band appeared and
started towards us, Rick being first, then Jeff, then Francis, Rhino and
Andy. Well, the rest seems a blur, however they were all very very pleasant
and signed all of our things with some quips and typical Quo humour. We
have a photo of us and Francis which could be bad as I suspect it may have
three dopey looking guys and a rock superstar looking cool, as ever...
Francis made sure he spoke to all in the room and was last to go, much to
the annoyance of the crew. We wandered back to our seats with very big
grins in a sort of trance I think.....
I snapped out of it to the sound of Matchstick Men wafting out of the PA
and the house lights dimmed to a huge roar!!!
The classic intro to WYW got the whole house rockin' from the start and Quo
were hot indeed! Rick's voice was just great and no way was he holding back
for anyone!
Softer Ride was fantastic; fast, tight, frenetic. Just the way we expect
our beloved Quo to be. I think even after all these years we are still
blown away as to how bloody good they actually are LIVE! Sensational!!
This was a ripping gig, different to last year and the fans were really
putting in this time. Everyone could feel that this was special I think. I
would say the band were much happier with the sound which was great out the
front.
Francis leapt around the stage like an 18 year old and is just fascinating
to watch. His playing live is truly extraordinary.
Highlights were the inclusions of Mean Girl, In my Chair, Gerdundula and
Don't Waste was in instead of Burning Bridges. A memorable In the Army Now
went down a storm but the Aussie faves which seemed to really get the house
rockin' were Roll Over, Down Down, Rockin' and of course, Caroline. The
revised Roadhouse without medley was much better also.
The pace of the set was just amazing and after a very short break, there
they were again, blasting out Anniversary Waltz Pt 1, without Wanderer. The
crowd were pumped up for sure as they finished us off with Bye Bye.
A fantastic gig, now takes it's place as the best ever Quo gig I have seen
and one which will go a long way to the gradual re- emergence of Quo as a
force over here.
We wandered out again with that kind of blown away look and legs like jelly
from nearly two hours of solid rockin'.
Status Quo are back again big time in Australia.
By the way, this is still the greatest little rock and roll band in the
world...
Adelaide Gig Report - by Mark Thompson
Crowd of about 4000 - 4500. The total
lenghth of the show was about 1hr
45min..
From the start they had technical problems both on stage and out the front
but by
about 40mins in the problems out front seemed to sort themselves out and
the boys
sounded great - loud and ballsy!! The whole band seemed very fit and
energetic..
Rossi and Parfitt seem ageless at the moment and Andy is spending more time
out
front playing guitar and harmonica. The set list was the same as Geelong
and Melbourne
so no surprises there, although it was nice to hear "Rock 'n' Roll and
Dear Mean Girl" in
the medelies. And the crowd were into it from the start.
If the was a downside to the show
it was the venue. The Adelaide
Entertainment Centre
is, without a doubt, the worst rock venue in South Australia - and it's
less than 10 years
old. It's management ran it like a military exercise - everyone in their
seats, no dancing
in the aisles. Last year Quo played a small 2000 seat venue that was packed
to the
rafters and everyone was shoulder to shoulder. It was loud, hot and sweaty
and everyone
had a ball!! Give me a smaller venue anytime.
The review in the press on Friday
was a bit negative tho'. It did mention
that the place
was packed, the band were great and the crowd was buzzing but also
mentioned that
they played almost the same set as last year - Mind you , this is a
"Greatest Hit's" tour!
Perth, Sydney, Brisbane and Newcastle - you're in for a great time!!
Mark
Perth Gig Report (No.1) - by Heather Lord
Shortly after 1.00 a.m. Sunday..
What can I say. Quo were loud loud
loud and rockin' for about 1 hr 45
minutes.
As an ex Pom, here's a bit of "typical
British understatement" for you:
Many people seemed to have taken full advantage of the bar facilities at
the venue before the gig :#) and there were a few (_|_)s there also.
The crowd varied widely in age and
dress standards! Took a while for
people to get the idea of standing up - except for about the first 3
rows who were standing from the beginning. One guy and his wife (in the
front row) actually left the gig because they found that, in order to
see the band, they had to stand up. Maybe they caught the wrong show ?
The boys seemed like they were enjoying
themselves though - particularly
Rick ;) Halfway through the gig, most people were on their feet
though. Francis said something along the lines of "the management of
Burswood normally don't allow people to stand up, but because we're here
.... bollocks to that"
Perth Gig Report (No.2) by Heather Lord
Well, once again, the boys were loud, fast, and rockin'!
I have ringing in my ears (which
is out of synch with the ringing in my
ears from the night before), I'm hoarse from all the singing, my calf
muscles are shot to pieces, my knees hurt, my neck's sore and once again
I had a great time :))))) If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm one
of the older fans on this list ;) I've been following Quo since I first
saw them on Hastings Pier in England in 1972 when I was sweet 16!
The audience were much better than
Saturday night. Saturday night's
crowd was a bit subdued (except for the ones who'd spent a couple of
hours in the bar!), and the atmosphere on Saturday wasn't the "normal"
friendly Quo gig atmosphere. But last night's was better. There were a
*few* people who went to both gigs. Thank goodness my penfriend and
fellow fan club member (can a woman be a fellow, I ask myself - but you
know what I mean!) Tannia (who's over here from Adelaide for both gigs)
and I knew the words to most of the songs, 'cos we couldn't hear the
band singing for some of them!
Rhino was in good spirits, despite
having a few problems with one of his
guitars (where's the volume control on this thing?). Francis was running
around the stage like a 18 year old and the band's antics were much
appreciated by the audience.
At one point, Rick seemed to decide
that he'd worked his cute little bum
off for long enough, and sat down on Jeff's drum riser and refused to
play :-)
Once again, they were on stage for
about 1 hour 45 mins. OK, enough of
my waffling, now the important stuff - the set list (Can't remember what
order the songs were played in, but *I don't think it matters at all*,
because neither could the band ;) :
Whatever You Want
Gerdundula
Softer Ride
In my Chair
Railroad
Living on an Island
Roll Over Lay Down
Something 'bout you Baby I like
In the Army Now
Break the Rules
The Wanderer (full version)
Dear John
Don't Waste My Time
Again and Again
Mystery Song?
Get out of Denver
Wild Side of LIfe
Down Down
Rockin' All Over the World
Most of the Time
Roadhouse Blues
Mean Girl
Encore:
Caroline
Medley (Great Balls of Fire etc.)
Bye Bye Johnny
See you next year?
GO THE QUO!
Canberra and Newcastle Gig Reports by Jeff Smith
Canberra Concert
Met some guys at the show that had
been travelling the states checking out
all the gigs (I thought I was lucky catching the shows twice) anyway
introduced myself and my mate Garry to anybody and everybody who was around.
Good mob those QUO boys and girls.
Gig started off at a blistering pace the guys seemed to be enjoying
themselves as we were.
It is a great feeling to be standing in the front two rows with the
legendary band that QUO are pounding out the finest music that shakes my head.
The music was good, the lyrics were very light on although you knew when
Francis was singing round and round as the digit did the singing for him.
Rick destroyed what seemed to be a lead to his remote unit that I thought
was going unnoticed by the Technicians (hey Tonto were are you) anyway a
change of cable and rock'in Rick was back in the fray (good to see him back
into it and mov'in freely).
The interlude between sets seem to come also quickly when one of the throng
decided to jump the stage and rev up the crowd.
Toot responded with a heave ho and I thought we had ourselves a mosh pit a
happen'in. The guy didn't come back QUO did though and proceeded to make the
night.
We had a great night that night we met Sumo, Trev, Craig and umh and err
well there were others I exchanged Notes address's with another QUO fan but
haven't heard from him as yet.
Still all in all a great gig.(Do QUO have bad ones?)
Newcastle Gig
Got to the venue around 2:30 in the
afternoon hung around for a while with
the wife and my youngest son trying to meet the guys.
I met a sottish lad who had the same idea but he couldn't wait he was off
for a point at the local I wanted to go but was going to persevere.
Waited a while longer then came along Paul an Australian fan who missed the
gigs last year as he is with the armed forces.
We exchanged phone numbers and stalked the place waiting for the guys to
appear I wanted a photo with my son and the QUO.
We waited to approximately 5:15 when we had to return to the motel to scrub
up for the gig.
In the mean time Paul made contact with the roadies and was told the guys
would not do a sound check and wouldn't be on site till late.
We had a few ales before the gig and whilst Fox C were playing settled
ourselves in down the front for the final onslaught of pure 12 BAR BLUES
and didn't we enjoy it.
The vocals were good the balance was great the venue was in my opinion very
good.
I could describe the song set from go to wo but that will be done else where.
I would just like to thank the QUO
for there presence, the road crew
especially Tonto who took a breif moment out of his pre gig time to say
g'day.
I would have liked to discuss more with him but the gig hadn't started and
like the true professional he obviously is he proceede to do the ground work
so the guys could show there wears, and show they bloody well did.
QUO rocked the Hard Rock City and
some, anyway they say QUO will return in
two years time.
We will be ready.
Actually we are ready already.
I'd like to say g'day to all the
QUO Girls and Boys we met at the gigs and
keep on rock'in.