Chords for STATUS QUO Old Grey Whistle Test Interview (circa 1977)

Well, okay, really a week goes by now without letters from all you Quo fans, right?
Threatening mayhem if we don't have the band on the programme.
So, in answer to so many questions, it's a pleasure for me to welcome to Whistle Test
Francis Rossi and Richard Parfit.
Welcome.
Hi, Bob.
How you doing?
Very nice to see you.
Particularly at this time, Francis, which is a milestone for the band, isn't it?
15 years in existence yesterday.
[E] Since the first gig of the band, we always take them the first [Ab] gig.
It's probably a bit longer, but it sounds a bit too much to [D] say that.
The first gig was about 15 [Ab] years in a terrible_
The cricket club.
Cricket club, Dulwich.
[E] Last [G] day's working men's club.
One of those touches, I'm afraid.
Got [E] me a badge, right?
Got me a badge.
[Ab] We've found a [E] marvellous photo, actually, that comes from 62, around that time.
[F] Butt limbs.
[Gb] Four good-looking boys.
Everybody thinks it was about the time that you joined the band.
[D] I wasn't quite in when that picture_
That's the one up the telegraph pole.
That's the one.
Oh, [E] that's the one.
That's Oliver Gibson, isn't it?
Mother Kelly's, that's it.
I was watching when that picture was took, actually.
Yeah, yeah.
You got booed out of there.
Yeah, I know.
How did you get involved with the band at that point, then?
Well, I was with another band down there, a little kind of trio thing, you know.
Oh, and it's called_
I won't say the name of it.
It's a terrible name.
And I'd sort of got [D] pally with everybody there,
and I was writing to the [Ab] bass player at the time, believe it or [D] not,
after we left for about a year.
[C] And then the manager at the time, he was a plumber,
good-looking bloke, though.
[B] _ [D] And he said, do you want to join?
Because we needed another voice, believe it or not.
And ever since then, I've had a terrible problem with singing in the studio,
so I was never this voice.
_ _ [G] The band needed a voice at the time, didn't they?
In the guest [D] show room, he told [E] us.
It was true, [D] underneath the guest show, he said,
you need a voice in this band.
The contracts blowing down Lambeth Walk.
Yeah, he used to drop them everywhere.
We've had some time.
So how did you both get involved in [Ab] the gig business?
I mean, lead up to Match Day 1,
because I know you were working with Madeline Bell just before.
Yeah, we had all [G] that, with Richard with us.
To get a gig was [Gb] amazing, to have a gig.
We had to do a sort of soul-y type [G] set at the time, and it was all_
[Gb] And we used to do [Ab] gigs back in Peter, we did Tommy Quickly,
Guy [Ab] Darrow, and we did Madeline Bell.
And she was [G] amazing to work with. _
She came in and said, well, down in the guest show rooms again,
in the basement, and she [Bb] said,
I'll do whatever you've got, [Ab] and she used to do numbers.
We were doing a kind of a [Eb] soul set at the time, [D] really,
and she fancied doing all of that [Em] soul set.
So that's what we did, [Bb] around the Working Men's Clubs up [A] Manchester.
It was great fun, actually, she was [Ab] really good.
So how [Abm] many staves did you have before Match Day 1?
[A] How many singles?
I heard nothing.
[D] _
_ Where did he go, do you mean?
Where did he go, do you mean?
I think it was about three, I think.
And then she mentioned me and so I went_
There was a [Ab] trough after that as well, wasn't there?
A what?
[A] A trough.
You hit hard times [C] through it all.
69.
[F] Pure deal.
It was just my own things, I think.
It was a good job it did, because I don't suppose we'd be where we are.
[D] Is that right?
I suppose so, yeah.
That was around 1969, [Bb] late 69.
Got really unhealthy for us, particularly.
It did [Ab] for the whole business.
Couldn't work anywhere.
Everybody seemed, the whole business seemed to be flat.
[D] It was a summer.
It was a summer.
It's good, isn't it?
Not really.
No, it was a summer and all these [Ab] gigs, everyone said,
oh, the gigs are going [F] broke, everyone's gone away.
The usual stuff, when you can't get work.
Everybody's on holiday, that's what it is.
So many people split.
I just flashed me badge, I was rude.
All these bands were [Ab] splitting up and we didn't know what to do,
so we just kept rehearsing in this pub.
We still thought we were wonderful.
So it's, you know, wonderful, [N] aren't we?
Talking about the business, Francis,
a lot of people are saying, me included,
that the business isn't at its most healthy right now.
Has it changed?
Have you noticed an enormous change since you've been working?
I don't know, we seem detached a little bit now
because you get out of the thing of being_
When [Gb] you're a club band, when you're into a club thing,
you seem more in touch with it, I think.
[Ab] This is why, when you get _ [F] _ [Ab] one, hopes it does,
because you say it needs more, but I don't know.
It's difficult, it changes all the time.
One [E] can't keep up, really.
One can't?
One [D] can't, I'm telling.
I must mention you.
[Eb] Thanks.
It's Rick.
Oh, yeah, my English.
Got it off Big Kev, [D] didn't I?
Number seven.
Or Little Kev.
[Ab] Number seven.
Flash it, go on, look.
Tate Euston on the front.
Terrific.
Did he get it?
So listen, because I'm going to surprise you with a piece of film
as well in a second, but before we look at that,
just plans into the future now, what's happening next?
We're about to do an album, aren't we?
Are we?
[G] We're thinking of doing an album, I suppose,
a British [D] tour, we need to do something.
[Ab] And then we start sort of Japan, Australia and Europe all over again,
to say what's going to happen in the [G] future,
apart from basic [E] tours and the same as what everybody does.
You do an [F] album, you do a tour and you go on and see what comes tomorrow.
You never know, you might ask us again.
You [E] might.
It's a rainy day.
Listen, it's forgetting [Eb] to run.
You must [Gb] link us into this, because this is your first appearance,
I think, on Top of the Fence.
[D] Oh, not the thing at Top of the Fence.
The way it was here, I can't believe it.
Pictures of Max from then.
That ring, got that ring?
_ Oh, that's good, isn't it?
Look at that, wait a minute. _
[Eb] Look at that.
[C] You've got to get off of here.
[G] _ [D] Oh, no. _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [F]
I'm going.
[C] _ [E] So different.
Oh, my God.
[F] _ _ _ [G] _ _ [D] _ _ [F] _
_ [C] _ _ [G] _ _ [D] _ _ _