(* for this and four subsequent singles they were "The Status Quo" )
Chart entered : 24 January 1968
Chart peak : 7
Number of hits : 62
After five farewells in a row it's about time we had some newcomers and the Quo are always good for putting a smile on your face.
The band started coming together in 1962 when two thirteen year olds at school in Catford, Francis Rossi and Alan Lancaster, formed a band called The Scorpions with Alan Key ( drums ) and Jess Jaworski ( keyboards ). In 1963 they changed drummers with John Coghlan replacing Key and their name to The Spectres. In 1965 Jaworski was replaced by Roy Lynes and Francis met Rick Parfitt from a cabaret outfit called The Highlights but he didn't immediately join the band.
The band now signed with Piccadilly and their first single , in September 1966, was a garage rock cover of "I ( Who Have Nothing ) " dominated by Roy's rinky-dink organ and under-pinned by Alan's rocksolid bassline. For better or worse, Francis's nasal whine is instantly recognisable. It's actually a pretty good single apart from Francis's spoken word coda which is just a bad idea. The follow-up in November was Alan's "Hurdy Gurdy Man" ( nothing to do with the Donovan song ) which sounds like two schoolkids have got up on stage to sing with the Inspiral Carpets. I don't know who's harmonising with Francis but they're awful and it sinks the record.
The third and last single for Piccadilly "( We Ain't Got ) Nothin Yet " in February 1967, is a cover of a US hit for the Blues Magoos which itself utilised the much-borrowed bassline from Ricky Nelson's Summertime that we know best from Deep Purple's Black Night. If anything the Spectres' version is more exciting, sounding even more like the Carpets at least until you get to the superbly raw guitar solo. Unfortunately the title proved to be an accurate statement of their position .
They then changed their name to The Traffic Jam and released "Almost But Not Quite There" which Francis co-wrote ( with someone called Barlow ? ) Though still quite heavy in the rhythm section it sees the group moving away from garage rock towards Turtles-style psychedelic pop. Unfortunately the BBC interpreted the lyric, with some justification I think, as being about failing to give your girlfriend an orgasm and banned it.
Further trouble arrived in the form of a writ from Island who felt the new name was too close to Steve Winwood's new outfit. Without support from Piccadilly who had cast them adrift the band had to give way and rename themselves once more. With Rick Parfitt now coming on board as an extra guitarist they became The Status Quo and were soon signed to Pye.
"Pictures Of Matchstick Men" was written by Francis, allegedly in a toilet taking refuge from his mother-in-law. It's a Top Of The Pops 2 favourite . partly through the happy accident of escaping the general destruction of sixties TV footage but more I suspect because it gives the opportunity for the likes of Steve Wright to make a cheap crack at the sight of Francis and Rick dolled up in Carnaby Street's finest togs.
The band themselves have generally acquiesced in making a joke out of their brief flirtation with psychedelia but I think the song stands up to anything Traffic or The Herd produced. The lyrics are clearly influenced by Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds more than anything to do with LS Lowry. Unless the girl he is missing used to drag him off to art galleries that reference is still mystifying. However that piercing, acid-fried guitar riff that kicks off and re-starts the song still cuts through and is probably the main reason for its success. In the USA it remains their only hit.
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