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Quo Records |  |
| Status Quo - The Pye Re-issues. (Page 2) | ||
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Spare Parts was the second album released by Quo and is now
re-issued on Castle Communications.
As with the other re-issues the CD has been re-mastered and also includes five extra tracks that were not on the original Pye release. |
Spare Parts (This Page) Picturesque Matchstickable Messages From The Status Quo Ma Kelly's Greasy Spoon Dog Of Two Head |
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Spare Parts (Castle ESM CD 625)
Originally released in August 1969. (Pye NSPL 18301) |
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Status Quo's second album, "Spare Parts", was
released in August 1969, hot off
the back of "Picturesque Matchstickable Messages"
(originally on Pye
NSPL18301). Within eleven months of the debut album, a
further dozen tracks
spelled this new album. The overpowering influence of their
commitment to their
record label is obvious in this collection of psychedelic
songs, showing little
if any of the direction that Quo would take only a few
months later with their
departures into the boogie style which would begin with
"Ma Kelly's Greasy
Spoon" and, even more so, "Dog of Two Head".
The original album of twelve tracks was seen as fodder for only one A-side single, that being the ballad "Are You Growing Tired of My Love" which was not chart successful. It provided two B-sides, "Face Without A Soul" being the backing of "Down The Dustpipe" and "Little Miss Nothing" for "The Price of Love". The band's lack of enthusiasm for the type of music deemed fit for this album is clear through many of the songs, which show little inspiration or passion. Notable are "Antique Angelique" (a joint Lancaster/Young composition), "So Ends Another Life" (penned by Alan Lancaster alone) and "When I Awake" (another Young and Lancaster effort). It's hard to imagine this as an album from the Status Quo we are familiar with and perhaps it should be viewed instead as the product of a new and naive band being groomed by their management and record company to conform to the mood of the time. This reissue CD also provides five bonus tracks in addition to the standard dozen tracks of the original "Spare Parts". The mono mix of "The Price Of Love" is reproduced as per the single release and sounds somewhat different to the various other CD renditions of this track (which are offered in stereo). The original Pye mix of "Josie" is next up, a track which only saw the light of day via Pye's "Fresh Quota" in 1981. This is a strange Quo song but a surprisingly effective one, questioning as it does man's new found skills in venturing into the alien world of space. Another "Fresh Quota" number, "Do You Live In Fire", is provided with its original mix again and sees Alan Lancaster in one of his relatively few lead vocal performances. The track "You're Just What I Was Looking For Today" has been discovered as an out-take under the title "Hey Little Woman" and this out-take is presented as an unreleased version. The mix here is richer than the original and it really sounds quite a piece, almost orchestral. Finally, the only single of the album, "Are You Growing Tired Of My Love", is given in mono form and, unsurprisingly, sounds less spacious than the original. This mid-priced reissue CD is worthy of consideration for collectors who cannot resist the extra tracks, although these bonus tracks are not quite so important as others available on the CDs in this series. The original "Spare Parts" material is not of particularly high quality and is more than adequately represented elsewhere, particularly via the multitude of Pye era compilations that Quo seem to attract. The liner notes on this particular member of this Pye reissue series are not as well researched as the others, but provide adequate coverage nonetheless. |
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