Francis was interviewed by Dan Walker on the UK's Channel 5 News on 8th November.
Francis said that he and the band are now back to feeling match fit after the Summer gigs and the long break was live shows helped him learn to slow down but also made it hard to get back to physical fitness.
It was obvious that the never-ending train that is Status Quo really keeps him going. He said "I'd don't get upset if it's too good or bad", a change from his younger self, but he still gets excited and there's "always the next thing, it keeps you going".
Turning to the Christmas tour, he spoke fondly of working with Shakin' Stevens. On the subject of myths around him, he pointed to the claims that he spent a million pounds on drugs and that he slept with 5000 women, saying he found these ridiculous claims "equally annoying and funny". Closing the interview out with a revelation, Francis said he polishes other people's shoes while on tour!
Francis was in a great mood and Dan is obviously a Quo fan so the short interview flowed really well and can be watched in full on YouTube.
After almost a month's break, the "Out Out Quoing" tour continued with a bunch of dates in mainland Europe, kicking off with a gig in Halle on 10th November. The support band was The Wake Woods but, more interestingly, a new setlist was showcased at this Germany gig with a few surprise inclusions, as follows.
Quo played in Rostock on 15th November and some excellent official footage of the band's performance of "In My Chair" can be seen here.
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Quo played in Roubaix on 19th November and superb official footage of the band's performance of "Twenty Wild Horses" can be seen in full here.
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Francis was interviewed by Johnnie Walker on his "Sounds of the 70s" show on BBC Radio 2 on 20th November. He was in good form and Johnnie walked him through his career with Quo, while Francis chose a few songs (in the shape of Quo's own "Is There A Better Way", ELO's "Steppin' Out" and The Eagles' "Already Gone").
Listen to the interview with Francis here.
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Quo played the massive Poppodium 013 venue in Tilburg in the Netherlands on 21st November. The full gig can be seen on YouTube.
The following article on Francis appeared in the UK Mirror on 23rd November, titled "Status Quo legend Francis Rossi dreams about late bandmate Rick Parfitt who died in 2016" and written by Tom Bryant.
"The Mirror join the rockers on tour as Francis tells how he stays in shape, his battle with pneumonia, the perils of growing old and old bandmate Rick.
The fans are bouncing, the beer is flying and Status Quo star Francis Rossi is doing what he has done for more than 50 years - rocking out.
Bounding across the stage like a man half his age, he - and the crowd - seem to have just one thought in their minds: I like it, I like it, I li-li-li like it.
But despite his buoyant performance, the rocker says he is super-conscious of every one of his 73 years.
"It's a shame I'm so f***ing old," he tells the Mirror in his dressing room before Monday's sold-out gig in the Dutch city of Tilburg.
"The band are playing really well, and all enjoying each other's company. I wonder how far the band can grow, but then I remember... I'm 73."
Francis is in a reflective mood but any melancholy is soon cancelled out by his self-deprecating humour.
"I'm very much aware of age because when I was growing up we would always laugh at someone in music who was 40. Now I'm in my 70s, my face is falling off and when I stand under a lamp, my hair disappears."
Looking lean and with more hair than me (which he is quick to point out with a cackle), Francis is doing himself a disservice.
He goes to great lengths to keep mother nature at bay.
"I swim every day, I work out every day, although I can't now because I've bust my bicep overdoing the chin-ups," he says.
He adds that a pre-diabetic diagnosis spurred him on. Now he swears by a brisk 10-minute walk after every meal, as well as a 1.30pm nap.
"My digestion is better, the cholesterol has dropped. Just from walking 10 minutes," he says.
"If the production manager wants to talk to me he has to walk alongside me, I'm not stopping. It's an obsession."
Another obsession is the Times crossword to keep him mentally agile.
"It's always the concise one. You learn about language and derivatives of words and such. It's really interesting," he says.
For a man whose nasal septum fell out because of a raging cocaine habit, his love of puzzles, as well as smoothies and vitamin injections is something of a change of pace.
After the death of bandmate Rick Parfitt in 2016, and Quo's original bassist Alan Lancaster last year, it's no wonder Francis thinks about his own mortality.
He says: "Death? Yeah. I've had pneumonia three times, and the last one was 2017. F***, have you ever been ill and you lie there at night sometimes and think you could die in your sleep now?
"That was it. I'm hoping there is a time that you just go, it's time to check out. And if it comes to a time of someone having to wipe my derriere, I'm going."
Born in 1949 in South East London, his family ran the Rossi's Ice Cream business. Francis had to choose between driving the van and sticking with music.
He formed the Scorpions with pal Alan in 1962 while they were at school.
After some name changes and the arrival of drummer John Coghlan, they were joined in 1967 by guitarist and singer Rick and called themselves The Status Quo.
After a big hit in 1968 with Francis' psychedelic song Pictures of Matchstick Men, they haven't looked back and have gone on to sell about 118 million records, as well as playing over 6,000 live shows to 25 million people.
But such extraordinary success came at a price. In his autobiography, Francis admits to spending £25,000 a month in today's money on cocaine, which led to the breakdown of his first marriage.
Rick died from sepsis aged 68 after a life of unbridled excess. Francis, who has eight children and lives in Surrey with second wife Eileen after beating his addictions, describes how Rick was the "best ever friend when I was a kid" but the two men drifted apart in later years.
But even now, Francis still feels Rick's presence.
"I dreamed of him last night. I was supposed to be doing a vocal for a soundtrack on a movie. He said, 'I think you should let me sing this', well, that was Rick all over, 'Let me, let me, let me'."
Lead singer Francis, who begins a UK tour with the band tomorrow, was adamant Quo would not fold after Rick's death. "The naysayers said 'they can't do it without Rick... blah, blah, blah'," he says. "And they may be right for all I know. But it just makes you dig in."
Unlike today's pop stars who are often scared of their own shadow, Francis is not only captivating company but refreshingly honest. Sometimes, a bit too honest.
At least three times during our chat, he stops mid-sentence to ask me not to print something or he'll "get in trouble", often with fellow musicians.
But, boy, does he deliver when he gets going. Take the row over singers such as Robbie Williams playing in Qatar during the World Cup despite the country's human rights record.
Francis says: "It's their laws, whether I agree with them is another matter. Whether [Qatar was awarded the rights to host the World Cup] in a bent way or not, we're now going to say the rest of the world isn't bent? Including our own country and our own government?
"Robbie went and did that because they put a lot of zeroes in front of him. It's very, very hard to not do it."
He remembers a similar backlash in the 1980s over Quo performing at Sun City in South Africa during the Apartheid era. "They were all being f***ing hypocritical. We went there just after Queen and Tina Turner. We were ostracised."
And don't get Francis started on the industry today, not least the pittance earned from streaming services, and the impact of Brexit. "If they were shagging us in the 60s, they're definitely shagging us now," he says.
"Brexit means there's certain things we can't get budget-wise for the tours, for the buses, for the crews, for the trucks. We're getting shagged over everywhere. But I still want to do it."
After the show, I join Quo members bassist John "Rhino" Edwards, drummer Leon Cave and guitarist Richie Malone in the pub just yards from the venue.
They are instantly mobbed by fans, old and young, who ask for selfies and bombard them with free drinks.
Quo have a strict midnight curfew and at 11.50pm, their time is up and they dutifully head back to the tour bus - where they rejoin Francis - for an overnight dash to another European city.
Down the years, the bus has been known to leave stragglers behind. If you're keen on Rockin' All Over the World with Francis your timekeeping has to be impeccable off stage as well as on stage."
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The first gig of the UK "Out Out Quoing Xmas 22" tour saw Quo rocking the modern P&J Live arena in Aberdeen on 25th November. Shakin' Stevens did a good job of warming up the crowd before Quo hit the stage, performing the same set as the recent German gigs but with "Burning Bridges" replacing "Don't Waste My Time" in the encore.
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The following article on Francis appeared on the Classic Rock website on 25th November (and was also in the printed magazine this month), titled "Francis Rossi could make another Status Quo album but he won't: you can blame Spotify" and written by Dave Everley.
"Francis Rossi is struggling with Zoom. On screen, the Status Quo frontman's mouth is moving but no sound is coming out. Attempts to fix the problem are waved off. It goes on like this for 30 seconds. Then it dawns: he's doing his Marcel Marceau impression.
"I like to mess with people," he says with a grin, dropping the comedy mime act. "I've got to keep myself entertained."
That's fair enough - he's been entertaining Quo fans for 55 years now, even if he's the last original member left standing.
Early 2000s Quo albums Heavy Traffic and Riffs have just been reissued. What was it like being in the band at that point?
It was good fun, particularly doing Heavy Traffic. There are times when you're aware that the public go off you en masse, then something happens and it's all great again. That was a period when we were okay.
Does it annoy you, coming in and out of fashion like that?
It annoys me and it hurts somewhat. One of the things that made me agree to do [Quo's 2019 album] Backbone was the amount of naysayers. When we split from Alan [Lancaster, original bassist] years ago, people said: "They'll be no good without him." That made Rick [Parfitt, guitarist] and I dig our fucking heels in. Same thing when Rick died: "No good? Well try this, then." But acts come in and out of fashion all the time. The Stones, Reggie...
Reggie?
Elton John. I'm not supposed to call him that because he gets upset, but I can't help it, that's what I know him as. I remember years ago, we bumped into him coming out of the studio that Pye Records had. He'd just done a cover of Down The Dustpipe for one of those cheap albums they put out. And three weeks later he was this megastar. Brilliant songwriter. He once said to us: "I wish I could write them rock songs like you do." I just went: "What? Don't be silly Reg, for fuck's sake."
Sir Elton John, Sir Rod Stewart, Sir Mick Jagger. Are you jealous that it's not Sir Francis Rossi?
If you want the truth, just before we got the gong [in 2010, Rossi and Parfitt received OBEs for services to music], I was told by a certain individual that we were due for the other gong [a knighthood]. And Rick was a naughty boy, as usual. Whenever it was imperative that he behave, he couldn't. I can't tell you what he did, but it wasn't particularly good. So it was a case of: "You can't have that one, but you can have this one instead."
You gave up smoking dope a few years ago. Was it easier than quitting booze and cocaine?
Booze and cocaine were easy. I never liked drinking much anyway - didn't like the taste. With cocaine, we were in Nassau [in the Bahamas], and you would not believe how easy it was to get hold of coke out there. One day I thought: "I'm not going to have any toot until the night before a day off." And then I ended up thinking: "No, I'll wait until the next time I have a day off." And I just got into a routine of not having it. Dope was harder. I miss it, but I daren't do it now. It's so strong now I'm frightened of it.
You did some spoken-word shows over the last couple of years, on the back of your autobiography I Talk Too Much. Did you enjoy them?
Immensely. I realised that I do like to talk. I'd like to do more of them in the future. But then again, it's weird me saying: "What I hope we can do..." Where the fuck do you think you're going, you're seventythree?! Part of me wonders if I should slow down, but I have a fear just like everyone else: how will I finance my old age? We've got all the various crises coming, and I can't help worrying about that.
You auctioned off a beloved Telecaster for £125,000 a few years ago. Did you treat you and the wife to a nice holiday?
No, I gave a bit to charity, a load to tax... It just disappears into the system. You say 'beloved', but only to a point. It was getting difficult to tune, and the best way of stopping me from hanging on to it was to sell it. If you'd told me in the early seventies that I'd sell something for a hundred and twenty-five grand I'd have said: "Don't be fucking silly. If you had that kind of money you'd retire." Of course, you can't retire on that these days.
Speaking of retirement, original Quo drummer John Coghlan is playing some farewell dates. Is there part of you...
No.
...that fancies getting on stage with him one last time?
No, is the answer. I wish John all the best, but I can't do that shit. It feels maudlin to me.
Do you miss Rick and late Quo bassist Alan Lancaster?
I miss that thing you have when you're a young band and it's you against the world. Obviously there were rough times even then, but there was something pioneering to it all: [makes fanfare noise] "Da-da-daaaahh! Here we go!" I miss my relationship with Rick in the early days. But then you get older and you become successful and you change, no matter what people say. What got to Rick was that it wasn't enough for him. He wanted to be where I was standing.
Have you got another Status Quo album in you?
We've got one in us. Whether we'll do one or not, I don't know.
What's stopping you?
Spotify. It's even worse than it was when we were all getting ripped off in the sixties. It makes you sound mercenary saying it, but it's something we've sweated over and they're giving you a quarter of a penny per stream? Fuck you. So do I think there'll be another Status Quo album? No, I don't."
Revisit the November 2022 event list
The following review of Quo's gig at Brighton Centre on 30th November appeared in the Brighton & Hove News on 1st December, titled "Fans get 'Down Down' to Status Quo in Brighton" and written by John Mileham. Some superb professional photos from the gig (by Robert Sutton) form part of the original article.
"This was a night of two contrasting performances, with the first set at the Brighton Centre coming from Shakin' Stevens which was to be followed later by Status Quo.
Shakin' Stevens had a seven piece band with two female backing singers and performed many of his hits.
However, his overall performance lacked the energy and musicality that you expect from a performer of his quality. His hits went down well including 'Green Door', 'This Ole House', 'Marie Marie' and of course he finished with 'Merry Christmas Everyone'.
Certainly his performance went down well with his loyal fans who were dancing in the aisles towards the end of his set. His band and backing singers were superb, it's just a shame that his performance was a little below par, and in particular, he appeared to have tuning issues on a few of his songs.
After the interval, Status Quo took the stage with an onslaught of sound. It's worthwhile remembering their position in British rock history, as one of the loudest bands in Rock music.
They have released 33 Studio albums, 12 Live albums, 26 Compilation albums, 31 Video albums, 73 Music videos, 98 Singles and 18 Box sets. Have spent over 400 weeks in the UK Singles Chart and have over 500 weeks in the UK Albums Chart and are one of the most successful rock bands of all time in the UK. Their most recent album, 'Backbone', was released in 2019.
The bands mainstay have always been Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt playing together since 1962. Sadly Parfitt died in a Marbella hospital on 24th December 2016 from sepsis, after being admitted on Thursday evening, 22nd December, following an infection of a pre-existing shoulder injury and this clearly left a hole in the band. That was filled by Richie Malone in 2016. Other current band members include Andy Bown (since 1976), John "Rhino" Edwards (since 1985) and Leon Cave (joined 2013).
First out of the stables was 'Caroline', this number always sets the scene and gets the audience jumping right from the start. It didn't take long for the audience to stand up and start jumping up and down. Francis Rossi's relationship to his fans is evident in everything he says, his banter and humour hits the right note.
What really got the fans going was the medley of some rockers; 'What You're Proposing', 'Down The Dustpipe', 'Something 'bout You Baby I Like', 'Wild Side Of Life', 'Rollin' Home', 'Railroad', 'Again And Again', 'Mystery Song'.
That was followed by one of their fans favourites 'The Oriental' and three of the newer songs, 'In My Chair', 'Cut Me Some Slack' and 'Liberty Lane'. It was then time to blow the roof off! Our ears were about to get assaulted; 'In the Army Now', 'Roll Over Lay Down', 'Down Down', 'Whatever You Want', 'Rockin' All Over the World'. A phenomenal run of songs which left the audience wanting more as the band left the stage.
They returned with one more song, involving audience participation by punching the air during the chorus of 'Burning Bridges'. A brilliant performance from one of the greatest UK rock bands."
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