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STATUS QUO
Ain't Complaining
VERTIGO VERH58 LP/Cass/CD

It took Chas 'n' Dave to clue me in to why Status Quo's appeal remains so peculiarly and enduringly British. Like the Bards of Tottenham, Quo update the pub knees-up tradition, but more than that, their chummy repetition echoes the marching songs ("We're here because here because we're here" "Lloyd George knew my father, father knew Lloyd George" ad infinitum) of World War One's Tommy Atkins in the trenches; it may not be such a long way from Ypres to the Reading Festival 60 years later.

Anyway, Quo's new album is, not surprisingly, a far from original work; but it does show old dogs can learn new tricks, such as the sequencer riff trademarked by ZZ Top's Sleeping Bag for their own One For The Money, or the careful harmonies practiced by the likes of Godley & Creme for Another Shipwreck. Indeed, Ain't Complaining finds more different ways to chug than seems humanly possible, even setting the metronome to walking speed for the strong but sensitive ballad, I Know You're Leaving, a form in which the Quo are growing adroit. I foresee a big hit, with an extensive choice of follow-ups. It's taken years to broaden out from their boogie base, but with a little help from the three new chaps, could be that Messrs Parfitt and Rossi have found a new lease of life. (3 stars)

Mat Snow