Status Quo - Mystery Song Reaction 

One of the greatest British bands of all time their style is 12 bar blues over many decades...I grew up in the UK and moved to Australia in 1970, back in the very early 1960 in the UK I was lead singer in a local band "The Demons" I was 20 years old and our rhythm guitarist was only 14 years old at the time he had blonde hair and always got a lot of attention from the girls his name Rick Parfitt he became the blond guy in Status Quo...I was privileged to meet up with him every time Status Quo came to Melbourne for a concert I got back stage passes, at one time I was managing a rock band here in Melb and Bob Young who was Status Quo's tour manager got me back stage passes for myself and my band members which was a real treat...Sadly my friend Rick Parfitt died about 6 years ago, I was in touch with him a month or so before he died he told me he was working on his last album "Over and Out"...R.I.P. my good friend Rick.

They were a band that 'thrived on the live' - I've seen them live over thirty times, starting back in '79 as a thirteen year old with hair halfway down to my arse. They never get the credit they deserve for being incredible musicians & putting on good shows.

I think this was the first Status Quo song I ever heard and I still think it's one of their best. It demonstrates how they were much cleverer writers and musicians than they were usually given credit for. One of my favourite all-time riffs.

Still a great band. Seen them 63 times from 1977 to 2023. Got tickets for 2 gigs in 2024

Quo were so incredible back in the 1970's, they were untouchable - the band that got me into hard rock aged 8 back in 1974, and so ultimately to Metal and being a lifetime Metalhead 🤘

What a great energy Great rhythm guitar duality playing Two rhythm guitar players

When this album came out everyone at High School wanted to look like them. Denim was everywhere. This song and Rain were my favourites off the album.

Rain from this album for me is another banger from this album.👍🏻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

The album is called Blue For You , Fantastic band , Fantastic Album , cheers from 🇦🇺🎸🎸

From their 1976, 'Blue For You', album. The album version being much better than the single release, as you can tell. There's a good reason why this song is so fast. Rick Parfitt, wrote it over-night whilst left on his own in the studio when everyone else went home for the evening. He was, 'helped', somewhat in his creativity by having consumed a cup of tea laced with a teaspoon of speed, placed into it as a joke, by fellow band member, Francis Rossi. The resultant song was, 'Mystery Song', which, if you haven't twigged yet by listening to the lyrics, is about a young man's interest in a prostitute and the desire to have her all to himself.

Americans and Canadians should be very angry with their Radio Stations and Record Companies for not supporting or promoting the best and greatest Rock Band in history. Americans and Canadians are only finding out about the best and greatest Rock Band in history after the fact, after they existed at their height of fame, after they conquered the rest of the World decades ago.

The LP is Blue For You and is fi 76.

In the beginning, i loved the quo , what a guitar band, then they got all Margaretta time and it was over for me 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿✌️

I love each and every one of those three chords

This band was great live full of fun cheers both for another great song.

This was released as we were forming our first band 'Black Water' during school days - we had to learn and perform it! Thanks for the memory

the double denim dudes done some cracking singles down the dust pipe Caroline rain down down paper plain list goes on guys

'In my chair' and 'Down the dustpipe' are an absolute must, as someone else has already mentioned.

Thanks for reacting to my favourite Quo song. ❤ Best live band I ever saw and this was the music I grew up to. Happy days. Respect from Glasgow Scotland 🙏😎

Probably my favourite Quo song

The line "ST's showing" is shorthand for "stocking tops showing"

Super band of 70' 😊

Being a 60’s Soul music fan all my life, Status Quo would not be high on my list…but their earlier stuff was great….”In my Chair” still sounds incredible…”Down the Dustpipe” too still does it for me. Perhaps one of those or from that same era would be good.

Brilliant review. And well done for choosing the album version of this song. The Single version does not have the intro or outro and is the poorer for it (but yes it's more radio friendly). As the closing song on Blue For You, this was possibly the last great song that Quo produced, since they turned into a more pop oriented band after this. Another thing you need to know if you want to impress your Quo friends is, Quo from 1972 to 1976 are colloquially know as "The Frantic Four". This helps to define the band in terms of their different musical eras. I'm very much a Frantic Four fan!

The 70s quo were gold . Pretty much everything was great . Thanks for the heads up.

Loved this, one of the best 'Quo' songs from '76 (I think), the beginning is reminiscent of their earlier stuff like, "Pictures of Matchstick Men" 1968, and also of their slower songs such as "Living on an Island" from '78 or '79, I can't remember which but it was around that time.

Status Quo (Stay-tus Kwo) were a British Institution they shifted millions upon millions UPON millions of records here in the UK, but for some reason, never cracked the US. It’s one of those great unsolved mysteries of the world like Crop circles and why kids never swap the empty toilet roll for a new roll once it’s finished. 🤷

Yes, this is one of their best. I saw them on the "End of the Road Tour" at the Hammy Odeon in 82. They were a powerful rockin band with those Vox AC30's. Then 4 years later i saw them as pale comparison supporting Queen. Then a year or 2 later i saw them at Reading Festival and they had improved. Mind you, i wouldn't subject the Haniers to anything written after the 70s from them!

This song is a real classic.

The song is about a prostitute.Quo have so many fantastic songs,too many to mention.Any chance that you could a reaction to "Don't Was Waste My Time"? It's my favourite Quo track,it's on the album "Piledriver",or better still the version they did for "Live Aid" in July 1985.

Roll over, lay down, is also a fantastic track 👌

From their (Blue for you) album... they did a deal with Levi's hence the album cover, Levi's had some posters with "Status Quo wear Levi's " Great video by the way, and hello from Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

I love everything that Status Quo did,.do. Have you ever thought of playing some of their psychedelic stuff from the 60s. Technicolour Dreams , Ice In The Sun, Pictures of Matchstick Men come to mind

Love the way rock intros this , i think i used to skip back so much i wrecked my tape when i was a kid

So glad you did the album version. This happens to be one of my personal favourites by Quo, during this era. One of 2 songs picked as singles from their 1976, 'Blue For You', album. The other being, 'Rain.' Both sang by Rick Parfitt. Apparently, this song came about from the result of a teaspoon full of speed put into a cup of tea, as a joke, with Rick drinking the whole lot without so much as a care. Everyone else went home for the night, but he was left in the studio on his own, buzzing from the effects. Everyone else came back the next day and he was still there, still strumming the riff to this song as a result, but he had the words and music all sorted during that drug fuelled night. You can work out for yourself why they called it, 'Mystery Song.' The subject matter is pretty obvious. 'Ring Of A Change', is another from this album that you should listen to.

The album is 'Blue for You' and got its name as part of a sponsorship deal Quo secured with Levi's in 1976. So the album cover was used as a billboard for Levi's at the time. This was actually one of the earliest ever sponsorship deals between a commercial product and an artist. Unfortunately, and as far as I'm aware this is true but please correct me if I'm wrong, the band were naive enough then to not check the small print and never received any money for the deal!

Great songs from the quo

My favourite Quo song from my fav Quo album, Blue For You. Thanks!

Whatever you want, should be your next Quo song

Great video! My fav Quo song growing up :)

Mystery song is another great status quo from the album blue for you great album❤❤❤❤❤

Glad you liked it. The single version (which is what I first heard) is just the fast loud bit in the middle, which works very well, but I have grown to appreciate the long version as it gives more light and shade to the track. The mid-seventies is Quo at their best. By the eighties, when they brought in a keyboard player, things were on the slide.

Great review of the album version. Blue for you was UK no’1 for 3 weeks & charted for 30 week in total. In the states the album was entitled Status Quo & peaked at no’148, staying in the Billboard 200 for 7 weeks. Quo toured the States during this period, unfortunately though they received very little airplay & lacked any quality representation. These guys are a great live band. Check out Quo live at Milton Keynes 1984 & Download 2014.

Quo were simply brilliant in their heyday. The best live band you would ever wish to see, and I saw them live so many times.

The album gives away the name. BLUE FOR YOU.

The No 1 Rock n Roll Band of all time :)

Love your reaction .that was Rick singing (the blonde one) and one of my favourite songs .Now you have to play “Roll over lay down” another favourite ,also have a look at “ Rocking all over the World “ from the Live Aid concert 1985 it’s the opening song from Wembley stadium .keep up the great songs .cheers from Australia 🍻😀

I think Cynthia really got a kick listening to this Status Quo belter and i am not surprised at all as this is my favourite.👏👏👏

They opened a festival I was at in 1990. They were fantastic ❤❤

Super album pour un super groupe pour ne pas dire le meilleur ❤

most certainly a great song!!

I love them more as 45 years

What are 'STs' in Mystery Song? (Status Quo) Rick Pafitt was asked this question by someone on the mailing list: it means 'Stocking Tops,' apparently. The song itself is actually about a prostitute, as confirmed by Francis Rossi at Reading in December 1997. Blue For You - Status Quo’s 1976 Album. The 1976 “Mystery Song”, co-written with Bob Young, was composed after Rossi had laced Parfitt’s tea with amphetamine sulphate during the sessions for the Blue for You album. Rossi later said: “He was playing the riff when we left the studio, and he was still playing it when we came back the next day!”

One of the best rock albums of all time. One of Quo's finest. The reason for the denim... They had a sponsorship deal with Levi's. For promoting the brand they got... rolls of denim! Their management at the time and Levi's, ripped them off big time

Golden!

That drummer in the picture now has a kind of Status Quo covers band that tours. My band supported them a few years' ago.

Mystery Song,Down down,What ever you want , Backwater, Ring of a Change are the best ones!

One of Quo's classic hits. The song concerns a young man's encounter with a lady of the night. Not sure if youtube would let me write the P word Lol I love how Cynthia really gets into the mood when listening to Status Quo.

The LP version is a lot Bassier and has a bit more kick. This sounds like a CD version.

The story goes (documented), that after a long day rehearsing and recording, Rick Parfitt was out for the count but wanted to stay behind to work on a few other bits. Francis Rossi slipped a teaspoon of speed in Rick's tea (unbeknown to Rick) and they all left. Rick drank the tea and wrote this song in a matter of hours about him trying to win over the love of a prostitute. Hence the 'speed' of the track and I have never heard anything as fast as this. One of my all time favourites

My favourite quo song,their seventies output was generally really strong.

Open G tuning courtesy of the late, great Rick Parfiit, the others left him in the studio and fortified by much Cocaine he came up with this fantastic song, they where peaking at this point, definitely not a three chord band!

This is the album cover of the "Blue for you" Album. The clothes were made for Status Quo by Levi's. Iconic and I think, stylish, even today.

Ahh....one of the Quo songs with more than three chords in it😂😂😂😂😂😂

this track is Fun, but you could equal with Deep Purple's Strange Kind of Woman regarding the content. goes country funk at the end. really good album but i would recommend from the same album Is There a Better Way!

yeah , the mighty Quo, who thought the 70's were crap ! reportedly the bulk of the song was done by Rick while on ac*d, fortunally he had the recording machine on, as he couldn't remember anything next day

I could never understand why Quo never made it in the states,great band.

It’s called Mystery Song because when Rick Parfitt was writing it , sitting up all night in the studio playing the riff( he’d ingested a lot of speed) , quite simply he couldn’t remember what he’d called it!!

Apparently the band left Rick in studio overnight after copious amounts of "Speed" and this was the result. Song about good time girls.

QUO fans are not surprised that American Reactors are liking QUO songs, because they are listening to the Best and Greatest Rock Band in history, up until the early 80's when the Drummer - Coghlan and Bass/Vocalist - Lancaster left due to music differences. Rossi's egomania drove John and Alan out of the Band they'd been in for 20 plus years. Spinal Tap could've written it into their movie.

The whole album (blue for you) is a brilliant fuckin' genius diamond pearl DREAM 😂❤

"Mystery Song" was banned by radio stations due to the lyric content. So JJ 1540am radio in Sydney played it a lot in 1976. JJ 1540am radio was a Govt. station and didn't have any advertisers to offend. Australia can thank The Whitlam Labor government for that.

That was fun, thank you and im saaaacribing... any Sia fans here

Hi hanier family the track from status quo called mystery song is about a prostitute, that's why they called it mystery song. So it didn't offend anyone

Can't go wrong with the QUO. so many tunes , try 4500 times

entry drug into metal. Still love quo

My favourite track from blues for you is -is there a better way. Brilliant quo track. Scott.bournemouth.

You cant beat a bit or a lot of Early "Quo " Yay !

Best Quo performance you will ever see is Roadhouse Medley live. (Try Sutton Park AI enhanced). Outstanding.

Status Quid - Boring Song (1981) The Hee Bee Gee Bees ClassicVideos80s , Thank u

love quo

Got that T shirt on again that makes me suggest Bow Wow Wow - C30 C60 C90 Go.

Down down has got to be your next

The tempo of mystery song along with a few songs is both great and bad as a driving song or even worse as a song to listen to when riding a motorcycle. Get on a twisty road and hav mystery song blasting through the earbuds and you want to travel a lot quicker than is legal. 😂😂😂 As has already been commented, in my chair and down the dust pipe along with spinning wheel blues are Quo at what you might call their transition stage, British style blues, bloody great. 👍👍 Late sixties, early seventies British style blues was all the rage, Led Zeppelin, Eric Clapton, Fleetwood Mac, Ten Years After, Rory Gallagher, just to name a few.

You should listen to Barry mcguire eve of destruction and the dickies eve of destruction both great songs

Brilliant Stuff!! Thank so much for playing the `Blue For You` Album Version!! (Sponsored by Levi`s) Song is about a prostitute. Love you Guys!! Big Up x

As a teen back in the 70's I couldn't get enough of Quo, seen them as a 15 year old, 12 bar blues at its best. They were a genuine stadium band. This album was worn out on my record player, think my mum knew all the words in the end lol. I have a suggestion if your receptible to suggestions. A young all-female band of Ukrainian refugees aged just 15 to 21, and the just celebrating the 6th year of the band and had to survive an invasion of their country which disrupted their progress. A link to their song Feels, tomorrow they release Same Kid which is an absolute banger. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-t3dKGubJVGU.html

For me, I prefer the live version of this. This is good but live 'feels' better. I'd encourage you to search out some of their live version of this song and do a review on those.

“ how does this new song go Francis ? “..”It’s E > A >B ,chorus -bridge and repeat “… “ so just like all the rest of them yeah ? “… “ I’m starting to wonder if your right for Quo , Alan ..👀 “…. Not one of my fav Quo tracks 🤷‍♂️ 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

The quo were just too good till 82 then not 4 me

quo army

Blue for You :)

Mike Hunt 😂😂

Ian Gillian???

My fav Quo song ever, this full length version, just whacks you right in the face!

This song was written about a rendezvous with a lady of the night , if you listen closely to the lyrics it’s self explanatory, The Boys know what your givin , you give the boys such a lot of fun, and by the way that you make a living you got the boys all on the run, ST’s showing you really got me going mayybe you can give me a price, I wanna try it , yes I wanna buy it , tell me will you treat me nice!! (ST’s showing means Stockings and suspenders)😂A prostitutes uniform 😂 I met Alan and Rick in Glasgow in 1976 at the Albany hotel. Just replenished my Quo collection of vinyl albums up to The Live album which imo was their peak.

If you haven't already check out Pictures Of Matchstick Men from 1968. Very well dressed young men.

If you want to hear something different from Status Quo, try "Living on an Island". You'll be pleasantly surprised.

Rick Parfitt is the best Rhythm Guitarist ever. Barely a bad song in their discography. Please check out Living on an Island, for one of their slower ones and an insight to how Rick felt during some of their time on tour.

The intro and outro were not on the single mix.