On Christmas Eve 2016, December 24, my world turned upside down when the news broke that Rick Parfitt, guitarist in the rock band Status Quo, had passed away. He was only in his 60’s and it was a massive shock to me as I grew up listening to Status Quo, they are my all time favourite band and Rick was my rock god.  I was devastated that he had left us so soon, although he had stepped down from playing with Status Quo a few months earlier due to heart problems.

Surprisingly, Rick had been working on a solo album prior to his death, and while listening to Radio 2 yesterday I heard on the Ken Bruce show that this album would be posthumously released. Titled “Over and Out”, Ken played one of the songs from the album called “Without You”, which brought me to tears:

Over And Out, will be released on March 23 2017 and will feature 10 brand new songs by Rick, including the title track that broke hearts anew when it was played at his funeral. Over And Out has been described as an album of “depth and passion” and was created by Rick and producer Jo Webb. This record  is believed to showcase the softer side of Rick Parfitt as a writer, artist, and performer away from the Quo maelstrom, as well as the purest rock ‘n’ roll sound of earlier Status Quo records. It certainly had me in tears when I heard it yesterday on Radio 2.

Despite the fact that Parfitt had finished recording his guitar and vocal parts, a recording session was planned for February 2017, and certain tracks were not totally finished when Parfitt died. The call to help ensure that his work could be completed was answered by musicians of the calibre of Queen’s Brian May and Muse’s Chris Wolstenholme, both of whom were close to Parfitt.

The late Status Quo star’s son, Rick Parfitt Jr., was also involved in the creative process, as were his former Quo band mates John ‘Rhino’ Edwards and Alan Lancaster, amongst many others, and Over And Out is due to be issued in its “finished” form, but also as a raw and pure version, for the fans of the rockier side of Parfitt’s music in special collector’s editions.

I for one cannot wait for this album to released, as I miss Rick so much.  I missed going to see Status Quo in Birmingham last December, something I have done every year since I was 16 years old, but I did always say that once either Francis Ross or Rick Parfitt were no longer part of Status Quo that I would no longer go to see them live. They are the Quo and without either of them, there is no Status Quo in my mind.

Rick Parfitt “Over and Out” will be released on March 23rd 2017, and can be pre-ordered on Amazon here.