Francis Rossi, OBE (born 29 May 1949 Forest Hill, South London) is a British musician best known for being a co-founder of the English rock band Status Quo, in which he sings lead vocals and plays lead guitar.
[on the successful cover-up of Sir Jimmy Savile's decades of rape and abuse] We were told to watch out for the Leeds Mafia. And even when Louis Theroux had him cornered on camera, Jimmy Savile was that confident he looked straight at him and the camera... he knew somehow, and he still must have something in the system that's covering him or covering what's gone on. We all know it, we just can't find it.
2
It's not whether you're a good singer or not, it's the noise we make and some of us get away with it and some of us don't.
3
[on The X Factor (2004)] When they talk about X Factor, these trained voices, that isn't X Factor. X Factor is people like us that can't sing but we do something else, something happens.
4
I've heard Rod [Rod Stewart] sing and he's got a really lovely, sweet voice.
5
[on Freddie Mercury] Up until then I thought that gay men were kind of feeble. Freddie wasn't. If Freddie wanted you he was going to have you.
6
There's a lot of energy required with Quo and if you don't physically commit that energy, it doesn't work. I learned when I was younger from watching Little Richard and working with Jerry Lee Lewis, who was so physically committed to his music he made it move you. I don't have to do that on my own, I can do the songy, poppy things, it's more relaxed. It all boils down to wanting to show off. Brian May's very shy but can stand on top of Buckingham Palace playing his guitar.
7
When I was much younger I'd read music magazines and it took me years to work out you never read an interview with anyone or see anyone on a chat show unless they've got some product out.
8
[on the music industry] It's 95 per cent bullshit and the other five per cent is bullshit. I didn't realise until I was about 40. It's not real.
9
I don't understand people who'll just listen to one genre of music.
10
[on playing Live Aid (1985)] We weren't particularly good. We were under-rehearsed and didn't bring in enough equipment. It's funny when you see these programmes about it now because back then no one knew how big it was until you went on the stage - and I've never seen so many cameras in my life. But if the West really wanted to feed the Third World it would have happened by now instead of doing some fundraising gigs every 25 years.
11
I understand that people can't stand Status Quo. There are thousands of people across the world who think we're fantastic but most don't, obviously. It's the same with anyone. Michael Jackson selling 45million records in America - that still means 220million Americans didn't like it. But 'showbiz' blows it up as important. Mars bars sell better than Michael Jackson records and so do paper clips, envelopes and coat hangers. How come no one's come up with a song that sells 2billion? Even then, two thirds of the world won't like it.
12
We all have this thing of justifying our need to show off but it comes down to wanting attention and wanting people to like us.
13
Most of the big stars since the 1950s haven't really been that great. Look at Madonna - she can't sing but she can make a decent record. Her first one, they had to slow her voice down and speed it up. She used the system really well. Spice Girls - biggest pile of shit to hit the planet but what a great PR job. Can't sing, songs weren't very good, they didn't look very good but they used the business against itself. Same with Kylie (Kylie Minogue) - some innocent child off some Australian soap, she suddenly shags Michael Hutchence and her bum comes out and everyone keeps buying her records.
14
[on being awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in 2010 with Rick Parfitt] You start off rebellious, a teenager in a band, but you end up being part of the establishment..that the arrival of the letter announcing the honour had initially frightened the pants off me..because it comes from the government.
15
Performing in front of thousands of fans is the ultimate experience for any band.
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Fact
1
He and Rick Parfitt were each awarded an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2010 Queen's New Years Honours List for their services to music and charity.
2
Status Quo won the 1991 Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution.
3
Lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of Status Quo.
Soundtrack
Title
Year
Status
Character
Mafia III
2016
Video Game writer: "Pictures of Matchstick Men" - uncredited
Men in Black 3
2012
writer: "Pictures of Matchstick Men"
Death Race 2
2010
Video writer: "Purple Haze" - as Francis Dominic Michael Rossi
Live from Studio Five
2010
TV Series performer - 1 episode
My Name Is Earl
2007
TV Series writer - 1 episode
Life
2007
TV Series writer - 1 episode
The Nines
2007
writer: "Paper Plane" - as Francis Dominic Michael Nicola Rossi
Cold Case
2006
TV Series writer - 1 episode
The Girl Next Door
2004
writer: "PURPLE HAZE"
Tru Calling
2004
TV Series writer - 1 episode
Tohuwabohu
1996-1998
TV Series writer - 3 episodes
Only Fools and Horses....
1988
TV Series writer - 1 episode
Live Aid
1985
TV Special documentary writer: "Caroline", "Don't Waste my Time"
Actor
Title
Year
Status
Character
Bula Quo!
2013
Francis
Children in Need
2005
TV Series
Performer
Avenue of the Stars: 50 Years of ITV
2005
TV Special
Performer (as Status Quo)
Composer
Title
Year
Status
Character
Bula Quo!
2013
Music Department
Title
Year
Status
Character
Bula Quo!
2013
musician
Self
Title
Year
Status
Character
The Big Fat Quiz of the Year
2014
TV Special
Himself
Loose Women
2007-2014
TV Series
Himself
Oh! You Pretty Things: The Story of British Music and Fashion
2014
TV Mini-Series documentary
Himself
Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
2014
TV Series
Himself - Performer
Hello Quo
2012
Documentary
Himself
The Butlin's Story
2011
TV Movie documentary
Himself - The Spectres, 1965
Daybreak
2011
TV Series
Himself
Stars on the Street
2009
TV Movie documentary
Himself
The One Show
2008
TV Series
Himself
Spicks and Specks
2006-2008
TV Series
Himself
The Wright Stuff
2007
TV Series
Himself - Guest Panelist
James May's 20th Century
2007
TV Series documentary
Himself
Soapstar Superstar: Bonus Tracks
2007
TV Series
Himself
Breakfast
2004-2006
TV Series
Himself
Greatest Ever Comedy Movies
2006
TV Movie
Himself
An Audience with Coronation Street
2006
TV Movie documentary
Himself - Audience Member
Live 8: Twenty Years Ago Today
2005
TV Movie documentary
Himself
UK Music Hall of Fame: Biggest Selling Artists of the 21st Century
2005
TV Movie documentary
Himself
Coronation Street
2005
TV Series
Himself
Girls and Boys: Sex and British Pop
2005
TV Mini-Series documentary
Himself
Favouritism
2005
TV Series
Himself
Live Aid Remembered
2005
TV Movie documentary
Himself
The Band Aid Story
2004
TV Movie documentary
Himself
GMTV
2004
TV Series
Himself
The Great British Pop Test
2004
TV Movie
Performer (as Status Quo)
Band Aid: The Song That Rocked the World
2004
TV Movie documentary
Himself
Brainiac: Science Abuse
2004
TV Series documentary
Himself
This Morning
2004
TV Series
Himself - Performer
Cable TV
2002
TV Series
Himself
Killer Queen!
2002
Himself - Status Quo
You Only Live Once
2001
TV Series
Himself - Guest
Trisha
2001
TV Series
Himself
Top of the Pops: The True Story
2001
TV Movie documentary
Himself
It's Only Rock 'n' Roll
2000
Video documentary
Himself
Clarkson
2000
TV Series
Himself
Top Ten
2000
TV Series documentary
Himself
Musikbutikken
2000
TV Series
Himself
It's Slade
1999
TV Movie documentary
Himself
The Radio One Story
1997
TV Movie documentary
Himself
Surprise Surprise!
1996
TV Series
Himself
Pebble Mill at One
1996
TV Series
Himself
Queen: Champions of the World
1995
Documentary
Himself
Sunday, Sunday
1990
TV Series
Himself
Juke Box Jury
1989
TV Series
Himself - Panellist
Top of the Pops
1973-1988
TV Series
Himself - Status Quo / Himself
Queen: Magic Years, Volume One - A Visual Anthology
$15 Million
