Piledriver (album)

Piledriver
Studio album by Status Quo
Released December 15, 1972
Recorded September - October 1972
Studio IBC Studios, Portland Place, London
Genre Hard rock
Length 39:52
Label Vertigo (UK)
A&M (USA)
Producer Status Quo
Status Quo chronology
Dog of Two Head
(1971)Dog of Two Head1971		 Piledriver
(1972)		 Hello!
(1973)Hello!1973
Singles from Piledriver
  1. "Paper Plane"
    Released: 1972

Piledriver is the fifth studio album by the English rock band Status Quo, released in 1972. It was the first to be produced by the group themselves, and their first on the Vertigo label after their departure from Pye Records.

The album's only single, "Paper Plane" (by Francis Rossi and Bob Young), with the B-side "Softer Ride" (written by Rick Parfitt and Alan Lancaster), was to become the first in a sequence of thirty-three Top 40 hits on the UK Singles Chart when it peaked at #8 after its release in November 1972. The B-side would later be incorporated into the band's following album, Hello!, released the following year.

The album itself was released in December the same year, and reached the highest position of #5 in the UK charts, spending 37 weeks there.[1]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [2]
Robert ChristgauC+ [3]

In their retrospective review, AllMusic applauded the album as both crowd-pleasing and moderately ambitious, commenting that "Despite the name, most of the music on Piledriver is varied and subtle enough to be interesting." They particularly praised "A Year" and "Big Fat Mama".[2] Robert Christgau asserted that the band had no decent singer or guitarist, and criticized their attempts at ballads and blues as "boring".[3]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Don't Waste My Time"Francis Rossi, Bob YoungRossi4:22
2."Oh Baby"Rossi, Rick ParfittRossi/Parfitt4:39
3."A Year"Alan Lancaster, Bernie FrostRossi5:51
4."Unspoken Words"Rossi, YoungParfitt5:06
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
5."Big Fat Mama"Rossi, ParfittParfitt5:53
6."Paper Plane"Rossi, YoungRossi2:52
7."All the Reasons"Parfitt, LancasterParfitt3:42
8."Roadhouse Blues" (The Doors cover)Jim Morrison, John Densmore, Robby Krieger, Ray ManzarekLancaster7:26

1990 bonus track

  1. "Joanne" (Lancaster) (B-side of "Caroline") - 4:11
  2. "Lonely Night" (Lancaster, Young, Rossi, John Coghlan, Parfitt) (B-Side of "Break the Rules") - 3:16

2005 reissue bonus track

  1. "Don't Waste My Time" [Live Version] (Rossi, Young)

2014 reissue bonus track CD

  1. "Don't Waste My Time" [BBC Sounds of the Seventies 1972] - 4:24 Live
  2. "Oh Baby" [BBC Sounds of the Seventies 1972] - 4:25 Live
  3. "Unspoken Words" [BBC Sounds of the Seventies 1972] - 5:06 Live
  4. "Paper Plane" [BBC Sounds of the Seventies 1972] - 2:59 Live
  5. "Softer Ride" [BBC Sounds of the Seventies 1972] (Parfitt, Lancaster) - 4:03 Live
  6. "Paper Plane" [John Peel Session 1973] - 2:57 Live
  7. "Don't Waste My Time" [John Peel Session 1973] - 4:19 Live
  8. "Junior's Wailing" [BBC in Concert, Paris Theatre, London 1973] - 3:35 Live
  9. "Someone's Learning" [BBC in Concert, Paris Theatre, London 1973] - 8:07 Live
  10. "In My Chair" [BBC in Concert, Paris Theatre, London 1973] - 3:44 Live
  11. "Railroad" [BBC in Concert, Paris Theatre, London 1973] - 6:14 Live
  12. "Don't Waste My Time" [BBC in Concert, Paris Theatre, London 1973] - 4:31 Live
  13. "Paper Plane" [BBC in Concert, Paris Theatre, London 1973] - 3:37 Live
  14. "Roadhouse Blues" [BBC in Concert, Paris Theatre, London 1973] - 15:47 Live
  15. "Bye Bye Johnny" [BBC in Concert, Paris Theatre, London 1973] (Chuck Berry) - 5:14 Live

Personnel

Additional personnel

References

  1. ↑ "Status Quo land 500th week on Official Albums Chart". officialcharts.com. Retrieved 24 December 2016.
  2. 1 2 Piledriver at AllMusic
  3. 1 2 Status Quo reviews, Robert Christgau. Retrieved January 31, 2012.
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