Following in the footsteps of The Beatles and, erm, Spice Girls, this summer sees Quo’s main players starring as themselves in a knockabout big-screen yarn.
Yet while it remains to be seen whether Francis Rossi or Rick Parfitt possess hitherto untapped top-notch thespian talents, the accompanying soundtrack album finds them in their richest form for years.
Arguably, the need for songs to drive the plot of the movie (a light-hearted action thriller involving gun-runners and other shady types, set in Fiji) has brought renewed focus to their writing – the pounding Run And Hide and dirty boogie of Never Leave A Friend Behind wouldn’t have sounded out of place on the band’s high-watermark early 70s albums, while the opening song Looking Out For Caroline is an even more pointed nod to the past.
A second disc of re-recorded and live versions of some old favourites fleshes the project out nicely, the shuffling, sun-kissed makeover of Living On An Island (it had to be, really) especially pleasing. Pack the bronzer and squeeze yourself into those cut-off denims.