FRANCIS ROSSI
AN EVENING OF FRANCIS ROSSI’S SONGS FROM THE STATUS QUO SONGBOOK AND MORE.
Having fronted Status Quo as lead singer and lead guitarist for over fifty years, Francis Rossi might be forgiven for sticking to what he knows and keeping life simple. By stepping into a brand-new side of performance with his ‘one man’ shows however, he has demonstrated a couple of unarguable truths: he is not afraid of change, and he does have a lot to talk about!
There was change aplenty in the early days of Francis’ musical career. He was born in 1949 into a large house full of Italians, music and noise. His family ran the Rossi’s Ice Cream business and it wouldn’t be long before Francis had to choose between driving the van on rounds or sticking with music. Francis was an obsessive Pop fan and his love of the Everly Brothers, and then The Beatles, soon led him to start making music of his own. His first instrument was the harmonica, then an accordion, and he next took up the trumpet in the school orchestra. He soon put that aside and picked up his first guitar, forming a band, who took the name The Scorpions for a very brief time, with fellow pupil bassist Alan Lancaster in South East London. They soon became The Spectres, having found drummer John Coghlan. The Spectres then became Traffic and subsequently Traffic Jam, who finally morphed into Status Quo in 1967, with singer and guitarist Rick Parfitt joining the line-up. The band had a string of singles that failed to set the world alight but then enjoyed a big hit in 1968 with Francis’ psychedelic-leaning song ‘Pictures Of Matchstick Men’.
2026 Tour Dates:
07 April – Ambassador Theatre, Dublin
10 April – Theatre Royal, Waterford
11 April – Lime Tree Theatre, Limerick
13 April – Gleneagle Ballroom, Killarney
14 April – Leisureland, Galway
16 April – Ulster Hall, Belfast
17 April – Millennium Forum, Derry
MCD Presale Tuesday 06 May 2025 @ 10am.
Tickets on sale Wednesday 07 May 2025 @ 10am.