Q the Quo

Equipment: Simon’s main guitar is a one of the three Replica Rossi Telecasters which he reconditioned (butchered) himself. Two are kept on permanent separate tuning for specific numbers. He also has a G&L ASAT Telecaster and a black Squier Telecaster for backup. His amp is a Marshall JCM 2000 driving through a 4 x 12 JCM 900 cab, with optional 4 x 10 cab for additional onstage presence (noise) – all delivered through a Boss GT3 effects processor. He uses a Sennheiser G4 guitar pack, and Sennheiser IEM system. His implements of choice are 1mm Snarling Dog plectrums.

Simon was 7 years old when his mother taught him three chords on the guitar (H major, J major and Q major), the same three he still uses to this day, not necessarily in that order! It wasn’t until his early teens that he went radical and learned how to play a ‘minor’ and ‘7th’ and has been making an awful hullaballoo ever since. He has been a Quo fan for most of his natural life (say nothing about the un-natural one) and has been playing the clubs and dance halls since the late 80’s, but it was always his dream to play in a Status Quo tribute band. And you should hear him sing! When he’s not rocking the guitar he is a local tour guide in the North Antrim Coast and in his spare time he is a skydiving instructor..

Equipment: Adam uses a few guitars throughout the set, but the main ones are a modified Harley Benton Telecaster and a Fender Telecaster. He goes through a Marshall JMD1 50-watt valve amp head with two 4×12 Marshall cabinets. Adam uses a Relay G10S radio system.

Adam has always been a big music fan since an early age and has always loved the mighty Quo. He started out as a DJ in his early teens, moving on to mixing and producing dance music, playing a few gigs here and there with a residency in Hunter’s, Belfast. He picked up the guitar in his 20s thinking it was bound to attract more ladies than spinning the wheels of steel, only to find that he had to actually learn how to play it – and he’s been trying ever since! He played rhythm guitar and sang in local rock band ‘The Unknown’ for a few years until it broke up in 2017. With a love of energetic music and Quo’s powerful rhythm sound it was a dream come true for Adam to play in a tribute act to his number one rock ‘n’ roll band. His favourite tracks are “Creepin’ Up On You”, “Hold You Back”, “Whatever You Want” and “Junior’s Wailing”. When he’s not making a rambunctious noise, he’s making the world a safer place, one circuit at a time in the world of electrics.

Equipment: Daniel has three main keyboards that he uses live on stage: A Nord Stage 3 keyboard; a Roland FP5 digital piano; and a Korg Triton LE synthesiser. His gear goes through a Peavey PV6 mixer directly into the PA system. His amp is a Roland KC500. He uses a couple of guitars during the set including a Fender Squier Telecaster and a Westone Thunder 1A which he’s had since he was eighteen. These go through a Vox AC10C1 and he has a Hughes & Kettner 80 as backup. He uses a Boss WL-20L wireless system for the guitars and a Shure PSM200 in-ear monitor system.

While Daniel has always been a Quo fan, he wasn’t always the keenest piano player. Many would argue he’s still trying. He took piano lessons in his early years, which he detested and instead started off on drums in rock bands at school and thrashing about to Status Quo tracks in his bedroom. When he went to university in England he took up rhythm guitar in a covers pop band “Cat Called Blue”. He moved to the USA in 1991 and then to France in 1993, where he bought his first piano. He returned to the UK in 2001, when he auditioned as a guitarist for the classic rock covers band “ReZurrection”. He was crap at that and ended up playing keyboards until the band split up at the end of 2013. Daniel then decided to form “Q the Quo” with fellow “ReZurrection” bandmate Mick. Daniel carries the lead vocal in “Rain”, “Don’t Drive My Car” and “Little Lady” and does backing vocals for other songs. He loves to join the others up front and twang on his guitar for “What You’re Proposing” and “Creepin’ Up On You” and attempts the harmonica in “Down The Dustpipe”. Daniel has a day job in TV land somewhere.

Equipment: Mick plays a Fender Jazz bass and a Vintage Musicman. He uses a Markbass amplifier (just like “Rhino” Edwards from Status Quo) through a Redsub B210T HF horn attenuator. As backup he has a Warwick 300w amp head and two Warwick cabs. His wireless system is a Relay G10.

Mick started playing the bass as a youngster but soon took up the drums, which he played for many years, most recently with the classic rock covers band “ReZurrection”. Back in the ’90s he played in the Kiss tribute “Kisstory” and then later with “Dealer”. He jumped at the opportunity to get back onto bass guitar with Q the Quo and is, without doubt (in his tiny mind) the eye candy of the band! He’s a left hander and plays with inverted strings – weirdo! He sings a mean backing vocal and takes the lead vocal in a number of songs including “Mystery Song”, Big Fat Mama”, “Backwater” and “Junior’s Wailing”. He also loves “There’s A Guy Works Down The Chip Shop Swears He’s Elvis” but desite being told, still doesn’t understand that’s not a Quo song! When rehearsing near Antrim, his bass is known to have been heard in County Roscommon!

Equipment: Kenny plays Odery and Premier drum kits. All other hardware is DW drums. Sticks are Vic Firth and all cymbals are Paiste.

Kenny started playing the drums at the age of 9 and he finally got his first drum kit after a couple of years of using his mother’s pots and pans. He has played drums on the wedding band circuit for over 25 years but it has always been his passion to play in a Status Quo tribute band, playing the music he loves and adores. Kenny has been a Status Quo fan since the early age of 6 and has been to countless Quo concerts over the years. Two of his favourite tracks to play live are “Rain” and “Roll Over Lay Down”. In fact he just plays those over and over again regardless of what the rest of the band is playing! Kenny is a swim coach and lifeguard and likes to spend a lot of his spare time surfing and bodyboarding, mostly around the north and west coasts of Ireland.

Sound & Lighting Equipment: Q the Quo uses an Allen & Heath QU16 digital mixing desk through Behringer Europower and Peavey power amps into Peavey tops and bass bins. We use Alto TS112 Truesonic active speakers as backup. Mics are a mix of Shure SM58s Sennheiser E835s. Q the Quo also uses Shure and Sennheiser for in-ear monitoring. For the lights we use two Equinox Domin8R 2 LED scanner bars, two Cam LED Partybar V2s, two QTX C-BARs, two Chauvet 4Play light bars, two Ibiza Light smoke machines plus the good old fashioned 300-watt halogen par cans and the all-essential stands and trusses.