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| "Down the Dustpipe" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single byStatus Quo | ||||
| B-side | "Face Without a Soul" | |||
| Released | 6 March 1970 | |||
| Genre | Rock and roll,blues rock,boogie rock[1] | |||
| Length | 2:00 | |||
| Label | Pye | |||
| Songwriter | Carl Groszmann | |||
| Producer | John Schroeder | |||
| Status Quo singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Official audio | ||||
| "Down the Dustpipe" (2002 remix) onYouTube | ||||
"Down the Dustpipe" is a song written byAustralian singer-songwriterCarl Groszmann, and recorded byStatus Quo.
Groszmann was a client of Valley Music, who were affiliated to Status Quo's management in their early days. The group recorded it, and inFrancis Rossi’s words, "it was the first record to feature our soon-to-be trademarkboogie shuffle".[2] It became one of the most popular numbers in their live set. Released as a single in March 1970, it took the media by surprise as it was so different in sound from their previous work.BBC Radio 1 presenterTony Blackburn dismissed it on air the first time he played it with the comment, "Down the dustbin for this one."[3]
A demo version of the song was recorded by Welsh bandMan, who were hired byPye Records as a studio band. They taught their arrangement of the song to Status Quo, who adopted it without changing much. In the future, whenever the two bands met, Man found it entertaining to keep reminding Status Quo of who did the original arrangement for their hit single.[4]
Theharmonica was played byBob Young, who had recently joined Status Quo as their roadie but became an unofficial member, playing harmonica on several subsequent recordings and co-writing many of their singles and album tracks. It is notable for the minimal guitar work, with bass guitar, drums and piano all being much more in evidence throughout, as well as the vocal harmony on the choruses. Although initially ignored by Radio 1, it made the charts largely through the group’s increasing popularity as a live band, and reached number 12 in theUK Singles Chart in July. Its slow progress gave it a 17-week stay in the Top 50, something never achieved by any of their subsequent, more well-known singles.
It remained unavailable on Status Quo's albums until the release of the compilationThe Best of Status Quo in 1973,[5] and has appeared on several compilations since then. The band re-recorded it on their 2003 albumRiffs, the new version being similar to the original but about 20 seconds longer. The song was reprised, in 2014, for Status Quo's thirty-first studio albumAquostic (Stripped Bare). It was featured in the ninety-minute launch performance of the album at London'sRoundhouse on 22 October, the concert being recorded and broadcast live byBBC Radio 2 as part of theirIn Concert series.[6][7]
| Chart (1970) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles (Kent Music Report)[8] | 12 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[9] | 11 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[10] | 12 |
