Pictures of Matchstick Men

"Pictures of Matchstick Men" is the first hit single by British rock band Status Quo, then named the Status Quo. It was released on 5 January 1968.

"Pictures of Matchstick Men"
A-side label of the UK vinyl release
Single by the Status Quo
from the album Picturesque Matchstickable Messages from the Status Quo
B-side"Gentleman Joe's Sidewalk Café"
Released5 January 1968 (1968-01-05)
StudioPye, London[1]
Genre
Length3:09
LabelPye
Songwriter(s)Francis Rossi
Producer(s)John Schroeder[1]
The Status Quo singles chronology
"Almost but Not Quite There"
(1967)		 "Pictures of Matchstick Men"
(1968)		 "Black Veils of Melancholy"
(1968)
Official audio
"Pictures of Matchstick Men" (Mono Version) on YouTube

The Status Quo version

The song reached number seven on the British charts, number eight in Canada, and number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming their only top-40 single in the United States.[5][6][7] Francis Rossi confirmed on DVD2 of the Pictures set that it was originally intended to be a B-side to "Gentleman Joe's Sidewalk Cafe", but it was decided to swap the B-side and the A-side of the single.

There are two versions, one in stereo and another in mono, with significant differences: the original single was in mono and has the trademark wah-wah guitar in the breaks between lyrics, but this is omitted in stereo.

The song opens with a single guitar repeatedly playing a simple four-note riff before the bass, rhythm guitar, organ, drums and vocals begin. "Pictures of Matchstick Men" is one of a number of songs from the late 1960s which feature the flanging audio effect. The band's next single release, "Black Veils of Melancholy", was similar but flopped, which caused a change of musical direction.[8]

Rossi (living in a prefab in Camberwell at the time)[9] later said of the song:

I wrote it on the bog. I'd gone there, not for the usual reasons...but to get away from the wife and mother-in-law. I used to go into this narrow frizzing toilet and sit there for hours, until they finally went out. I got three quarters of the song finished in that khazi. The rest I finished in the lounge.[10]

The "matchstick men" reference is to the paintings of Salford artist L. S. Lowry.[10]

"Pictures of Matchstick Men" is featured in Men in Black 3, in a scene set in 1969 at Andy Warhol's Factory. It is also featured in the computer game Mafia III, set in 1968, where it can be heard on the radio. The Sky Documentary The United Way, the song featured in the clips of triumphs of the Busby Babes and Manchester United.

Releases
  • 1968: Pictures of Matchstick Men / Gentleman Joe's Sidewalk Cafe [Promo] 45 rpm Vinyl 7"; Pye / 7N 17449
  • 1969: Retrato de hombre con bastón / El café del caballero Joe 33 rpm, Mono Vinyl 7"; Music Hall / MH 31.101 Argentina
  • 1973: Pictures of Matchstick Man / Ice in the Sun 45 rpm Vinyl 7"; Pye / 12 746 AT

Other versions

Charts
Chart (1968) Peak
position
Australian Singles (Kent Music Report)[14] 19
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[15] 18
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[16] 18
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[17] 8
Germany (Official German Charts)[18] 7
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[19] 3
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[20] 5
UK Singles (OCC)[21] 7
US Billboard Hot 100[22] 12

See also

References
  1. "BI's Chart Fax" (PDF). Beat Instrumental (4): 17. April 1968.
  2. DeRogatis, Jim (2003). "Ten Great Psychedelic Rock Songs". Turn On Your Mind: Four Decades of Great Psychedelic Rock. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 162. ISBN 0-634-05548-8.
  3. https://www.goldradiouk.com/features/song-lists/status-quo-songs-best-ranked/
  4. Prown, Pete; Newquist, Harvey P. (1997). Legends of Rock Guitar: The Essential Reference of Rock's Greatest Guitarists (4th ed.). Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 113. ISBN 0-7935-4042-9.
  5. "BBC - Music / Profiles - Status Quo". BBC. British Broadcasting Corporation. 2006. Archived from the original on 10 October 2006. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  6. "The enduring appeal of Status Quo". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. 9 December 2005. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  7. staff (12 November 2008). "Cue The Quo". Aberdeen Press and Journal. Aberdeen, Scotland: Aberdeen Journals. OCLC 29379669. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  8. Rawlings, Terry (1 November 2002). Then, Now and Rare British Beat 1960-1969 (illustrated ed.). London, England: Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780711990944. OCLC 50272043. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  9. "Prefabs - Camberwell Borough Council". camberwellboroughcouncil.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  10. Headon, Tanya (17 December 2002). "Songs About Laurence Stephen Lowry". FreakyTrigger. Tom Ewing. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  11. Akamatsu, Rhetta (11 February 2014). "Music Review: Camper Van Beethoven – Key Lime Pie [Reissue]".
  12. Tallerico, Brian (24 September 2017). "Ray Donovan Recap: Confessions". Vulture. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
  13. October Noir Pictures of Matchstick Men (RIPeter) (Single) - Spirit of Metal Webzine (fr)
  14. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  15. "Status Quo – Pictures of Matchstick Men" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  16. "Status Quo – Pictures of Matchstick Men" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  17. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 5841." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  18. "Status Quo – Pictures of Matchstick Men" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  19. "Status Quo – Pictures of Matchstick Men" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
  20. "Status Quo – Pictures of Matchstick Men". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  21. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  22. "Status Quo Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
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