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Alan Lancaster, Bass Player & Founding Member of Rock Band Status Quo, Dies at 72

The founding member of the popular 1960s and 1970s rock band Status Quo has unfortunately passed away. Alan Lancaster died at the age of 72, according to the band manager’s confirmation.

The group was most known for songs like “Rockin’ All Over the World” and “Whatever You Want.” In the process, Status Quo had reached international-hit status. The group also changed its name several times to things like The Spectres and Traffic Jam. They would eventually settle on Status Quo.

Alan Lancaster Passes Away

Lancaster was the bassist for the band and played alongside them from 1967 to 1985. He also had some brief reunions in both 2013 and 2014. In addition to his skills as a bassist, Alan Lancaster was a talented songwriter and a vocalist. You can hear his distinctive voice on tracks like “Backwater,” “Is There a Better Way,” “Bye Bye Johnny,” and “Roadhouse Blues.”

He started the band with his friend, Francis Rossi. The two knew each other for years and Rossi called Lancaster an “integral” part of the group’s sound, according to The Guardian.

“I am so sorry to hear of Alan’s passing. We were friends and colleagues for many years and achieved fantastic success together as the Frantic Four alongside Rick Parfitt and John Coghlan. Alan was an integral part of the sound and the enormous success of Status Quo during the 60s and 70s,” Rossi said in the statement.

Lancaster was originally born in Peckham, south London in 1949. Although Status Quo performances were limited during recent years, Lancaster also played for groups like the Bombers and the Party Boys.

Status Quo Estranged Relationship

Rossi and Lancaster have been estranged in recent years. Although, the singer said he “will always have very fond memories of our early days together.”

The two had a rocky relationship when Rossi and Rick Parfitt started recording a covert album without telling Lancaster. He was replaced by John “Rhino” Edwards as the bassist. Regardless, the group would have four UK No. 1 albums during the peak of Status Quo popularity.

“This is such sad news and my sincere condolences go out to Dayle and the family. It was an absolute pleasure to be able to reunite the original line-up for two sellout tours in 2013-2014 and to give Status Quo Frantic Four fans a final legacy and such a lasting memory,” the band’s manager, Simon Porter, told the news outlet.

Since the news of his death was shared, fans of Status Quo were quick to share their fond memories of the group. One Twitter user wrote, “It’s difficult to get across to those who weren’t there at the time how important Status Quo were to us teenagers in the mid 70s. They rocked hard, they swung like no other, their M.O. was ‘Heads down, no-nonsense, mindless boogie.’ Alan Lancaster 1949 – 2021. Rock In Peace,” they wrote.

Other people commented on how special the group was. Another Twitter user said that “nobody else sounded like them.”