It’s big day for fans of leather-clad ’70s glam-rock queen Suzi Quatro, with not one but two new compilations hitting the market.
First and foremost is The Rock Box, an exhaustive eight-disc box containing remastered versions of all six studio releases from her 1970s heyday — Suzi Quatro (1973), Quatro (1974), Your Mamma Won’t Like Me (1975), Aggro-Phobia (1976), If You Knew Suzi… (1978), Suzi … and Other Four Letter Words (1979) — along with the 1977 concert set Live & Kicking. Between them, you’ll get all of her biggest hits — Can The Can, 48 Crash, Daytona Demon, Devil Gate Drive, The Wild One and plenty more — along with bonus tracks, B-sides and other rarities.
Looking for something a little fresher? There’s always Back To The… Spotlight, a two-disc set that includes her 2005 comeback album Back To The Drive and 2011’s In The Spotlight, along with some bonus cuts for good measure. And if all that Quatro isn’t enough for you, well, I guess you can find some old Happy Days reruns on the box so you can relive all your old Leather Tuscadero fantasies.”
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASES: “Suzi Quatro is a legend and icon of feminism, blazing her own unique trail in what was a male-dominated genre at the time in the 1970s. Over the course of her 50-year career, she has sold over 50 million records worldwide, releasing 18 studio albums and 63 singles. Bursting onto the rock scene in 1973 with the U.K. chart-topper Can The Can, she continued a long string of hits singles including 48 Crash, Daytona Demon, Devil Gate Drive, The Wild One, If You Can’t Give Me Love and others.
The eight-disc set The Rock Box covers her six studio albums and a live album from 1973 to 1979, along with a DVD featuring select promo clips, Top Of The Pops performances and a concert from Japan in 1975, along with a 56-page booklet featuring exclusive personal recollections from both Suzi and guitarist Len Tuckey, as well as a biography written by The Guardian’s Dave Simpson.
Back To The… Spotlight is a double CD containing two albums. Disc 1 includes her 2005’s “comeback” Back To The Drive album. Produced by The Sweet’s Andy Scott, it saw Suzi return to her rock roots. The stunning title track was written by the legendary Mike Chapman, who co-wrote most of her ’70s hits. Among the bonus tracks is a version of Eagles’ Desperado that features Jeff Beck on guitar.
Disc 2 features 2011’s In The Spotlight album, which was produced by Mike Chapman and includes the tribute to Elvis, Singing With Angels, featuring a guest appearance by his original backing singers The Jordanaires. The disc now comes with the bonus of a rocked-out version of Abba’s Does Your Mother Know produced by Sweet guitarist Scott.
Quatro has inspired female artists from Joan Jett, Tina Weymouth (Talking Heads/Tom Tom Club), Chrissie Hynde (The Pretenders) and The Go-Go’s to the likes of KT Tunstall. She has also had an active acting career in the 1970s comedy Happy Days (where she played the part of Leather Tuscadero); on stage in Annie Get Your Gun; and has presented TV and radio programs for the BBC. Quatro is a member of Michigan Rock And Roll Hall of Fame. Suzi continues to record and tour to this day and will be on the road throughout 2022 and 2023.”
