Richie Malone (born 18 March 1986) is an Irish musician who plays rhythm guitar for English rock band

Status Quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, political, religious or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the current state of social structure and/or values. W ...

. Malone first played with the band in July 2016, when previous guitarist

Rick Parfitt Richard John Parfitt, (12 October 1948 24 December 2016) was an English musician, best known as a singer, songwriter and rhythm guitarist with rock band Status Quo. Parfitt began his career in the early 1960s, playing in pubs and holiday cam ...

was no longer able to tour due to a heart attack. Parfitt died in December 2016, and Malone became his permanent replacement.

Career

Malone was the

frontman The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

of RAID, a rock band based in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. He was a fan of

through his father, first seeing them live in concert in 1999. He was particularly a fan of rhythm guitarist

, emulating his playing style from a young age, and travelling to England to have a replica of Parfitt's trademark white 1965 Fender Telecaster made. Malone met the band a number of times backstage after concerts, and became close friends with them. In June 2016 whilst touring with Status Quo on their "Last of the Electrics" tour, Parfitt suffered a severe heart attack, and was unable to finish the tour. Malone was selected to substitute for Parfitt for gigs in Belgium and

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

in July, before Freddie Edwards, the son of Status Quo bassist John "Rhino" Edwards, took over. Malone would fill in for Parfitt again for concerts in later 2016. Parfitt died on 24 December 2016, and Richie Malone became the band's new rhythm guitarist.

Equipment

Malone uses three Telecasters and two Mayson acoustic guitars on tour with Status Quo. The first Telecaster is a custom built by Mike Smith designed by Malone himself with .13–56 strings called the "AC Cobra". The second is a replica of his predecessor

's white Telecaster built by Mike Smith also with .13–56 strings, which was a birthday present from his father Karl, and which Malone has reportedly played at every gig since he was 21. The third is a Fender American Special with 11-.49 strings, used for performances of " Hold You Back". The Mayson acoustics are a DM5SCE and an MS7SCE, both with LR Baggs Anthem pickups.

Personal life

Malone married Jessica his long-term partner on 29 February 2020, and the pair have three daughters. When not touring, he works as a project engineer for a

system integration System integration is defined in engineering as the process of bringing together the component sub- systems into one system (an aggregation of subsystems cooperating so that the system is able to deliver the overarching functionality) and ensuring ...

company, and, according to the band's official website, enjoys running, swimming and sightseeing, and is a supporter of

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

team

Chelsea F.C. Chelsea Football Club is an English professional football club based in Fulham, West London. Founded in 1905, they play their home games at Stamford Bridge. The club competes in the Premier League, the top division of English football. Th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malone, Richie 1986 births Living people Irish rock guitarists Irish male guitarists Rhythm guitarists Musicians from County Dublin Status Quo (band) members