Posts tagged Queen

(Review from allmusic)

The album was recorded in a much different way from Queen’s other studio albums. In early 1991, months before his AIDS-related death, vocalist Freddie Mercury recorded as many vocals as he could, with the instruction to the rest of the band to complete the songs later.

Both stages of recording, before and after Mercury’s death, were completed at the band’s studio in Switzerland pictured on the cover of the album behind Mercury.

“Made in Heaven” harks back to Queen’s 1970s heyday with its strong melodies and hard rock guitar playing, topped by Mercury’s bravura singing and some of the massed choir effects familiar from “Bohemian Rhapsody”.

Even if one did not know that these songs were sung in the shadow of death, that subject would be obvious. The lyrics were imbued with life-and-death issues, from the titles — “Let Me Live”, “My Life Has Been Saved”, and “Too Much Love Will Kill You” — to lines like “It’s hopeless — so hopeless to even try” (“It’s a Beautiful Day”), “Waiting for possibilities/Don’t see too many around” (“Made in Heaven”) and “I long for peace before I die” (“Mother Love”).

The odd thing about this was that Mercury’s over-the-top singing had always contained a hint of camp humor, and it continued to here, even when the sentiments clearly were as heartfelt as they were theatrically overstated. Maybe Mercury was determined to go out the same way he had come in, as a diva. If so, he succeeded.

Line-up:
- Freddie Mercury / vocals, keyboards
- John Deacon / bass
- Brian May / guitars, vocals
- Roger Taylor / drums, vocals

Track List:
01. It’s A Beautiful Day – 2:32
02. Made In Heaven – 5:25
03. Let Me Live – 4:45
04. Mother Love – 4:49
05. My Life Has Been Saved – 3:15
06. I Was Born To Love You – 4:49
07. Heaven For Everyone – 5:36
08. Too Much Love Will Kill You – 4:20
09. You Don’t Fool Me – 5:24
10. A Winter’s Tale – 3:49
11. It’s A Beautiful Day (Reprise) – 3:01
12. Yeah – 0:04
13. Untitled – 22:32

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(Review from allmusic)

Following their massive 1986 European stadium tour for the A Kind of Magic album, Queen took an extended break. Rumors swirled about an impending breakup, but it turned out the break was brought on by a painful marital divorce for guitarist Brian May (who subsequently battled depression and contemplated suicide), and Freddie Mercury being diagnosed with AIDS.

Instead of sinking further into misery, the band regrouped, worked on each other’s mental state, and recorded one of their most inspired albums, 1989′s The Miracle.

Lyrically, the songs tend to reflect on the band’s past accomplishments (“Khashoggi’s Ship”, “Was It All Worth It”) as well as the state of the world in the late ’80s (the title track, “I Want It All”).

Miracle packs quite a sonic punch, recalling the rich sounds of their past classics. Split 50/50 between pop (“Breakthru,” “Invisible Man,” “Rain Must Fall”) and heavy rock (“I Want It All”, “Khashoggi’s Ship”, “Was It All Worth It”), the album was another global smash, even re-establishing the band in the US.

Line-up:
- Freddie Mercury / vocals, keyboards
- Brian May / guitars, vocals, keyboards
- John Deacon / bass
- Roger Taylor / drums, percussion, vocals

Track List:
01. Party – 2:24
02. Khashoggi’s Ship – 2:48
03. The Miracle – 5:02
04. I Want It All – 4:41
05. The Invisible Man – 3:57
06. Breakthru – 4:08
07. Rain Must Fall – 4:23
08. Scandal – 4:42
09. My Baby Does Me – 3:23
10. Was It All Worth It – 5:45
11. Hang On In There – 3:46
12. Chinese Torture – 1:45
13. The Invisible Man (Bonus 12′) – 5:28

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(Review from progarchives.com, wikipedia)

“Live Magic” captures Queen at pretty much the height of their career. The resurgence in their popularity which resulted from their appearance at “Live Aid” is captured here in a succession of songs which were live anthems and pop classics.

Most of the performances here were recorded at Knebworth Park, the band’s last ever concert with its classic line-up. The remaining few from a show in Hungary and in Wembley Stadium.

The bad news is that the compilers have tried to squeeze a quart into a pint pot. There are a total of 15 tracks, squeezed onto two sides of an LP. This results in many of the songs being abbreviated.

The album is made up of songs taken from three separate gigs, two in the United Kingdom, and one in Hungary. Such is that band’s professionalism that in reality it matters not where the recordings took place, the sound and the crowd’s reaction is the same. There is no doubt that these recordings capture some of the excitement of a Queen gig; from the opening “One vision” through “Tie your mother down” and “Seven seas of Rhye”, the band rapidly wind up the crowd to a frenzy.

One purpose the album does serve is to demonstrate the strength of the song-writing talent throughout the band. All four band members have songs included which can be classified as Queen classics. The emphasis is largely on Queen’s then more recent numbers. The six songs on side one of the LP are largely unabridged, with only “Seven Seas of Rhye” being cut down to segue into “A Kind of Magic”.

The shortened tracks on the second side are presented as a sort of medley, leading to disappointing renditions of songs such as “Friends Will Be Friends”. The anthems “We are the champions”, “Radio Ga-Ga” and “We Will Rock You” inevitably wind the crowd up further, Freddie by now has them in the palm of his hands.

Line-up:
- Brian May / guitar, vocals
- Roger Taylor / drums, vocals
- John Deacon / bass
- Freddie Mercury Vocals, piano
with:
- Spike Edney / additional guitars, Keyboards, Vocals

Track List:
01. One Vision – 5:08
02. Tie Your Mother Down – 2:59
03. Seven Seas Of Rhye – 1:21
04. A Kind Of Magic – 5:29
05. Under Pressure – 3:48
06. Another One Bites The Dust – 5:50
07. I Want To Break Free – 2:40
08. Is This The World We Created – 1:30
09. Bohemian Rhapsody – 4:41
10. Hammer To Fall – 5:20
11. Radio Ga-Ga – 4:26
12. We Will Rock You – 1:32
13. Friends Will Be Friends – 1:09
14. We Are The Champions – 2:01
15. God Save The Queen – 1:18

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(Review from amazon, allmusic)

Essentially, “Queen Rock Montreal” is the soundtrack of the “We Will Rock You” concert highlights video. This double-disc contains the full set, including the previously unreleased “Flash” and “The Hero” and it benefits from the ebb and flow of a full concert, giving a broader, fuller sense of the band’s two-night stand at the Montreal Forum on November 24 and 25, 1981.

This is an aggressive Queen live set with with first 10 or so songs played at breakneck speed. The fast and furious playing is great to hear from a band who are sometimes criticised for being too precise.

Some of the highlights are “Let Me Entertain You” for it’s sheer pace and aggression, “Killer Queen” for the variations on the vocal, “Keep Yourself Alive” (which unlike all the other songs is played at something closer to the pace of the original recording), a great rendition of “Love of My Life” and the two tracks from “Flash”.

Line-up:
- Freddie Mercury / vocals, piano, acoustic guitar
- Brian May / guitars
- John Deacon / bass
- Roger Taylor / drums

Track List:
CD1
01. Intro – 1:59
02. We Will Rock You (Fast) – 3:06
03. Let Me Entertain You – 2:48
04. Play The Game – 3:57
05. Somebody To Love – 7:53
06. Killer Queen – 1:59
07. I’m In Love With My Car – 2:03
08. Get Down Make Love – 4:45
09. Save Me – 4:14
10. Now I’m Here – 5:31
11. Dragon Attack – 3:11
12. Now I’m Here (Reprise) – 1:53
13. Love Of My Life – 3:54
CD2
01. Under Pressure – 3:50
02. Keep Yourself Alive – 3:29
03. Drum And Tympani Solo – 3:00
04. Guitar Solo – 5:11
05. Flash – 2:11
06. The Hero – 1:51
07. Crazy Little Thing Called Love – 4:15
08. Jailhouse Rock – 2:32
09. Bohemian Rhapsody – 5:28
10. Tie Your Mother Down – 3:52
11. Another One Bites The Dust – 4:00
12. Sheer Heart Attack – 3:53
13. We Will Rock You – 2:09
14. We Are The Champions – 3:27
15. God Save The Queen – 1:25

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(Review from allmusic)

Queen had long been one of the biggest bands in the world by 1980′s “Game”, but this album was the first time they made a glossy, unabashed pop album, one that was designed to sound exactly like its time. They might be posed in leather jackets on the cover, but they hardly sound tough or menacing — they rarely rock, at least not in the gonzo fashion that’s long been their trademark. Gone are the bombastic orchestras of guitars and with them the charging, relentless rhythms that kept Queen grounded even at their grandest moments.

Now, when they rock, they’ll haul out a clever rockabilly pastiche, as they do on the tremendous “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” a sly revival of old-time rock & roll that never sounds moldy, thanks in large part to Freddie Mercury’s panache. But even that is an exception to the rule on “Game”. Usually, when they want to rock here, they wind up sounding like Boston, as they do on John Deacon’s “Need Your Loving Tonight”, or they sound a bit like a new wave-conscious rocker like Billy Squier, as they do on the propulsive “Coming Soon”. But even those are exceptions to the overall rule on “Game”, since most of the album is devoted to disco-rock blends — best heard on the globe-conquering “Another One Bites the Dust”, but also present in the unintentionally kitschy positivity anthem “Don’t Try Suicide” — and the majestic power ballads that became their calling card in the 80s, as they reworked the surging “Save Me” and the elegant “Play the Game” numerous times, often with lesser results.

So, “The Game” winds up as a mixed bag, as many Queen albums often do, but again the striking difference with this album is that it finds Queen turning decidedly, decisively pop, and it’s a grand, state-of-the-art circa 1980 pop album that still stands as one of the band’s most enjoyable records. But the very fact that it does showcase a band that’s turned away from rock and toward pop means that for some Queen fans, it marks the end of the road, and despite the album’s charms, it’s easy to see why. Enter Queen of 1980s.

Line-up:
- Freddie Mercury / vocals, guitar, piano
- Brian May / guitars, keyboards, vocals
- John Deacon / guitar, bass
- Roger Taylor / drums, vocals

Track List:
01. Play The Game – 3:31
02. Dragon Attack – 4:19
03. Another One Bites The Dust – 3:38
04. Need Your Loving Tonight – 2:49
05. Crazy Little Thing Called Love – 2:43
06. Rock It (Prime Jive) – 4:33
07. Don’t Try Suicide – 3:53
08. Sail Away Sweet Sister – 3:33
09. Coming Soon – 2:51
10. Save Me – 3:49

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(Review from allmusic)

What worries most Queen fans is the title of the album — not to fear, this is still a classic pop rock album.

“Jazz” showcase a band that does thrive upon its power, thrilling upon the hold that it has on its audience. That confidence, that self-intoxication, was hinted at on “News of the World” but it takes full flower here, and that assurance acts as a cohesive device, turning this into one of Queen’s sleekest albums.

Like its patchwork predecessor, Jazz also dabbles in a bunch of different sounds — that’s a perennial problem with Queen, where the four songwriters were often pulling in different directions.

The album sounds bigger, heavier than News, thanks to the mountains of guitars Brian May has layered all over this record. If May has indulged himself, Freddie Mercury runs riot all over this album, infusing it with an absurdity that’s hard to resist. This goofiness is apparent from the galloping overture “Mustapha” and things only get a lot sillier from that point out, as the group sings the praises of “Fat Bottomed Girls” and “Bicycle Races”, as May and Mercury have an unspoken competition on who can overdub the most onto a particular track while Roger Taylor steers them toward their first disco song in the gloriously dumb “Fun It”.

Since over-the-top campiness has always been an attribute in Queen, this kind of grand-scale exaggeration gives “Jazz” a sense of ridiculousness that makes it more fun than many of their other albums.

Line-up:
- Freddie Mercury / piano, vocals
- Brian May / banjo, guitar, keyboards, vocals
- Roger Taylor / drums, vocals
- John Deacon / bass, guitar

Track List:
01. Mustapha – 3:01
02. Fat Bottomed Girls – 4:17
03. Jealousy – 3:13
04. Bicycle Race – 3:03
05. If You Can’t Beat Them – 4:15
06. Let Me Entertain You – 3:02
07. Dead On Time – 3:23
08. In Only Seven Days – 2:30
09. Dreamer’s Ball – 3:30
10. Fun It – 3:29
11. Leaving Home Ain’t Easy – 3:15
12. Don’t Stop Me Now – 3:29
13. More Of That Jazz – 4:16

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(Review from progarchives.com, allmusic)

In every sense, A Day at the Races is an unapologetic sequel to A Night at the Opera, the 1975 breakthrough that established Queen as rock & roll royalty. The band never attempts to hide that the record is a sequel — the two albums boast the same variation on the same cover art, the titles are both taken from old Marx Brothers films and serve as counterpoints to each other.

Even though the two albums look the same, they don’t quite sound the same, this one is a bit tighter than its predecessor. Here, the eccentricities are trimmed back somewhat. Though not as innovative or pioneering as its predecessor, it’s a competent and enjoyable album.

Freddie Mercury of course adds a couple of his classics. “Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy” and “Millionaire waltz” with their retro feel and camp lyrics, and “You Take My Breath Away”, one of Mercury’s most sensitive ballads, single handedly make the album essential. Roger Taylor’s excellent solo track “Drowse” is surprisingly downbeat, but in the middle 8 he does a fine impersonation of Roger Daltrey. May’s opening “Tie Your Mother Down” builds the tension wonderfully before bursting into one of the band’s hardest rock numbers ever. “Long Away” is a nicely understated song which features May on lead vocal.

With all four band members contributing one or more songs, the quality and diversity of the product is undeniable. Songs such as Freddie Mercury’s “Somebody to Love” and Brian May’s “Teo Torriatte” are excellently produced and impeccably performed works. The former features some appealing choral type vocals but when pared back to its most basic form, the song is prosaic. Likewise “Teo Torriate” is a sensitive composition, brought to life by the anthemic, sing-a-long nature of the chorus.

The album can be considered as the first indication that the band were moving away from their innovative and experimental phase, heading towards a more straightforward style.

Line-up:
- Freddie Mercury / vocal, piano, choir meister, tantrums
- Brian May / guitars, vocals, orchestration
- John Deacon / fender bass
- Roger Taylor / drums, vocal, percussion, pandemonium

Track List:
01. Tie Your Mother Down – 4:48
02. You Take My Breath Away – 5:08
03. Long Away – 3:33
04. The Millionaire Waltz – 4:55
05. You And I – 3:25
06. Somebody To Love – 4:56
07. White Man – 4:59
08. Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy – 2:54
09. Drowse – 3:45
10. Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together) – 5:54

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(Review from progarchives.com)

Queen made another giant step towards conquering the world with their third studio album, “Sheer Heart Attack”, mainly due to the inclusion of “Killer Queen”, their biggest hit single to date. This track has all the campness and glam which Freddie Mercury thrived on, with references to Moet et Chandon champagne, Paris, “if you’re that way inclined”, etc. The track is a further development of the complex yet commercial style which started with the previous single “Seven Seas of Rye”. At the time of its release, the song was radically different to anything else which had appeared in the singles chart up until that point.

The album has a similar structure to the previous “Queen 2″ album, with individual tracks on the first side, and a side long suite of linked tracks on the second. The compositional credits this time though are dispersed throughout the album.

Side one has two fine examples of commercial prog in “Brighton rock” and “Now I’m here”. Brian May adds some fine guitar work to these tracks, making use of production techniques which at the time were highly original and unusual. While effects such as the echoed stereo guitar may sound contrived and even corny now, at the time they were highly innovative, and refreshingly different.

Every track one side one is unique and indispensable. Rodger Taylor has his usual heavier interlude with “Tenement Funster”, while Mercury is at his suggestive best with “Flick of the wrist”. The highlight though is the wonderful short ballad “Lilly of the valley”, where Mercury offers one of his finest ever vocal performances. His timing and delivery on this song alone witness magnificently the often under recognised talent he possessed.

The suite on the second side of the album is book ended by “In the lap of the gods”. The opening version is a softer ballad like piece which builds to louder choruses, while the closing section is a crowd pleasing sing-a-long anthem. In between are a collection of brief pieces which sit together reasonably well. The cabaret feel of “Bring back that Leroy Brown” is noticable.

Line-up:
- Freddie Mercury / vocals, piano
- Brian May / banjo, guitar, piano, keyboards, vocals, ukulele
- Roger Taylor / percussion, drums, vocals, screams
- John Deacon / guitar, bass, fiddle

Track List:
01. Brighton Rock – 5:10
02. Killer Queen – 3:00
03. Tenement Funster – 2:47
04. Flick Of The Wrist – 3:17
05. Lily Of The Valley – 1:44
06. Now I’m Here – 4:14
07. In The Lap Of The Gods – 3:22
08. Stone Cold Crazy – 2:16
09. Dear Friends – 1:08
10. Misfire – 1:50
11. Bring Back That Leroy Brown – 2:15
12. She Makes Me (Stormtrooper In Stilettoes) – 4:09
13. In The Lap Of The Gods… Revisited – 3:45

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(Review from allmusic)

Five years before the first Queen album was released, Brian May and Roger Taylor worked together in Smile, a hard rock outfit that played in the London and Cornwall area in the late 60s. Primarily of interest to Queen fans, Ghost of a Smile contains Smile’s one single, “Earth” / “Step on Me” and four other songs recorded in 1969, but never released.

A great live band known for being quite innovative with their dynamics, Smile were not captured well on record, where poor production accentuated the trio’s sometimes sloppy playing and immature lyrics.

That said, the group could write fine melodies and lead singer Tim Staffel has a soulful voice that is heard best on the bouncy “Step on Me” and “Doin’ Alright”, played here in a gentler fashion than on Queen’s debut record. Meanwhile on “Blag”, the hard rock psychedelic influence of acts like Cream is evident with a heavy jam that showcases the talents of Brian May and Roger Taylor in a way that was not usually heard in Queen.

The two bonus tracks aren’t directly related to Smile. They are two versions of “Man from Manhattan”, a late-70s single by Eddie Howell that featured Freddie Mercury and Brian May.

In early 1970 Staffell left Smile and was replaced as vocalist by Freddie Mercury. Mercury had definite ideas of the directions where the band should go and by July 1970, Smile had been renamed Queen.

Line-up:
- Brian May / guitars, lead vocal (6), piano (2), backing vocals
- Tim Staffell / bass, vocals
- Roger Taylor / drums, backing vocals

Track List:
01. Earth – 4:02
02. Step On Me – 3:11
03. Doin’ Allright – 3:49
04. April Lady – 2:44
05. Blag – 3:13
06. Polar Bear – 4:05
07. The Man From Manhattan (Bonus Original) – 3:21
08. The Man From Manhattan (Bonus Remix) – 4:56

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(Review from progarchives.com, rollingstone.com)

After Queen’s daring attempt at disco music with “Hot Space” they took a year off, to gather their senses, and work on solo material. After the much needed break they took a step back, and instead of their usual routine of seeking their borders maintained what they knew they could do.

Rather than move in ever-widening spirals of bombast, they’ve trimmed a lot of the excess – mainly, the fat vibrato of Brian May’s multitracked guitars and Freddie Mercury’s overdubbed tabernacle choir of vocal effects. What’s left is a lean hard-rock sound.

“Radio Ga Ga” and “I Want To Break Free” are the most known hits from this album both ranking very high on charts, and both gained an anthem-like status.

“Is This The World We Created…?” is a lovely acoustic ballad with lyrics so typical for the mid-eighties, and “Keep Passing The Open Windows” is one of the best unknown songs that Queen ever did, with relatively simple chord structure, beautiful melodies and bass & piano driven pattern that is really making driving impression.

“Machine”, starting completely electronic, when the human rock band kick in, the song takes the shape of a battle, is an ode to the computer culture.

The Works is a royal feast of hard rock without that awful metallic aftertaste of the 80s.

Line-up:
- Freddie Mercury / piano, vocals
- Brian May / guitars, vocals, keyboards
- John Deacon / bass, guitar
- Roger Taylor / drums, vocals

Track List:
01. Radio Ga Ga (5:49)
02. Tear It Up (3:28)
03. It’s a Hard Life (4:08)
04. Man on the Prowl (3:28)
05. Machines (Back to Humans) (5:10)
06. I Want to Break Free (3:20)
07. Keep Passing the Open Windows (5:21)
08. Hammer to Fall (4:28)
09. Is This the World We Created…? (2:13)

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