Queen (band)

Queen

Queen are an English rock band formed in 1970 in London by Brian May, Freddie Mercury and Roger Taylor, with John Deacon joining the following year. Queen rose to prominence during the 1970s and were arguably Britain's most successful band of the past three decades.

The band are noted for their musical diversity, multi-layered arrangements, vocal harmonies and incorporation of audience participation into their live performances. They are regarded as one of the most accomplished rock acts on stage.

Queen had moderate success in the early 1970s, with the albums Queen and Queen II, but it was with the release of Sheer Heart Attack in 1974 that the band gained international success. From that album forward, all of the band's studio albums reached number one on numerous charts around the world. Since 1973, they have released fifteen studio albums, five live albums, and numerous compilation albums and have sold more than 300 million records worldwide, including more than 35.5 million albums in the United States alone (as of 2004). This makes them the third best-selling rock band ever, behind Pink Floyd, and The Beatles.

Following Mercury's death and Deacon's retirement in the 1990s, May and Taylor collaborated with Paul Rodgers, under the moniker Queen + Paul Rodgers.

History

Early days (1969-1973)

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Smile, late 1960s

I thought up the name Queen. It's just a name, but it's very regal obviously, and it sounds splendid. It's a strong name, very universal and immediate. It had a lot of visual potential and was open to all sorts of interpretations.

— Freddie Mercury

In 1969, guitarist Brian May, a student at London's Imperial College, and bassist Tim Staffell formed a group when May placed an advertisement on the college notice board for a "Mitch Mitchell/Ginger Baker type" drummer, and Roger Taylor, a young dental student, auditioned and got the job. They called the group 'Smile' and served as a support act for bands such as Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Yes and the original Genesis. Smile were signed to Mercury Records in 1969, and had their first experience of a recording studio in Trident Studios that year. Staffell was attending Ealing Art College with Farrokh Bulsara, later known as Freddie Mercury, and introduced him to the band. Bulsara soon became a keen fan. When Staffell left Smile in 1970 to join another band, Humpy Bong, Smile effectively disbanded. Bulsara persuaded May and Taylor to continue, changing the band's name from "Smile" to "Queen" in the process. The band had a number of bass players during this period who did not fit with the band's chemistry. It was not until February 1971 that they settled on John Deacon and began to rehearse for the first album.

The band had been playing the club/college circuit in and around London for almost two years when they were given opportunity to test out De Lane Lea Studios' new recording facilities to put together a fairly polished demo tape of five songs: "Keep Yourself Alive," "The Night Comes Down," "Great King Rat," "Jesus" and "Liar." Despite its quality, no record company would take them on, except for a low bid from Chrysalis Records, which they used to try to entice other companies. They were finally taken aboard in 1972 by Norman and Barry Sheffield, who were setting up Trident Studios, but they were allowed to record only during the studio's downtime. The downtime arrangement lasted from June to November 1972.

Queen (1973)

In 1973, after much delay, Queen released their first album, a self-titled project. The album was received well by critics. Gordon Fletcher of Rolling Stone said "their debut album is superb," and Chicago's Daily Herald called it an "above average debut". However, it drew little mainstream attention and the lead single "Keep Yourself Alive," a Brian May composition, sold poorly. The album was influenced by the heavy metal and progressive rock of the day. Greg Prato of All Music Guide called it "one of the most underrated hard rock debuts of all time."

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Queen II (1974)

The album Queen II was released in 1974. The album reached number five on the British album charts, while the Freddie Mercury-written lead single "Seven Seas of Rhye," reached number ten in the UK, giving the band their first hit. The album is their heaviest and darkest release, with long complex instrumental passages, fantasy themed lyrics and showcased the band's virtuosity. The band toured as support to Mott the Hoople in the United States during this period, and they began to gain notice for their energetic and engaging stage shows. However, album sales in the United States were, like its predecessor, low.

Breakthrough era (1974–1979)

Our albums just tend to be collections of songs really, because we all write in the group, all four of us. - John Deacon

Sheer Heart Attack (1974)

Work on the band's third album, Sheer Heart Attack, started without May due to medical complications and was recorded and released in 1974. Considered by many fans as the band's first true classic, the album reached number one in the United Kingdom, sold well throughout Europe, and went gold in the United States, giving the band their first real taste of commercial success. The album experimented with a wide variety of musical genres, including British Music Hall ("Killer Queen"), heavy metal ("Flick of the Wrist", "Brighton Rock", "Tenement Funster", "Now I'm Here", and "Stone Cold Crazy" - a song which Metallica would later cover and earn a Grammy for), ballads ("Lily Of The Valley" and "Dear Friends"), ragtime ("Bring Back That Leroy Brown"), and Caribbean ("Misfire"). At this point Queen started to move away from the progressive tendencies of their first two releases into a more radio-friendly, song-oriented vein.

The single "Killer Queen" reached number two on the British charts, and became their first U.S. hit, reaching number twelve on the Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits. It combined camp, vaudeville, British music hall with May's guitar virtuosity. The album's second single, "Now I'm Here", a more traditional hard rock composition, was a number eleven hit in Britain.

In 1975, the band left for a world tour with each member clad resplendently in Zandra Rhodes created costumes and banks of lights and effects. They toured the U.S. on their first headlining tour, and their first Canadian dates during April with support act Kansas. Also at this time, the band's manager Jim Beach negotiated the band out of their Trident contract, leaving the band without a manager. They had a number of options, one of which was Led Zeppelin's manager, Peter Grant. Grant wanted them to sign with Led Zeppelin's own production company, Swan Song Records. As this was unacceptable to Queen, they contacted John Reid, Elton John's manager, who accepted the position.

April of 1975 saw the band tour Japan for the first time, causing a country wide hysteria.

A Night at the Opera (1975)

Later that year the band recorded and released A Night at the Opera. At the time, it was the most expensive album ever produced. Like its predecessor, the album features diverse musical styles and experimentation with stereo sound. In "The Prophet's Song", an eight-minute epic, the middle section is a canon, with simple phrases layered to create a full-choral sound. The album was a smash in Britain, and went three times platinum in the United States.. It is considered one of their finest works and in 2003, the album was ranked number 230 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

The album also featured the worldwide hit single "Bohemian Rhapsody" which was number one in the United Kingdom for nine weeks, and is Britain's third best selling single of all time, it also reached number nine in the United States. Bohemian Rhapsody has been voted, several times, the greatest song of all time. The second single from the album, "You're My Best Friend", peaked at sixteen in the United States and went on to become a worldwide Top Ten hit.

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A Day at the Races (1976)

By 1976, Queen were back in the studio, where they recorded A Day at the Races, what may be mistaken simply as a companion album to A Night at the Opera. It again borrowed the name of a Marx Brothers' movie, and its cover was similar to that of A Night at the Opera, a variation on the same Queen Crest. Musically, the album was by both fans' and critics' standards a strong effort, and reached number one on the British charts. The major hit on the album was "Somebody to Love", a gospel-inspired song in which Mercury, May, and Taylor multi-tracked their voices to make a 100-voice gospel choir. The song went to number two in the United Kingdom, and number thirteen on the U.S. singles chart.

During this same year Queen played one of their most famous gigs, a 1976 concert in Hyde Park, London. It set an attendance record, with 150,000 people confirmed to be in attendance. The actual number in attendance is thought to be closer to 180,000, and is usually stated as between 150,000 and 200,000. By comparison, the 2005 London Live 8 concert, which featured a number of the world's highest-drawing acts (including The Who, U2, Madonna, Elton John, Robbie Williams and a reunited Pink Floyd) drew about 150,000.

News of the World (1977)

In 1977 News of the World was released, and although it was critically panned at the time, it has since gained recognition as being one of the stand-out hard rock albums of the late 1970s, as well as being one of the albums most influential in creating stadium rock. This album had many songs that were tailor-made to be performed live, including "We Will Rock You" and the rock ballad "We Are the Champions", both of which reached number four in the United States, and both of which would become enduring, international sports anthems. Roger Taylor released his first solo effort this year in the form of a single. The A-side was a cover of a song by The Parliaments "I Wanna Testify" and the B-side was a song by Taylor called "Turn On The TV".

Jazz (1978)

In 1978 the band released Jazz, including the hit singles "Fat Bottomed Girls" and "Bicycle Race", which were also released as a double-A-side single. Although the word 'jazz' was not used in the strict sense of the term (see jazz), the album was targeted by critics for its collection of different styles, jazz not being one of them. Ironically, Rolling Stone criticized it for being "dull", continuing to say "Queen hasn't the imagination to play jazz — Queen hasn't the imagination, for that matter, to play rock & roll". The album cover was inspired by a painting on the Berlin Wall. Important tracks of the album were "Dead on Time", "Don't Stop Me Now", "Let Me Entertain You", and "Mustapha", an Arabesque-sounding song by Mercury, combined with heavy rock guitar.

In 1979 the band did not release a studio album, instead focusing on a new album to come out in 1980. They did, however, release their very first live album. Entitled Live Killers, it went platinum twice in the United States. They also released the very successful single, "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", a rockabilly song done in the style of Elvis Presley; the single made the top 10 in many countries and was the band's first number one single in the United States.

New sound and the introduction of synthesizers (1980–1989)

The Game (1980)

Queen began the 1980s with the commercially successful album, The Game, which turned out to be their highest-selling album. The album featured the singles "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" and "Another One Bites the Dust", both of which reached number one in the United States.

The album stayed number one for four weeks in the United States, and went four times platinum. It was also the only album to ever top the Billboard rock, dance, and R&B charts simultaneously. The album also marked the first appearance of a synthesizer on a Queen album and included two popular ballads, "Play the Game" and "Save Me", the latter of which became a fan favourite and concert staple.

Flash Gordon (1980)

1980 also saw the release of the soundtrack Queen had recorded for Flash Gordon. The album sold poorly, reaching number ten in the United Kingdom.

In 1981, Queen become the first major rock band to play in South American stadiums. The band broke the attendance world record for a single concert and venue, at the Morumbi Stadium in São Paulo, Brazil, where 131,000 people attended on the first night, followed by 251,000 in attendance over the next two days. Including five shows in Argentina, Queen played to a total audience of 479,000 people on their South American tour. On October 9, 17, and 18, 1981, Queen performed in front of more than 150,000 at Monterrey (Estadio Universitario) and Puebla (Estadio Zaragoza), Mexico; and were the first major rock band to play for Mexican audiences.

Also in 1981, Queen collaborated with another artist for the first time, David Bowie, on the single "Under Pressure". The collaboration was spontaneous, when Bowie happened to drop by the studio while Queen were recording. While the band were immediately pleased with the results, Bowie did not begin playing it during his concerts until years later. Upon its release, the song was extremely successful, reaching #1 in Britain. The bass riff was later used for Vanilla Ice's 1990 hit, "Ice Ice Baby", prompting a successful lawsuit over the use of the sample.

Queen released their first compilation album, titled Greatest Hits, which showcased the group's rock highlights from 1974-1981. It was highly successful, and as of 2007, it remains the United Kingdom's best selling album of all time. Taylor became the first member of the band to release his own solo album in 1981, entitled Fun In Space.

Hot Space (1982)

In 1982 the band released the funk album Hot Space. The band stopped touring North America, as their success there had waned, although they would perform on American television for the first and only time during the eighth season premiere of Saturday Night Live. Queen left Elektra Records, their label in the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, and signed onto EMI/Capitol Records.

After working solidly for over ten years, Queen decided that they would not perform any live shows in 1983. During this time, they recorded the album The Works, and several members of the band explored side projects and solo work. May released a mini-album entitled Star Fleet Project, on which he collaborated with Eddie Van Halen. A computer musician composer in Canada, Kevin Chamberlain, helped with vocals and background music for Freddie Mercury's solo project that later was cancelled due to creative differences.

The Works (1984)

In 1984, Queen released the album The Works, which included the successful singles "Radio Ga Ga" and "I Want to Break Free". Despite these hit singles, the album failed to do well in the United States. "Radio Ga Ga" would be the band's last original Stateside Top Forty hit until 1989's "I Want It All", which reached number three in the United States Mainstream Rock chart.

In late 1984, Queen embarked on a set of dates in Bophuthatswana, South Africa at the arena at Sun City. Upon returning to England, they were the subject of outrage, having played there during the height of apartheid. In response, the band stated that they were playing music for people who wanted to hear it, and stressed that the concerts were played before integrated audiences.

In 1985, the band played two performances at the Rock in Rio festival. At two o'clock AM on January 12, Queen began their performance as headliners of the festival's opening day, playing in front of 325,000 people, breaking the previous world record. They also played in the early hours of January 19 for a capacity-crowd of 325,000 fans. At Live Aid, held at Wembley on July 13 1985, Queen performed some of their greatest hits which was considered to be their best performance to date.

Revitalized by the response to Live Aid and the resulting increase in record sales, Queen ended 1985 by releasing the single "One Vision". The song used in the film Iron Eagle. Mercury also released his first solo album Mr. Bad Guy during this time.

A Kind of Magic (1986)

In early 1986, Queen recorded the album A Kind of Magic, containing several songs written for the Russell Mulcahy film Highlander, which was released that year. This album was very successful, producing a string of hits including the title track "A Kind of Magic", "Friends Will Be Friends", "Who Wants to Live Forever" and "Princes of the Universe". Highlander star Christopher Lambert, playing Connor MacLeod, twice says "it's a kind of magic".

Later that year, Queen went on a sold-out tour, known as "The Magic Tour", in support of A Kind of Magic. The tour's highlight was at Wembley Stadium in London and resulted in the live double album, Queen Live At Wembley Stadium, released both on CD and as a live concert film on VHS and DVD. They could not book Wembley for a third night because it was already booked, but they managed to get Knebworth Park. It sold out within two hours and over 120,000 fans packed the park for what turned out to be Queen's final live performance with Mercury. Ultimately, the Magic Tour was the largest tour Queen had ever played. A total of more than 1 million people saw the show, with 400,000 for the United Kingdom alone, which was the record at the time.

The Miracle (1989)

After working in various solo projects during 1988 (including Mercury's collaboration with Montserrat Caballé, Barcelona) the band released The Miracle in 1989. The album continued the direction of A Kind of Magic with a polished pop-rock sound mixed with a few heavy numbers and spawned the European hits "I Want It All", "Breakthru", "The Invisible Man", "Scandal", and "The Miracle". Queen announced that there would be no tour for this album, with Mercury declaring that he was the sole reason. He stated that he simply wanted to break the typical cycle of album/tour. Speculation returned of a possible breakup of the band in the near future, or that Mercury might be suffering from health problems.

The Miracle also began a change in direction of Queen's songwriting philosophy. Since the band's beginning, nearly all songs had been written by and credited to a single member, with each of the other members often adding minimal creative input, and instead helping the original writer to realize their vision for the song. Starting with The Miracle, the band's songwriting began to become more collaborative, and although many songs could be said to have been written largely by one member or another, they vowed to credit the final product only to Queen as a group.

Mercury's death and the final albums (1990–1997)

There was all that time when we knew Freddie was on the way out, we kept our heads down.

— Brian May

Innuendo (1991)

Beginning in the late 1980s, rumours started spreading in the tabloid press and elsewhere that Mercury was suffering from AIDS. Although the rumours turned out to be true, Mercury flatly denied them at the time. However, the band decided to keep making albums free of conflict and differences; starting with The Miracle and continuing with 1991's Innuendo. Although his health was deteriorating, Mercury continued to contribute, working in a creative fervor. Highlights of Innuendo were the epic title track, the hard-rocking powerhouse "Headlong", the quirky, synthesizer-heavy, pop-styled "I'm Going Slightly Mad", and the reflective anthems "The Show Must Go On" and "These Are the Days of Our Lives". The band later released their second Greatest Hits compilation, "Greatest Hits II".

On 23 November 1991, in a prepared statement made on his deathbed, Mercury finally confirmed that he had AIDS. Within twenty-four hours of the announcement, Mercury died at the age of forty-five. His funeral services were private, held in accordance with the Zoroastrian religious faith of his family. "Bohemian Rhapsody" was re-released shortly after Mercury's death, along with "These Are the Days of Our Lives". Initial proceeds from the single – approximately £1,000,000 – were donated to the Terrence Higgins Trust.

On 20 April 1992, the public shared in the mourning of Mercury's passing at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, held at London's Wembley Stadium in Mercury's honor. Musicians including Tony Iommi (of Black Sabbath), Robert Plant (of Led Zeppelin), Annie Lennox, James Hetfield, Axl Rose (of Guns N' Roses), Extreme, Roger Daltrey (of The Who), Def Leppard, Elton John, George Michael, David Bowie, Mick Ronson, Metallica and Liza Minnelli, along with the three remaining members of Queen, performed many of Queen's major hits. It was a successful concert that was televised to over 1 billion viewers worldwide. The concert is in The Guinness Book of Records as "The largest rock star benefit concert." It raised over £20,000,000 for AIDS charities. Queen's popularity increased once again in the United States after "Bohemian Rhapsody" was featured in the comedy film Wayne's World, helping the song reach number two for five weeks in the United States charts in 1992.

The band also terminated their Capitol Records contract and signed a deal with Hollywood Records as their new U.S label.

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Made in Heaven (1995)

Queen never actually disbanded, although their last album of original material (not including compilations) was released in 1995, titled Made in Heaven, released four years after Mercury's death. It was constructed from Mercury's final recording sessions in 1991, plus material left over from their previous studio albums; in addition, re-worked material from Mercury's solo album Mr. Bad Guy and a track originally featured on the first album of Taylor's side-project, The Cross, were included. May and Taylor have often been involved in projects related to raising money for AIDS research and promoting its support. John Deacon's last involvement with the band was in 1997, when he recorded the track "No-One but You (Only the Good Die Young)" with the other two members. It was the last original song recorded by all three remaining members of Queen, and it was released as a bonus track on the Queen Rocks compilation album later that year.

"Queen + …" projects (1998–)

Several Queen + projects were developed in the following years, a few of them mere remixes with no artistic involvement from the band. In 1999, a Greatest Hits III album was released. This album featured, among others, "Queen + Wyclef Jean" on a rap version of "Another One Bites the Dust", the live version of "Somebody to Love" by George Michael, and the live version of "The Show Must Go On", performed live in 1997 with Elton John.

Brian May and Roger Taylor performed together as Queen on several occasions (award ceremonies, charity concerts, and the like), sharing vocals with various guest singers. They also recorded several covers of Queen's hits, including "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions" with new singers.

In 2003, four new songs were recorded by Queen for Nelson Mandela's 46664 campaign against AIDS. The studio versions of Invincible Hope (Queen + Nelson Mandela, feat. Treana Morris), 46664 - The Call, Say It's Not True, and Amandla (Anastacia, Dave Stewart and Queen) have not yet been released on album.

Queen + Paul Rodgers

Main article: Queen + Paul Rodgers

At the end of 2004, it was announced that Queen would reunite and return to touring in 2005, with Paul Rodgers (founder and former lead singer of Free and Bad Company). It was also stated, including on Brian May's own website, that Rodgers would be 'featured with' Queen as Queen + Paul Rodgers, not replacing the late Freddie Mercury. The retired Deacon would not be participating; Danny Miranda of Blue Öyster Cult replaced him on bass. Other members of the tour included keyboardist Spike Edney, who played guitar and keyboards in Queen live shows since 1984, and additional guitarist Jamie Moses, who had worked with Brian May on solo efforts since the early '90s.

On September 19 2005, a live double CD album was released, Return of the Champions, featuring Paul Rodgers and recorded live in May 2005 during the Queen + Paul Rodgers tour at the Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England. A DVD from the same concert was released a few weeks later.

In March 2006, Queen + Paul Rodgers set out to tour the United States and Canada. This tour, apart from the two United States dates from the first Queen + Paul Rodgers tour, marks Queen's first full-on United States tour since Hot Space in 1982. Queen + Paul Rodgers debuted their first new song, a collaboration called "Take Love", while on the United States tour. On April 28 2006, Queen + Paul Rodgers released a second live DVD from their collaboration, Super Live in Japan; the show was filmed at Saitama Super Arena on October 27 2005 - one of six Japan dates scheduled.

On August 15 2006, Brian May confirmed through his website that Queen + Paul Rodgers will begin producing a new studio album beginning in October, to be recorded at a heretofore 'secret location'.

According to the band's lighting engineer at a concert in Atlanta, Georgia on 13 April 2006, the group will tour again in early 2008.

Live performances

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Queen, circa 1974.

Main article: Queen live performances

Queen's live performances were consistently at the forefront of rock shows from bands of their generation. The band amassed a diverse catalogue of songs and made use of massive sound systems, lighting rigs, pyrotechnics, and various extravagant costumes to help enrich their shows into entertaining, theatrical events. As both lead vocalist and frontman, Mercury was able to immerse himself in the audience's adulation and thrived off their excitement. Queen were also amongst a handful of bands that provided the initial impetus for stadiums and large arenas becoming regarded as serious rock concert venues. Their reputation for putting on an impressive live performance led to a number of concerts being released on both album and video and, later, on CD and DVD while a significant number of bootleg copies of Queen concerts have appeared.

In the digital realm

In conjunction with Electronic Arts, Queen released the computer game Queen: The Eye in 1998, to commercial and critical failure. The music itself — tracks from Queen's vast catalogue, in many cases remixed into new instrumental versions — was by and large well received, but the game experience was hampered by poor game play. Adding to the problem was an extremely long development time, resulting in graphic elements that already seemed outdated by the time of release.

Under the supervision of May and Taylor, numerous restoration projects have been underway involving Queen's lengthy audio and video catalogue. DVD releases of their 1986 Wembley concert (titled Live At Wembley Stadium) and 1982 Milton Keynes concert (Queen on Fire - Live at the Bowl), and two Greatest Video Hits (Volumes 1 and 2, spanning the 1970s and 1980s) have seen the band's music remixed into 5.1 and DTS surround sound. So far, only two of the bands albums, A Night at the Opera and The Game, have been fully remixed into high-resolution multichannel surround on DVD-Audio. A Night at the Opera was re-released with some revised 5.1 mixes and accompanying videos in 2005 for the 30th anniversary of the album's original release (CD+DVD-Video set).

In film and television

Queen contributed music directly to the movies Flash Gordon (1980, directed by Mike Hodges) and Highlander (the original 1986 film, directed by Russell Mulcahy). The theme song, "Princes of the Universe", was also used in the Highlander TV series (1992–1998).

"Bohemian Rhapsody" was re-released as a single in 1991 after appearing in Wayne's World. The single subsequently reached number two on the United States Billboard chart (with "The Show Must Go On" as the first track on the single) and helped rekindle the band's popularity in North America.

Several films have featured their songs performed by other artists. A cover of "Somebody to Love" by Anne Hathaway featured in the 2004 film Ella Enchanted. In 2006, Brittany Murphy also recorded a cover of the same song for the 2006 movie Happy Feet. In 2001, a version of "The Show Must Go On" was performed by Jim Broadbent and Nicole Kidman in the movie musical Moulin Rouge!. The closing credits of A Knight's Tale released in 2001 has a version of "We Are The Champions" performed by Robbie Williams.

Many other films have featured their songs or sections of their songs. These include:

FM, Iron Eagle, Moulin Rouge, National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon, The Break-up, Small Soldiers, Son in Law, Encino Man, Stepmom, High Fidelity, Super Size Me, The Girl Next Door,

Revenge of the Nerds, Wayne's World, The Mighty Ducks, How High, Happy Feet, Chicken Little, Cheaper By The Dozen 2, Grosse Pointe Blank, Blackball, Shaun of the Dead, and Blades of Glory.

Keeping in the tradition (since Season five) of naming each season's episodes after songs from a famous 1970s era rock band (Led Zeppelin for the fifth season, The Who for the sixth and The Rolling Stones for the seventh), the eighth and final season of That '70s Show consisted of episodes named after Queen songs. "Bohemian Rhapsody" served as the season premiere.

On April 11, 2006 Queen appeared on the American singing contest television show American Idol. Each contestant was required to sing a Queen song during that week of the competition. Songs which appeared on the show included "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Fat Bottomed Girls", "The Show Must Go On", "Who Wants to Live Forever", and "Innuendo". Brian May later criticized the show for editing specific scenes, one which made the group's time with contestant Ace Young look negative, despite it being the opposite.

Al Murray's Happy Hour has a Queen theme, as it uses "Don't Stop Me Now" for the introduction and features guest performers along with host Al Murray singing different Queen songs each episode. The remainder of Queen did appear at the end of a series of the show.

In musical theatre

Marquee for the We Will Rock You musical.

In 2002, a musical or "rock theatrical" based on the songs of Queen, entitled We Will Rock You, opened at the Dominion Theatre on London's West End. The musical was written by British comedian and author Ben Elton in collaboration with Brian May and Roger Taylor, and produced by Robert De Niro. It has since been staged in Madrid and Barcelona, Spain; Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, and Brisbane, Australia; Cologne, Germany; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; South Africa, Las Vegas, Nevada; Zurich, Switzerland; Tokyo, Japan; Moscow, Russia and Toronto, Canada.

The original London production was scheduled to close on Saturday, October 7, 2006 at the Dominion Theatre, but due to public demand, the show has now been extended indefinitely. We Will Rock You has become the longest running musical ever to run at this prime London theatre, overtaking the previous record holder, the Grease musical.

The launch of the musical coincided with Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee. As part of the Jubilee celebrations Brian May performed a guitar solo of "God Save the Queen", as featured on Queen's A Night at the Opera, from the roof of Buckingham Palace. The recording of this performance was used as video for the same song on the 30th Anniversary DVD edition of A Night at the Opera.

Sean Bovim created "Queen at the Ballet", a tribute to Freddie Mercury, which uses Queen's music as a soundtrack for the show’s dancers, who interpret the stories behind tracks such as "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Radio Ga Ga" and "Killer Queen."

Sound and style

Queen composed music that drew inspiration from many different genres of music, often with a tongue-in-cheek attitude. Among the genres they have been associated with are: arena rock, dance/disco, glam rock, hard rock, heavy metal, pop rock, progressive rock and psychedelic rock. Queen also wrote songs that were inspired by genres that are not or barely associated with rock, such as country, ragtime and folk. They also experimented with rock-genres such as punk rock and speed metal, amongst others.

Sonic experimentation figured heavily in Queen's songs. A distinctive characteristic of Queen's music are the vocal harmonies which are usually comprised of the voices of May, Mercury and Taylor best heard on the studio albums A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races. Some of the ground work for the development of this sound can be attributed to their former producer Roy Thomas Baker as well as their engineer Mike Stone. Besides vocal harmonies, Queen were also known for multi-tracking voices to imitate the sound of a large choir through overdubs. According to Brian May, there are over 180 vocal overdubs in "Bohemian Rhapsody". Many Queen songs were also written with audience participation in mind, such as "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions".

Influence on other musicians

Initially dismissed by the majority of music critics, especially those in the United States, Queen have more recently been recognized as having made significant contributions to such genres as arena rock, glam rock, hard rock, heavy metal, pop rock and progressive rock, amongst others. Hence the band has been cited as an influence by many other musicians. Moreover, like their music, the collection of bands and artists that have claimed to be influenced by Queen, or a member of Queen, is diverse and span different generations, countries and genres.

Some of the musicians that have cited the band as an influence include: Ben Folds Five, Blind Guardian, Def Leppard, The Darkness, Extreme, Foo Fighters,The Killers, Green Day, Guns N' Roses, Kansas, Metallica, George Michael, Marilyn Manson, Kaiser Chiefs, Muse, Mika,,My Chemical Romance, Nine Inch Nails, Panic! At The Disco, The Smashing Pumpkins, Max Cavalera, Styx, and Sweet.

Michael Jackson was a friend of Mercury's in the early 1980s and cited the Hot Space album as a driving influence behind the making of his 1982 album Thriller on which Mercury was originally scheduled to appear.. Queen have also been cited as a major influence on the "neo-classical metal" genre by Swedish-American guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen. "Stone Cold Crazy", from 1974's Sheer Heart Attack album, is often cited as an early precursor of the speed- or thrash metal subgenre. Metallica recorded a cover version of the song, which first appeared on the "Rubaiyat — Electra's 40th Anniversary" album in 1990, and won the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 1991.

Quotes from fellow musicians

[Brighton Rock] was the first thing I heard them play. Roy Thomas Baker had produced [Nazareth's] second album, and told us to look out for Queen. When I got home I went to Boots in the local high street and bought a cassette of Sheer Heart Attack. After sitting in the car and playing both sides I was stunned, and had to be moved by a traffic warden.

— Pete Agnew (Nazareth)

At the time of Innuendo's release, it blew all the extreme metal forms I was listening to out of the water. I guess I'll be representing the whole extreme metal genre by saying that Queen's music is highly influential for oddities, too.

— Mikael Akerfeldt (Opeth)

All I've got on my iPod is every single Queen song and every single Judas Priest song. Queen were an incredible heavy metal band. I saw them on their first ever tour, at Birmingham Town Hall. They just blew me away.

— Rob Halford (Judas Priest)

When I was with Kansas, we toured with Queen on their first visit to the States and became good friends. They profoundly influenced us.

— Kerry Livgren

Choosing my favourite Queen song is like choosing my favourite time to breathe air.

— Matt Heafy, (Trivium).

You could tell those guys were fucking brainy, the degrees and A-levels come flooding out on [Bohemian Rhapsody]; its arrangement and melody are so incredible.

— Gary Moore

[When] Mountain toured with Queen on one of their earliest visits to the States. They knocked my fiancee and I out every night.

— Leslie West (Mountain)

When Queen rocked out they easily rivalled Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple.

— Richard Barbieri (Porcupine Tree)

Queen did such incredible hard rock stuff, though there was so much else to them.

— Geoff Tate (Queensrÿche)

Queen created some of the best stadium rock anthems of our time.

— Mick Box (Uriah Heep)

Historical success

As of 2005, according to The Guinness Book of World Records, Queen albums have spent a total of 1,422 weeks or twenty-seven years on the United Kingdom album charts; more time than any other musical act including The Beatles and Elvis Presley. Also in 2005, with the release of their live album with Paul Rodgers, Queen moved into third place on the list of acts with the most aggregate time spent on the British record charts.

In 2006, the Greatest Hits album was found to be Ireland and United Kingdom's all-time best selling album, with sales upwards of 5,407,587 copies, over 604,295 more copies than its nearest competitor, The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Their Greatest Hits II album came in seventh with sales upwards of 3,631,321 copies. In January 2007, their Greatest Hits I & II was the #1 most downloaded album on iTunes in North America.

One of rock's most successful and influential acts, the band have released a total of eighteen number one albums, eighteen number one singles, and ten number one DVDs worldwide making them one of the world's best-selling music artists. They have sold over 300 million records worldwide including 35.5 million albums in the United States alone as of 2004. The band are also the only group in which every member has composed more than one chart-topping single.

Accolades

Inductions

• 2001 - The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.
• 2002 - The band was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
• 2003 - The band became the first and remain the only band to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
• 2004 - The band was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame.
• 2004 - "Bohemian Rhapsody" is inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
• 2004 - The band was inducted into the RockWalk of Fame (at Guitar Center on Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard)
• 2006 - The band was the first inducted into the VH1 Rock Honors.

Awards

• 1974
  • Sounds: 3rd Best New British Band, 9th Best International Band
  • Disc: 10th Brightest Hope
  • NME: 2nd Most Promising New Name

• 1975
  • Melody Maker: 'Band of the Year'
  • Record Mirror: 2nd Best British Newcomer, 2nd Best Single ("Killer Queen"), 9th International Group
  • NME: 8th Best British Group, 7th Best Stage Band, 4th Most Promising Group In The World, 3rd Most Promising New Name, 17th Best World Group
  • Disc: Top Live Band, Top International Group, Top British Group, Top Single ("Killer Queen"), 3rd Best Album (Sheer Heart Attack), 5th Best Album (Queen II)
  • Ivor Novello Award to Mercury for "Killer Queen"
  • Golden Lion Award (Belgium) to Mercury for "Killer Queen"
  • Carl Allen Award for contribution to the Ballroom Dancing Industry

• 1976
  • NME: 1st British Stage Band, 2nd Group, 5th World Group, 3rd World Stage Band, Mercury: 7th World Singer, May: 3rd Top Guitarist, 1st British Single ("Bohemian Rhapsody"), 2nd Album ("A Night at the Opera")
  • Record Mirror / Disc: 1st Best British Group, 1st World Group, No. 1 Single ("Bohemian Rhapsody"), No. 6 Album ("A Night at the Opera"), Mercury: 5th British Singer, 6th World Singer, 4th British Songwriter, 5th World Songwriter, May: 4th British Musician, 4th World Musician
  • Sound: Best Band, Best Album (A Night at the Opera), Best Single ("Bohemian Rhapsody")
  • Ivor Novello Award to Mercury for "Bohemian Rhapsody"

• 1977
  • Brittania Award: Best British Single of the Last 25 Years ("Bohemian Rhapsody")
  • Europe One Radio: Most Potential Rock Band
  • Daily Mail: Best Group*1979
  • Music Life, Japan: Top Group, Top Album (Jazz), Top Single, Top Singer, Top Guitarist, Top Drummer, Top Bass Player

• 1980
  • Juno Awards, Canada: Best Group, Best International Single ("Another One Bites the Dust"), Best International Album (The Game)
  • Record World USA: Top Male Group, Top Producer, Top Disco Crossover (All awarded for "Another One Bites the Dust")
  • Dick Clarke Awards USA: Best Band
  • Circus Magazine USA: 2nd Best Group, 1st Live Show, No. 1 Album (The Game), No. 1 Single ("Another One Bites the Dust"), No.3 Single ("Crazy Little Thing Called Love"), Mercury: 2nd Male Vocalist, 3rd Best Songwriter, 3rd Best Keyboard Player; 3rd Best Guitarist, 3rd Best Bassist, 3rd Best Drummer

• 1981
  • American Music Awards: 'Favorite Pop/Rock Single' ("Another One Bites the Dust")
  • Music Life, Japan: Best Group, Best Vocalist, Best Bass Player, 2nd Best Guitarist, 2nd Drummer
  • NARM Award USA: Biggest Selling Single of 1980 ("Another One Bites the Dust")

• 1984
  • Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Silver Clef Award: Outstanding Contribution to British Music
  • UK Video Awards: Highly Commended in Best Compilation Category for The Works EP. Best Video award for "Radio Ga Ga"

• 1986
  • Daily Mirror Reader's Poll: Top British Group, Top Male Vocalist, 5th Best Album (A Kind of Magic)
  • Daily Express: Best Album Cover Award (A Kind of Magic)
  • British Video Awards: Top Music Vdeio Award (Live In Rio)

• 1987
  • Sun: Best Male Vocalist for Mercury
  • Capital Radio London: Best Group
  • Ivor Novello Award: for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
  • British Video Awards: Best Video, Music category for "Live In Budapest"

• 1988
  • Golden Rose Festival, Montreux: International Music Media Conference: Best Long Form Video worldwide (The Magic Years)
  • Festerio, Rio De Janiero: Best video documentary (The Magic Years)

• 1989
  • Independent Television Awards: Best Band of the Eighties
  • US Film & Video Festival: Silver Screen Award (The Magic Years)
  • Diamond Awards, Antwerp: Best Special Effects Award ("The Invisible Man")

• 1990
  • Brit Awards: Outstanding Contribution to Music

• 1991
  • American Film & Video Festival, Chicago: Innuendo won 1st Prize, I'm Going Slightly Mad won 3rd Prize for Creative Excellence in the Art Culture and Performing Arts category
  • Monitor Awards (International Teleproduction Society), New York City: Best Achievement in Music Video ("Innuendo")

• 1992
  • Brit Awards: Mercury received a posthumous Outstanding Contribution To Music Award, Best Single Award ("These Are the Days of Our Lives").
  • Ivor Novello Award: Best Single ("These Are the Days of Our Lives"), May received a Best TV Commercial Music Award ("Driven By You")
  • Golden Giraffe Award: Greatest Hits II (Award given by the Association of Hungarian Record Producers)
  • MTV Awards: Best Video From A Movie (Wayne's World)
  • US Film & Video Festival, Chicago: Gold Camera Awards (The Freddie Mercury Tribute), (Greatest Flix II), ("The Show Must Go On") ("These Are the Days of Our Lives")

• 1993
  • Ivor Novello Award: to Mercury ("Living on My Own") (posthumous)
  • American Society Of Composers, Authors & Publishers: Mercury posthumously awarded for "Bohemian Rhapsody" as the Most Played Record in the U.S. of 1993
  • Monitor Awards, Hollywood: "Red Couch" Awards (Greatest Flix II and "I'm Going Slightly Mad")

• 1997
  • Ivor Novello Award: Best Song Lyrically & Musically ("Too Much Love Will Kill You")

• 2001
  • Golden Rose Film Festival, Montreux: Prix de la Presse (The Freddie Mercury Untold Story)

• 2002
  • New York Film Festival: Gold World Medal for the Best Television and Entertainment Program (Variety Special Section), Gold World Medal for the Best Home Video (Music Video Section) for The Freddie Mercury Untold Story
  • Capital FM Awards: Outstanding Contribution to Music
  • Guinness World Records: UK’s best single of the past 50 years ("Bohemian Rhapsody")
  • Annual DVD Awards: Best DVD-Audio/Non Video (A Night at the Opera)
  • Surround Music Awards: "Most Adventurous Mix" and "Listener's Choice" (A Night at the Opera)

• 2003
  • Annual DVD Awards: Best DVD-Audio (The Game)
  • DVD Awards At The Universal Sheraton: DVD-Audio Of The Year (The Game)
  • Capital Legends Awards: Legendary Group
  • European Music DVD-Award: Best Live DVD (Live At Wembley Stadium)
  • Surround Music Award: "Best Mix: Non-Orchestral" (The Game)

Polls

• 1999 - The band were voted the second greatest band in music history.
• 2005 - The band's performance at Live Aid is voted two times by a large selection of musicians and critics to be the greatest live show of all time.
• 2007 - The band was voted the 'Best British Band Of All Time.'

Logo

File:Queen crest.png

The Queen logo

The Queen logo, also known as the Queen Crest, was designed by Mercury (who gained a diploma in Illustration and Graphic Design from Ealing Art College in London) shortly before the release of their first album. The logo features the zodiac signs of all four members: two lions for Leo (Deacon and Taylor), a crab for Cancer (May), and two fairies for Virgo (Mercury). The lions are embracing a stylized letter Q, the crab is resting atop the Q with flames rising directly above it, and the fairies are each sheltering below a lion. There is also a crown inside the Q and the whole logo is over-shadowed by an enormous phoenix. The whole symbol bears a passing resemblance to the Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, particularly with the lion supporters. The original logo, as found on the reverse-side of the first album cover, was a simple line drawing but more intricate colour versions were used on later album covers.

Song samples

• Sheer Heart Attack

• News of the World

• Jazz

Discography

Main article: Queen discography

Further reading

• Brooks, Greg (1995), Queen Live: A Concert Documentary, London: Omnibus Press, ISBN 9780711948143
• Dean, Ken; Charlesworth, Chris (1991), Queen: The New Visual Documentary, London: Omnibus Press, ISBN 9780711928282
• Goodall, Nigel; Lewry, Peter (1998), The Ultimate Queen, London: Simon & Schuster, ISBN 9780684821498
• Gunn, Jacky; Jenkins, Jim (1992), Queen: As It Began, London: Sidgwick & Jackson, ISBN 9780330332590
• Hodkinson, Mark (2005), Queen: The Early Years, London: Music Sales Limited, ISBN 9780711960121
• Hogan, Peter (1994), The Complete Guide to the Music of Queen, London: Omnibus Press, ISBN 9780711935266
• Jackson, Laura (2002), Queen: The Definitive Biography, London: Piatkus, ISBN 9780749923174
• Michael, Mick (1992), Queen, In Their Own Words, London: Omnibus Press, ISBN 9780711930148
• Purvis, Georg (2006), Queen: Complete Works, Richmond: Reynolds & Hearn, ISBN 9781905287338

External links

• The Queen Encylopedia
• Official Queen web site
• Queen Archives - interviews, reviews, articles
• Template:Dmoz