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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 17:37:40 GMT
Post by kds on Oct 4, 2019 17:37:40 GMT
Inspired by the KISS thread, I thought I'd start a discussion on each of Queen's 15 studio albums. So....
QUEEN (1973)
Queen's self titled debut album is easily the most raw album in their canon. While Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Meadows Taylor, and Deacon John (as they're called on the sleeve) may have had a bit of a glam look, the record itself is musically more in line with what Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin were releasing at the time, in particular with Modern Times Rock and Roll, Son & Daughter, and the heavy riff on Doin' Alright. There's even a hint of prog with songs like My Fairy King, Liar, and Great King Rat.
The album is bookended by two songs that offer a hint of Queen's blend of rock and pop that would make them so popular. The first track, Keep Yourself Alive, is the album's more enduring track, and the only one that remained in their setlists for most of their career, and also the only track from the album that often appears on comps. Seven Seas of Rhye is a short instrumental number, that would be a full treatment on the next album.
The only real misstep in my opinion is the song Jesus towards the end of the album. The main riff is fairly generic, and the lyrics sound like something copied and pasted from Sunday School. There's still a nice guitar break in the middle though. Perhaps non album track Mad the Swine would've been a better fit there.
Overall, I love the heaviness of this album. It's heavy, but still offers a lot of what you'd expect from Queen. Amazing lead and harmony vocals, guitar pyrotechnics, and great songs.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 18:03:55 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Oct 4, 2019 18:03:55 GMT
Great idea to get some chatter (and a reminder that it's about time for the next KISS album, which I'll do today or tomorrow).
I like Queen, but not when I place it aside the next seven years' worth of their work. I think it's their weakest batch of songs until Hot Space. That said, it is still remarkably ambitious (and successful) for a first album--which did them no favors at the time. The band was critically lambasted for being artificial, their first album technically proficient, not having gigged around small clubs and bars, and the band comprising (gasp!) middle class university graduates.
My favorites on the album are probably two that you wouldn't guess of me: the proggy "Great King Rat" and "My Fairy King." The background vocals in "My Fairy King" are great. Not just harmonies, but the little counterpoint parts, the little answering vocals, etc. Think about Freddie's vocals in the b-section that begins at about 1:48, especially that ascending part that ends "and let me gooooo."
After that, "Keep Yourself Alive" is an obvious keeper with that riff. I've always thought "Doin Alright" was almost a classic, but not. I'm not sure exactly why. Maybe it's the out-of-tune vocals in spots. I don't know. But it seems like it could have been redone and come across better.
The rest ... not really much of an impact on me because I know what else they became. I don't listen to this one often. But it amazes me that anyone interested in hard rock could have listened to this at the time and not immediately pegged this band as future superstars. Not one of the greatest debuts in rock history ... but far closer to that than the opposite! It's, as I said, ambitious and mostly successful. It definitely showed serious, real talent. Vocal talent. Instrumental talent. Arranging talent. Songwriting talent. Production talent.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 18:12:19 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Oct 4, 2019 18:12:19 GMT
The only real misstep in my opinion is the song Jesus towards the end of the album. The main riff is fairly generic, and the lyrics sound like something copied and pasted from Sunday School. There's still a nice guitar break in the middle though. Perhaps non album track Mad the Swine would've been a better fit there. I should comment on that, too. It is an odd addition... The refrain is actually quite catchy in a folk-song kind of way, super simple but memorable. Like it's made for a children's singalong ... except it ends a little eerie in the last "dow-own," which is dark and sinister on the F# (with the refrain in D major otherwise).
It's also an interesting subject for a Mercury-penned song. Freddie was a Zoroastrian, which is a pre-Christian faith from old Babylon (Iran/Iraq/Syria region), but likely an influence on what became rabbinic Judaism and Christianity, introducing the concept of a good-versus-evil worldview, a God-and-Satan kind of concept. Obviously a person doesn't have to be what he writes about, but I just find it interesting, especially because, as KDS said, it reads like Sunday school. I always wondered if this was just playing on the popular "Jesus freak" movement of roughly that time, when hippies and ex-hippies were still staying away from organized religion but claiming to follow Jesus himself.
The idea of replacing it with Mad the Swine is also interesting, partly because I always also read religious overtones into it.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 18:23:39 GMT
Post by kds on Oct 4, 2019 18:23:39 GMT
The only real misstep in my opinion is the song Jesus towards the end of the album. The main riff is fairly generic, and the lyrics sound like something copied and pasted from Sunday School. There's still a nice guitar break in the middle though. Perhaps non album track Mad the Swine would've been a better fit there. I should comment on that, too. It is an odd addition... The refrain is actually quite catchy in a folk-song kind of way, super simple but memorable. Like it's made for a children's singalong ... except it ends a little eerie in the last "dow-own," which is dark and sinister on the F# (with the refrain in D major otherwise).
It's also an interesting subject for a Mercury-penned song. Freddie was a Zoroastrian, which is a pre-Christian faith from old Babylon (Iran/Iraq/Syria region), but likely an influence on what became rabbinic Judaism and Christianity, introducing the concept of a good-versus-evil worldview, a God-and-Satan kind of concept. Obviously a person doesn't have to be what he writes about, but I just find it interesting, especially because, as KDS said, it reads like Sunday school. I always wondered if this was just playing on the popular "Jesus freak" movement of roughly that time, when hippies and ex-hippies were still staying away from organized religion but claiming to follow Jesus himself.
The idea of replacing it with Mad the Swine is also interesting, partly because I always also read religious overtones into it. Perhaps Freddie was trying to piggy back on the recent success of Jesus Christ Superstar. But, the song was buried at the end of Side 2, and not released as a single. Mad the Swine does have some religious overtones, but I think it's a little more ambiguous. Although, musically, Mad the Swine is fairly lightweight compared to the other material on the album, even more so than Jesus. The only other lighter song is The Night Comes Down, which I always thought had a bit of a mysterious quality, especially with the way the song begins. The drums kick it before a short acoustic guitar workout that feels like it's building up to something explosive, maybe sort of the way Doin' Alright does. But, instead, it gives way to a crying Red Special riff before going into ballad mode. However, with the intro essentially repeats itself during the outro, it does build to something explosive - the following song, Modern Times Rock and Roll. Speaking of which, during the few times Queen performed Modern Times Rock and Roll in concert, Freddie sang lead, not Roger. Often when I go to listen to Queen albums, I gravitate to the first two, the second of which I'll talk about in a day or two. It's partly due to burnout from classic rock radio of some of the classics that appear on their other albums. But, also, I really like the sound of the first two Queen albums, kinda the metal Queen if you will. But, had they stayed that course, they'd probably be remembered more like UFO, Uriah Heep, or maybe even Bloodrock or Sir Lord Baltimore, as a band that was more influential than popular.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 18:28:19 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Oct 4, 2019 18:28:19 GMT
I love Mad the Swine, lightweight or not! I think it's another great singalong chorus. Seriously, other than the Beatles, how many bands have so many singalong choruses? Even a vocal powerhouse like the Beach Boys doesn't necessarily, just considering how hard some of those songs are to sing. (Not that they don't have their share of singalongs too.) Queen's songwriters really understood the power of that, understood how it translated to the live setting.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 18:36:34 GMT
Post by kds on Oct 4, 2019 18:36:34 GMT
I love Mad the Swine, lightweight or not! I think it's another great singalong chorus. Seriously, other than the Beatles, how many bands have so many singalong choruses? Even a vocal powerhouse like the Beach Boys doesn't necessarily, just considering how hard some of those songs are to sing. (Not that they don't have their share of singalongs too.) Queen's songwriters really understood the power of that, understood how it translated to the live setting. I think that's one of the reasons, in the UK anyway, Queen is almost as revered as The Beatles. Those choruses made the songs very accessible. I'm also a fan of Mad the Swine. It's a rare instance of Queen leaving a quality song of an album. It's not like there's a lot of non album tracks that could've / should've been included on proper albums.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 18:41:55 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Oct 4, 2019 18:41:55 GMT
Yes, it's always funny when you switch from Beach Boys world--where they seem to have done their best to omit every good song they could from about 1967 through the mid-70s!--to other bands where it's just the odd good song here and there. The only other Queen song not originally included as an album track that I like much is "I Go Crazy" from the The Works period.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 18:53:26 GMT
Post by kds on Oct 4, 2019 18:53:26 GMT
Yes, it's always funny when you switch from Beach Boys world--where they seem to have done their best to omit every good song they could from about 1967 through the mid-70s!--to other bands where it's just the odd good song here and there. The only other Queen song not originally included as an album track that I like much is "I Go Crazy" from the The Works period. That backs up my stance that no big time band in history got in their own way more than The Beach Boys. As this discussion moves forward, we'll see that Queen made some debatable choices along the way, as just about any band does. But, nothing that rivals the Boys. Back to Queen, I think it's worth pointing out that Doin' Alright is the only song from Brian and Roger's pre Queen band Smile that was used on a Queen album. There's a song called April Lady that I think would've also been a good fit for Queen's debut.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 19:03:00 GMT
Post by kds on Oct 4, 2019 19:03:00 GMT
I've always thought "Doin Alright" was almost a classic, but not. I'm not sure exactly why. Maybe it's the out-of-tune vocals in spots. I don't know. But it seems like it could have been redone and come across better.
I like Doin' Alright a lot, but the transition from light to heavy and back again isn't quite as smooth as some of the songs they would do later on (ie. March of the Black Queen, Flick of the Wrist / Lily of the Valley, Bohemian Rhapsody, etc). It was surprising to see that the song was played by Queen + Adam Lambert this summer. It's probably the one deep track that was used in the Bohemian Rhapsody movie, so maybe more people will explore the song, and the s/t debut.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 21:13:58 GMT
Post by Sheriff John Stone on Oct 4, 2019 21:13:58 GMT
kds and Kapitan covered this album pretty well above and I agree with their comments. I don't really have much to add. I know I've told this story before but I'll tell it again anyway. Back in the day, my early days of buying albums, my high school buddy and I used to "scout" for albums by scouring rock magazines like Creem and Circus. If we saw an interesting ad or a positive review, it might entice us to buy the album. Well, I actually purchased Queen II BEFORE Queen because I was blown away by Queen II's album cover! I liked the album so much I then purchased Queen.
Again, you guys covered things well. I love "Keep Yourself Alive", one of the great album openers. I like the ying-and-yang of "Doin' Alright". "Modern Times Rock And Roll" was always a favorite, and the short but sweet "Seven Seas Of Rhye" was the perfect closer. However, my favorite song from Queen has always been "Liar". I think it's epic, special, a precursor of what was to come. I put it in my Top 5 Queen songs easily.
On a goofy but true note, during my senior year of high school basketball, I used to play this album before a game to get psyched up. I realized then that the members of Queen were brilliant musicians and singers. They were more progressive than most of the other rockers I was listening to at that time. I wasn't necessarily blown away by them and I didn't play this album endlessly (it is uneven), but I still have an appreciation for it.
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Queen
Oct 4, 2019 23:25:14 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Oct 4, 2019 23:25:14 GMT
On a goofy but true note, during my senior year of high school basketball, I used to play this album before a game to get psyched up. Stay tuned for the upcoming KISS Alive II summary for relevant information...
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Post by kds on Oct 5, 2019 0:48:10 GMT
Sheriff, Im also a big fan of Liar. I think its one of the first long songs I got into that eventually opened the door for bands like Floyd, Genesis, and even Maiden.
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Queen
Oct 7, 2019 2:40:25 GMT
Post by B.E. on Oct 7, 2019 2:40:25 GMT
Queen - 7/10 I was looking for something different to listen to, so I decided to give Queen's debut a try. I've always been a fan of the hits, but I've never listened to their studio albums. After listening twice, I read your comments. You guys covered the album really well. In regard to "Jesus", I agree with both of you, kds and Kapitan . The refrain is catchy, but the lyrics are pedestrian. If instead of repeating one of the verses they came up with a few more (interesting) lines, then that would have done it for me. I still enjoy it quite a bit, but then again I'm a fan of "He Come Down" as well. Overall, I found this album to be consistent and well sequenced. There were a few transitions that I didn't even realize were new tracks, initially. My biggest complaint is the mix. Right off the bat, the lead vocals on "Keep Yourself Alive" were distractingly low. I had trouble deciphering some of the lyrics and was just generally confused why they'd bury Freddie's voice (of all vocalists). They were obviously emphasizing the heavy guitar throughout the album, but they went seriously overboard on certain tracks. "Liar" is good example. The exaggerated quiet and loud sections were just too much. Good mixes shouldn't distract you, in my opinion. I believe "Doing All Right" had similar problems as well. Anyway, that's my only complaint! My favorite song on the album is "Great King Rat". That one really knocked me out. It impressed me like many of their most popular songs do. Actually, let me rank the songs... 1. Great King Rat 2. Liar 3. Son and Daughter 4. Keep Yourself Alive 5. Jesus 6. The Night Comes Down 7. Modern Times Rock 'N' Roll 8. Doing All Right 9. My Fairy King 10. Seven Seas of Rhye Also, I just wanted to add that there's some cool song endings. Actually, three in a row: 1) the fantastic vocal harmonies at the end of "Doing All Right" 2) the drum outro to "Great King Rat" and 3) the final chords of "My Fairy King" sound like a classic doo-wop progression.
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Queen
Oct 7, 2019 2:43:43 GMT
Post by B.E. on Oct 7, 2019 2:43:43 GMT
Queen's self titled debut album is easily the most raw album in their canon. While Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Meadows Taylor, and Deacon John (as they're called on the sleeve) may have had a bit of a glam look, the record itself is musically more in line with what Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin were releasing at the time, in particular with Modern Times Rock and Roll, Son & Daughter, and the heavy riff on Doin' Alright. There's even a hint of prog with songs like My Fairy King, Liar, and Great King Rat. Agreed. I even felt a little kinship with the Eagles.
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Queen
Oct 7, 2019 12:08:41 GMT
B.E. likes this
Post by kds on Oct 7, 2019 12:08:41 GMT
Queen's self titled debut album is easily the most raw album in their canon. While Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Meadows Taylor, and Deacon John (as they're called on the sleeve) may have had a bit of a glam look, the record itself is musically more in line with what Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin were releasing at the time, in particular with Modern Times Rock and Roll, Son & Daughter, and the heavy riff on Doin' Alright. There's even a hint of prog with songs like My Fairy King, Liar, and Great King Rat. Agreed. I even felt a little kinship with the Eagles. I can hear that a little bit.
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