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Queen
May 26, 2020 13:26:39 GMT
Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 26, 2020 13:26:39 GMT
Brian May had a (sheer) heart attack:
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Queen
May 26, 2020 13:30:25 GMT
Post by Kapitan on May 26, 2020 13:30:25 GMT
So glad Brian May made it through OK.
The heart is a crazy thing: a little over a year ago, a friend of mine who had never smoked, very rarely drank, no serious family history, and a distance runner for 25 years had some discomfort that brought him to Urgent Care ... one quadruple bypass later, he was able to return home. Early 40s, just about as healthy as he could be--or so he thought until they ran tests and opened him up.
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Queen
Jul 20, 2020 14:08:09 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Jul 20, 2020 14:08:09 GMT
Apparently shared with another guitar legend, Carlos Santana, also 73. (I'm strongly partial to Mr. May's music, myself. But I'll admit it's cool these two were born on the same day.) EDIT: I'm an idiot. May's birthday was yesterday; Santana's is today. So they were born a day apart.
I thought the same thing, but I follow a music page that tends to post birthdays a day early. Speaking of May, and maybe this is better for the Queen thread, I do wish he'd pick up that Red Special and put out some new music. Since Queen ended, he's released two solo albums - Back to the Light which was pretty strong and Another World, which had its moments - and a fairly lackluster Queen + Paul Rodgers album. But, since business is good with the Queen + Adam Lambert thing, it seems unlikely we'll get any new music from Brian any time soon. This might not be popular, but if Brian were going to make new music, I'd hope for it to be ... with Queen + Adam Lambert!
I don't love Lambert's songwriting, but I've checked it out here and there, and it's not BAD, by any means. I think if he were working with Brian and Roger, the results could be really solid. Plus, considering both Brian and Roger are solid, but not great, songwriters, I think that kind of situation would take the pressure off of everyone.
After the Paul Rodgers album debacle, it might seem insane to hope for another non-Freddie Queen album. But that's what I'd like to see.
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Queen
Jul 20, 2020 14:23:28 GMT
Post by kds on Jul 20, 2020 14:23:28 GMT
I thought the same thing, but I follow a music page that tends to post birthdays a day early. Speaking of May, and maybe this is better for the Queen thread, I do wish he'd pick up that Red Special and put out some new music. Since Queen ended, he's released two solo albums - Back to the Light which was pretty strong and Another World, which had its moments - and a fairly lackluster Queen + Paul Rodgers album. But, since business is good with the Queen + Adam Lambert thing, it seems unlikely we'll get any new music from Brian any time soon. This might not be popular, but if Brian were going to make new music, I'd hope for it to be ... with Queen + Adam Lambert!
I don't love Lambert's songwriting, but I've checked it out here and there, and it's not BAD, by any means. I think if he were working with Brian and Roger, the results could be really solid. Plus, considering both Brian and Roger are solid, but not great, songwriters, I think that kind of situation would take the pressure off of everyone.
After the Paul Rodgers album debacle, it might seem insane to hope for another non-Freddie Queen album. But that's what I'd like to see.
That's exactly what I was hoping for with the Q+PR album. I could be wrong, but I have a feeling that Paul did most of the songwriting on it. It really sounds far more like a Paul Rodgers album to me. And Paul always insisted on 5-6 songs from his catalog in each Q+PR setlist. Adam, on the other hand, seems pretty content to do full on Queen setlists, and creating more of a Queen like experience live. So, even though I'm not a huge fan of Adam Lambert's work, I could see a Q+AL album working. After all, I wasn't a huge fan of Freddie's solo work, but man did he make some magic with Brian, Roger, and John.
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Queen
Jul 20, 2020 17:02:49 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Jul 20, 2020 17:02:49 GMT
You've nailed it: it seems that (when working with Brian and Roger) Adam fully understands his role in the band. I can't imagine him going "out of character"--though to be clear, he is not just some Tommy Thayer to Freddie's Frehley doing an imitation, but rather performing in that spirit of Freddie--while working with them. He is very respectful to the spirit of Queen. That's why I think it could work reasonably well.
Whereas I think a Brian May solo album at this point is highly unlikely to be better than his previous ones, which weren't really all that great to begin with.
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Queen
Jul 20, 2020 17:11:21 GMT
Post by kds on Jul 20, 2020 17:11:21 GMT
You've nailed it: it seems that (when working with Brian and Roger) Adam fully understands his role in the band. I can't imagine him going "out of character"--though to be clear, he is not just some Tommy Thayer to Freddie's Frehley doing an imitation, but rather performing in that spirit of Freddie--while working with them. He is very respectful to the spirit of Queen. That's why I think it could work reasonably well.
Whereas I think a Brian May solo album at this point is highly unlikely to be better than his previous ones, which weren't really all that great to begin with.
Right, I think Adam Lambert is smart enough to not try to mimic Freddie, he kind of does his own thing with it, which I like. And whenever we can go to live shows again, I think I want to try to catch a Q+AL show. I actually thought Back to the Light was very good. The biggest mistake Brian made was doing all the vocals himself. He hadn't even done more than a couple lines here and there on any Queen albums in over ten years at the time, and when he did leads in the 1970s, he didn't do any rockers. Take a song like Resurrection, which I think is a killer track, and put a singer on it with some pipes, and you've really got something there.
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Queen
Jan 19, 2021 19:04:27 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Jan 19, 2021 19:04:27 GMT
I don't know that I've ever come across this before, but the podcast The StageLeft Podcast interviewed Tim Staffell a couple of years ago (around the time of the Bohemian Rhapsody biopic). Staffell was singer-bassist in the band Smile, the predecessor band to Queen that also included Brian May and Roger Taylor. Staffell co-wrote "Doin Alright," which was re-recorded for the first Queen album.
He's a relatively interesting guy to hear reminisce.
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Queen
Jan 19, 2021 20:58:57 GMT
Post by kds on Jan 19, 2021 20:58:57 GMT
Doin Alright is probably the deepest Queen track that was used in the movie, and also appears on the soundtrack. I wonder if Brian and Roger chose that so Staffell could get some extra royalties.
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Queen
Jan 20, 2021 12:52:22 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Jan 20, 2021 12:52:22 GMT
In the interview he talks about them actually engaging him to re-record parts of it.
I think they chose it to show the transition from one band to the other, as that is the only song to carry over, as I recall.
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Queen
Jan 20, 2021 13:16:35 GMT
Post by kds on Jan 20, 2021 13:16:35 GMT
In the interview he talks about them actually engaging him to re-record parts of it.
I think they chose it to show the transition from one band to the other, as that is the only song to carry over, as I recall.
Yes, it was. Smile only recorded six songs that I know of. Although, one piece called Blag did include parts of what would become the solo from Brighton Rock.
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Queen
Feb 19, 2021 15:09:41 GMT
Post by kds on Feb 19, 2021 15:09:41 GMT
Thanks to Spotify, I'm listening to Queen + Adam Lambert - Live Around the World. It's pretty good for what it is.
I think live albums like this are great souvenirs for people who've seen this version of the band, but at the end of the day, I'd rather opt for the live albums by the original lineup, especially since all but Love Kills, I Was Born to Love You, and The Show Must Go On are available on previous live albums from the original Queen. Even though I consider myself a Queen completist, I probably will not be adding a copy to my collection unless I can find it dirt cheap.
I wish Queen + Adam Lambert would do Miracle and/or Innuendo themed tours, and make up setlists that might have existed had Queen actually been able to tour on those albums. The Doors of the 21st Century did a tour like that for LA Woman since The Doors never toured it.
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Queen
Apr 7, 2021 17:22:33 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Apr 7, 2021 17:22:33 GMT
Turns out it is a rewrite and partial rerecording of their song "Panic Attack," released in 2017 (which, along with their album it appeared on, missed me entirely). Here is the original.
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Queen
Apr 19, 2021 14:08:25 GMT
Post by kds on Apr 19, 2021 14:08:25 GMT
To celebrate their 50th Anniversary, Queen's official YouTube channel has started posting weekly segments, featuring new interview with Brian and Roger, called Queen - The Greatest. www.youtube.com/user/queenofficialIt's pretty interesting, except I feel like they're going through the early years awfully quickly. And, they're supposedly posting an episode a week for the next year.
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Queen
Apr 26, 2021 16:28:11 GMT
Post by Kapitan on Apr 26, 2021 16:28:11 GMT
Nuno Bettencourt talks about Extreme's performance of a Queen medley at the Freddie Mercury tribute almost 30 years ago (and how Brian May didn't want them to do it).
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Queen
Jun 23, 2021 13:03:52 GMT
Post by kds on Jun 23, 2021 13:03:52 GMT
Brian May's solo debut is getting a deluxe reissue. ultimateclassicrock.com/brian-may-back-to-the-light-reissue/I haven't listened to it in a long time, but it's a pretty strong album for the most part. My only real issue was that Brian's voice isn't really powerful enough to carry an album, and it's especially evident on some of the rockers. But, he holds his own.
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