God Save Queen

Skinny, long-haired freaks rule the world

It was sometime in the mid- to late-70's that a friend prodded me to buy a record - a 45 rpm single, that was - by Queen. I hesitated but made the purchase under pressure. And boy, am I glad I did. The disc had You're My Best Friend on side A, and the B-side featured the song '39. Both tracks became favourites even before I acquired the now classic album of their origin, A Night at the Opera. 

Both songs are among the lighter fare on that Opera album, yet they are the warmest, most approachable music among a set of highly progressive, daring, and blistering pieces. All of which comprise one of the greatest rock albums ever conceived. You're My Best Friend is like a welcoming embrace, its thoughtful lyrics and mid-tempo rock approach (brought to perfection in Brian May's best guitar solo ever, in my opinion) key to the song's commercial and critical success. '39, on the other hand, is even lighter in its acoustic, folky style, yet its rousing pace gives the tune a lively kick. 

That was my first exposure to the grand spectacle called Queen. The British band's musical genius and flamboyant stage presence set down a standard for other rockers to emulate. Freddie Mercury's startling vocal abilities were only the tip of the iceberg. Brian May's six-string prowess and sound was unmistakable (and impressively expressive)... in just a couple of his plucked notes, it is possible to identify him as the guitarist. Roger Taylor provided a powerful backbeat with his loud and energetic drumming technique, while John Deacon anchored the band with his solid, melodic bass. 

In the 70's and early 80's, the only Queen albums I bothered to buy were A Night at the Opera, and A Day at the Races (both named after 1930's Marx Brothers movies). The first recording is, of course, untouchable. Fave tracks are still Death on Two Legs and I'm In Love with My Car. A Day at the Races, on the other hand, was a bit of a disappointment. Opening track Tie Your Mother Down fooled me into thinking I was in for a great listening experience, but nothing else on there really stuck. That album was left neglected in my 8-track tape collection until the day I ditched all (well, nearly all) of those clunky old things in favour of cassettes, and later CDs.

In late primary school and then in early high school, I heard We Will Rock You and We Are the Champions everywhere I went. Ad nauseam. The former bored me with its endless banging-clapping and chanting, despite a rousing guitar solo at the end. Strange song configuration there. The bombastic We Are the Champions seemed to me, even back then, to have been written with something entirely different in mind... like sports events. And that's exactly where we hear this song all the time nowadays. Yeah, it's a fine tune, but I just couldn't get into it the same way everyone else did. 

Queen's heavy, prog leanings gave way to a more pop, radio-friendly mode as they entered the 80's. I've always been more a fan of their 70's music, but there are songs of the following decade that I can appreciate, like Crazy Little Thing Called Love. A huge departure from their former rock god status, but a fun diversion.

It wasn't until 1990 that I bought another Queen studio album - Innuendo. A very welcome return to form with a selection of great heavy rock songs tempered by some of Mercury's trademark gushing. I admit I wasn't a super fan of Queen; I simply couldn't latch onto a band who was so inconsistent in both sound and quality of songwriting. And believe me, I had a tough time coming to terms with that. I wanted to like them more. I guess their willingness to dabble in odd new sounds left me cold at times.

Anyway, it was during the 90's that I picked up the 17-track Greatest Hits CD (with the red cover). That contained all the hits of the era I liked best. I also took a chance on Queen II (1974), supposedly a prog-rock gem, but I found it rough going. I heard something akin to early Rush in the fantasy lyrical themes and folk/metal experimentation. But for whatever reason, it just didn't take. I had waited too long. I suspect that if I had heard this back in the 70's or maybe even the 80's, I might have been more receptive to this early Queen music. But by the late 90's, my tastes were changing and expanding rapidly. This Queen II stuff felt really dated to me.

Still, Queen is right up there on the pantheon of rock'n'roll immortals, having carved out their place in music history. 

A sixpence British coin, Brian May's

guitar pick of choice... a factor in his

distinctive sound, no doubt