Queen is a Britishrock band popular in the 1970s and 1980s. They are most well known for their hit "Bohemian Rhapsody", first released in 1975 and promoted by one of the earliest successful music videos and later re-released for the soundtrack album to the movie Wayne's World. Queen are widely recognised as pioneers of R&B;, glam rock, and stadium rock.
Most of the group's albums contained at least one song written by each member, indeed, the biggest hit for the band was written by the quiet bass player John Deacon, which suprises many people. There was no single songwriter driving the band, and every member had a solo career, with varying levels of success. In recognition of the fact that they were creative equals, some later albums like The Miracle and Innuendo Were credited by the whole band rather than certain individuals.
Queen embarked upon many popular tours, with memorable shows (including the historic Live Aid concert) held at Wembley Stadium in England, and Maracanã, for the Rock N' Rio festival in Brazil, although only the group's final tour, in support of the album "A Kind of Magic", ever actually made any money.
The Wembley concert, part of a UK tour in 1986, attracted 150,000 people over two nights. A memorable and prophetic moment occurred when Freddie Mercury told the audience: "There's been a lot of rumors lately about a certain band called Queen... the rumors are that we're gonna split up. What do you think?" Audience: "No!" Freddie: "Forget those rumors, we're gonna stay together 'till we fucking well die, I'm sure!". At this point Freddie did not know he had AIDS.
Throughout the 1970s, Queen enforced a strict no-synthesizer policy, as evidenced by the famous "No Synthesizers were used on this Album" sleevenote included on their early LPss. The first album to feature a synthesizer was 1980's The Game, although the change in policy came about during the earlier recording of the music for the movie Flash Gordon which was released as an album after The Game.
The band lost many fans with the Hot Space album, which used funk and synth-driven disco beats rather than the Glam or Hard rock styles of earlier albums, a move intended by Freddie Mercury to target the American radio audience. The Hot Space album's opus, "Under Pressure", co-written by and performed with David Bowie, was a hit, but the change in direction never really caught on with the band's guitar rock fan base.
With The Works and A Kind of Magic Queen gave up experimenting, making sure the fans got what they wanted.
With The Miracle Queen returned to their hard rock roots.
Still, most Queen albums contain songs that do not fit into these descriptions.
In 1991, rumors started spreading that Freddie Mercury was suffering from AIDS. Even tabloids worldwide got in on the news. Mercury flatly denied these rumors, but knowing the actual truth as his other bandmates did, they decided to make an album free of conflict and differences. That album became Innuendo. Although his health began to deteriorate, Mercury was courageous in handling his contributions. Highlights of the album were the anthems "The Show Must Go On" and "These Are The Days Of Our Lives".
On November 23, 1991, in a prepared statement made on his deathbed, Freddie Mercury finally acknowledged he had AIDS. Within 12 hours of the announcement, Mercury was dead at the age of 45. His funeral services were private, held in accordance with the Zoroastrian religious faith of his family.
Queen never actually disbanded, although their last album (not including compilations) was released in 1995, ironically titled Made In Heaven, put out four years after Freddie Mercury's death, and constructed in part from leftover sessions for their previous studio album Innuendo. The band, minus John Deacon, still appears from time to time, making "Queen+" projects with various guest musicians. However, in this era of tribute albums such as those to Carole King and Elton John, there has yet to be an official one for Queen in English. However, one such album exists in Spanish.
"We Will Rock You" is a staple at sporting events around the world; audience members will stomp and clap along to the rhythm of the song and chant the chorus line of the song, in support of their team.
"Another One Bites the Dust" was a huge crossover hit when it was released, topping both the pop and R&B charts. It was inspired by the bass guitar riffs of the disco group Chic, and ironically released at the tail end of the disco era. It has been one of the songs rumored to have a backwards message, supposedly "It's fun to smoke marijuana." The title phrase of the song does sound vaguely like that when played backwards, but it is most likely a coincidence, since there is nothing about the song that suggests that the lyric was contrived to sound a particular way when played backwards.
"Barcelona", although a solo endeavour by Freddie Mercury, was featured on Queen's Greatest Hits III and was an anthem during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
