Misfire

I have every Queen album in some shape or form and have usually bought them, from "Day at the Races" on,  within days of them being released.  

In the 70's they were "my band".  I cut out interviews from Sounds, Melody Maker & NME. I watched Top of the Pops when they had a new single out just in the hope they would be on and my mates Gray, Nigel, Ian, Kev & I went to each others houses to listen to the albums while we played board games (I  recall Colditz, Risk, Monopoly and Mousetrap featured regularly). In May 1976 I went to the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton to see them live for the first time and that concert is still one of the best five gigs of my life.

Over the years my love for the band has waned with other bands music meaning as much if not more to me. That's as a result of Queen albums changing direction and quality diminishing and my musical knowledge also expanding. I still went to three more Queen concerts, in 1978 at Earls Court, 1982 at Milton Keynes Bowl and 1986 at Wembley Stadium on what would be their last ever tour. 

Freddie's death obviously ended the band and while a couple of albums of material he recorded with the band, were released after his death and showed he worked almost up until the end, they effectively ceased to be after the Tribute concert at Wembley Stadium.

That is until a couple of years ago when Brian & Roger hooked up with Paul Rogers and toured as Queen + Paul Rogers, playing concerts full of Queen songs with the odd Free & Bad Company classic thrown in for good measure.

Now they have recorded a new "Queen" album and this week on the day of purchase I bought it! Now let's get this clear right now...It's not a Queen album! John Deacon plays no part on it and listening to it it doesn't have the "Queen" hallmarks (operatic vocals, banked guitar tracks and a sense of fun).

It is, however, quite good! Paul Rogers has one of the best "rock voices" ever and they have written songs which make excellent use of it. On all albums Brian May & Roger Taylor have written some of Queens best songs and they also produced some good solo albums as well. What they have done here is put those songs they had earmarked for future solo stuff and used some of Paul Rogers material to produce a good rock album. It has blues and country influences as well and lets all three of them demonstrate how good musicians they are. It does have odd bursts of the "Queen" sound and Brian May's guitar playing is always going sound like only he can sound.

The lyrics are also a big change from Queen albums. While Queen songs always had differing standard of lyrics (Another one bites the dust!") there are songs on this album that Freddie would have laughed at singing. When Paul Rogers sings them they work but because he sings them but they're not "Queen" songs for that very reason.   

So, its good but not a Queen album! Maybe they should call themselves QPR?