QueenZone discussion #1108077
Intros - suggested by Thunderbolt
| Yara 26.05.2008 16:45 |
There in the announce forum, Thunderbolt and I were talking about - and On My Way Up too! - what would be the best opening song for the Hot Space Tour. Thunderbolt told me that he enjoyed the intro from Nagoya, 82 - Flash->Rock It->We Will Rock You. He argued, however, that while the transition between "Flash" and "Rock It" was not that convincing, the one between "Rock it" and "We Will Rock You" was great (did I get it right, Thunder?) So, to sum up, Thunderbolt thought, or thinks, that Rock it->We Will Rock You was a great opening. And he observed that the band seemed tired of playing We Will Rock You, since they were reducing it to snippet, and that was a sign that the guys were looking for alternative way of opening the gig. He added, however, that Nightrain wasn't good at all as an opener, and he used the GnR Japan tour video as the example, his argument being that the there were much more powerful songs to open the show with. Then, he added that, "Dragon Attack" would be a great opener for the Hot Space Tour, because its concept is not so far from the Hot Space album, but at the same time it is a powerful song with catchy guitar chords and great, powerful vocals by Freddie. He then made the argument that PUT OUT THE FIRE, both because of the song and the effects that could go with it, would be a great opener FOR ALL TOURS. What do you think? What, in your opinion, and WHY, would be the best opener for Hot Space? And what would the best of the best for ALL TOURS? I hope I got Thunderbolt's point, I'm not as clever as he is, and my English is very, well, I don't speak English in fact, but you guys are usually cool and understand me all the same (lol), but I hope, as MasterHistoryGirl taught me (she taught me the expression), you got the GIST OF IT. Haha. I'm learning!!! Bye! |
| Holly2003 26.05.2008 17:00 |
Here you go: /queenzone/1105702.html |
| TerrorOfKnowing 26.05.2008 22:19 |
I don't think an intro should be the strongest song in a band's set-list, necessarily, but more or less should act as a prologue to the show. Although I liked Flash as an opener, something I think would have been cool was if they used "The Love Theme" from the Flash Gordon album and made the intro into a huge event. It would start off with the synths from "In The Death Cell" from tape going just a little bit past the clip of dialogue in it. Then, it would melt into the very similar song of "In The Space Capsule" and continue with the synths from tape and Roger going into his drum solo live (although cut the weird sound effects in the "strange object approaching the imperial vortex" bit). I imagine it alongside a huge lights show, something grandiose in the Queen tradition. Then, after the last swell of "In The Space Capsule" the lights would go on full blast revealing Freddie and the boys (only Roger would have been seen up until this point). After that it could be business as usual, going into a hard rocking number like "Tie Your Mother Down" or what have you. I know it's only a weird and crazy fantasy, but if ever there was a thread for it there's this and who knows? somebody else other than the voices in my head might appreciate it!! |
| Yara 26.05.2008 22:32 |
TerrorOfKnowing wrote: I don't think an intro should be the strongest song in a band's set-list, necessarily, but more or less should act as a prologue to the show. Although I liked Flash as an opener, something I think would have been cool was if they used "The Love Theme" from the Flash Gordon album and made the intro into a huge event. It would start off with the synths from "In The Death Cell" from tape going just a little bit past the clip of dialogue in it. Then, it would melt into the very similar song of "In The Space Capsule" and continue with the synths from tape and Roger going into his drum solo live (although cut the weird sound effects in the "strange object approaching the imperial vortex" bit). I imagine it alongside a huge lights show, something grandiose in the Queen tradition. Then, after the last swell of "In The Space Capsule" the lights would go on full blast revealing Freddie and the boys (only Roger would have been seen up until this point). After that it could be business as usual, going into a hard rocking number like "Tie Your Mother Down" or what have you. I know it's only a weird and crazy fantasy, but if ever there was a thread for it there's this and who knows? somebody else other than the voices in my head might appreciate it!!I loved it! Your reply is already worth the thread! That's what I was trying to get at, get people to imagine how they'd have produced a Queen concert, at least the beginning. :-)) And ideas come, and your ideas were great, I loved it, very imaginative and creative!!! I liked your remark about the opening song not having to be necessarily the stronger or the killer one, so to say. I also prefer the kind of gradual build up to the climax. Well...thanks for the reply! I had some fun imagining the scenario you depicted!!! |
| david (galashiels) 27.05.2008 07:25 |
perfect intro.hi we are queen,lets rock. |
| Benn 27.05.2008 09:28 |
Perfect in tor for ALL Queen shows would have been Ogre Battle. This should have been to Queen shows what I Can't Explain was to The Who's shows....... |
| thunderbolt 31742 27.05.2008 13:38 |
I was kind of joking, actually, when I suggested you make a thread about this, Yara. ;) That said, setlist discussion always interests me, so here goes. Yes, I believe that while the Flash -> Hero -> TYMD/WWRY intro is one of the best the band ever used, it was inappropriate for the Hot Space tour. That opening suggests an evening of hard, guitar rock, and the Hot Space tour was, by and large, anything but. Imagine the early crowds' confusion when the band finished TYMD and jumped straight into synth-funk. What just happened? I contend that Dragon Attack, perhaps followed by AOBTD (although I doubt that the band would have been willing to play their biggest hit at that particular moment second in the set) would have been a better opener for the Hot Space tour, with the pacing and guitar emphasis gradually building up to where, after the guitar solo, we're back to classic Queen sound. Hell, as long as we're on the topic, I don't think Queen did very well with their choice of set closer for the early Hot Space tour either. Bo Rhap is a pivotal moment in the show, and the band had, since the Jazz tour, followed it straight away with a high-energy closer (usually TYMD, but occasionally SHA or something else). Going from Bo Rhap straight into Now I'm Here as the finale would have worked well--NIH at that point had evolved to a hard rocker with a fast pace and a blazing guitar. But doing the whole NIH->singalong->Dragon Attack->NIH reprise thing at the very end of the show feels disjointed. Honestly, it does seem to belong earlier in the set, and they didn't really have a great closer until TYMD was put back there later in the tour (although it was cool to hear Liar played next at Drammen, but that song's a touch too similar to Bo Rhap to be played right after it, imo). Sir GH has said many times here and on his own site that the Hot Space tour was an experimental period for the band, and you can tell by the setlists that he's right. Just look at those early shows--the band has pretty clearly tired of the same predictable set, opening with WWRY and following with Let Me Entertain You and a medley, before using TYMD as a set closer. Honestly, I often wonder if the guys talked internally about dropping the WWRY/WATC encore here, as they had flipped the songs around in 1980 for a few shows already. Those early Hot Space tour shows are about as out there as Queen's setlists got. The fast WWRY was nowhere to be found after serving as a staple on previous tours, the medley was eliminated from the set (along with the old standby Killer Queen), replaced by synth-funk from Hot Space, TYMD would be played earlier in the set than it had for the past five years, and there was a Now I'm Here-based medley used to close the show. Hell, even after the guys figured out that their setlist needed a stronger closer and they dropped TYMD to the spot, they tried SHA as the second song in the set--a completely inappropriate place for the song, imo, but that's beside the point. Ok, I've hijacked this topic far enough...for this moment. I have another paragraph burning a hole in my pocket, and I'll hold it just long enough to address the original topic I suggested, which is intros. Simply put, here are a few songs that I think would have made great intro pieces, along with my reasoning for each: 1. Liar - Come on, you can't tell me this wouldn't have been a great intro. The instrumental buildup to the song practically screams for it. A lot like TYMD in that it could have been used successfully as either an opening or closing number. 2. Ogre Battle - I agree that this would have been a great opener, although it kind of filled that role during the ANATO tour anyway, with only a snippet of Bo Rhap played first. 3. Put Out the Fire - Just a good rocker that could have set the tone for the evening, and the song's title gives rise to some interesting special effect possibilities. 4. Need Your Loving Tonight - Out of left field he |
| Yara 27.05.2008 13:39 |
Interesting. Ogre Battle, I never thought about it as an opener. Well, do you think so? What would be the reasons for it? How do you picture the whole opening? What would make Ogre Battle a good opener? I would like to hear from you! You saw right above? People get some great ideas! It's just letting your imagination go wild and think about the music and, wow, we can picture some beautiful openings in our minds. The one from TerrorofKnowing was great, and I also loved Thunderbolt's idea! So, well, if you don't mind, expand on it, I'm having a lot of fun with this thread. :op |
| Yara 27.05.2008 13:44 |
Thunderbolt - THANKS A MILLION. IT WAS NOT ONLY A POST, IT WAS A REAL LECTURE TO ME. I LEARNED A GOOD DEAL. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU. So, even if you were joking there, I liked the idea and I'm enjoying the thread a lot! Hahaha. I'm so idiotic...but it's just that, well, forget about it. I loved your post, I'll read it many times! Thanks, Thunderbolt! PS: I will comment on it later, ok? If you don't mind, of course. Sorry for misinterpreting you, but now that the thread is there, I'm really having a lot of fun, and your post was excellent. So, I hope you stay around and write a bit more. lol I'd love it. PS: YOU DIDN'T HIJACK THE THREAD, YOU ENRICHED IT! |
| thunderbolt 31742 27.05.2008 15:05 |
Yara, no need to apologize. I was joking when I suggested the topic, and actually kind of amazed (in the positive sense) that you created it anyway. I need to amend one point, though: Rock It is an excellent opening song--just not paired with the high energy Flash tape. Actually, I wish the guys would have played it on the ROTC tour instead of I'm In Love with My Car. It's one of the genuinely underrated rockers they did, and I stand behind it as one of Roger's best songs. *Edit to add: Regarding Nightrain, that was more a shot at GnR's weird choice of an opening number for that particular show (and some others on the Use Your Illusion tour). Welcome to the Jungle doesn't belong anywhere in a set except as the opener--maybe as the first song in an encore--and Nightrain, while it's a decent song, doesn't have the power opening GnR often went for. It was an example of how a shaky opener can damage a show. |
| Yara 27.05.2008 20:08 |
Why don't you like the NIH-dragon attack-NIH sequence? : -( Now I'm sad. I find it so thrilling. The audience seems to get so excited during the transition and it's done so beautifully and smoothly, because Dragon Attack sounded hard and powerful live, Freddie used to do those cavernous vocals imitating what would be a dragon in our imagination (yeah yeah yeah yeah lol), and then it's like he gets back to the cave, there's all the solo parts, and then he returns - now he's there one more time, with now i'm here. ;-)) I always found it thrilling, and the vocal impro too - "all right, all right", and then he goes up, the crowd goes up with him, and then down, down, down, creates a lot of tension, Roger prepares the beat for Dragon Attack and then they come in full swing! Wow...I always loved that! I'd like to write more about the other points you made, but I'm already flattered by your reply, which was a real lecture, I loved it. So, I'll be back here later, don't forsake me...down in the dungeons just peaches and me! :-))) THANKS! *hug* Ya'ra |
| thunderbolt 31742 27.05.2008 20:45 |
I like the NIH->DA->NIH medley, just not as a concert closer. The hard driving parts are disconnected by a crowd singalong that works better to engage the audience early in the set (which is where it ended up). Having a crowd singalong at the very end of the show just seems odd and misplaced. |
| Yara 27.05.2008 23:41 |
Ah, ok. :-)))) Thanks anyway for the reply, I couldn't have imagine that by creating the thread I'd end up learning so much! Take care, Thunder! :-))) |
| Penetration_Guru 28.05.2008 02:49 |
WWRY-LMEY Classic. Brilliant. Rocks. |
| pittrek 28.05.2008 03:07 |
I actually like the Hyde Park intro. It started with the taped ADATR intro, then came into the opera section of BoRhap, for the hard rock / heavy metal / headbanger part the band came to stage and finished it in Ogre Battle. Also another interesting opening was during 1977 - the taped WWRY backing, with Freddie singing and Brian playing guitar, the ADATR intro and WWRY fast. Also Now I'm Here used to be a great concert intro |
| Yara 28.05.2008 09:44 |
Penetration_Guru wrote: WWRY-LMEY Classic. Brilliant. Rocks.Well, yeah. This opening raises the dead! I love it. It was the opening they used in South America too back in 1981! :-))) I love "Let Me Entertain You". It's criminally underrated - both the studio version and the live performances by the band. Great. Good one indeed. :-) |
| Yara 28.05.2008 10:04 |
pittrek wrote: I actually like the Hyde Park intro. It started with the taped ADATR intro, then came into the opera section of BoRhap, for the hard rock / heavy metal / headbanger part the band came to stage and finished it in Ogre Battle. Also another interesting opening was during 1977 - the taped WWRY backing, with Freddie singing and Brian playing guitar, the ADATR intro and WWRY fast. Also Now I'm Here used to be a great concert introGood-old fashion fan. :op I like it too. But I prefer WWRY-Let Me Enter-taaain youuuu, let me entertaaa-aaa-aaaain...COME ON! lol |
| Cygnus X-1 28.05.2008 16:19 |
My two cents... Queen was always a strong live act, both musical & visually, but the Hot Space era was - even it's the band most experimental period - for my personal taste the most uninteresting. Stayin' Power & Under Pressure are the only exceptions, these songs really work live, but the rest is sometimes unfocused and boring. There's no real "flow" like on the other tours, as Thunderbold wrote in his great post!! It's just my personal taste, but hey, I have problems with nearly everything they did after '81..(execpt Innuendo- what a masterpiece!!) As for the Intros, my fav is the ADATR Tour. The Album intro, then TYMD -bang! Take that! What a way to start the show :-) Visually, the NOTW tour and of course, Jazz tour are among my favs. What must it felt like to be in the audience and watch the pizza oven rise while thunder & lightning strikes? Just listen to the beginning of the Oakland'78 show and you know what I mean... And that brings me back to Hot Space. From '77 onwards Queen had impressive lightning rigs, even for today's standards. But the Hot Space lights...I don't know, compared to the previous rigs they're quite small and nothing special. I saw so many bands on stage in my life, but I never saw someone who comes close to a Queen show, allthough I never saw them in real life :-( So, I'm going back to my record player now and blast "Invite to a Night at the Warehouse" bootleg through my speakers- timemachine set - flux capacitor on..2008...02..1990..82..79..77! See ya there :-) |
| Kalle 08.06.2008 13:13 |
I think "Football Fight" could have been a great intro to the Hot Space tour, but I also like what they did with Flash. I'm really not a huge fan of "Tie Your Mother Down" or "We Will Rock You (fast)", so it's nice with a change. ...by the way, one of the finest moments they ever did live in my opinion was "The Millionaire Waltz" and the transition to "Get Down Make Love". It's so cool the things Freddie played on his piano! (I'm especially thinking of the Houston 1977 show). |