QueenZone discussion #1112637

Wanted Dead Or Alive wrote: What are, IYO, best live performances you've ever heard from Queen.. Not the whole concerts, but your favourite performances of some songs... Like this... Best We Are The Champions I've ever heart is from Live AID... Best Save Me performances are from Kampuchea 1979 and Montreal 1981!

Mr Fred wrote: Liar from Houston 77 is good Need your lovin' tonight from Oakland 14/7-80 Action this day, Frankfurt 28/4-82 Both concerts from Denmark 77 and 78 is very good. and many more.. You guys needs to listen to more bootlegs.. There are so many wonderful version of different songs...

Zebonka12 wrote: The Call. link

Cwazy little thing wrote:

Mr Fred wrote: Liar from Houston 77 is good Need your lovin' tonight from Oakland 14/7-80 Action this day, Frankfurt 28/4-82 Both concerts from Denmark 77 and 78 is very good. and many more.. You guys needs to listen to more bootlegs.. There are so many wonderful version of different songs...

There are indeed some cracking performances out there! But isnt it during Liar at Houston that something weird happens like Brian breaks a string, and theres a massive pause before the clean guitar comes in leading to "I have sinned.....", presumably to change guitars?

pittrek wrote: - The Prophet's Song from Hyde Park 76

Matveiqueen wrote: Freddie's Paranoia - Barcelona 1986.08.01

bohemianrhap84 wrote: I also like Save Me from Montreal as well, as the band was spot on that night!

Thunderbolt wrote:

bohemianrhap84 wrote: I also like Save Me from Montreal as well, as the band was spot on that night!

You mean the performance of "Save Me" where Freddie forgets the words? Look at the official video closely, and notice the "oh SH*T!" look that comes over his face a split second before he rushes through "The slate will soon be cleaned." A hilarious moment, no doubt, but there were better performances of the song out there. In fact, the only songs where I can say to my satisfaction that the best performance is found on an official video are "Somebody to Love" (from the Bowl, just a beautiful rendition) and "Hammer to Fall" (from Live Aid, and even then I hesitate--they didn't play the whole song!). Most of the "definitive" live performances of the band's songs can be heard, in my opinion, on the Crazy and Game tours, when Freddie's voice was at its absolute peak.

Dusta wrote: That is actually one of the reasons I love that performance, right down to the very first line of the song, which Brian has to feed Freddie. Just love the combination of hilarity, and, beauty, of the whole experience.

Thunderbolt wrote:

Dusta wrote: That is actually one of the reasons I love that performance, right down to the very first line of the song, which Brian has to feed Freddie. Just love the combination of hilarity, and, beauty, of the whole experience.

I'll give you that. It's just odd me that after the band's been performing the song for the better part of two years, Freddie stumbles over a couple of lines like that. Granted, they didn't have 32" karaoke monitors covering the stage back then--Paul does, and he still couldn't quite get Dragon Attack down from night to night. ;) It actually surprised me that they used the Save Me clips where Freddie forgot the words instead of the next night's show. Maybe Swimmer wanted to show that even a band like Queen is still capable of slipping up a bit onstage--maybe he didn't know the difference.

Yara wrote: Ok. Great posts. I'll just restate what's been written before. I guess Freddie's rendition of Save Me in Hammersmith Odeon, 1979, is just magnificent. I wrote a little analysis of this one elsewhere, but I forgot which topic it was in. It's absolutely wonderful. Brian is still figuring out how to back up Freddie properly. During Save Me, Freddie has his Eureka moment, when he does realize that he's a genius because he goes all the way from a cleverly dissimulated bartione tone all up to a very tender, soft tenor register smoothly, making the whole verse sound progressively quieter as the tone becomes higher and his timbre, gentler - the verse I talk about is the classic one: "I hang my head, and I advertise, (a soul for sale or rent)". The transition from a darker, baritone-like tone to a quieter, tenor register in the same verse to reflect the different conotations of the words involved - sale or rent - is magical. Comes Montreal, 1981, and then we have an absolutely stunning performance of this song - Freddie's control of dynamic range and, above all, color is other-wordly. Brian tones down the piano a bit to give Freddie the sense of loneliness implied by song, and it's almost a cappela at moments. He does hesitate about one of the lines, but what's amazing, and that's why I like the version so much, is his genius and quickness of tought in recovering the line and singing it squarely in tempo and in tune! Just to add: I think this is a very helpful thread and one of the concerts I'm most impressed by is the final one in Wembley, 12-10-1980, though Freddie was absolutetely high on cocaine and can barely say a line which makes sense in the intermezzos - before introducing "Save Me", it's just sad, he forgets what he wants to say, then he curses and, well, finally he gets back to the song and delivers it with absolute flair and brilliance.

Holly2003 wrote: I've yet to hear a poor live version of If You Can't Beat Them. Cologne 1979 is an excellent version.