Queen keeping Bad Company?

Aaron 12.09.2008 10:34	This may of been discussed before(I am not that regular a contributor to these boards anymore.I used to be D@VID.)but having heard a few of the new songs now with Paul Rodgers,I am very disappointed with what I have heard.And the question is would Queen of just been another Status Quo or Def Leppard?Good bands,a few catchy tunes,but nothing special.I honestly after hearing the new stuff really think so.Freddie as we all know was so unique he brought that extra dimension to the wonderful musicianship and craft the other three had. I loved the tour with Rodgers and have to say was expecting a hell of a lot more. I know Freddie is gone and things have moved on but in the words of the great Paul Heaton..... We probably feel that second best Could actually be much worse But you're kind of put off wafer When you've tasted chocolate first
Benn 12.09.2008 12:05	Oddly, and I'm sure you'll have seen it reported in various musical papers........ THIS IS A DEBUT RELEASE FROM WHAT IS, EFFECTIVELY, A NEW BAND. Treat it as such. Please.
April 12.09.2008 15:22	Guys, please, how long have Queen and Paul been together? And maybe you know how many times they have toured? I've always been Queen's fan but missed this bit of their lives.
Cwazy little thing 12.09.2008 19:27	April wrote: Guys, please, how long have Queen and Paul been together? And maybe you know how many times they have toured? I've always been Queen's fan but missed this bit of their lives. Before you get flamed by some oik for not googling the answer: They got together and did a very good, very successful tour in 2005, and then decided to get together and write new material. Get the "Return of the Champions" cd/dvd for reference. Thats pretty much all there is to it, but if you want the details, Im sure theres a badly written wikipedia article you can read!
Ray D O'Gaga 12.09.2008 22:31	Aaron wrote: This may of been discussed before(I am not that regular a contributor to these boards anymore.I used to be D@VID.)but having heard a few of the new songs now with Paul Rodgers,I am very disappointed with what I have heard.And the question is would Queen of just been another Status Quo or Def Leppard?Good bands,a few catchy tunes,but nothing special.I honestly after hearing the new stuff really think so.Freddie as we all know was so unique he brought that extra dimension to the wonderful musicianship and craft the other three had. I loved the tour with Rodgers and have to say was expecting a hell of a lot more. I know Freddie is gone and things have moved on but in the words of the great Paul Heaton..... We probably feel that second best Could actually be much worse But you're kind of put off wafer When you've tasted chocolate first yawn So how 'bout the setlist from that first show!
oh-ja 13.09.2008 07:05	April wrote: Guys, please, how long have Queen and Paul been together? And maybe you know how many times they have toured? I've always been Queen's fan but missed this bit of their lives. queenconcerts.com ultimatequeen.co.uk queenpedia.com
Negative Creep 13.09.2008 11:46	Benn wrote: Oddly, and I'm sure you'll have seen it reported in various musical papers........ THIS IS A DEBUT RELEASE FROM WHAT IS, EFFECTIVELY, A NEW BAND. Treat it as such. Please. "The band" chose how the album would be viewed. If they wanted it to be treated as a new band, they should have given it a new name - simple. That would have avoided reviews harping on about lack of Freddie and being compared to actual Queen albums. As it goes, the album sounds very much Paul Rodgers with Brian & Roger as the backing band, despite them all having written the material. The only Queen like element is some of Brians guitar - it could be anyone drumming on it really. Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker saw no need to call their project with Gary Moore Cream, and that would have been far more legitimate in that the lead vocalist and main songwriter was present and it sounded something like Cream.
Wurzel 14.09.2008 15:46	If this is a debut album from a new band, then I'll judge it as such.... I won't buy their next album! I'm sorry, but it's just awful. Pretty much the whole album left me thinking that this was most of the stuff that Brian decided wasn't good enough for the extremely mediocre Another World! Now back to judging it as it should be judged...a Queen release.... Freddie is lucky he was cremated as he would be turning in his grave listening to this guff. It completely lacks Freddies production qualities, (as did alot of Made in Heaven to a lesser degree). And it also shows how much John was a voice of reason in the group as there is no way he would have agreed to put most of that out. He is the only surviving member of Queen who comes out of this with any integrity. He said what alot of us believed anyway - Queen died with Freddie. I honestly can't see the point in PR being there as his voice sounds so similar to Brians that half the time I can't work out who's singing! If the band want this to be judged on it's own merits then they wouldn't have used the Queen name just to add some sales to it. Be honest, who REALLY would have bought this album on the strength of C:lebrity had it not involved Brian and Roger. It's trading off the Queen name, which I accept they helped to build, but that doesn't mean they should demolish it as well... Sorry....rant over. Off to put ANATO on and hear some REAL Queen.
Aaron 15.09.2008 13:09	Right,after now listening to the full album,my initial fears have now been bourne out.This is no way should have the Queen name attached to it.If they want it judged as a separate entity they should of named themselves something else.As it is named Queen & Paul Rodgers is has to be judged against their other output as Queen.And let me tell you it falls way short of the standard expected. Always respected Johns wish to sever all ties to the band and my respect has doubled after hearing this shite.As this stands Roger and Brian are merely backing musicians for Mr Rodgers who lets face it has written fuck all of note the last twenty years... Very,very dis-a-fucking-pointed.
Marcos Napier 15.09.2008 13:12	It's hard to find a place (a topic, to be precise) where to express the opinions on this whole thing without being punched by hardcore fans, but here I go. It's definitely another band. Kudos for them to not making Paul sound like Freddie or things like that. But the kudos stop here. As the previous poster said, as this is a new band, I'm not buying their next album either. To be honest, to me it sounds like a NASCAR race soundtrack, not my cup of tea. I'm not familiar with Bad Company's or other Paul's works, so I can't judge how good/bad this is compared to them, all I have are my Queen references. And definitely this is a few (a lot!) miles away from Queen, at least the Queen I know (the classic or the poppy-synth stuff). If it's good or bad, it's up to you. I didn't like it, but I wasn't expecting it to be any better though.
PieterMC 15.09.2008 13:23	Wurzel wrote: I honestly can't see the point in PR being there as his voice sounds so similar to Brians that half the time I can't work out who's singing! Whether you like it or not... You have got to be kidding me??? They sound nothing alike.
PieterMC 15.09.2008 13:24	Marcos Napier wrote: it sounds like a NASCAR race soundtrack, not my cup of tea. I don't even understand what that is supposed to mean.
drwinston 15.09.2008 13:57	Wurzel wrote: I honestly can't see the point in PR being there as his voice sounds so similar to Brians that half the time I can't work out who's singing! Brian fucking wishes! LOL! There are times where you can tell that Paul is probably mimicking Brian's guide vocals, and he does it well. I think there are times in We Believe that he does this. But Brian's thin voice will never be mistaken for Paul's in any circle.
GreatKingSam 17.09.2008 04:22	Negative Creep wrote: The only Queen like element is some of Brians guitar - it could be anyone drumming on it really. How wrong you are. At times, Roger's drumming style is just as recognisable in my opinion... if you know what you're listening for that is. After 30+ years of Queen & solo material, I think we should all be able to notice that Roger sounds different from any other drummer (not to suggest he is the best, but he definitely has his own sound). Doesn't matter whether its Roy Baker or Mack producing, you know it's Roger.
kirkpatrickuk 17.09.2008 06:24	I bought the album on Monday and I've listened to it quite a bit. Obviously it's not Queen as we know and love but a different entity altogether. There's been lots of talk as to why it has the Queen moniker attached to it and to be honest I've found Brian a bit of a hypocrite with his answers. He says it's a new band yet there are nods to the past (WWRY sample....yeughh!!) and an obvious attempt to Queen-ify some of it. Another reason Brian says is that if they didn't call it Queen then so many people would miss out on the project! Really, I think he means..'we can use the name so we will 'cause it means we'll sell more'. Bit of an odd one really. Anyway....my point actually was that I think the biggest fault with the project is that there isn't really a producer. Josh McCrae and company have been long term insiders for Brian and Roger and in my eyes are probably yes men. I can't see Josh McCrae telling Roger, 'er, Rog mate, that song's shit', can you? That's why a band NEEDS an outside producer. Time has proved this correct. McCartney has proved that most of his best stuff has come out of a good producer (Tug Of War for example, the best album he'd done for years at the time and the first with George Martin since The Beatles). Metallica's new album with Rick Rubin. He told them all to go off and pretend to be 25 again and listen to the music that they did then. I bet he told them when an idea was crap whereas Josh McCrae and Justin Shirley-Smith probably wouldn't in case they got booted off the Queen boat (which is most definately the most high profile thing they do)...and they're only listed as co-producers which in reality means 'engineer, computer op and there to tell the artist if a take needs doing again'. I really do think that this is the biggest problem TCR. There are some really good songs on it but there are also some howlers (Warboys being one) and the lyrics are fairly poor. A quality producer wouldn't have allowed that.
GreatKingSam 17.09.2008 08:20	Funny, I think Warboys is class. Nothing wrong with the lyrics. Paul's voice is very consistent throughout, I love the little bit of Roger saying "warboys" (reminds me of Electric Fire). Bri's is f*cking rocking on this tune, and the way the song builds and builds into a cresecendo is superb. Reminds me a litte of White Man crossed with Dragon Attack, IMO.
mr_creosote 18.09.2008 08:26	kirkpatrickuk wrote: The lyrics are fairly poor. A quality producer wouldn't have allowed that. Yep, Queen didn't do a single bad song with poor lyrics while Freddie was around. Oh - ignore 'Body Language'. Oh, and 'Cool Cat', 'Delilah' and 'Get Down Make Love'. All written solely or partly by Freddie, and among what is generally considered to be the worst of the worst of the Queen back catalogue in terms of quality of lyrics. Freddie was a great songwriter, one of the best that has ever lived, but sometimes his songwriting was appaling. Those songs were written with outside producers - Mike Stone, Mack and David Richards, so your argument just doesn't stand up.
mr_creosote 18.09.2008 08:31	Wurzel wrote: And it also shows how much John was a voice of reason in the group as there is no way he would have agreed to put most of that out. He is the only surviving member of Queen who comes out of this with any integrity. He said what alot of us believed anyway - Queen died with Freddie. Erm... John is an equal partner in the companies that are Queen Productions, Queen Touring etc etc. The band are still using these companies. If John didn't give his blessing to the project(s) he would have prevented them using the companies for promotion and financing. He would also have prevented them using the name Queen, as between them they probably own the copyright on the name. He also wrote a number of songs featured on the tour and would have the power to stop these being performed, or certainly released, if he wanted to. Therefore John has decided for his own personal reasons that he didn't want to be involved with the projects but has allowed them to continue. Just as he has the freedom to decide to step away, Brian and Roger should be allowed the freedom to carry on if they wish.
GreatKingSam 18.09.2008 10:02	mr_creosote wrote: kirkpatrickuk wrote: The lyrics are fairly poor. A quality producer wouldn't have allowed that. Yep, Queen didn't do a single bad song with poor lyrics while Freddie was around. Oh - ignore 'Body Language'. Oh, and 'Cool Cat', 'Delilah' and 'Get Down Make Love'. All written solely or partly by Freddie, and among what is generally considered to be the worst of the worst of the Queen back catalogue in terms of quality of lyrics. Freddie was a great songwriter, one of the best that has ever lived, but sometimes his songwriting was appaling. Those songs were written with outside producers - Mike Stone, Mack and David Richards, so your argument just doesn't stand up. And, most importantly, Warboys was written by Paul anyway. There is no way you can compare the lyrics of Warboys to something like Body Language, two completely differently themed songs. In my opinion, Warboys is a simple and powerful song about... war boys. Simple really? Also, what did you want from a song called Body Language, Cool Cat or Get Down Make Love (which is a song I actually love) - another Bohemian Rhapsody!? Even though these songs might not stand up against Fred's other masterpieces, at the end of the day, Cool Cat is a nice little number with simple lyrics, and Body Language was clearly aimed at the "night-life" scene that Fred was getting in to... how would you have written it? Based it on another painting about fairies and wizards lol!?
mr_creosote 18.09.2008 11:06	I wasn't comparing the lyrics between these songs, just pointing out that songs with what some people consider poorer lyrics are nothing new. I'm not saying that any of the songs I listed are bad, they are just lyrically quite basic and nowhere near as complex as others. Any change (or perceived change) in the quality of the lyrics has nothing to do with Paul Rodgers arrival, or with 'weak' producers. For the record, I really enjoy the new album, it has some real gems on there, 'Warboys' being one of the best.
kirkpatrickuk 18.09.2008 16:36	Mr Creosote, what maybe I should have said is that a producer would be more likely to inform an artist of when lyrics need improving although the artist as usual has the final say. Oh, I wasn't comparing the lyrics to previous albums, I never said that. Many Queen songs have had fairly dreadful lyrics, but Warboys is pretty bad but only in my opinion!

QueenZone discussion #1129846

Queen keeping Bad Company?