ROGER TAYLOR has been battling his emotions in the run-up to QUEEN's 40th anniversary as he recalls the "pain" and feuds behind the band's hit albums.
The drummer is teaming up with guitarist Brian May to mark the band's landmark anniversary by remastering and reissuing their first five albums.
But Taylor admits he still remembers fighting with frontman Freddie Mercury and his bandmates over their creative differences.
He says, "It is a surprise our legacy has lasted like it has. Looking back, apart from feeling old, it makes me think how unique we really were.
"It's also dredged up a lot of the peripheral stuff. There was a lot of pain in making those albums. We were very close but we were always going for each other behind closed doors. There were four artists trying to paint on one canvas...
"Each album seemed like it took ages to write. We were so involved in it, 98 per cent of our lives was the band."
source: link
Great comment on the article -
"But it may have been that very dissention that created music that has stood the test of time and will still be around long after all of them cease to live on this earth!"
As great (and popular) as some of their later work is, the first five albums really are their best work. They hit their creative peak with Opera and Races, and when they changed their sound for News Of The World (to adopt to punk), this is where they began being followers instead of leaders. Great music came out of it, but it just wasn't the same approach anymore. Bands have to evolve to survive, but every artist has their creative peak - 1975/76 was Queen's.
The "closed doors/canvas" quote is actually from Brian May, though.
Sir GH wrote: Great comment on the article -
"But it may have been that very dissention that created music that has stood the test of time and will still be around long after all of them cease to live on this earth!"
As great (and popular) as some of their later work is, the first five albums really are their best work. They hit their creative peak with Opera and Races, and when they changed their sound for News Of The World (to adopt to punk), this is where they began being followers instead of leaders. Great music came out of it, but it just wasn't the same approach anymore. Bands have to evolve to survive, but every artist has their creative peak - 1975/76 was Queen's.
The "closed doors/canvas" quote is actually from Brian May, though.
I agree, the first 5 albums were the best. The creative peak I guess was Queen2 to ADATR. Those four albums were the most origninal and creative...... The first album being one of the better debuts in rock history, very raw and heavy, NOTW, they obviously changed, but i wouldn't say they were follower's at that point. Only one song (sheer heart attack" was Queen's answer to punk, and Jazz was pure Queen. Jazz didn't create any new Queen sounds, But it's an album that sounds only like Queen. They wern't following anybody. The 80's they were more follower's, but a lot of good music still came out in the era.
I approve this post! ^^^
Exactly! Nnews Of the World is not a "followers" album by ANNY stretch of the imagination.
It's an album that I hold in just as high regard as the first five.
And it's also true that "Jazz" is an album that is PURE QUEEN.
I don't think Queen were ever "followers" with any of their albums. They always tried to create different forms of music. Let's be honest. How boring would it have been if Queen kept reproducing Queen 2? The only thing I felt they became, following the "Hot Space" album, was more careful with what they put out Ifs. If you noticed in the past, Freddie always had a single release first. Most of the times, it was a huge hit. When "Body Language" was released, It didn't do too well. After that, Freddie really didn't get the first single releases anymore.
Really? I'm in NYC. From what I remember, all of the rock stations, back then, refused to play "Body Language." "Radio GaGa" also did better,chart wise, than "Body Language". What I really do remembr were all of my friends busting my chops, when they first heard "Body Language", & most of "Hot Space".