OK, this may be a dumb question, but...
So I've been catching up on collecting some of the more rare Queen/Freddie tracks. I picked up The Ultimate Miracle (which includes demos, instrumentals, unreleased tracks, etc. from that album) and also managed to finally get my hands on the 2 tracks Freddie and Michael Jackson worked on together.
My question is: WHERE does this stuff come from??? I mean, live concert bootlegs, fine, I can see how THAT stuff gets out. But tracks like the Freddie & MJ stuff - how did they finally become available? Someone broke into the studio and made copies of master tapes long since locked away?
I know it's probably a simple explanation, but I'm really curious to know. I've read comments Brian has made in the past about how certain things that ended up on some bootlegs had to have been 'stolen' from their sessions (Innuendo, etc. - and he was pissed about it...) - is that the same case with some of these 'never before heard' tracks as well?
there are so many ways these things get out...and any given one of them can be a reason fo any individual track:
to name a few ways:
1. tapes dumped in trashcan - a la Boston debut album demos
2. tapes sent for re-use and originals getting copied before wiping by wily engineers
3. theft by any number of studio staff
4. bands giving studio staff demos as gifts
5. engineers taking copies home to "listen to" and then throwing in bin
6. band presenting demos to record execs to hear as tasters for new album, leaving them at Record Co
7. producer giving copies away, or taking home then throwing away
8. studio leaks by disgruntled/sacked staff
9. band leaks - to arouse interest/raise public awareness in flagging careers (anthology rumours became RoTC?)
10. tapes getting lost in the postal system
11. band leaks - to prove the existence of soemthing
12. convention theft/copying/recording - permitted/blindeye turned or otherwise
i'm a cynic as regards queen, as they have not behaved like beatles, floyd, the whoe ac/dc rainbow lizzy and ufo have toward their fans...so i would tend toward 1, 2, 4, 9 & 11 - as these firmly blame QPL
which is the case...cos if you have the crown jewels you look after them