| Stelios 20.03.2012 06:15 |
Do you ever see a certain amount of desperation in Mercury when performing? A friend of mine said the other day he was performing like there was no tomorrow. That perhaps added an extra dimension in his delivery both on albums and especially on stage. There is a "if I am going to drop dead now i don’t give a shit because i had the opportunity to express my shelf" quality. You don’t find that in too many artists. At the same time that may underline an inner desperation and the pathos to fight it. This is why a lot of his singing and acting looked like combats in my eyes when i first witnessed his charisma as a kid. |
| Micrówave 20.03.2012 11:04 |
Nah, he just acted that way because he knew there was a painfully long guitar solo coming... |
| master marathon runner 20.03.2012 12:03 |
Eh? |
| brENsKi 20.03.2012 16:52 |
STELIOS wrote: That perhaps added an extra dimension in his delivery both on albums and especially on stage. There is a "if I am going to drop dead now i don’t give a shit because i had the opportunity to express my shelf" quality. You don’t find that in too many artists. .as a fan since 1974 - i can honestly say i have no idea what you are on about. what you talk about is not unique. you say you don't find that in many artists. that really is rubbish. - i've seen dozens and dozens of bands live since 1979 and i can tell you that none of them go on stage and make a half-hearted attempt (well none except guns & roses) because no matter what we think of particular artists i think they all give 100% on stage and in the studio. do you really think that singers, bands, artists give below par performances deliberately? no way. they give their all - because anything less is not accepted by fans and music buyers. and as for your "extra dimension on albums" comment...do you honestly think that bands don't put out the best possible product they can? |
| MartynTS 20.03.2012 16:54 |
I think that effect comes along when he gives it his all. Obviously he had to conserve his voice to some extent, though. I always like to use Milton Keynes version of Somebody To Love as an example. During the middle section where it's just him singing it sounds like he's about to explode (in a good way), I love when his voice sounds like it's on the very edge of what he can give. |
| Stelios 20.03.2012 19:16 |
There is a difference between giving 100% of yourself and actually going that extra mile that really make things extraordinary. Freddie walked on the edge as far as delivery and expressiveness always pushing the envelope and his vocal chords. Its that thin line between capturing the intensity of the emotion but instead of being consumed by it, sing and act your heart out. And then re-charge again to dive in a different mood/style/feeling. I remember him saying in an interview that "when on stage i want to give everything …to just die up there" or something like that. I cant think of Paul McCartney/David Bowie/John Lennon/Elton John/Mick Jagger etc making a statement like that and actually believe them 100%. |
| waunakonor 20.03.2012 21:09 |
brENsKi wrote:I agree with you for the most part, but you know what? I think some bands DON'T put out the best product they possibly can. They just put out whatever sells. Why make great when good sells better?STELIOS wrote: That perhaps added an extra dimension in his delivery both on albums and especially on stage. There is a "if I am going to drop dead now i don’t give a shit because i had the opportunity to express my shelf" quality. You don’t find that in too many artists. .as a fan since 1974 - i can honestly say i have no idea what you are on about. what you talk about is not unique. you say you don't find that in many artists. that really is rubbish. - i've seen dozens and dozens of bands live since 1979 and i can tell you that none of them go on stage and make a half-hearted attempt (well none except guns & roses) because no matter what we think of particular artists i think they all give 100% on stage and in the studio. do you really think that singers, bands, artists give below par performances deliberately? no way. they give their all - because anything less is not accepted by fans and music buyers. and as for your "extra dimension on albums" comment...do you honestly think that bands don't put out the best possible product they can? |
| brENsKi 21.03.2012 13:30 |
for the life of me, i can't work out why some have to "read" more into queen than was really there. they were a f*cking rock band, they made albums and performed live...in much the same way most decent rockbands do - ie there is no myth/legend about freddie - he was a singer, a frontman who shook his a** on stage.... and the amount of "debates" about freddie on QZ are becoming a little bit "buzzword bingo"... even the title of this thread says it all really....it's like people can't just appreciate the music for what it is...a bit of meaningless fun as an artform....ffs it's hardly life n death as Freddie himself sang: "i'm just a singer with a song" |
| GratefulFan 21.03.2012 16:19 |
I have't had a chance to participate in any of Stelios' more existential threads but I've been meaning to pop on one and at least mention that I appreciate what he brings to the forum with these kinds of questions. It's all highly speculative of course, but there's never anything wrong with thinking about things deeply. So I get what Brenski is saying, but I'd respectfully disagree that discussion should be limited by that mindset, which is really just another set of assumptions - and perhaps assumptions that are even less likely to be accurate given the complexity of human beings and the inevitability of having some of that complexity leak out into one's creative pursuits. |
| AlbaNo1 21.03.2012 16:47 |
I think its fair to see he had an "extra dimension" in the uncommon intensity of performance at times, and there had to be have been something from within driving that. |
| MartynTS 21.03.2012 17:08 |
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| MartynTS 21.03.2012 17:08 |
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| MartynTS 21.03.2012 17:08 |
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| MartynTS 21.03.2012 17:08 |
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| brENsKi 21.03.2012 17:37 |
AlbaNo1 wrote: I think its fair to see he had an "extra dimension" in the uncommon intensity of performance at times, and there had to be have been something from within driving that.would that be the self same "driving" force that inspired freddie to write such critically acclaimed and intense songs like body language killer queen lazing on a sunday afternoon seaside rendezvous bicycle race crazy little thing called love fairy fella's masterstroke my fairy king ...and dozens more beside c'mon people. freddie did not take himself seriously and there was no "intensity" - he was a singer who really "got off" on performing and enjoyed the ride that fame brought him |
| AlbaNo1 21.03.2012 17:49 |
Theres a touch of brilliance in most of those, and theres a lot of Freddie in them. So I could probably twist an argument for them being intense... |
| brENsKi 21.03.2012 17:59 |
AlbaNo1 wrote: Theres a touch of brilliance in most of those, and theres a lot of Freddie in them. So I could probably twist an argument for them being intense...you'd do well to squeeze "intense meaning" out of any of them in any manner body language - worst and most crass lyrics ever killer queen - humoured look at an upperclass call girl lazing on a sunday afternoon - pastiche seaside rendezvous - pastiche bicycle race - read the lyrics...it's pretty silly nonsense crazy little thing called love....see bicycle race fairy fella's masterstroke....brilliant - but fantasist humour my fairy king - freddie's attempt at "prog" even stealing a little bit from the "Pied Piper"....it has similar ideas to Genesis' "Musical Box" |
| AlbaNo1 21.03.2012 18:08 |
Theres an intense musicality even though there is a lightness of touch. But Im guessing the original poster was more referring to the powerful stage performances of the 80s. |
| MartynTS 21.03.2012 19:12 |
sorry about those posts... I think i had my elbow on the enter button :3 didn't mean to spam |
| Ziggy_SD 21.03.2012 20:53 |
STELIOS wrote: Do you ever see a certain amount of desperation in Mercury when performing? A friend of mine said the other day he was performing like there was no tomorrow. That perhaps added an extra dimension in his delivery both on albums and especially on stage. There is a "if I am going to drop dead now i don’t give a shit because i had the opportunity to express my shelf" quality. You don’t find that in too many artists. At the same time that may underline an inner desperation and the pathos to fight it. This is why a lot of his singing and acting looked like combats in my eyes when i first witnessed his charisma as a kid.There are much better words than 'desperate' and 'combat' to describe Freddie Mercury. I think Brian May said it best when he said of FM that he was simply "a lover of life, singer of songs", and not much more. |