| Biggzy10 01.05.2012 18:08 |
Recently, I did a listen through of the classic album and once again realized how beautifully well done the album is. But I questioned why? Why is this such a damn good album and consider one of Queen's greatest pieces of work? I have my own thoughts but I'm curious as to why you guys think its so well done. |
| The Real Wizard 01.05.2012 19:52 |
Because it was their creative peak - a culmination of five years of growth. They had developed their sound through the last three records. The debut album revealed the building blocks, Queen II saw them bring their grand ideas to life, and Sheer Heart Attack was an attempt to make their ideas shorter and more accessible. But ANATO was the grand statement. It was stylistically diverse. The first five tracks showcased all four band members as excellent songwriters and three of them as strong vocalists. The arrangements were complex, yet easily digestible. Bohemian Rhapsody was a game changer. What more can be said about it? It is one of the greatest pieces of music composed in the last fifty years. A brilliantly complex composition, yet completely accessible. A feat rarely accomplished in popular music. A Night At The Opera revealed Brian May as a composer trapped in a guitarist's body. It was orchestral music arranged for rock band. His dixieland jazz band in Good Company and arrangement of the national anthem revealed him as far more than a mere rock guitarist. Brian's tour de force was The Prophet's Song. While BoRhap is a cornerstone of popular music, The Prophet's Song is an equally vital contribution to the evolution of rock music. Love Of My Life is by far Mercury's best ballad. Side two alone encompasses every trademark that made Queen who they were. Every artist has their creative peak. This was Queen's. Some Queen fans will cite other records like Queen II or A Day At The Races as being better records, but it's usually a case of fandom where they'd like the lesser-known records to have more exposure. But the reality is - ANATO is the complete picture. Never were they more focused, more determined, and more in tune with their craft than the summer and autumn of 1975. There. What's your take? |
| Sheer Brass Neck 01.05.2012 20:08 |
That is a superb summation of their genius work. |
| waunakonor 01.05.2012 20:24 |
I think the band, particularly Freddie, felt very proud of the work they had accomplished on the album in a similar way as The Real Wizard. They just felt more focused and more ready to get in the studio and make some magic happen. They were riding the high road after Killer Queen with Sheer Heart Attack became pretty popular and started making Queen's name well-known, and then Bo Rhap was released and Queen looked unstoppable. As TRW said, all four members got some time to shine; Freddie and Brian were as usual the primary songwriters, with Brian singing lead on not one but two songs, but Roger and John were also certainly there. I'm In Love With My Car is probably the best loved song with Roger on lead vocals, and You're My Best Friend really helped boost John's confidence as a songwriter after being inactive on the first to albums and just a short number on SHA. Freddie seemed convinced that ANatO would be their defining moment in statements shortly after it came out, and in many ways it probably was. However, Wizard, I kind of resent your little comment that people say QII and ADatR are better records because of fandom. As much as I love Opera, I legitimately believe that Queen II is better, and I simply enjoy listening to it a little more than A Night at the Opera; it has nothing to do with wanting to expose more obscure albums. Judging this is obviously very subjective, so no one can be write, so stop pretending that you're write. I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just saying this. Rant over. G'night. |
| Biggzy10 01.05.2012 20:44 |
Does anyone else agree that Queen produce their best work under bad circumstances? Roger Taylor has stated that if ANATO flopped, that the group would have split. The four were all broke and their careers were in a bad spot. The whole bad management thing. Innuendo, another album that I consider one of Queen's best works, was also under the shadow of Freddie dieing. The question of if their careers would continue was there again. |
| Sheer Brass Neck 01.05.2012 21:00 |
Waunakor, when you say "As much as I love Opera, I legitimately believe that Queen II is better, and I simply enjoy listening to it a little more than A Night at the Opera;" you may be right. But, and this is a big but, everyone's personal opinions would trump consensus using that logic. So Adam Lambert's "Look at my Glambulge" album that's hit the streets recently might have fans who "legitimately believe that 'Look at my Glambulge' is better, and I simply enjoy listening to it than Queen II and ANATO combined." Doesn't make it right though. Each group has a consensus "defining" album, for the reasons that The Real Wizard listed. For Queen, it's ANATO. March of the Black Queen may be a better song than Bohemian Rhapsody, but if nobody knows it, it's a great obscure song, much like Queen II is a great obscure album. Great tunes, but they hadn't hit their stride yet. |
| waunakonor 01.05.2012 21:07 |
So, you're saying that since Queen fans as a whole pick ANatO, that makes it the most right choice for their "defining" album, or their "best" album? I suppose that's fair enough, although it still doesn't change my opinion that Queen II is better. I was just resenting Wizard's explanation of why fans like me like those more obscure records better. Also, it may not be the most accurate sample, but if you look at the polls on this site, QII beats ANatO by a fair margin. |
| Sheer Brass Neck 01.05.2012 21:25 |
No, I'd say "the rock world", whoever they may be, would say ANATO is the defining album. My favourite musician in the world, Nuno Bettencourt, says his fave Queen album is Queen II. I wouldn't argue with him. But again, it's consensus from the world. Maybe Flash Gordon is the greatest sci-fi film ever. Consensus would be Star Wars (not a big movie buff so not saying Star wars or Falsh are sci-fi genre) is better than Flash Gordon. It's like people (including Brain May) saying ANATO was their Sergeant Pepper. Not their Meet the Beatles, or Revolver, because whoever makes consensus has deemed Sgt. Pepper to be the defining Beatles album, right or wrong. |
| abc1 01.05.2012 21:57 |
Because Freddie is a banana. |
| Sheer Brass Neck 01.05.2012 22:55 |
Good reply imbecile. |
| abc1 01.05.2012 23:02 |
Im not imbecile. You are. |
| Holly2003 02.05.2012 03:32 |
The Real Wizard wrote: Because it was their creative peak - a culmination of five years of growth. They had developed their sound through the last three records. The debut album revealed the building blocks, Queen II saw them bring their grand ideas to life, and Sheer Heart Attack was an attempt to make their ideas shorter and more accessible. But ANATO was the grand statement. It was stylistically diverse. The first five tracks showcased all four band members as excellent songwriters and three of them as strong vocalists. The arrangements were complex, yet easily digestible. Bohemian Rhapsody was a game changer. What more can be said about it? It is one of the greatest pieces of music composed in the last fifty years. A brilliantly complex composition, yet completely accessible. A feat rarely accomplished in popular music. A Night At The Opera revealed Brian May as a composer trapped in a guitarist's body. It was orchestral music arranged for rock band. His dixieland jazz band in Good Company and arrangement of the national anthem revealed him as far more than a mere rock guitarist. Brian's tour de force was The Prophet's Song. While BoRhap is a cornerstone of popular music, The Prophet's Song is an equally vital contribution to the evolution of rock music. Love Of My Life is by far Mercury's best ballad. Side two alone encompasses every trademark that made Queen who they were. Every artist has their creative peak. This was Queen's. Some Queen fans will cite other records like Queen II or A Day At The Races as being better records, but it's usually a case of fandom where they'd like the lesser-known records to have more exposure. But the reality is - ANATO is the complete picture. Never were they more focused, more determined, and more in tune with their craft than the summer and autumn of 1975. There. What's your take?Agree with almost all of that. A really good summary of why ANATO was their creative peak, and also why it's probably my favourite album -- up there with SHA. However, I disagree about Prophet's Song. I've never read any artists citing it as an inspiration so I don't know how it is adjudged "equally vital contribution to the evolution of rock music" (happy to be proved wrong though). Herecy I know, but I find the vocal interlude to be self indulgent and, at one point in particular, very grating to listen to. A long instrumental section replacing the vocal interlude in Prophet's Song would've made ANATO a perfect album. Well, that, and some cowbell. |
| Vali 02.05.2012 04:10 |
... because they were testing themselves for A Day At The Races, wich was better ;) hey, at least to me !! |
| 1sharppencil 02.05.2012 06:08 |
I pretty much agree with TRW (most of the times)... although I think "Sheer Heart Attack" is the band's best work (Roger concurs), a real triumph, overcoming many obstacles, working fast, going into their back catalogue, Freddie going overboard...ANATO has something which marks it as a classic..."Fred's Thing" (love how RTB says that in that early take)a.k.a. Bohemian Rhapsody... moreover, crucially, it's a band giving it their all, with sth to prove to themselves, their old and new management...and it certainly is a solid "british" l.p., with everything from radio-pop to prog-rock, camp songs to sci-fi lyrics... and the best opening lines of a Queen album (mind you, there is nothing accidental about the phrasing as BM once noted)... "You suck my ..." |
| horse feathers 02.05.2012 06:30 |
It's ADATR for me. I agree with Holly2003 about The Prophet song too, I loved the track when it first came out, but a bit too self indulgent for me. I also think YTMBA is a better song than LOML. Drowse and You and I better than the two songs they wrote on Opera too. As for Sweet Lady, great verses, ruined by a very weak chorus. Also as ADATR was produced by the band themselves I think that this also makes me believe it is their finest album ever. My top 5 albums in order are. 1. A Day At The Races. 2. Queen II. 3. Sheer Heart Attack. 4. The Game. 5. A Night At The Opera. |
| horse feathers 02.05.2012 06:33 |
It's ADATR for me. I agree with Holly2003 about The Prophet song too, I loved the track when it first came out, but a bit too self indulgent for me. I also think YTMBA is a better song than LOML. Drowse and You and I better than the two songs they wrote on Opera too. As for Sweet Lady, great verses, ruined by a very weak chorus. Also as ADATR was produced by the band themselves I think that this also makes me believe it is their finest album ever. My top 5 albums in order are. 1. A Day At The Races. 2. Queen II. 3. Sheer Heart Attack. 4. The Game. 5. A Night At The Opera. |
| thomasquinn 32989 02.05.2012 07:08 |
I still don't agree that ANATO is an exceptionally good album. IMHO, the album as a whole is inferior to both SHA and ADATR - I personally think ANATO is so popular simply because of Bohemian Rhapsody. |
| greaserkat 02.05.2012 13:16 |
Im sorry, but I do not understand how you can have The Game in the top 5 Queen albums. Lyrically and musically it is inferior to many other Queen albums, in my opinion. |
| Russian Headlong 02.05.2012 14:00 |
Queen 2 is better. |
| Holly2003 02.05.2012 14:16 |
Thanks for that. Very enlightening. |
| Sheer Brass Neck 02.05.2012 16:39 |
Thomas Quinn wrote: "I personally think ANATO is so popular simply because of Bohemian Rhapsody." Could be, but I think the album from a songwriting, production and musicianship POV is the greatest representative of the genius of Queen. Sweet Lady may be hated, but there is more amazing guitar work, and musical personality in the end section than many bands have in their catalogue. The Prophets Song may be indulgent, but lyrically, it has as much meaning or more today ("love is still the answer") than it did 35 years ago. Not to mention the beauty of Love of my Life, the majesty of GSTQ, it goes on and on. For me, it represents everything they were trying to achieve on the first three albums, and got it right on the fourth. |
| Sebastian 02.05.2012 17:01 |
Even ff Bo Rhap were out of ANATO, it'd still be their top album in my opinion: '39, Good Company, LOML ... basically everything sans the stupid 'cheese' line on SL is absolutely magnificent. I disagree with Brian being a composer trapped in a guitarist's body: he's both, simple as that; and not only that: he's also a singer, arranger, producer, etc. ANATO hit the nail on the head in terms of creativity, performance, chemistry, success, timing, diversity, influence, etc. While Freddie was by far the chief force behind that album (in terms of songwriting, production, arrangements and performance), they all had valuable input and they all contributed their best. A lot of Queen albums have some or many of those features, but IMO none of them has all of them combined (e.g. Queen II has no input from John as songwriter, Races is a bit less creative -IMO- as it's a sequel, etc.). |
| MartynTS 02.05.2012 17:40 |
Putting Bohemian Rhapsody aside it is full of amazing creativity and dynamics. I mean: The Prophet's Song(my personal favorite Queen song) '39 (Top Ten) Death On Two Legs (Top Ten) Good Company Sweet Lady Love Of My Life All some of my favorite songs. There's really not a track I don't like. |
| thomasquinn 32989 03.05.2012 08:52 |
Sebastian: "Races is a bit less creative -IMO- as it's a sequel" That is not an opinion backed up with an argument, it's an opinion backed up with another opinion. I really don't see ADATR as a sequel in anything but name - otherwise, you could argue that ANATO is a sequal to Sheer Heart Attack, because the 'concept album approach' of Queen II was abandoned there, and all four members contributed songs. I don't think that is a legitimate argument, but it's just as good an argument as the one for ADATR being a sequel to ANATO - I think that's a purely subjective thing. As for songwriting, I agree that there are great songs on both albums. However, ADATR doesn't have a single track I like to skip - ANATO does (Sweet Lady), as well as having a number of tracks that leave me unaffected: I'm In Love With My Car and Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon (which is interestingly constructed, I have to admit). On the other hand, the only song on ADATR that I find less than absolutely appealing is You and I, which is still a good song. |
| Sebastian 03.05.2012 18:40 |
Of course it's a subjective argument, that's why I wrote IMO. Races is, IMO, a sequel in more than the title. We've got: A skiffle-based number. A Deacon ballad. A Taylor song in triple metre. A Mercury piano ballad. A classical-influenced song with intricate arrangement. A vaudeville-influenced track (well, two on Opera). They've got loads of differences as well, just like brothers (or twins) do, but that doesn't make them any less related, IMO. |
| Sheer Brass Neck 03.05.2012 20:56 |
Plus, there was thought of ANATO being a double album, or at least a ton of ADATR was written in the time of ANATO's writing. So sequel or not, there is a commonality between the two albums. |
| Biggzy10 03.05.2012 21:53 |
Everyone in the band has stated that ADATR was supposed to mirror ANATO. That the album's song layout would be similar. Once they completed ANATO, they pretty much continued to record and it was pretty much like they were still recording ANATO. So yes i would say ADATR is a sequel to ANATO. Or more like a little brother. |
| Sebastian 04.05.2012 02:28 |
* Edited, TBP on the next one * |
| Sebastian 04.05.2012 02:29 |
The debate ANATO vs ADATR is a very interesting one indeed, probably more so than ANATO vs Queen II as it involves two records that are closer together. I personally prefer ANATO but I think they're both masterpieces. Even if Bo Rhap were part of Races instead of Opera, I'd still choose Opera (even though I love Bo Rhap). One of the main reasons is that ANATO's got my two favourite Queen songs ('39 and Good Company) and it's, IMO, stronger, in terms of: * Resourcefulness (e.g. vocal orchestration on Rendezvous, guitar jazz band on Good Company). * Roger's voice (both lead and harmonies, including higher and lower notes). * Roger's drumming (e.g. Sweet Lady). * Bass-lines (e.g. Good Company, Prophet's Song). * John's playing (e.g. LOML). * Freddie's piano-playing (e.g. LOML). * Songwriting (e.g. '39 vs Long Away, both magnificent though). * Guitar choirs (e.g. Good Company, National Anthem, even '39 for a brief moment). * Use of more instruments, therefore a broader sound palette (harp, ukelele, koto, double-bass vs harmonium). Races wins, IMO, in terms of: * Brian's voice (excellent on both albums, but better on ADATR IMO). * Vaudeville (IMO, GOFLB is a better song than Rendezvous and LOASA). * Lyrics (no 'some kind of cheese' line). * Brian's piano playing (Teo Torriatte vs the GSTQ guide track). * Overall piano sound (not playing, though, IMO - it seems they had access to better pianos or better tuners in '76). * Quality of the backing tracks (Somebody to Love, for instance, has less bleeding than Bo Rhap). Of course all of those points are entirely subjective - a lot of people may prefer Millionaire Waltz' bass-line, for instance. Myself, I think that one's extraordinary, but I rate Good Company and Prophet's Song as even more extraordinary bass-lines. The other main reason why, IMO, ANATO is better than ADATR (although I love both albums and I think they're both masterpieces) is that ANATO has The Prophet's Song. ADATR has White Man, which is a very good song (very underrated too), but they're not on the same league IMO. While '39 and Long Away are close in terms of quality (loads would prefer the former, loads would prefer the latter), so are Bo Rhap and either STL or TMW (in fact, I agree with Freddie that STL is perhaps a 'better' song than Bo Rhap), so are IILWMC and Drowse, so are Best Friend and You and I, so are LOML and YTMBA ... the only one where I personally feel ANATO was much better was comparing TPS with White Man. That gave them the edge, IMO. |
| tomchristie22 04.05.2012 06:08 |
I think Sebastian summed it up pretty well |
| Amazon 04.05.2012 07:40 |
Another reason why ANATO is arguably a superior album to ADATR (which isn't in my top 3) is Death on Two Legs. A vicious, biting masterpiece, it must surely be one of the boldest and greatest opening songs of all time. :D |
| Sebastian 04.05.2012 11:24 |
Good point. Gong + White Man's Riff + Tie Your Mother Down make an excellent intro, but Death on Two Legs takes it to another level IMO. |
| mooghead 05.05.2012 04:19 |
Quite simply because there is nothing else like ANATO. |
| thomasquinn 32989 07.05.2012 09:14 |
mooghead wrote: Quite simply because there is nothing else like ANATO.Same goes for Queen II or, for that matter, George Harrison's All Things Must Pass, Bob Dylan's Blood On The Tracks, David Bowie's Hunky Dory, Jackson Browne's Running On Empty, Frank Zappa's We're Only In It For The Money etc. etc. We were talking about what sets ANATO apart. |
| mooghead 07.05.2012 16:21 |
I see what you are saying but when ANATO came out a lot of lights were shining in Queen's direction. It was make or break... 'carry on the momentum or show us it was all a fluke'. They came up with a masterpiece that shut everyone's mouths. Unlike the albums previously quoted. |
| brENsKi 07.05.2012 16:29 |
i accept that anato was good...very good in fact, and i accept that this kind of thing is subjective, but i don't even think anato is in queen's top 3 albums. II, far and away, followed by races, followed by queen I |
| Hangman_96 07.05.2012 16:55 |
ANATO itself is a very good album. Though Bo Rhap is the only thing that made the album so successful, IMO. If Bo Rhap hadn't been written, the album wouldn't have sold that much. Perhaps whichever album Bo Rhap would appear on, a lucky album would be as successful as ANATO. |
| Amazon 08.05.2012 02:48 |
Lostman wrote: "ANATO itself is a very good album. Though Bo Rhap is the only thing that made the album so successful, IMO. If Bo Rhap hadn't been written, the album wouldn't have sold that much." What about YMBF? |
| Holly2003 08.05.2012 04:11 |
What bizarre conments. "If you remove Bo Rap it wouldn't be as good." "If you remove BoRap it wouldn't have sold as well." BUT YOU CAN'T DO THAT! lol You can of course stack any argument in your favour if you're allowed to change reality. Take away Pearl Harbor and it was the Americans who struck first against the Japanese. But of course you can't take away Pearl Harbor! lol |
| thomasquinn 32989 08.05.2012 10:30 |
@Holly: I agree that there is no basis for the remark "if you remove BoRap it wouldn't have sold as well" - there is no way of knowing that. However, the comment "if you remove Bo Rap it wouldn't be as good" is a perfectly acceptable claim - you may agree or disagree with it, but it is not a metaphysical postulate - you can listen to the album without Bo Rap, and decide what you think of the album that way, resulting in either a less- or more favorable opinion, or (unlikely but possible) an unchanged opinion on the album. |
| Holly2003 08.05.2012 11:01 |
Hmm...the title of this thread is "Why is ANATO so good?" One of the reasons for that is that it includes one of the biggest selling singles and most well known and best songs in modern rock/pop history. |
| br5946 08.05.2012 11:39 |
The simple answer that ANATO is so good? Because it's A Night At The Opera, with Bo Rhap leading into GSTQ as its finale, with a hell of a lot of awesome tracks before it. I've seen a few ANATO vs. ADATR debates in this topic - this is quite interesting. Personally both of them are brilliant, with Races being my favourite next to Opera, but only because I can listen Opera all the way through. I do love ADATR (Tie Your Mother Down, Long Away, Somebody to Love, Teo Torriatte, etc.) but I always have to skip Drowse when listening to that album. Apologies to any Roger fans, but it's his weakest moment. |
| The Real Wizard 08.05.2012 11:51 |
Holly2003 wrote: Take away Pearl Harbor and it was the Americans who struck first against the Japanese.Yes, but not the atom bombs. The reason why the Japanese were upset was because the US was shipping weapons to China throughout the 30s. Despite what they teach American kids in the school system - Pearl Harbour was not unprovoked. Carry on :-) |
| brENsKi 08.05.2012 12:12 |
so Japan are ok to attack the US because they had been helping China but China are not allowed that help despite Japan's decade of attacks previously? so the "empire" had fierce double-standards then? |
| Dane 09.05.2012 05:11 |
Japan, Atom Bomb, Pearl Harbor, A Night At the Opera... Fukushima at the Races was better. ANATO sold more hence preceived as better. |
| thomasquinn 32989 09.05.2012 08:18 |
The Real Wizard wrote:The things they teach you aren't too complete either, Bob. The reason the US was shipping weapons to China, was because Japan had been illegally annexing Chinese territory since the Russo-Japanese war of 1904-05. There was a very realistic fear that both China and Russia could have been defeated by Japan, likely resulting in continent-wide civil war, which would serve to further destabilize the already beaten British, Dutch and French empires.Holly2003 wrote: Take away Pearl Harbor and it was the Americans who struck first against the Japanese.Yes, but not the atom bombs. The reason why the Japanese were upset was because the US was shipping weapons to China throughout the 30s. Despite what they teach American kids in the school system - Pearl Harbour was not unprovoked. Carry on :-) If you want to call Pearl Harbour a 'provoked' attack, you can do so, but not with this argument. The only valid argument for that is that technically, an American battleship (a destroyer I think) engaged Japanese naval vessels shortly before the attack was launched (an hour or two, I believe). I understand that you don't like the saintly image of the U.S. that was created in the Cold War, but don't try and turn the Japanese into victims - the citizens were, the leadership most definitely wasn't. The beastly cruelty of the Japanese empire between 1904 and 1945 is no less horrendous than nazi atrocities. The main difference is that Japanese cruelty wasn't directed at specific ethnic groups. |
| Ozz 09.05.2012 15:39 |
ANATO is a masterpiece not only for BoRhap. Because they were in their creative peak, and most important: - They were in real need of a Huge Success (If anato didn't make it, they would have to get real jobs, because of the debts) - They had a huge budget for making it, so that is reflected in their work too. As fan, i like SHA and QII just as much as ANATO In defense of ADATR, Imho, Somebody To Love was the song that reflects everything that is good in Queen, even more than BoRhap. |
| The Real Wizard 09.05.2012 20:57 |
thomasquinn 32989 wrote: The things they teach you aren't too complete either, Bob.No need to be a dick about it ! Thanks for the history lesson. Check your inbox :-) |
| thomasquinn 32989 10.05.2012 08:20 |
The Real Wizard wrote:I didn't mean to be a dick, I meant to paraphrase your opening line.thomasquinn 32989 wrote: The things they teach you aren't too complete either, Bob.No need to be a dick about it ! Thanks for the history lesson. Check your inbox :-) There doesn't appear to be anything in my inbox - I guess the courier was intercepted ;-P |