| Mr.QueenFan 09.08.2012 19:30 |
As i watched the Freddie Mercury official 65th birthday video, it's pretty obviour that the version of "My melancholy Blues" that Freddie is singing is the BBC session 6 version. EDIT: This is the video link We know that the day of recording of the full session was October 28, 1977. Wich means that they recorded : Spread Your Wings It's Late (with parts of Get Down Make Love) My Melancholy Blues We Will Rock You (slow / fast) So, i believe that it's possible that the whole session was recorded during the Bob Harris documentary. Not only Freddie's vocals and contribution but all four Queen members, in case they followed each member separately- or at least they kept a camera rolling in the studio. What are your opinions on this subject? P.S. - I never found any discussion on Queenzone over this possibility, if this was discussed before then just ignore this topic. |
| The Real Wizard 09.08.2012 19:38 |
It's entirely possible that the video was from the album recording sessions and that they just used the BBC audio for the clip. There's a similar clip for We Are The Champions from the Days Of Our Lives documentary ... |
| pittrek 10.08.2012 03:05 |
Are you sure that it's from the BBC version ? If yes, that's a great find |
| Mr.QueenFan 10.08.2012 09:09 |
edit. |
| Mr.QueenFan 10.08.2012 09:10 |
The Real Wizard wrote: It's entirely possible that the video was from the album recording sessions and that they just used the BBC audio for the clip. There's a similar clip for We Are The Champions from the Days Of Our Lives documentary ...I thought about that too, but after i inspected it very carefully i'm pretty shure this is from BBC session 6, but i ask you, and others to check this with me. Freddie's vocals on session 6 are slightly diferent than the album. In the beginning "Another party is over" his phrasing on the word "over" is very different than on the album, but they haven't Freddie singing this on the video. Next, on "i'm let cold sober" the word sober is longer on the album than on the session, so they counldn't synch the audio with video so perfectly. We can see that even Freddie's breathing is in perfect synch with the BBC session audio. I really believe that Bob Harris recorded not only the audio but the making of the backing track for that session. But i could use another pair of ears by fellow queenzoners. |
| Vocal harmony 10.08.2012 09:58 |
The BBC session six was filmed, together with some interviews and other footage from the album sessions. Also tour rehearsals were filmed together with the one hour Fan Club concert at the WATC video shoot. Bits of all these were included in the Bob Harris documentary, which was shelved during the final editing stage. |
| qz08927 10.08.2012 10:13 |
Bob Harris documentary, which was shelved during the final editing stage It needs to be un-shelved then. |
| Liquid Scream 10.08.2012 11:21 |
qz08927 wrote: Bob Harris documentary, which was shelved during the final editing stage It needs to be un-shelved then.Does anyone know why the documentary was shelved? |
| cmsdrums 10.08.2012 11:47 |
They really should look to put this out - its not as if it's something they wanted to keep hidden as the whole reason it was filmed was to release it. This footage, including studio work, an intimate one off gig, interviews and backstage stuff, really is of huge importance and interest, and differs from the 'norm' that is out there. |
| The Real Wizard 10.08.2012 11:55 |
At least there were some nice clips in the Days Of Our Lives documentary. But there are hundreds of hours of footage from 1977... literally. Apparently Mercury's interview alone is four hours. |
| Bad Seed 11.08.2012 01:44 |
Liquid Scream wrote:Yes, it was around the time Beach was becoming involved.qz08927 wrote: Bob Harris documentary, which was shelved during the final editing stage It needs to be un-shelved then.Does anyone know why the documentary was shelved? |
| Vocal harmony 11.08.2012 05:06 |
It was made by the BBC and was to be screened as on Old Grey Whistle Test Special. The most common thought is that John Reed, or Queen themselves were not happy with it. However in 77/78 the Whistle test seemed to be moving into punk and new wave at the expense of some of the more traditional rock bands. The program's producers seemed to want to reflect what was perceived as the next big thing, so it is possible that the Queen documentary was killed off because by the end of 1977 Queen were viewed as not current enough |
| Mr.QueenFan 11.08.2012 06:48 |
Vocal harmony wrote: The BBC session six was filmed, together with some interviews and other footage from the album sessions. Also tour rehearsals were filmed together with the one hour Fan Club concert at the WATC video shoot. Bits of all these were included in the Bob Harris documentary, which was shelved during the final editing stage.Intersting, but i believe that they don't aknolwedge the WATC fan club concert being filmed at all, or am i wrong? If they still have the unedited tapes of everything you say, then Bob Harris might be the best thing ever to have happened to Queen, videowise! |
| pianoshizzle 11.08.2012 13:28 |
@Mr.QueenFan Is this the video you were talking about? link |
| Vocal harmony 11.08.2012 13:58 |
Being has it was filmed by the BBC or for the BBC, having reached the final editing stage I would imagine that most of what was filmed, had by then, been disgarded if it wasn't required. It's possible that a lot of the footage has been dumped, the BBC were famous for it at the time. The Bits that appear in the Days of our Lives Documentary could have been lifted directly from the Bob Harris Whistle Test documentary rather than being pulled from the hours and hours of footage filmed in 1977. It would be nice to see the Whistle Test documentary released on DVD together with the one hour WATC concert, if it still exsists in it entirety. They played some old classics and somehow squeezed the lighting rig that was used on the 77 tour into a small theatre and stage. |
| cmsdrums 11.08.2012 14:08 |
Good point Vocal Harmony - there's a great chance that the edit may have already taken place at that point and so, like Budapest and Montreal, the unused footage could well have been binned. I would hope possibly that Bob Harris, being a fan of music and appreciative of what he had, may possibly have salvaged the rest of it - in fact I may email him to see if he is willing/able to comment on what there was, what there is, and what may remain, and who owns it. |
| The Real Wizard 11.08.2012 14:08 |
Vocal harmony wrote: The Bits that appear in the Days of our Lives Documentary could have been lifted directly from the Bob Harris Whistle Test documentary rather than being pulled from the hours and hours of footage filmed in 1977.I think those are essentially the same thing. The hundreds of hours of footage were filmed with the documentary in mind, but eventually shelved. |
| The Real Wizard 11.08.2012 14:09 |
Vocal harmony wrote: Bits of all these were included in the Bob Harris documentary, which was shelved during the final editing stage.Are you sure it got that far? Is there some kind of documentation or a quote from Harris? |
| Kevinrm15 11.08.2012 14:54 |
I thought Bob gave the footage to the band, therefore it couldn't be finished. |
| Vocal harmony 11.08.2012 15:44 |
The Real Wizard wrote:In the winter 77 fan club mag Bob Harris talks about the documentary, he mentions filming in Houston and Fort Worth, he also talks about using other bits of film which had never been seen before.Vocal harmony wrote: Bits of all these were included in the Bob Harris documentary, which was shelved during the final editing stage.Are you sure it got that far? Is there some kind of documentation or a quote from Harris? He does say that it should be on TV, a one hour Whistle Test special, in January 78. As regards to final editing etc, yes it did get this far however I am not able to publicly name the source of this information. I wish i could! As regard to Bob Harris giving the footage to Queen, no. He was the presenter of a BBC program. Although he was friends with the band he was employed by BBC TV, who were making the documentary. It would be interesting to hear what Bob Harris has to say about the Queen documentary. Wizard what I meant was, I doubt that the many hours of footage filmed in 77 still survives. Other than what was edited down for use in the original documentary. So I believe that for the Days of our Lives doc the footage shown was lifted directly from the 77 documentary. |
| cmsdrums 11.08.2012 15:55 |
I've emailed Bob Harris - I'm sure he's been bombarded over the years about this (especially since the documentary last year teased us with snippets), but I'll let you know here if I get a reply. |
| The Real Wizard 11.08.2012 18:30 |
Vocal harmony wrote: I doubt that the many hours of footage filmed in 77 still survives. Other than what was edited down for use in the original documentary. So I believe that for the Days of our Lives doc the footage shown was lifted directly from the 77 documentary.What an astonishing disappointment that would be if it were true. This is (or was) the single greatest treasure trove of Queen footage. 1977 was such an important year for the band. |
| IanR 11.08.2012 19:29 |
I must admit that I was a little disappointed that the Melancholy Blues footage wasn't included as a bonus feature on the 'Days of Our Lives' Blu-Ray — maybe it would make a suitable extra for the 'The Great Pretender' BR release, seeing as it's primarily a Fred solo effort? |
| GinjaNinja 11.08.2012 20:48 |
They certainly haven't kept everything in its original format, as could be seen on the "Days Of Our Lives Documentary". Bits of the same interview(s) where shown sometimes in B&W, sometimes from colour film and otherwise from lower quality video copies. I guess they could hold everything but as tape dubs rather than the camera negatives. I really hope they've got some good chunks of the '77 shows. |
| dysan 12.08.2012 01:25 |
Just had a look, and that ain't Maida Vale 4. |
| dysan 12.08.2012 01:37 |
Although, that doesn't mean they didn't record the BBC stuff away from the BBC like so many bands did and still do. Just see the early BBC material to hear the album versions with new singing over the top. |
| Vocal harmony 12.08.2012 09:18 |
IanR wrote: I must admit that I was a little disappointed that the Melancholy Blues footage wasn't included as a bonus feature on the 'Days of Our Lives' Blu-Ray — maybe it would make a suitable extra for the 'The Great Pretender' BR release, seeing as it's primarily a Fred solo effort?How can Freddie singing a Queen song with Roger and Brian playing on it be viewed as "primarily a Fred solo effort"? |
| dysan 12.08.2012 09:31 |
The same way Made In Heaven became a Queen song? Perhaps the traffic goes both ways? |
| Mr.QueenFan 12.08.2012 14:07 |
pianoshizzle wrote: @Mr.QueenFan Is this the video you were talking about? linkNo, the video is this one: link I'm gonna put it on my first post too. |
| Mr.QueenFan 12.08.2012 14:24 |
The Real Wizard wrote:Exactly my view! When i was waching "Days of our lives" documentary i was blown away with the WATC studio footage, and i thought everybody was as excited as i was because in my view, that footage of the boys recording what is possibly the biggest rock anthem in the world can easily be seen as one of the best finds in music history. That's Queen in their creative process and it doesn't get any better than this- at least for me personally!Vocal harmony wrote: I doubt that the many hours of footage filmed in 77 still survives. Other than what was edited down for use in the original documentary. So I believe that for the Days of our Lives doc the footage shown was lifted directly from the 77 documentary.What an astonishing disappointment that would be if it were true. This is (or was) the single greatest treasure trove of Queen footage. 1977 was such an important year for the band. That's why i created this topic. At least to see if anyone could clarify if indeed we have the full BBC session videotaped. If yes, it would be a tremenduous piece of music history for future generations to enjoy. |
| Vocal harmony 12.08.2012 20:04 |
dysan wrote: The same way Made In Heaven became a Queen song? Perhaps the traffic goes both ways?Not really, Made in Heaven was a Freddie solo song that was reconstructed as a Queen song My Melancholy Blues was recorded as a Queen song, by Queen. If your viewing it as a Freddie solo song wouldn't that mean that any album track that Freddie didn't sing on is a solo track by the band member who sung on it. For example Long Away is would basically a BM solo song. |
| dysan 13.08.2012 06:29 |
Yes. |
| Planetgurl 13.08.2012 07:01 |
This is what Bob Harris told me and others present - there is hundreds of hours of footage and a four hour interview with Fred. They were editing it and before it was finished, they handed it over to two guys sent along to pick up the footage. It is in the hands of QP. |
| cmsdrums 13.08.2012 07:24 |
Let's hope those two guys weren't Greg Brooks and Justin Shirley Smith! :-) |
| Holly2003 13.08.2012 08:05 |
cmsdrums wrote: Let's hope those two guys weren't Greg Brooks and Justin Shirley Smith! :-)Let' hope those 2 guys weren't Brian and Roger or we'll never see it! Or perhaps someone could email Brian and tell him CGI wizardry could give Fred his moustache a few years ahead of schedule. Maybe then Brian would be more agreeable to it being released. |
| Mr.QueenFan 13.08.2012 08:29 |
Planetgurl wrote: This is what Bob Harris told me and others present - there is hundreds of hours of footage and a four hour interview with Fred. They were editing it and before it was finished, they handed it over to two guys sent along to pick up the footage. It is in the hands of QP.Great news indeed! |
| dysan 13.08.2012 11:40 |
Yes, that account is old. He said it was all quite sinister. |
| Dane 14.08.2012 02:05 |
100% sure it's the BBC session version of the song.. also 99% sure the video does not match the music. It was all probably just set up for the camera's without recording music to release. |
| dysan 14.08.2012 02:30 |
It's not rocket science guys - if there is sound it is probably just the vocals on their own - Queen over dubbed the BBC sesison version becuase it is superior to the album cut. |
| Mr.QueenFan 14.08.2012 08:55 |
Dane wrote: 100% sure it's the BBC session version of the song.. also 99% sure the video does not match the music. It was all probably just set up for the camera's without recording music to release.The instrumental music i may agree with you, because at this stage we don't know if the backing track was already donne. But with the vocals i have to disagree, based on video evidence. Freddie was not a lip sync genious as was obvious with their San Remo 1984 performance. They hate to do it, so i don't see a point in doing it just for the documentary. If this was a documentary about Queen and their life i assume that they would follow the band through their everyday life, instead of creating "false situations" to fill the space. And by the time Bob Harris started the documentary there was plenty of music to be released and created, so it seems. |
| Mr.QueenFan 14.08.2012 08:58 |
dysan wrote: It's not rocket science guys - if there is sound it is probably just the vocals on their own - Queen over dubbed the BBC sesison version becuase it is superior to the album cut.Not because it is "superior" , but because the vocals are from that session. Queen just kept the integrty of that record. |
| dysan 14.08.2012 12:35 |
Eitherway, that isn't Maida Vale 4. |
| DGAA 14.08.2012 15:01 |
dysan wrote: Eitherway, that isn't Maida Vale 4.Are you sure? In my opinion it's Maida Vale 4 Look at this site. link a few examples link |
| pittrek 14.08.2012 15:19 |
Interesting, it COULD be Maida Vale 4 |
| The Real Wizard 15.08.2012 12:37 |
Vocal harmony wrote:If that's how we're thinking, then the majority of the White Album isn't Beatles songs !IanR wrote: I must admit that I was a little disappointed that the Melancholy Blues footage wasn't included as a bonus feature on the 'Days of Our Lives' Blu-Ray — maybe it would make a suitable extra for the 'The Great Pretender' BR release, seeing as it's primarily a Fred solo effort?How can Freddie singing a Queen song with Roger and Brian playing on it be viewed as "primarily a Fred solo effort"? |
| Mr.QueenFan 29.08.2012 10:11 |
There's some great news out there regarding this! In the Question and answer that Rhys Thomas did on the internet, there's this bit: "Q: How long and extense was the Bob Harris 1977 bbc documentary about queen that's been used as source in many documentaries ? A: Basically all the filming had been completed but nothing assembled. So lots of footage of the band but it had no linking device. We found the whole thing which hadn't been touched for 30 years. We almost wet ourselves watching it through. There is still a lot more in glorious HD that one day we plan to finish of and release, perhaps to accompany some shows from that 77 US tour." The tapes were found complete! This means that there is a strong possiblity that the BBC session 6 actually exists on film. Great news indeed! |
| Planetgurl 29.08.2012 12:50 |
In the winter 77 fan club mag Bob Harris talks about the documentary, he mentions filming in Houston and Fort Worth, he also talks about using other bits of film which had never been seen before. Bob also said he was in Las Vegas with the band - so there's probably footage from there too... |
| cmsdrums 30.08.2012 15:02 |
Rhys Thomas has confirmed that the BBC session was indeed filmed, and there will be more snippets, including It's Late, shown in the new Freddie documentary. I wonder if the reason this session sounds so vibrant and exciting is because the cameras were rolling and so the band gave it a 'bit extra'?? |
| Bad Seed 30.08.2012 15:45 |
WOW! Fantastic news! |
| Mr.QueenFan 30.08.2012 17:23 |
cmsdrums wrote: Rhys Thomas has confirmed that the BBC session was indeed filmed, and there will be more snippets, including It's Late, shown in the new Freddie documentary. I wonder if the reason this session sounds so vibrant and exciting is because the cameras were rolling and so the band gave it a 'bit extra'??It's really great! They don't have the full session, but hey, this is excellent news. I'm really, really happy with this news. But i think they will keep this out of Freddie solo, and will include it on a Queen 77 documentary. Here's the Q&A of Rhys Thomas: "Hi Rhys, How many tracks from the News of the World album were filmed by Bob Harris and his crew during the recording sessions for that album? And will 'Melancholy Blues' be one of the bonus features for the 'Great Pretender' Blu-Ray? Thanks! Rhys Thomas: My Melancholy Blues and bits of It's Late as well as Champions are all. These were filmed at the recording for the BBC Sessions rather than the actual record. Bonus features for Great Pretender DVD are mainly freddie solo related. Stuff like My Melancholy Blues etc are wasted as bonus features and will probably feature on the 1977 tour documentary if and when we make it." That's all i needed to Know to stay happy! This last week has been one of the best weeks in the past few years concerning Queen news, and all of this thanks to this man- Rhys Thomas. What a step forward from QP, and what a breath of fresh air this guy really is. |
| cmsdrums 30.08.2012 17:36 |
Interesting that Champions was filmed at that time, but this isn't on the broadcast BBC session? Does he mean that Champions was filmed at the time of album sessions? I'm tempering my enthusiasm in that although Rhys is far more open than Greg "I couldn't possibly tell you what's in the archives" Brooks, it's still Roger and Brian that will decide what we get to see and hear. Hopefully though, Rhys will be far more persuasive as he is in a position to actually produce product and make fresh creative suggestions, than the archivists who are just there to catalogue what's there, and then boast here what they've seen that we never will. |
| The Real Wizard 30.08.2012 23:54 |
You're not the only one feeling the optimism. These two documentaries are arguably the best official Queen products since Made In Heaven. This is hopefully a sign of very good things to come. The proposed 1977 DVD/blu-ray is pretty much the epitome of it. |
| pittrek 31.08.2012 02:20 |
Mr.QueenFan wrote: There's some great news out there regarding this! In the Question and answer that Rhys Thomas did on the internet, there's this bit: "Q: How long and extense was the Bob Harris 1977 bbc documentary about queen that's been used as source in many documentaries ? A: Basically all the filming had been completed but nothing assembled. So lots of footage of the band but it had no linking device. We found the whole thing which hadn't been touched for 30 years. We almost wet ourselves watching it through. There is still a lot more in glorious HD that one day we plan to finish of and release, perhaps to accompany some shows from that 77 US tour." The tapes were found complete! This means that there is a strong possiblity that the BBC session 6 actually exists on film. Great news indeed! I see the plural here - "SHOWS". Does it mean that they don't have only Houston but also the Forth Worth show ? |
| rocknrolllover 31.08.2012 07:36 |
i THINK THAT Bob Harris documentary we will see on 80th anniversary from moment foundation of Queen not early |
| The Real Wizard 31.08.2012 10:53 |
pittrek wrote: I see the plural here - "SHOWS". Does it mean that they don't have only Houston but also the Forth Worth show ?If the claims are that there are hundreds of hours of footage, there are likely several shows along with interviews and generally following the band around. The question is - how much of it has survived the test of time? |
| Kevinrm15 09.10.2012 10:46 |
Updated today from Rhys: There is a still bit more to come. A couple more things, there is a whole documentary that Bob Harris filmed with Queen on tour in the US in the 1970's. It was never finished. We have all of the rushes, some of it appeared in ‘Days Of Our Lives’. We will finish it in the next couple of years and it will probably come with a major concert as well. One of the US concerts plus the documentary all in high definition and it will look brilliant. |
| pittrek 09.10.2012 11:09 |
Houston 77 + the Bob Harris footage = 1 Queen fan incredibly happy |
| emrabt 09.10.2012 11:24 |
Rhys Thomas Could possibly be the best thing to happen to Queen in a long time. |
| The Real Wizard 09.10.2012 20:46 |
They filmed several shows on that tour, so I hope it's something besides Houston. A show with It's Late and Spread Your Wings would be splendid. I like this guy more and more every time he opens his mouth. He is doing fine work. |
| Kevinrm15 10.10.2012 07:06 |
Rhys commented this on my facebook status: "There aren't any other shows from the US 77 tour on film, only Houston (I say film, it was filmed on video tape) and the Harris crew didn't really film any other shows, only bits from the back of the stage etc but no sound so it's hard to work out what it is and there certainly isn't a whole song filmed. What there is , is lots of great rehearsal footage. The band sound checking etc. There is probably over 60 mins of wonderful footage and interviews with the band. Also this is not confirmed - this is something that MAY happen sometime soon." |
| The Real Wizard 10.10.2012 09:59 |
Disappointed to hear about the lack of live footage... but nice to hear the rehearsal and soundcheck footage is aplenty. |
| Mr.QueenFan 10.10.2012 18:34 |
Great news indeed! I'm glad that this footage survived intact for over 30 years and will see that light of day in HD. Beautifull! |
| KevoM 11.10.2012 07:07 |
We've had these false promises before! I'll believe it when i see it (If i'm still around by then). Talk (text) is cheap! QP have never been willing to release a 70s concert before, so why do you think they will change their stance on a 70s doc? I fear we will only see these newly found gems in (i quote) 'snippet's form in docs looking back like Days of Our Live and more reecntly The Great Pretender. |
