| miraclesteinway 15.01.2015 04:52 |
Just thought I'd share with everyone that today I took the notion to listen to the Happiness album on YouTube. Now - I DO have a vinyl copy that I bought in 1994 so I don't mind listening to it on YT. Listening to it again, I'm really quite impressed with it. It does fit in with early to mid 90s AOR in places, but I think it's a good piece of work. The songs are good, the production is nice, and the general tone of the album is fresh and upbeat. There are cliches everywhere on it though - Nazis 1994 makes a very good point, but it's a little on the bombastic side (from a Queen member? surely not...!), and the lyrics in Revelation are cringeworthy in places even though I like the sound of the song. You can hear in places a kind of post-Innuendo album style of writing - perhaps some of the songs were started with Queen in mind but events chose a different path for the songs. Some of the songs, like Touch the Sky, you could imagine Freddie singing, and other songs, I couldn't really hear Freddie on. I couldn't imagine Freddie singing Happiness, for some reason, which is odd because in a way it's quite classically Queen sounding. Anyway, it's not an album I listen to all that much and today I just thought it would be a nice way to start the morning before cracking on with my work. It has dated quite well over the past 20 years (I find it hard to believe it's already over 20 years old), and I still remember the feeling of excitement that a new piece of Queen related product, with new songs, was hitting the market. Is this an album that other fans like to listen to? It sounds fresher than Brian's solo work, and easier to swallow for the market than some of Freddie's, although they're all pretty genial songwriters and obviously Freddie had that voice....... |
| joerijoerijoeri 15.01.2015 05:04 |
I honestly think this is the worst thing a queen member had ever released. Save maybe Old Friends I have trouble finding any redeeming qualities in the whole album. Most of the songs are sleep inducingly boring and many of the lyrics are painfully bad. |
| miraclesteinway 15.01.2015 05:12 |
Hahaha well, we can't all like the same thing at the same time! :) |
| Heavenite 15.01.2015 05:24 |
I would say that it has moments of brilliance! Old Friends and Dear Mr Murdoch are complete class IMO. The rest is a bit variable as far as I'm concerned, but I noticed when I played it about a month ago that it is still growing on me. So I'm thinking that maybe I didn't give it a good enough go at the time. Maybe that's because it's not as catchy or addictive as a Queen album. |
| FlorianS 15.01.2015 07:48 |
Oh my god...you are right...20 years! I sill like it overall. When it comes to touch the sky I always think it would be so great to have Freddies voice on it. Old Friends always seemed to be a bit of a Days of our Lives clone. When it was released I thought that Foreign Sand should have been a hit single...nowadays my opinion is different...lol. But overall it did age very well on me. |
| Ozz 15.01.2015 11:38 |
Happiness is one of my favourite albums. Nazis is the only song that does not fit in the overall sound of the album. Listening it entirely is an awesome journey (Foreign Sand being the peak). When I was younger I was totally into brian solo career and Freddie's. Right now... is mostly Barcelona and Roger Solo career (Including some of the cross). |
| AlbaNo1 15.01.2015 13:43 |
I like the feel of the album. I just wish Roger would have got someone to check his lyrics and tell him you dont need to full rhyme everything. |
| feederdave 15.01.2015 15:50 |
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| scollins 15.01.2015 17:09 |
great album listening to it every week |
| radefriese 15.01.2015 19:16 |
I quite like the album a lot. It was one of my first experiences with Roger 's solo work. In fact, it's my favorite of his work. It was exciting to hear this after Freddie died, very reflective and a hopeful indicator that there would be a future for the members of Queen. I love it. |
| MadTheSwine73 15.01.2015 21:21 |
One of my favourites. Not great like Fun In Space, or "cool" like anything The Cross released, but a favourite. |
| soxtalon 15.01.2015 23:07 |
One of my favorite solo efforts. It was great getting something new from RT at the time. After a few years I put it on again and listened with different ears and I still dug it quite a bit. The second half gets a bit monotone and repetitive before rebounding with Murdoch and Old Friends but I still love the first half. Touch The Sky was sort of Breakthru-ish. The lyrics aren't great but they don't ruin the tracks...All in all it was great work from Rog especially updating the sound from his time with The Cross. |
| srnapranjic 16.01.2015 00:28 |
great album...rogers solo work is very good and the cross mad bad and blue rock are great too! |
| thomasquinn 32989 16.01.2015 06:10 |
Really nice album, my favorite Queen-related solo record after "Strange Frontier". It has a few moments I'm not so fond of (Revelation...), but on the whole, I think it holds up very well to other albums from the same period. |
| Daburcor? 16.01.2015 07:38 |
I've always really liked the album myself. It has a nice flow to it. |
| Band Forever 16.01.2015 09:19 |
The Happiness album is Roger's best Solo work! |
| QueenTwo 16.01.2015 11:48 |
I think this is a great album, as is Electric Fire..both have stood the test of time, |
| Khizzy 16.01.2015 15:10 |
Brilliant album - along with Strange Frontier, I strongly feel that it's the best thing that a Queen member has put out as a solo album. I think it's vastly underrated. Yes, the lyrics are cliched in places but it's quite a diverse, mainly upbeat album with some excellent songs. A lot better than some Queen albums, let's put it that way. I listen to it quite frequently, especially since The Lot was released. Highlights - the title track (sounds like The Beatles - so that's all good in my book!), Freedom Train (that pounding beat!), You Had To Be There (lovely bluesy track), Touch The Sky (very upbeat and poppy), Loneliness (the chorus has an interesting chord sequence). The only song I tend to skip is Nazis 1994, which is a bit shit. Otherwise it's a consistently good album - in my opinion. |
| mooghead 16.01.2015 15:37 |
The last Queen solo album I bought... decided then that the parts are not even one millionth of the sum..... |
| mike hunt 16.01.2015 15:41 |
mooghead wrote: The last Queen solo album I bought... decided then that the parts are not even one millionth of the sum.....So true, I find Roger's solo stuff Boring. |
| The King Of Rhye 16.01.2015 15:49 |
I like Electric Fire a bit more.....as I like Roger best when he's rocking out (same as with Brian, and with Queen..lol), and Happiness is definitely way more downbeat...... |
| princetom 16.01.2015 18:31 |
well... "happiness?" is a GREAT album! it surely is! i usually skip "nazis" beachuse it's some kind of off-topic. yes. it is a concern.. but... hey... me as a german... well, you know... we aren't that way... the rest of the album is quite fantastic. it has a very mood of it's own i LOVE the relaxed mood... and i LOVE the passion which RT brought into this very product! it's mature comparing it th his previous albums. although i like "the cross'" stuff very well. "happiness?" is an outstanding album which i use to play in front of my students to bring them down and listen to THAT guy's kind of view...! outstanding. very post-innuendo, indeed. but a follower... great stuff all the way |
| OwenSmith 16.01.2015 18:45 |
Happiness and Strange Frontier are my favourite Roger solo albums. I was so disappointed when Electric Fire came out, it's a much poorer effort for my tastes. But then I don't like Stone Cold Crazy or similar Roger songs, too punk-ish for my liking, |
| Rokku 17.01.2015 00:18 |
Touch The Sky is the best song in the album, but I more prefer RT early works. Fun In Space sounds fantastic, like Flash Gordon album's son. Strange Frontier album, I guess it's really thing from eighties (but I was born in middle of nineties xD), but I love this album too. Happiness this just a golden middle of Roger's music career. Quiet, simple, nostalgic, pure. His Electric Fire is more aggressive, and like Fun On Earth (10/10 for me too), more eclectical, social texts with some industrial synths sounds - I think Roger found new style for himself. |
| KJ 17.01.2015 04:54 |
Nazis is the best thing on Happiness. The album has some weak songs on it like Everybody hurts sometimes, The key and You had to be there. |
| joerijoerijoeri 17.01.2015 05:03 |
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| joerijoerijoeri 17.01.2015 05:04 |
* adds generic drum beat There! My new single |