Lets say Freddie never met Roger Brian or John.
Would he have been successful in another band or as a solo artist ?
I find it hard to believe in a world were Freddie existed but didn't become famous.
Think of how many people out there could have or do have that level of talent in some fashion, in some field, but their break never comes.
Anything is possible, but without all four of them coming together the way the band did, I doubt the success would've followed that they went on to achieve.
Freddie is dead almost 30 years now yet nobody has come after him that that is anywhere near as good as he was as a live performer.
Freddie is one of most important artists of the last 50 years. This leads me to believe he would been famous no matter who he was working with as long as the public got to see him.
As I get older I believe less and less in genius, especially something you are born with. Imagine Freddie's life if the transition of power in Zanzibar had gone differently and the old empire officials had been used by the new government. The family would have lived there. Freddie might have kept on in music but not with the opportunities that England had to offer. Besides just meeting the other band members there, London was a melting pot of culture and counter-culture, where the old norms were being swept away. Would he have become a massive Hendrix fan if he had been in Zanzibar? So no, he could easily have become just a minor official in Zanzibar, never even accepting his sexuality because of the dominate homophobic culture.
There's no such thing as destiny. Frederick could've been hit by a bus in 1967 and then none of this would've happened. Or he could've had an accident as a child and lost his voice. Against massive odds, things happened and he and the others met and did some great music, but there's no 'fate' or 'destiny' involved there at all.
Freddie was obviously key to Queen's success, but without Brian May we wouldn't have had "We will rock you" or "Tie your Mother down". We know Roger and John chipped in with some brilliant songs too.
Freddie was an amazing talent but you only have to look at how much of a flop his solo career was to realise he needed the other members of Queen as much as they needed him.
I've never thought of Brian having an ego really. He's always come across as such a quiet, patient man.
Even in this video when he walks out of an interview he is so polite about it. link
'Ego' isn't just behaving like an arse. 'Ego' can also be 'I want this sound and this sound only and if not I'm gonna throw a tantrum'. And yes, the four of them did have that sort of ego, and massively so.
The stories of them on occasion wanting to get a track laid down before Brian arrived to finish, otherwise they'd spend extra time as he meticulously changed things.
oops....wait a second.....Freddie was always the one that was late per the movie.......
I believe he would have been successful- maybe even famous- but there's no doubt Queen as a unit helped Freddie reach his full potential.
Conversely, the other three would have never achieved success without Freddie in the music business. Talent alone means very little. Freddie made them extraordinary and they made Faroukh become Freddie
Sebastian wrote:
'Ego' isn't just behaving like an arse. 'Ego' can also be 'I want this sound and this sound only and if not I'm gonna throw a tantrum'. And yes, the four of them did have that sort of ego, and massively so.
Agreed, but Brian has always come across to a lot of fans as having no, or less of an ego because he is usually very approachable and often makes to chat.
Any one who is creative in a public way has an ego because there becomes a point where they have to play to ( perform or paint or write etc) for their audience and say what do you think of that then, or at least come and see, listen, buy or what ever. And to do that you have to have a belief that you're at least quite good at what you do!
Freddie had such talent as a vocalist and is unsurpassed as a frontman, but the thing way more than talent that makes me believe he may have found fame anyway is the fact that he was clearly very driven too. He seemed to really know exactly how he felt he/the band ought to go about it and maybe he even picked out Brian and Roger as they suited his aims. It's hard to imagine if he had tried to get into music that he wouldn't have been able to be extraordinary (not necessarily famous though I guess). But of course it's possible. Freddie could not have done it alone. (Although now I am imagining 70's Freddie rocking out bedecked in a catsuit, giving his all, but with only his piano as accompaniment for an entire gig!)
But that said, there is huge chance Freddie might not have even gone into music. He might have done something in art or design.
Brian initially applied to Clare College, Cambridge but didn't get a place there. Imagine if he had have gotten a place. Queen would never have been.
Obviously it was all of Queen together that made the magic. Success such as Queen's is very rare and there are incredible musicians who might be striving to get by their entire life - creating amazing music which nobody hears, so who knows.
Freddie used to say things such as he'd be just the same way were he not famous, but as with everyone he had many contradictions and different sides to his personality.
Regarding Brian: You can be the nicest person alive and also have a huge ego. My impression is that Brian has steel within and I am sure Brian was at the root of his fair share of the studio-based arguments Queen always alluded to. I don't mean that negatively as it is those kinds of battles that push things to be greater than they may otherwise have been.
Would as many people still be listening to Queen now if Freddie hadn't died so tragically. Gosh, but that's a depressing thought I just had. Sigh.
Yes, I suppose no-one is "destined" to do anything. But you can say life makes us who we are. What gave Freddie his drive? Was he born with it? Did it stem from the years he was in boarding school, away from family and discovering music? Was it when he moved to England? Was it how he felt about his place in the world? I've no idea and wouldn't presume to answer any of these questions.