| Queen& 22.06.2005 13:51 |
Just heard that Brian and Roger Dont really keep in contact with John very much according to Brian on radio 2.I think this is sad how can someone not talk to his mates after 20 odd years together |
| doremi 22.06.2005 14:00 |
I have not heard the interview, and I certainly cannot speak for Brian, Roger or John. But sometimes ordinary things in people's lives distance them, like jobs, family, where they live, lifestyle. Sometimes bad things get in the way, issues or differences over creative directions, money, what have you. Either way...it is sad indeed. 3 lifetimes colleagues and at times friends..now so distant, that is Brian & Roger...from John and vice versa. |
| Ray D O'Gaga 22.06.2005 14:08 |
I don't think its any kind of tragedy - its just the way life is many times. For those of you over the age of, say, 30, think back to all your closest friends in high school and college, and now ask yourself how many of them you're still close to. Brian and Roger still enjoy being part of the music business and all that goes with it, and John at a point decided he'd had enough and wanted a more conventional life. Life just takes people in different directions sometimes, whether you're joe average or a world famous rock star. |
| deleted user 22.06.2005 14:16 |
Yeah I have just listened to this interview. I think it is fair enough they haven't seen John for a while, if he keeps himself to himself and they must be incredibly busy at the moment anyway! I'm sure they will have time perhaps to meet up with John or something next year. I liked the fact Roger thanked all the fans that came to see them in the UK - apparently we were great audiences!! :D Oh and Brian - try not to swear next time :P |
| Lord Fickle 22.06.2005 16:18 |
What show was this interview on? I'd like to hear it if I can. |
| Queen& 22.06.2005 18:29 |
Lord Fickle wrote: What show was this interview on? I'd like to hear it if I can.BBC radio 2 |
| doremi 22.06.2005 18:48 |
The link is posted on Brian's website. I have not had a chance to listen to it yet. Part of the written transcript is also on Brian's website, but not the part that this Thread is referencing yet. |
| Lord Fickle 22.06.2005 18:57 |
Lord Fickle wrote: What show was this interview on? I'd like to hear it if I can. MEATY wrote: BBC radio 2Thanks, but I had kind of gathered that! I meant which show on Radio 2, but I've found it now, in the ANNOUNCE thread, and heard it. |
| PainPleasure 22.06.2005 19:23 |
John didn't take well the death of Freddie, that's why he retired. |
| rockyracoon2004 22.06.2005 19:28 |
I think Ray D O'Gaga was right on the money. I'm 58, the same age as Brian, and I don't hang out with ANY of the close friends I had twenty or thirty years ago. Yes, we stay in touch on occasion, but over time we come to know ourselves better. Our interests change, our priorities change, and we grow differently. At some point in life we begin to define OURSELVES rather than allowing ourselves to be defined by a group, by friends, or by family or acquaintances. John, Brian and Roger are not the same as they were in the old days. Their family demands have changed, and they have opted to take their personal and professional lives in somewhat different directions. Maybe John just doesn't want to get back into the daily grind of being on the road, and maybe he has no interest in astronomy... Or worse, maybe he feels like he was a minor role player in Queen, hooked up with some tremendous talent, but may have felt tolerated rather than really needed as part of the group. Frankly I'm amazed that Brian and Roger have managed to stay connected, as I don't think they were the closest of personal friends even in Queen's prime. |
| doremi 22.06.2005 20:24 |
rockyracoon2004 wrote: I think Ray D O'Gaga was right on the money. I'm 58, the same age as Brian, and I don't hang out with ANY of the close friends I had twenty or thirty years ago. Yes, we stay in touch on occasion, but over time we come to know ourselves better. Our interests change, our priorities change, and we grow differently. At some point in life we begin to define OURSELVES rather than allowing ourselves to be defined by a group, by friends, or by family or acquaintances. John, Brian and Roger are not the same as they were in the old days. Their family demands have changed, and they have opted to take their personal and professional lives in somewhat different directions. Maybe John just doesn't want to get back into the daily grind of being on the road, and maybe he has no interest in astronomy... Or worse, maybe he feels like he was a minor role player in Queen, hooked up with some tremendous talent, but may have felt tolerated rather than really needed as part of the group. Frankly I'm amazed that Brian and Roger have managed to stay connected, as I don't think they were the closest of personal friends even in Queen's prime.I have the same thoughts exactly about John, and I think that once Freddie passed, it became much harder on him not only because a dear friend and colleague had passed away, but because I think Freddie took up for John, and looked out for him, and respected his role in Queen, whatever his contributions were, and that Freddie helped John be HEARD as a songwriter who had something to bring to the table. When Freddie died, I think Brian and Roger (and I mean no disrepect here) didn't give John the focus as an integral member and allow him to be HEARD so to speak and respected as an equal, contributor to the band. Yes I do think maybe John felt merely tolerated, rather than needed. Just my thought. Actually I think you have it all right on the money. Well said. And personally re: what you said about Brian and Roger, I was surprised too. I think their mutual desire to keep the Queen legacy going and develop new projects from releases, the current tour, the WWRY stage musical, has sort of re-established their bond later in life, once they got older and had gotten doing solo work out of their systems, the pain of Freddie's death healed somewhat..and it felt right and they wanted to revive the Queen banner. |
| rockyracoon2004 23.06.2005 01:29 |
John may not have made as much contribution to Queen as did Brian or Roger (my opinion of course is that Freddie was the dominant contributor), but he (John) was PERFECT for Queen. Very very solid, sustained bass lines (think Innuendo, We Are the Champions, Under Pressure, BoRhap, etc.), perfect for Queen's music. None of the bouncing bass crap (think Paul McCartney's Ob-La-Di-Bla-Da and Lady Madonna) that shows good artistry but wouldn't lay down a good foundation for complex harmonies or add depth to complement Freddie's vocals. John was perfect for the heaviness and complexity of Queen's music, and McCartney was perfect for the Beatles. But having said all the above, I miss John and am disappointed he's not with Brian and Roger this summer. I deeply value his enormous contribution to Queen. And I have great respect for his ability to cope with, support, and round out the greatest musical talent of the late 20th century. |
| Lord Fickle 23.06.2005 02:23 |
For what it's worth, I don't think John felt undervalued at all. He wrote some of Queen's biggest hits, and if anything, I think Bri and Rog possibly miss him, more than he misses them. He probably just felt that once Freddie died, the Queen legend died with him, and in many ways, I feel the same. He's also now in his 50s and has earned enough money to retire extremely comfortably, thank you very much. He was always 'the quiet one' in Queen, and by his very nature, I am not surprised he has taken this decision, not to be involved in the tour. |
| i'm going slight mad... 23.06.2005 06:57 |
people just grow apart...it's the natural way of friendship, eventually, (usually) they die out. |
| The Mir@cle 23.06.2005 07:13 |
From Brianmay.com: SM: And lots of texts and e-mails asking - John won't be, John's kind of retired from that end of it - but are you still in contact with John? RT: Very occasionally. BM: Yes, yes. Not very often. John really keeps himself to himself. He just comes out when he wants to, but he's in full approval of what we're doing; he just doesn't want to have anything to do with it. He wants to be at home and he wants to be insulated from . . . SM: Yeah. BM: . . . the kind of shit that we have to go through. (Laughing) BM: Can't blame him really. |
| fredrogbrijohn 23.06.2005 09:38 |
thanks rockyracoon. you summed up my feelings for John. |
| Boy Thomas Raker 23.06.2005 10:29 |
With all due respect, Arlene, speculation on why John isn't involved is just that, speculation. Unless you have some evidence that Brian and Roger just "merely tolerated, rather than needed" John, you're grasping at straws. John is apparently involved in all business decisions. There has been the grand total of 1 post-Freddie song recorded by the surviving members of Queen in 14 years. The musical is a business venture, not a 'Queen playing' or recording venture. They wanted him to play on this tour but he declined. He's been involved in the only piece of Queen music made since 1991. That might well be a helluva way to go out. Maybe John realizes that he lived and survived a ride that very few people will ever experience, and it can't be topped. There will never be another Queen, and he apparently can live with that. As much as the Queen & PR thing seems to be working out well, it sure isn't anywhere near the magic of a Queen concert, and perhaps (I'm speculatiing now!) John's no longer interested in the ride, having been there and done that with a better band. |
| Crazy LittleThing 23.06.2005 12:30 |
For what it's worth, Roger referred to Brian as QUOTE my best friend UNQUOTE on a number of occasions at the UK gigs. (oops! almost typed QUOTE best fiend UNQUOTE) Perhaps he was caught up in the love fest at the gigs with the rest of us ;-) They seem to have the same playful banter when they're doing interviews together as they did in the past. I read a story somewhere (maybe here) about Brian and Roger almost getting into a real fight, years ago, and that Freddie intervened, physically, to stop them. Evidently whatever he did to stop them was so comical and unexpected that they all started laughing and R and B forgot to start fighting. Too funny. I would imagine Mr May is getting a bit annoyed with the continuing line of questioning about John Deacon as he's answered it in interview after interview ad nauseam, and people don't seem to want to accept his response. As shown above in The Mir@cle's post, it was in response to the question about John that Brian dropped the S-bomb during the radio interview. Brian and Roger are more gracious about this and demonstrate more patience than I would if I were in the same situation. ------------------------ BHM 1142 |
| Queen T 23.06.2005 23:27 |
Crazy: Do remind me what S-bomb he dropped? I don't recall this |
| Crazy LittleThing 24.06.2005 10:24 |
MyHammerIsFalling wrote: Crazy: Do remind me what S-bomb he dropped? I don't recall thisHammer: (clipped from The Mir@cle's post above) BM: Yes, yes. Not very often. John really keeps himself to himself. He just comes out when he wants to, but he's in full approval of what we're doing; he just doesn't want to have anything to do with it. He wants to be at home and he wants to be insulated from . . . SM: Yeah. BM: . . . the kind of shit that we have to go through. END OF CLIPPED PORTION S-bomb = the word QUOTE shit UNQUOTE Not horribly offensive in the context in which Brian used it, unless of course, you're Johnny Knoxville, and easily offended when it comes to language. ;-) I was surprised, however, to hear that it went out over the air in UK. In the US it's one of the Federal Communications Commission's QUOTE seven dirty words UNQUOTE although it does appear on radio and television from time to time. The FCC seems to exercise selective enforcement regarding UNQUOTE the seven dirty words UNQUOTE If it's used on the Howard Stern Show (radio, target audience: males 18-54) Howard is cited and fined for it. It it's used on the Oprah Winfrey Show (television, target audience: women, don't know the age range) it is not, evidently falling under the context of being a discussion of a social issue. Go figure. Cheers! --C |
| Lord Fickle 24.06.2005 15:25 |
I think had it been a pre-recorded interview, the 's' word would have been cut, but as it was 'live', there wasn't much they could do about it. TV and Radio in the UK has become more relaxed about the milder expletives, and the odd 'shit' or 'bollocks', can usually be got away with, in the context of a live broadcast or interview, even on mainstream daytime radio. Pink Floyd's 'Money' can often be heard unedited on BBC Radio 2, complete with the 'Don't give me that do goody good bullshit' line. Even the 'f' word can now be heard quite frequently on prime time (post watershed) BBC TV. I'm thinking of the current series of 'Murphey's Law' in particular (sorry, that won't mean much to non-UK QZ members), which is broadcast after 9pm, on BBC1. I find it amazing that US TV is so sensitive to bad language, given the constant swearing throughout all episodes of series like 'The Soprano's'. Surely you guys don't have to listen to bleeps all through this? Do they also censor movies which contain bad language, when shown on TV? |
| Ray D O'Gaga 24.06.2005 16:35 |
Lord Fickle wrote: I find it amazing that US TV is so sensitive to bad language, given the constant swearing throughout all episodes of series like 'The Soprano's'. Surely you guys don't have to listen to bleeps all through this? Do they also censor movies which contain bad language, when shown on TV?It basically goes something like this - if its broadcast over the public airwaves which anyone with a TV and an antenna can get for free, there are more restrictions on language. If its on cable television or on premium subscription channels like HBO or Showtime, there are fewer restrictions. The thought being that broadcast television networks making money from the license they receive from the federal government to use the public airwaves have an obligation to observe something akin to a common morality, and the consensus is that certain words don't belong on the public airwaves. If you want to hear profanity, you're free to subscribe to cable and hear all you like. The restrictions on what kind of content can appear on television also vary depending on what time of day it is - there are more restrictions in the day time and early evening, because that's when children are more likely to be watching. The restrictions are looser after about 9 p.m., when its assumed that most of the kiddies are in bed asleep and their parents are the ones watching TV. |
| Lord Fickle 24.06.2005 16:48 |
That's interesting, thanks for the explanation. |
| Queen Maeve 24.06.2005 19:36 |
Right is this conversation going anywhere? Back to Roger, Brian and John. I agree with many of your views but some are a bit far fetched. Do we have any proof that John was excluded or should I say reluctantly involved in Queen activities after Nov.1991? No, he was invited to join every venture but he declined (for the majority). I agree, Bri and Rog must be sick of the constant questioning of Johns whereabouts, his involvment in Queen etc,etc. So lads why cant we be the first to stop asking the never ending questions? |
| Serry... 25.06.2005 02:36 |
Queen Maeve wrote: Right is this conversation going anywhere? Back to Roger, Brian and John. I agree with many of your views but some are a bit far fetched. Do we have any proof that John was excluded or should I say reluctantly involved in Queen activities after Nov.1991? No, he was invited to join every venture but he declined (for the majority). I agree, Bri and Rog must be sick of the constant questioning of Johns whereabouts, his involvment in Queen etc,etc. So lads why cant we be the first to stop asking the never ending questions?Why we should? Have you ever thought that there are lot of Queen fans whose fave band member is John? He was invited in 'Queen activities' not because he's a good man, but because he's one of Queen guys, isn't he? If he'd been playing on recent tour - most of discussions would never start. |
| Regor 27.06.2005 09:19 |
When I was in the queue for autographs at the cologne premiere of WWRY, Roger confirmed that they had asked John to participate and at the time he said that it's looking good. Which we now know was a bit optimistic, but neverthelss they asked him. It's sad that he is retired. But he has every right to do so. |
| Serry... 27.06.2005 09:29 |
John was involved in WWRY production on the early days of this musical. |