| Shane Jazz 18.10.2005 02:50 |
October 18, 2005 -- QUEEN IT was a confusing night for hard-core Queen fans, who didn't know whether to seethe or celebrate at the Meadowlands arena. Their anger that the beloved, late Freddie Mercury had been replaced by former Bad Company singer Paul Rodgers was soothed by the fact that Rodgers, one of the great rock voices, was pretty good, and his being there meant the band was playing their first live American gig in 23 years. In the end, nostalgia won out — and fans cheered Sunday's concert, the first of a two-show U.S. engagement that concludes Saturday at the Hollywood Bowl. Rodgers isn't Mercury, unfortunately, but thankfully he doesn't try to channel his ghost, either. Complete appreciation of his show required a love of the songs that transcended the original performances. Where Mercury was a total natural, singing Queen songs as easily as he breathed, there's a stiffness in Rodgers' delivery, even though technically he's a very accomplished frontman. It's the difference between riffing and reading music. Considering how devoted fans still are to Mercury, 14 years after his death from AIDS-related complications, this show was a huge risk for Rodgers. Between bow and curtain he took a few knocks, but eventually won the house. Early in the show, during a five-song greatest-hits barrage that concluded with "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," Rodgers looked like he couldn't be coiled tighter. The stress was so oppressive he didn't strut the stage as much as march. His singing had a clipped hard edge rather than a flow, and he seemed to wince when the audience cheered out "ready Freddie" responding to the lyric "are you ready, for a crazy little thing called love?" Rodgers soldiered on, and soon found solid footing when he delivered a pair of his own songs — "Bad Company" and "Feel Like Makin' Love." He gained confidence after hearing the cheers were as strong for those classic-rock pillars as for the Queen tunes. By the time Rodgers dueted with a video of Mercury performing "Bohemian Rhapsody," the quintessential Queen song, he had found major acceptance by the Jersey-side audience. Original Queen kingpins Brian May, on guitar, and Roger Taylor, on drums, each had terrific vocal solos. Taylor's ballad "Say It's Not True" about AIDS-affected Africa was lovely, and May was quite good on " '39" and Mercury's signature ballad "Love of My Life." As for the instrumental solos, Taylor's tribute to jazz drummer Gene Krupa called "Let There Be Gene" was surprisingly easier on the ear than May's extended guitar solo that segued into "Last Horizon." May's noodling made yawns contagious. As the concert progressed it was easier to listen to the music with a Freddie-free mind. That was especially apparent when the band laid into "Radio Ga Ga" where the entire house was on its feet, singing the chorus along with Rodgers and Taylor as well as providing the one/two/one clapping rhythm. After a shaky start, the combination of Paul Rodgers and Queen lived up to the old Queen promise and boast songs — "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions." |
| PieterMC 18.10.2005 08:36 |
ShaneJazz4 wrote: IT was a confusing night for hard-core Queen fans, who didn't know whether to seethe or celebrate at the Meadowlands arena.Nothing cofusing about it for me!! :-) |
| Lisser 18.10.2005 09:18 |
A so/so review. I guess it could have been worse considering the media now-a-days. They are never happy with anything they see. I personally never listen to any review concert-wise or movie-wise from a media critic. They just don't have the same taste as I do. |
| Ray D O'Gaga 18.10.2005 09:39 |
As is typical of today's media, saying something bad and then something good in equal measures gets passed off as "good journalism", rather than just stating the facts and letting people make up their own minds. Unless the Post has found a way to give its reporters telepathy, I find it highly suspect that the reviewer knew what the audience members were thinking, beyond the fact that they screamed their fucking heads off and had a good time. Opinions are like assholes and everyone has one - journalists' are just bigger and they get to show them to more people. |
| Lisser 18.10.2005 09:43 |
Ray D O'Gaga wrote: As is typical of today's media, saying something bad and then something good in equal measures gets passed off as "good journalism", rather than just stating the facts and letting people make up their own minds. Unless the Post has found a way to give its reporters telepathy, I find it highly suspect that the reviewer knew what the audience members were thinking, beyond the fact that they screamed their fucking heads off and had a good time. Opinions are like assholes and everyone has one - journalists' are just bigger and they get to show them to more people.Excellent post, I agree with every word. I'm finding it hard to write what I'm thinking right now due to lack of sleep!!! I had a 6am flight after the concert which meant getting a cab at 415am!!! |
| PieterMC 18.10.2005 09:48 |
Lisser wrote: I'm finding it hard to write what I'm thinking right now due to lack of sleep!!! I had a 6am flight after the concert which meant getting a cab at 415am!!!Did you guys get any sleep before you left? |
| Erin 18.10.2005 10:03 |
ShaneJazz4 wrote: IT was a confusing night for hard-core Queen fans, who didn't know whether to seethe or celebrate at the Meadowlands arena.As Pieter said..NO confusion at all for the hard-core fans...stupid reporter..:-S |
| Lisser 18.10.2005 10:12 |
PieterMC wrote:I did drift off from about 1am-4am. Better than nothing I suppose. When we woke up Cindy was no where to be found, so I hope she was ok!!! We were very worried about her. There was also a cooler in front of our hotel room door with a strange green substance in it. I thought it looked like guacomole but I'm not sure!! hahahaha!!Lisser wrote: I'm finding it hard to write what I'm thinking right now due to lack of sleep!!! I had a 6am flight after the concert which meant getting a cab at 415am!!!Did you guys get any sleep before you left? Cindy, hope you were ok!! :) |
| Mr.Jingles 18.10.2005 10:55 |
Considering that The New York Post is a nothing but a shit newspaper appealing to dumb, arrogant, and lousy New Yorkers, that review wasn't so bad. The New York Post is the only newspaper that would put the death of one of the characters of 'The Sopranos' on their front page. You can't get any more wise guy than that. FUUDGHEETTABOUIT! |
| Maz 18.10.2005 10:56 |
Isn't the Post a Murdoch paper? |
| *goodco* 18.10.2005 11:43 |
Indeed it is. About as close to being 'The National Enquirer' while still being looked on as a 'news' paper. So, considering how Roger feels about Mr. Murdoch, what would one expect from one of their reviewers. He probably had crap seats, no band access (plus no band knowledge), and wanted the NY Giants assignment down in Dallas that day. joe+III |
| Mr.Jingles 18.10.2005 12:52 |
Zeni wrote: Isn't the Post a Murdoch paper?I believe it is. |
| westpak 18.10.2005 13:51 |
I wasn't confused but did have mixed/conflicting feelings, I agree that Paul didn't seem at ease at the beginning specially with Queen songs and seem to be more at ease with Bad Company songs but eventually he got into it. I don't blame him Freddie is a tough act to follow specially for someone that is famous in his own right. It was a great night all around, great concert and great people I got to meet. |
| Ray D O'Gaga 18.10.2005 13:55 |
Mr.Jingles wrote:It is indeed one head of the Murdoch hydra.Zeni wrote: Isn't the Post a Murdoch paper?I believe it is. Paul was *perfectly* at ease singing Queen songs at the show I attended. How many shows has he sung those songs at to still be "uneasy"? How many times has he sung them in rehearsal? I think any "unease" people perceive from Paul are purely projection on their part. They assume he must be "uneasy" performing someone else's songs and therefore they see what they want to see. Just like that Post reporter, "reporting" on how Paul "winced" at "ready Freddie". Bullshit. Why on earth would he "wince" at that NOW, after he's heard it from the audience at two dozen shows? That was totally made up for the sake of writing a hack job story for a tabloid newspaper. No conflict, no story, so why not just make something up? Especially something that's subjective and can't be easily disproven. Paul was as smooth as silk on those songs when I saw them a little over a week ago and I don't expect it was any different Sunday night. Purely people seeing what they want or expect to see. And I'm the same way. I went in with a positive attitude, wanting to have a good time and to enjoy the show and guess what? I did. Can you imagine such a thing! |
| westpak 18.10.2005 14:23 |
Personally I don't know about wincing but he was different from the beginning of the show to the end. I think it was probably more due to the fact they had no idea what to expect from the US crowd, even Brian admits it in the brianmay.com site. I enjoyed the hell out of the concert and only really noticed it toward the end when I realized Paul was different as the night went on, he wasn't bad at the beginning at all just different. |
| Blood On Your Face 18.10.2005 14:56 |
Winced at the audience's "Ready Freddie"...? I was there... he smiled! If there was any uneasiness on Rodgers' part it is probably the result of a collective uneasiness from the Queen gang who I get a sense are generally uneasy about America and a sense that they somehow lost us after Hot Space. Where the rest of the world hails them as rock royalty and they can do no wrong, they still have to work for America. On Rodgers, the post reporter was right in indicating the risk for him... it takes balls to do what he is doing... he must need a wheelbarrow to carry his around. I have a whole new respect for that guy and my sense was that just about everyone at the NJ show felt similarly. He did a great job under difficult ciurcumstances. I now plan on buying some old Bad Company and Free records. |
| deleted user 18.10.2005 15:50 |
During Crazy Little Thing Called Love, I wasn't sure if we (the audience as a whole) would be doing the "Ready Freddie" because it might seem just a little disrespectful to Paul. But when the time, he looked like he was kind of expecting it and I didn't see anything that could be called a wince. I don't think Paul was uneasy with the Queen songs either, but he did seem to do a much better job on his own songs than on Queen. Maybe it's just his singing style, but it seemed like he sang the Queen songs with less power than his own and sang them all the same way. Trying to make Queen songs into Bad Company songs rather than trying to make himself into a Queen singer. But that is probably from a combination of him having and wanting to use his own singing style and not wanting be compared to Freddie. |