| Ziggy_SD 27.02.2006 22:19 |
Funny, even though I like the band, I never considered them "cool". In fact, in spite of all their achievements and popularity, they were very ordinary, even dorky looking guys. I mean, check out most photos of JD - nerd alert! BM is a total dork with that stoneage perm that he refuses to shear, and even FM for the most part looked like he was fairly uninterested with the band on a marketing level. I guess the only one even remotely hip was Roger, but even he was arrestable for tragic fashion sense in the 80s. I must also mention the extremely low hip factor of the majority of their fanbase: very dorky and unsexy themselves. I think I've mentioned how ugly some fans are, based on the concert footage I've seen (please don't take offence here, people!) I guess it's fair to conclude that a band will attract like-minded people. Now I understand what Bob Geldof was talking about all those years ago... |
| RETROLOVE 27.02.2006 22:25 |
Thats the cool thing about becoming "famous." Once-back in the day- you were considered to be a dork, a nerd etc(have you ever looked back on some of your pictures as a kid, 3rd grade, 4th grade, etc); then all of a sudden, once you get all that money, your fine, your cute, a leader of fashion, etc. I do honestly think they were just average looking guys, but Freddie had a kinda an exotic look to him, almost like a japanesse cartoon character! The rest of them, just look like regular guys to me, not too cute, not too ugly...lol But I will say one thing, they ALL looked really cute in their Radio-ga-ga video...even John with the afro, lol!!! And just for the record, I'm still trying to get out of my "dork" phase, and I'm 23, lol! |
| Ziggy_SD 27.02.2006 22:34 |
Stop listening to Queen and you will blossom into a hip kat. |
| Ziggy_SD 27.02.2006 22:37 |
I just discovered some insight to myself actually - maybe that's the reason why Hot Space is my fav album, because it's definitely their coolest one! |
| luthorn 27.02.2006 22:58 |
Dork forever. Peace out Fabio!!! |
| The prophet's song 27.02.2006 23:32 |
Can I point out that before Queen, Freddie was an artist, Brian was a maths teacher and was writing a thesus on astro-physics or something like that, John had a degree in electronics and Roger was training to be a dentist. They have got to be the COOLEST painter/dentist/electrician/astro-physisct/maths teacher ever! |
| goinback 28.02.2006 00:04 |
Weren't they cool in the US when The Game came out? And Pink Floyd were all college grads too I think and were cool...Devo comes to mind as well :) |
| Ziggy_SD 28.02.2006 00:53 |
goinback wrote: Weren't they cool in the US when The Game came out? And Pink Floyd were all college grads too I think and were cool...Devo comes to mind as well :)'Ironic' is the only word I can use to describe Queen's success in the U.S. It was the singles that incidentally sounded nothing like Queen songs (Crazy and Dust) that gave them their biggest hits there. Even more ironic is the fact that Bo Rap became a hit in '92 ONLY after it was featured in Wayne's World (mind you, the insignificant parallel event of FM's death had nothing to do with it). What does this say about Americans? ;) |
| RETROLOVE 28.02.2006 01:57 |
To The prophet's song: Yeah...I was reading their bios on this site, and Brian was and still is REALLY smart, just from reading his bio...man, but I really have respect for them, because they finished college before they really got into the music industry, they takes a lot!! I went to school right after I turned 18, and only went for one year...I have a lot of personal issues...but I'm ready to go back!! Question: Was John, with him being the youngest, still in College when the band was offically formed, couldnt find it in the bio section? |
| The prophet's song 28.02.2006 03:33 |
onelonelypussycat wrote: To The prophet's song: Yeah...I was reading their bios on this site, and Brian was and still is REALLY smart, just from reading his bio...man, but I really have respect for them, because they finished college before they really got into the music industry, they takes a lot!! I went to school right after I turned 18, and only went for one year...I have a lot of personal issues...but I'm ready to go back!! Question: Was John, with him being the youngest, still in College when the band was offically formed, couldnt find it in the bio section?I'm not fully sure, but after all the bio's I have read, it would seem that he got his BSc Hons in electronics, so I assume he had finished Collage when he joined Queen. |
| val 29467 28.02.2006 07:00 |
hey, brian's hair is COOL!!! btw I believe he taught physics, not maths. Either way, can I have him as a teacher :) he might be able to learn me something, i'n dreadfull in both |
| abe 28.02.2006 07:18 |
Flash Danny has raised an interesting point, I myself recently responded to a thread under the "1970's vs 1980's Queen era" where I said the less said about John Deacon's presentation after 1980, the better. Any yet fuck all made any statements about this...silence maybe a sign of agreeance, I don't know. However, whilst I think Deacon is an awesome bass player and he also comes across as a thorough gentlemen, for some reason he really took on the "dork" or "nerd" role to a tee in the 80's with he's appearances. It is though he didn't care no longer about dressing in rock star attire (did he ever?) In regards to Mercury, in the 80's he was like no other, even if some would suggest he didn't look the part of a rock star (singlets, short hair and a mostache), he didn't have the long hair-rock star look such as David Lee Roth, Bon Jovi and Vince Neill anymore, however he was still an individual, who else could you compare him too?? I hope this all makes sense to the readers, and it is an interesting discussion whether Queen looked cool or not. Personally, Taylor and May looked cool in their own way, and Mercury, well individuality to me is a sign of coolness. |
| dougie 28.02.2006 09:06 |
Queen were never regarding as cool by the public at large. In the 80's, Freddie looked like the #2 man in Frankie Goes to Hollywood. Otherwise, Fred did have a unique look in rock. However, in the gay community, he had the "gay clone" look down pat. Regarding Queen's success in the U.S. being "ironic," I beg to differ. Sure, Dust and Crazy Little Thing were Queen's biggest chart singles, but Queen had steady success through the mid to late 70's. Bo Rhap, Best Friend, FBG, Rock You/Champions all received significant U.S. airplay throughout Queen's career and to this day. Let's not just look at chart toppers and ignore the rest. If Best Friend was Queen's biggest U.S. hit, that would be considered an anomaly as well. Thing is, Queen's catalog is FILLED with anamolies -- that's what we love about them! Besides, lots of bands have their "anomalies" become big hits. For instance, the Cars' biggest single was "Drive," which was sung by Ben Orr, their bassist, and not Ric Ocasek. (I always thought Orr looked like Roger Taylor in that video.) |
| Al TurHao 28.02.2006 09:18 |
John Deacon graduated with the best grade in his class, a few months after joining Queen. When it came to career decisions, Roger and Freddie wanted to be involved in music from the begining, Brian after Queen II and John after Sheer Heart Attack. |
| deleted user 28.02.2006 10:22 |
onelonelypussycat wrote: To The prophet's song: Yeah...I was reading their bios on this site, and Brian was and still is REALLY smart, just from reading his bio...man, but I really have respect for them, because they finished college before they really got into the music industry, they takes a lot!! I went to school right after I turned 18, and only went for one year...I have a lot of personal issues...but I'm ready to go back!! Question: Was John, with him being the youngest, still in College when the band was offically formed, couldnt find it in the bio section?uhh he was 26 and not getting a phd soo |
| drwinston 28.02.2006 16:12 |
The Flash Danny Project wrote: 'Ironic' is the only word I can use to describe Queen's success in the U.S. It was the singles that incidentally sounded nothing like Queen songs (Crazy and Dust) that gave them their biggest hits there. Even more ironic is the fact that Bo Rap became a hit in '92 ONLY after it was featured in Wayne's World (mind you, the insignificant parallel event of FM's death had nothing to do with it). What does this say about Americans? ;)True, but from an American fans perspective... Queen had killed their career in the States long before Freddie died, so his death didn't generate the coffin-chasing sales that it did in the rest of the world. Wayne's World introduced BoRap to a whole new generation that probably had no idea who Freddie was due to their decline on the American scene a decade earlier. I stuck with the band in the early eighties, but the release of Flash and Hot Space back-to-back sent most fans packing. They had a shot at getting some fans back in 83, but when the lead single off your new album has the chorus "Radio Ga Ga, Radio Goo Goo, Radio Blah Blah", and you decide to quit touring the states, you weren't doing yourself any favors. The rumor (that Brian likes to subscribe to) is that the Break Free video turned America off. But being a fan, I can say that no one really cared about Queen anymore one way or the other at the time, and the video to a banal song didn't make much difference. CLTCL and AOBTD were very "American sounding" songs (rockabilly and funk), so I guess it seems natural that they were big hits. The other single releases were more "British" (for lack of a better term) and probably not as digestable to the masses here. |
| drwinston 28.02.2006 16:13 |
Whoops - sorry for the bold post - not sure what happened there. |
| rockyracoon 28.02.2006 16:48 |
I have to say I like the bold typeface. How do you do that? |
| una999 28.02.2006 16:57 |
Why the fuck does everyone go on about were queen big in the US or not. Quite honestly i don't give a shit. It doesn't matter. America has a population of 240m people - Europe has a population of 807m people. Yes i know being big in america will get you more coverage but america isn't the be all and end all. America has not the greatest taste in music anyway. Listen to that crap r+b shit, or the grammy awards - what a load of rubbish (and that's so true - U2 have only something like 15, Queen, Led Zep, the Who, Jimi Hendrix have won 0). Europe has a better musical culture. That's just a fact. All the great bands are from europe (UK). America is too diverse and yes Queen are big there. They'll still be playing we will rock you...in 20 yrs time. Will they be playing U2 for example?? |
| rockyracoon 28.02.2006 16:59 |
How do you define "cool"? I can't imagine that you would want Queen to look or act like Mick Jagger or Keith Richard (really coarse) or to be like Paul McCartney (almost prissy). Each member of Queen is cool in his own way. John, while mildly introverted, is studly with his bass, is articulate, and has a wry and dry sense of humor. Brian is brilliant, refined, polite, and even with his long curly locks always manages to avoid looking grungy. Roger is cool in any way you could define the word. Freddie was particularly cool as a stage frontman. We're talking here about a unique group of guys. Immensely talented, very well educated, and each member of the group wrote some incredibly great songs. That's why the group has been so successful. I hope this gives you a sense of why I think each of the group is "cool". |
| piano4te 28.02.2006 18:50 |
Hello everyone... I am a newbie to the site. But definitely not a newbie to Queen. As a professional musician all my life, I can tell you they were probably THE main musical influence only equal to the Beatles in my quest to become a 'rock god'!! You know....the thing about the word 'cool' itself means that it is a FAD. It comes and goes very fast. 'cool' is FICKLE. And in my eyes, most people who follow cool are fickle too. I'm an American, and I see supposed "cool" all around me everyday....and to be honest....after years in the biz...I would rather be known as an artist who had longevity and a wealth of stedfast fans, than any poser who doesn't think I'm COOL anymore or ever was. Punk Rock was COOL. Punk rock was also a fad. It has had a short revival again, but if you notice, it's considered RETRO....it will be COOL for awhile..then gone again.... That being said....Nope...Queen was NEVER cool. But why would you want to be cool when you ARE your own musical genre?? I mean...who else EVER sounded like them, and had such a following that STILL would be willing to see them, even if the frontman would no longer be here to lead? To this day, I can safely say that not even die hard fans, no matter HOW loyal, unless they were a musician themselves, knowledgable of not only recording techniques, but musical arrangements, and the discipline to meticulously nail down perfectly what they did in the studio...(180 overdubs of Freddie's voice to literally make an Opera section for heaven's sake) could even imagine the shear genius that was ticking away in the heads of those four guys when creating the albums they did.....It IS a testament to the guys to still have so many NOT SO COOL fans!!! I'm glad to be seeing them in Cleveland in three weeks....I absolutely cannot wait!!! It will be a much long awaited dream..... Cheers!!! |
| rockyracoon 28.02.2006 20:39 |
piano4te, are you my twin brother, or what?!? I'm a trained pianist who was very moved by the creativity and quality of the Beatles' music in the 1960's, and by the late 1970's I had become consumed by the quality of Queen's compositions. We have obviously interpreted "cool" differently, but there's no misunderstanding when it comes to appreciating the talents of Queen. I'm confident you'll LOVE the show in Cleveland. I saw them in Los Angeles in October and was again mesmerized, as I was when I first saw them do their concert in Chicago in 1980. It's the anthemic and majestic value in the music that keeps bringing me back. I just love that stuff, and my three children are in awe of it as well. The concert is just a really powerful experience. Thank you for your post, and welcome to the site. |
| kdj2hot 01.03.2006 11:42 |
The Flash Danny Project wrote: Funny, even though I like the band, I never considered them "cool". In fact, in spite of all their achievements and popularity, they were very ordinary, even dorky looking guys. I mean, check out most photos of JD - nerd alert! BM is a total dork with that stoneage perm that he refuses to shear, and even FM for the most part looked like he was fairly uninterested with the band on a marketing level. I guess the only one even remotely hip was Roger, but even he was arrestable for tragic fashion sense in the 80s. I must also mention the extremely low hip factor of the majority of their fanbase: very dorky and unsexy themselves. I think I've mentioned how ugly some fans are, based on the concert footage I've seen (please don't take offence here, people!) I guess it's fair to conclude that a band will attract like-minded people. Now I understand what Bob Geldof was talking about all those years ago...We can cross you off the cool list Flash because certainly anyone who uses the phrase "Nerd Alert" is anything but cool. |
| drwinston 01.03.2006 11:44 |
una999 wrote: Why the fuck does everyone go on about were queen big in the US or not. Quite honestly i don't give a shit. It doesn't matter. America has a population of 240m people - Europe has a population of 807m people. Yes i know being big in america will get you more coverage but america isn't the be all and end all. America has not the greatest taste in music anyway. Listen to that crap r+b shit, or the grammy awards - what a load of rubbish (and that's so true - U2 have only something like 15, Queen, Led Zep, the Who, Jimi Hendrix have won 0). Europe has a better musical culture. That's just a fact. All the great bands are from europe (UK). America is too diverse and yes Queen are big there. They'll still be playing we will rock you...in 20 yrs time. Will they be playing U2 for example??Wow. Just... wow. What a post. I wonder what Brian, Freddie, and Roger's response would be if they were asked whether being big in America is/was important to them or not... |
| kdj2hot 01.03.2006 12:04 |
una999 wrote: Why the fuck does everyone go on about were queen big in the US or not. Quite honestly i don't give a shit. It doesn't matter. America has a population of 240m people - Europe has a population of 807m people. Yes i know being big in america will get you more coverage but america isn't the be all and end all. America has not the greatest taste in music anyway. Listen to that crap r+b shit, or the grammy awards - what a load of rubbish (and that's so true - U2 have only something like 15, Queen, Led Zep, the Who, Jimi Hendrix have won 0). Europe has a better musical culture. That's just a fact. All the great bands are from europe (UK). America is too diverse and yes Queen are big there. They'll still be playing we will rock you...in 20 yrs time. Will they be playing U2 for example??Europe has better taste in music? What a load of rubbage. Proof? 5ive and Take That. That is all |
| The Fairy King 01.03.2006 12:34 |
link xD ask Paris. |
| kalimera 18.04.2006 08:20 |
There's a Brian quote I can't quite remember. Damn. Queen were too ... something ... to be cool. It's going to drive me crazy. Poopdud - John was 26 in '77, you twerp. |
| Wiley 18.04.2006 09:54 |
una999 wrote: Europe has a better musical culture. That's just a fact. All the great bands are from europe (UK). America is too diverse and yes Queen are big there. They'll still be playing we will rock you...in 20 yrs time. Will they be playing U2 for example??I have always thought that most of the better bands out there are/were from Europe. Most of the ones I listen to and respect are, for sure. One of them is also U2, although I think Queen were better musicians and composers and I find Queen's music more interesting. U2 is great though and they know how to put up a great show and, contrary to what you say, they WILL be playing U2 in 20 years time as they were playing them 20 years ago. U2 will be regarded as one of the best bands ever, specially in America, where they have been touring in the last 2 decades. I'm actually sick of listening to We Will Rock You as a sports anthem and having people regard it as Queen's biggest hit or, worse than that, some people don't even know it's by Queen... :S The good thing about this recent tour and the American Idol thing is that they'll be in the spotlight once again. Hope they get an album together in some months and then tour again the US, Mexico and South America and go out with a bang in a bigger European tour. :) Wiley |
| Poo, again 18.04.2006 10:15 |
Hey, back off! Queen are so much cooler than people like Dick Cheney! And leave Paul McCartnety alone! He's also cool, unlike Ringo! |
| jasen101 18.04.2006 11:03 |
I always have thought Queen were the coolest people on earth. |
| jcrawford79 18.04.2006 23:47 |
una999 wrote: Europe has a better musical culture. That's just a fact. All the great bands are from europe (UK). America is too diverse and yes Queen are big there. They'll still be playing we will rock you...in 20 yrs time. Will they be playing U2 for example??How enlightening. Thanks for your objective, unbiased opinion. I'm slowly but surely losing my faith in modern man's ability to reason. |
| jcrawford79 18.04.2006 23:48 |
una999 wrote: They'll still be playing we will rock you...in 20 yrs time. Will they be playing U2 for example??God, I hope not. |
| ROCKMAMA 19.04.2006 14:42 |
Hmmmm...Queen cool...sure around 1980 when Bites the Dust came out around that time I was a preteen who had a friend who was obsessed with them. That song merged the urban genre into the rock genre, they were cool and the album was HUGE! Thats 1980 though. Queen cool nowadays hmmmm NO but beloved. Legendary definitely. ROCKMAMA |
| floopy 27.04.2006 21:02 |
another one bites the dust was one of the cooler songs for rollerskatiing halls in the early 80's like Stardust in north america. uh oh i just revealed myself..im a geek!! noo!!!!!!i take it back! the beat was cool i guess. BUT brian may looks like an old hungarian slut with that big perm of his. mr. deacon looks like the spokesman for Dorks R us. Freddie and his teeth make austin power's look normal. and Roger Taylor looks like a thick-boned swedish mother. but dont we all look like that..except me? |
| Winter Land Man 27.04.2006 22:06 |
drwinston wrote:Brian said it was Freddie's personal manager, not the vid, and Capitol records ditched Queen... I know cause the local radio station said they gave out all capitol record singles, and only they'd play stuff from the album, IF, it was requested... always depended on the station though!The Flash Danny Project wrote: 'Ironic' is the only word I can use to describe Queen's success in the U.S. It was the singles that incidentally sounded nothing like Queen songs (Crazy and Dust) that gave them their biggest hits there. Even more ironic is the fact that Bo Rap became a hit in '92 ONLY after it was featured in Wayne's World (mind you, the insignificant parallel event of FM's death had nothing to do with it). What does this say about Americans? ;)True, but from an American fans perspective... Queen had killed their career in the States long before Freddie died, so his death didn't generate the coffin-chasing sales that it did in the rest of the world. Wayne's World introduced BoRap to a whole new generation that probably had no idea who Freddie was due to their decline on the American scene a decade earlier. I stuck with the band in the early eighties, but the release of Flash and Hot Space back-to-back sent most fans packing. They had a shot at getting some fans back in 83, but when the lead single off your new album has the chorus "Radio Ga Ga, Radio Goo Goo, Radio Blah Blah", and you decide to quit touring the states, you weren't doing yourself any favors. The rumor (that Brian likes to subscribe to) is that the Break Free video turned America off. But being a fan, I can say that no one really cared about Queen anymore one way or the other at the time, and the video to a banal song didn't make much difference. CLTCL and AOBTD were very "American sounding" songs (rockabilly and funk), so I guess it seems natural that they were big hits. The other single releases were more "British" (for lack of a better term) and probably not as digestable to the masses here. |
| Donna13 28.04.2006 00:39 |
They were all probably in the range of 98.6 degrees during the 1970's and 1980's. Of course, during cold weather, their hands would occasionally become cool. This was not good for Brian's playing. Also, it made Freddie's nose run. So, they tried to stay in comfortable temperature conditions for the most part. However ethereal they seemed to us, I think they also ate food on occasion - but I cannot verify this. |
| Winter Land Man 28.04.2006 13:07 |
<b><font color="green">The Fairy King wrote: link xD ask Paris.LoL those ugly girls liked Freddie! |
| zone 01.05.2006 23:22 |
HEY FLASH your hilarious, tell us more about how ugly the Queen audiences are.You must be blue eyed and beautifully tanned living in Australia? |