| automolove777 24.03.2006 00:24 |
The show was Awesome. Good Crowd. Pretty Full. The band was hot. I can't wait for St. Paul!!! The highlights for me were: Dragon, Pressure, Ga Ga and All Right Now. The crowd really got into Ga Ga and All Right. Brian seemed to really appreciate the reception! As did Roger and Paul. All seemed very happy and encouraged, proud, confident. No mistakes(big ones). Brian used a back up (red special) guitar a couple of times. My friend who went, not a Queen fan, had a great time. He was REALLY impressed. GREAT SHOW!!!! |
| Saint Jiub 24.03.2006 01:25 |
Highlights for me, Let There be Drums, I'm in Love with my Car, the Guitar Solo, All Right Now, We Will Rock You, and Under Pressure. Behind the stage was of course empty, but the upper deck was over half full. I would gueses it was over 85 % full. I would say the crowd was very good. There was at leasat one time that Paul stepped away from th mike to let the crowd sing. The crowd was especially loud during the second half of the concert. Overall a very enjoyable evening that exceeded my cynical expectations. |
| All I Hear Is Radio Gaga 24.03.2006 03:38 |
Great reviews guys!!! |
| Gr8 King Rat 24.03.2006 09:20 |
WOW! Great show! Under Pressure, Dragon Attack and Tie Your Mother Down were the highlights for me! The crowd sang along well, and did a pretty decent job at Love of My Life. Chicago Rocks! Here are some pictures I took.. link |
| Sportzfan76 24.03.2006 09:37 |
Excellent Pics - I enjoyed the way you've captured the ambiance of various effects from the light show. Cool ! |
| QUEEN ~ CO. 24.03.2006 09:41 |
Gosh darn, that was such a pleasant surprise. I was so moved and so exhausted by the end of the show. I am amazed at these guys, yeah Roger Taylor shows a bit of age but his voice is and drumming are a force that time has not affected. This was a show so fresh I felt like a kid again. They had better work on an album because there is certainly something there and they need to tap into it. QUEEN-CO.!!!!!!! sounds better than BAD-QUEEN |
| Lisser 24.03.2006 09:45 |
I got a text from Erin and Pieter this morning. They didn't have any internet access in their hotel in Chicago. They said the show was awesome and the crowd rocked. They are on their way to Detroit now. I'm glad it was a success. Chicago is a great town, great people. |
| The Stealer 24.03.2006 12:36 |
YESS!!! Chicago Rocked!! Loud- standing most of the time- singing along!!! Outside of Pittsburgh the best show so far!! Just arrived at Detroit hotel..we have a 45 mile drive to the palace and then tomorrow we fly off to St. Paul. I am elated at this tour!!! |
| rockyracoon 24.03.2006 16:06 |
Gr8 King Rat, your array of photos is outstanding. Thanks for posting them. |
| tergr89 24.03.2006 16:30 |
IT ROCKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I loved it. I have been a Queen fan for along time and I finally got a chance to see them. It's not the same without Freddie, but Paul Rogers did an awsome job! I spent the whole night on my feet singing and dancing. |
| tcg 24.03.2006 16:39 |
Check BrianMay.com He said some great things about your show. Matt |
| bigtenill1 24.03.2006 19:35 |
I drove from St.louis im glad i did it was a awsome show!i loved under pressure im a little disspointed at the turnout in Chicago was there advertisement for the show?and other venues in the states when they tour europe and the world it seems they get more fan support.i thought paul did a great job!anyway im glad they came to the US!!!!!QUEEN FAN FOREVER!!!!! |
| The Classic 24.03.2006 20:44 |
I drove from St Lousi also. Man... I haven't been in a concert for years, and this was the first (sadly, maybe last) time I had ever seen Queen. How do I rate something that I always wanted to see, yet never thought I would? This was an incredible experience in my life. Queen (especially brian may) been such a major influence in my life. When they were taking their bows during God Save the Queen... all I could think of was the word "thanks." I have been through the crapper as of late... but this made me forget about all of my problems, everything... and for a few hours... I enjoyed life again. Thanks Queen. Thanks to the fans to were on their feet shouting... Keep Rocking!!! john |
| SergeantPepperDG 24.03.2006 20:49 |
Fun. |
| RedSpecial1979 24.03.2006 23:06 |
I'm still too stunned to write my review... I also have some kick ass pictures that I'll post when I get back from St Paul - |
| funster39 25.03.2006 10:58 |
Karen and I drove from St. Louis as well, and what a show! Well worth the 5 hours in a car, the $7.00 for a pack of smokes in Chicago, the snow after the show....and going broke buying merchandise! Brian was in great form, Roger never better and Paul was awesome! I gotta ask Bigten and The Classic...why haven't you guys been to Breakthru?? We've been to every one and it is a weekend you'll never forget. |
| The Classic 25.03.2006 12:29 |
Brian... I would love to go, but for some reason, I have never been able to go. Is it (or has it) ever been in St. Louis? One thing, I haven't been paying that much attention to it... but man, are my eyes open now! Later my St. Louis brotha... john |
| funster39 25.03.2006 19:37 |
John, Breakthru has always been in Cleveland except for one year when it was in Dallas. Before Breakthru was organized, there were Royal Vision conventions...I never attended any of those because I never knew about them. But I gotta tell ya, Breakthru is awesome. A weekend of nothing but Queen...Queen music, Queen videos, Queen memorabilia, Queen swap meets...and the folks you meet quickly become dear friends. Check out this link: link and check it out. Would really like for more St. Louis people to show up. We have people from all over the world attending. Give it a thought! Brian |
| The Classic 25.03.2006 19:53 |
I will keep my eyes upon this. I gotta see if the wife lets me go... hehe. But this seems to be a grand way of spending our vacation this year. Thanks for the info man...appreciate it. |
| Michael Allred 25.03.2006 22:42 |
I was there in Chicago and IMO the crowd looked to be about 90% full. I was shocked, GREAT turn out! Highlights for me, "dragon attack", "under pressure", "we will rock you" (I didn't know they started it with the album beat and lead into Roger playing it.) Got that great silver/black tour shirt too. The crowd was pretty into it I must say and on the way home, as I was thinking about clapping to "Ga Ga", shouting " we will rock you!", I got choked up. It was an experience I'll never forget. |
| luvinfreddie 26.03.2006 16:42 |
I had a great time at the Chicago show! And had fantastic seats in the 4th row on the right side. Paul is no Freddie, but he is still very enjoyable to watch and seems like such a great guy. Was sooo moved by Brian's performance of Love of My Life and Roger's vocals on These are the Days of Our Lives. Other favs were: Under Pressure, Show Must Go On, All Right Now, Bohemian Rhapsody, & Fat Bottomed Girls. But, really enjoyed the whole thing. Submitted a couple pictures for the photo gallery. |
| Whatinthewhatthe? 26.03.2006 18:39 |
Loved the reviews for this show, you guys ROCK!!! |
| jcrawford79 27.03.2006 00:32 |
This was, without question, the greatest night of my life. The band and the audience far exceeded my expectations, which were already very high (for the band anyway, I have read mixed accounts of audience reaction). I never got to see Queen in their prime because I didn't become a fan till 1992 when I was only 12. The band rocked. Under Pressure and Bad Company blew me away. My sister, who is not a fan of rock music, was completely enthralled...even with the guitar solo which is something I even get bored with sometimes. The audience sang along with Love Of My Life.....everyone knew their clapping cue in Radio Ga Ga. You would've thought their popularity never waned in America. And, from my vantage point, the arena looked packed. We couldn't even see empty seats up in the "cheap seat" area. Definitely a night I will never forget. |
| HDvorak 28.03.2006 14:07 |
Arriving at the Allstate Arena (formerly known as the Rosemont Horizon), me and my friend weren't sure what to expect. Do people in the Chicago area still remember Queen? Not having tickets, we arrived about an hour before showtime. We quickly spotted a scalper and got some $125 tix for $45 a pop, than headed on in. Back when I was a teen, I used to see shows there all the time. Hell, it was 21 years ago, that I saw Paul Rodgers at the same venue when he fronted the underwhelming Firm. Even had backstage passes to that one, and talked to a very grey and disheveled Pagey. Anyway, it was an interesting crowd. As expected, there were a lot of older rockers, but there was also a lot of families, as well as a smattering of teens. There were also a lot of White Sox fans. I never thought that the Queen and the south side would be a match. We got to our seats, which were three rows up from the main floor and about halfway back from the stage. The Horizon (sorry, I still can't refer to it as the Allstate Arena) was still only half full, and the outer concourse wasn't nearly as packed as I've seen it before. They launched a coupla Black Sabbath (one of Bri's favs) classics through the PA, than it started. Most folks seemed a bit confused at the Emminem intro, than the boys came out a rawkin' with Tie Your Mother Down. \m/ 0 \m/. I looked around the stadium and suddenly the place was pretty damn packed. Everyone must have arrived in those last few minutes. The stage setup was nice. Great lights, and the center walkway. I can't believe how in shape Mr. Rodgers is. The man looks like he can bench press over 500 lbs. Roger looked a bit older than I expected, and Mr. May, er looked like who else, but Brian May. Each band member had a wicked smile on their mug. You could feel their joy at playing to a packed house again. The sound and mix was clear, but pretty loud. My friend wore ear plugs, but I went au natural. The crowd was really into it, and stayed on their feet throughout the entire show. No small achievment for many of the old timers. What was really great, was to see so many kids (I'm talkin' single digit ages in some cases) sing along to all the songs. Obviously, ma and pa played them a healthy dosage of Queenage around the casa. The setlist was the same as the other North American shows, and since I'm a 70s Queen guy, I was dissapointed that their was nothing from the first three royal jewels, but I still enjoyed the whole production. As Brian requested in his press interviews, I kept an open mind, and both my friend and I agreed that it exceeded our expectations. The song overview, the pacing, the lights and production, all worked really, really well as a whole. The show was just over 2 hours and I didn't have to waste my ears on an opening band that I didn't care for. Also, after seeing dozens of their peers on tour, one thing that really stood out, was that unlike those others, I could close my eyes, listen and be fooled into thinking that it was back in the day. Their voices were all amazingly intact! Highlights for me included, the rockers (Tie Your Mother Down and Fat Bottom Girls), Love of my Life (with full audience participation), I'm in Love With My Car (I got a sweet new ride last year), Dragon Attack (yes!!!!), Bad Company and All Right Now (extended guitar soloing with Bri nailing Kossoff's vibrato). Thanks to Brian, Paul, Roger and the rest of the band for the great time! |
| GonnaUseMyPrisoners 01.04.2006 02:26 |
For me, it was the greatest to see these guys GENUINELY ENJOYING playing for the crowd, May & Taylor particularly. Brian was the consummate showman and has seldom played better, I think. Hate to say it out loud, but despite a undoubtedly solid and stylish vocal performance, there is still room for Rodgers to get more involvement from the crowd. He's kind of into the "watch me perform" thing, which I think comes off just a smidge arrogant. Not bad or inferior in any way, just not as "inclusive" or "engaging" as Brian, Roger, (or Freddie), by comparison. I SOOOOOO loved Hammer To Fall (slow/fast) - what a brilliant reinterpretation that just sounds GREAT live. I also thought Brian's playing on Last Horizon was IMMACULATE. Do they give Grammy's for concert performances??? They should!!! I never once heard fret/string noise - just pure, piercing, singing tone. DAMN!!! The solo was fully charged with energy, too, with the Brighton Rock "chugga-chugga-chuuug" pattern returning. Roger unfortunately did pull some high notes in IILWMC, which kind of bummed me out, 'cuz with the absence of SINT, we just didn't get enough of his upper range, I don't think. Lucky for me, the ROTC DVD's got 'em. ;-) Ya talk about yer warm fuzzies... wow! what a great feeling after that show. One of my friends who went with (a casual fan, not like me...) who can seldom be bothered to show real interest in Queen just couldn't stop talking about the show on the way home... it says a lot about it, I think. <grin!> p.s. the main floor never sat down the whole time. |
| Donna13 01.04.2006 09:18 |
Very cool review. |
| King (s)AINT 03.04.2006 10:20 |
Does anyone have a recording of this show?! I really need this one! Best show yet! Will pay!! I also didn't bring my camera in for fear of being kicked out...anymore great pictures out there?! Thank you! |
| The Classic 13.04.2006 17:44 |
I NEED a copy of this show also... |
| RedSpecial1979 14.04.2006 00:15 |
Me too. One of only two I got to see. Will do just about anything... |