| dorahc 26.09.2006 21:12 |
I just received this book today from Amazon and haven't started reading it yet. I was wondering if anyone had read it and what their opinions were about it. Thanks guys. |
| Miss Multiples aka colfarrell1 26.09.2006 21:21 |
I hav read it!! It's good but doesn't talk very highly of Mary!! |
| deleted user 26.09.2006 21:29 |
I have it (from Amazon as well!) and I have been using it as more of a reference book. I'm planning on continuing it and going all the way through (I'm only like 90 pages in) when I finish rereading Fight Club. So far, though, the Freestone book is very insightful. I haven't read much about Mary in the book, but I think she was the genuine article. |
| rocks. 26.09.2006 21:34 |
he doesnt say anything BAD about mary!! I personally liked it, it was funny, insightful, not to intrusive... well, lets just say its not the jibber jabber he gives in interviews, its very much better, and you dont feel like his mouth should have been glued with super glue long ago.. all in all, i liked it alot. |
| Miss Multiples aka colfarrell1 26.09.2006 21:38 |
I said he doesn't he doesn't speak very highly of Mary in my opinion!!! |
| rocks. 26.09.2006 21:45 |
<2>colfarrell1@aol.com wrote: I said he doesn't he doesn't speak very highly of Mary in my opinion!!!such as? im just wondering.. |
| dorahc 26.09.2006 23:32 |
Thanks guys. I'm looking forward to reading it and I'm sure I'll find some interesting things I didn't know about Freddie before. Thanks again. |
| Voice of Reason 2018 27.09.2006 05:41 |
I'm reading it now after getting it a few years ago. I'm finding it disappointing. I expected more insights into the creative processes. The section on videos and album covers particularly... Let us know what you think when you read it! |
| Benn 27.09.2006 06:05 |
Voice of reason. That's exactly why I didn't even bother getting to half way through it before placing it back on the shelf. There's no structure to the book and all you get are details of what it was like to work for Fred rather than what Fred was actually like. A hard copy of that terrible ITV show that was aired recently. To be honest, we will NEVER see a book that accurately charts Freddie and his life - the only possible way we will get this is if Brian, Roger and John collaborate on a book about the band - and that's as likely as Freddie being resurrected. |
| Nevermind 27.09.2006 07:28 |
I read it and found the bit where he talks about the house and how it was decorated a bit boring, I didn't like it as much as I thought I would have done but Freddie was never my favourite member so that's probably why. It was worth buying though but takes forever to read. |
| icefire 27.09.2006 09:20 |
To be honest, we will NEVER see a book that accurately charts Freddie and his life - the only possible way we will get this is if Brian, Roger and John collaborate on a book about the band - and that's as likely as Freddie being resurrected. i agree! that is the fact! |
| Adam Baboolal 27.09.2006 11:15 |
200 and something pages in at the moment and I'm enjoying it. True, the structure isn't great and the part where he focuses on the house is a bit boring. But so far, so good. There are plenty of nice little moments being fed to the reader, I find. An important thing I should say is that the first half of the book isn't the best and it's the 2nd half that seems to be moving along nicely. I especially like the bit where they're in a club and Freddie's taken something. One of his entourage turns a corner and there's Fred in a half-filled bin of cans shouting, "Trash! Oooh! Look! I'm trash!" Adam. |
| Mr.Jingles 27.09.2006 12:27 |
Close to being a great book... You might want to skip all the details about every single piece of furniture in the house, and all the shit Freddie bought from auctions. It's absolutely boring. I'd rather hear about Freddie's cats shitting on their litter boxes. |
| Killer Queenie 27.09.2006 13:11 |
I have it! I nearly cried at the part in the lead up to Freddie's death! It was sad, but there were parts that really should have been kept private. |
| you_rock_my_socks06 27.09.2006 13:30 |
yeh i've got it what do you mean we won't find out what Freddie was really like? Read 'Mercury and Me' by Jim Hutton (Freddie's boyfriend) its a LOT better then Peter Freestone's one |
| The Real Wizard 27.09.2006 14:22 |
I think these books by Peter and Jim were cash-ins. Freddie was a very private man who wanted private things to remain private. His best friends have stabbed him in the back with these books, as well as the home videos that were given out and eventually ended up on the Internet. |
| its_a_hard_life 26994 27.09.2006 15:09 |
Love this book!!!!!!!! Glad you got it. I've had mine for 2 years now and in the course of those 2 years I've read it God knows how many times! :P |
| Miss Multiples aka colfarrell1 27.09.2006 15:50 |
What i was saying about Mary was that peter didn't very highly of her during the chapter speakin of Freddie's will!!!! It sounded like Peter wanted more than he got and was jealous of what Mary got from Frddie!!!!!!!! Only my opinion! |
| infiniti 27.09.2006 16:38 |
Sir GH<br><h6>ah yeah</h6> wrote: I think these books by Peter and Jim were cash-ins. Freddie was a very private man who wanted private things to remain private. His best friends have stabbed him in the back with these books, as well as the home videos that were given out and eventually ended up on the Internet.very good words 100% agree |
| rocks. 27.09.2006 16:51 |
Adam Baboolal wrote: I especially like the bit where they're in a club and Freddie's taken something. One of his entourage turns a corner and there's Fred in a half-filled bin of cans shouting, "Trash! Oooh! Look! I'm trash!" Adam.ROFL, i was just about to say thats the best part, LOL! I do agree that the bit on the house is boring, but I read it anyway. |
| carboengine 27.09.2006 17:37 |
Benn wrote: Voice of reason. That's exactly why I didn't even bother getting to half way through it before placing it back on the shelf. There's no structure to the book and all you get are details of what it was like to work for Fred rather than what Fred was actually like. A hard copy of that terrible ITV show that was aired recently. To be honest, we will NEVER see a book that accurately charts Freddie and his life - the only possible way we will get this is if Brian, Roger and John collaborate on a book about the band - and that's as likely as Freddie being resurrected.From what I've read, the members of the band didn't socialize much when they weren't actually writing and recording songs or touring. John Deacon had his wife and 6(?) kids, and Roger and Brian weren't into the gay scene. Therefore, the only close look into Freddie's private life would be those who lived it with him such as Peter for 12 years and Jim for 7. I liked Freestone's bits and pieces about some of the videos and albums being made such as in the taping of Body Language when one of the singers in her green sequined dress on cue fell into the life-sized cake. When I read that I thought, "I've seen that tape many times and don't remember that." Well, it's there, but only for a few seconds. If you blinked, you'd miss it. And there was only one cake made, so it had to be done right. Peter was pointing out with that example how creative Queen and Freddie were with such extraordinary attention to details. Ever since, I have watched their videos much closer, and it's amazing how many effects are going on for just a second or two. As far as the description of the layout of Freddie's home, I would have liked to have seen a floor plan drawing, and to see pictures of his precious antiques. I've seen pictures of Mary in the home, and it looks beautiful, elegant. I've read and seen dvd interviews with Freestone and Hutton who said as they met Queen fans along the way after Freddie's death, there were many misconceptions about him, and they wanted (separately, of course) to set the record straight, such as the rumors that he died alone, was blind, and in excruciating pain - all not true! And wasn't there an interview where Freddie said When I'm dead, who cares? (although I think the question was about how would he want to be remembered.) For some other insights into the private Freddie, this link is a compilation of an interview with Peter Jones who was Freddie's driver for a time. This link has appeared on Queenzone a number of times. link |
| rocks. 27.09.2006 18:00 |
^^^^ I agree with that post above, but minus the jim hutton bits because I havent read that book and I wont really judge it without reading it. I actually LIKED the structure of the book, it allowed for more detail on how Freddie worked, etc... |
| Mr Faron Hyte 27.09.2006 20:08 |
I think its the best book written thus far about Freddie Mercury. As for Freddie's wishes about his own privacy - they respected his wishes and his privacy while he was alive, which is when it mattered. But Freddie is dead now. He belongs to history. He doesn't get a say anymore, and I'm fairly sure that, wherever he is, he doesn't care. |
| The Real Wizard 29.09.2006 00:21 |
Mr Faron Hyte wrote: I think its the best book written thus far about Freddie Mercury. As for Freddie's wishes about his own privacy - they respected his wishes and his privacy while he was alive, which is when it mattered. But Freddie is dead now. He belongs to history. He doesn't get a say anymore, and I'm fairly sure that, wherever he is, he doesn't care.If that's the case, then we should never honour the wishes in a dead person's will, because they can't do a thing about it since they're dead. Suppose you told a friend a secret about yourself, years ago, which you wanted nobody else to know... and then you were killed by a drunk driver tomorrow. Do you think it would be fair for your friend to broadcast your secret for everyone to know? Would you want everyone to know that about you and remember you in that way, or would you want them to remember what you'd like them to remember? Freddie's wishes should always matter, as should anyone else's. Everyone draws a line somewhere between things that are public and things that are private. This division needs to be respected in life and in death. Do you think Jim and Peter would have written these books if Freddie was still alive? This is ultimately the answer to the cash-in question. It has nothing to do with correcting the wrongs of misinformed (and money-driven) authors of other books. In that case they could have made public statements in some other way, without having to reveal thousands of details about Freddie's private life that he surely wanted to remain private. |
| 7Innuendo7 29.09.2006 08:48 |
I've read it, enjoyed it. Short sketches on how Freddie went about collecting art, his need for conflict in relationships to spark creativity, and "no excuse necessary" party policy paint the agonized and triumphant picture of someone who lived on his own terms. He always had to be doing something with his hands, the box collection is fascinating, and Freddie's culinary and driving skills relate to his younger years. Although the narrative structure is weak, the photos add an element of insight, leaving readers to their own conclusion. Get the book and Phoebe more wine! |
| you_rock_my_socks06 30.09.2006 05:40 |
I love the bit in the Peter book when Freedie had that boyfriend from New York, Bill summit and they used to have screaming contests all the time. Just before Freddie went on stage Bill bit him HARD in between his thumb and forefinger and Freddie was screaming! Aww That book is good for entertainment |
| Dusta 07.07.2007 04:15 |
I just ordered this book off of Amazon. Not expecting it for a while, yet, since it is coming from the UK. I ordered it because I saw an interview with Peter, where he just seemed so broken hearted about Freddie--something I have never seen from Jim Hutton--that, I thought, this person must've truly cared for Freddie. I want to read his book. What would be my fantasy, though, would be a book BY Queen, ABOUT Queen. I'd like to read what they all thought of one another when they first met, if they knew Freddie could really sing, if they were all blown away by Brian's guitar...all that stuff. |
| john bodega 07.07.2007 06:17 |
Morally, I don't get too upset about the wishes of a dead person being ignored. But I'm more about the actual inherent quality of what's being shared... do we really need to see Freddie in the bath?? Or to know that his last words were "pee, pee"? link I mean I guess we all have different standards on this, I know there's certain things I wouldn't mind the world knowing about me once I'm dead - that I wouldn't want spread around while I'm alive. That's why we have deathbed confessions!! |
| FreddiesGhettoTrench 08.07.2007 07:44 |
you_rock_my_socks06 wrote: I love the bit in the Peter book when Freedie had that boyfriend from New York, Bill summit and they used to have screaming contests all the time. Just before Freddie went on stage Bill bit him HARD in between his thumb and forefinger and Freddie was screaming! Aww That book is good for entertainmentOMG!!! That was the part that made the impression for me, too. Oh man, Bill Reid was a trip. And they used to hum the theme from Alfred Hitchcock Presents when he walked by. HAHAHAHA... And I personally would not have bitten Freddie, because with those teeth, can you IMAGINE how he would have bitten BACK? o_O lol Man Bill Reid was out of his mind. Wonder what HE'S up to o_O |
