Queen (Album)

Occupation

• Freddie Mercury: Vocals, Piano
• Brian May: electric guitars, acoustic guitar, piano, vocals
• John Deacon (as Deacon John ): Bass
• Roger Taylor: drums; Background vocals, lead vocals in Modern Times Rock ' n ' Roll

Guest musicians:

• John Anthony: additional vocals in Modern Times Rock ' n' Roll.

Queen is the debut album of the eponymous English rock band Queen. It was released in 1973 and was produced by John Anthony, Roy Thomas Baker and Queen. Engineers were Roy Thomas Baker, Mike Stone, Ted Sharpe and David Hentschel.

Equipment

In addition to the instruments of the musicians, the manufacturer of the instruments:

• Piano: Bechstein
• Electric Guitar: Red Special
• Bass: Fender; Rickenbacker in The Night Comes Down
• Drums: Ludwig

Title list

Genesis

About three years had only heard at live performances Queen. So the band already had a core audience, before the press became aware of them. That helped the debut album already to a place in the charts. A note on the album cover suggests that most tracks on the album have been created since the creation of the band in November 1970. Noteworthy is the last sentence of the credits on the back of the cover: ". ... And nobody played synthesizer "

1971 Queen took on their first demo tape in the De Lane Lea Studios, it was later released as a bootleg. On February 5, 1973 Queen was invited for the first time by BBC Radio 1 for a session for the show Sounds of the '70s. The recording was released together with the titles of another BBC session on the published 1989 album Queen at the Beeb.

For the cover design of the Queen album Douglas Puddifoot, Freddie Mercury and Brian May were responsible. It shows on the front in purple -black-white alienated Freddie Mercury posing with a microphone stand in the spotlight and on the back a collage of photos of the band from live performances and backstage. The photos for the back of the cover provided Puddifoot.

Single - compilations taken

July 6, 1973: As the vanguard for the first album 's first single Keep Yourself Alive was released ( with Son and Daughter on the B side). You did not reach the charts, just as the U.S. release in October 1973.

• Daily Mirror: " New male rock band called Queen wants to blow your head off with a diabolical, high-energy nerve tingler. "
• Melody Maker: "Lacks originality. "
• NME: "If these guys look half as good As They sound They Could be huge. "
• Record Mirror: "A raucous, well built single. "
• Sounds: " It never really gets going. "
• DJ John Peel in his column in Sounds: "Some pleasing guitar and synthesizer [sic ] work (...). "

February 14, 1974: Only in the U.S. and in New Zealand appeared a highly abbreviated version of Liar as a single - with Doing All Right on the B-side.

Notes to pieces

Keep Yourself Alive

The term " Long Lost Re -Take " was released in 1991 to the North American CD release of the album for the first time a previously unreleased alternate studio recording of the song. Not only in length, it differs from the album version. It also has some minor changes in the text, includes a new introduction and in some places other drum, guitar and vocal sequences. On the De Lane Lea' version initiation is played on an acoustic guitar.

Doing All Right

That's the only queen piece with Tim Staffell as co-author. Doing All Right was originally recorded by Queens predecessor band Smile, which consisted of May, Taylor and Staffell. In the recorded in February 1973 and subsequently published on the album At the Beeb BBC version Roger Taylor sings the last verse. In 2003, Tim Staffells album Amigo a newly recorded by him and Brian May duet version of the song can be heard on the May also on guitar. Partial - for example, on the albums At the Beeb (or At the BBC ) and Amigo - is the notation of the song " Doin ' Alright".

Great King Rat

The unusual rhythm of drummer Roger Taylor seems to imitate the gallop of a horse during May and Mercury duel with guitar and vocal melodies.

My Fairy King

In contrast to the other songs My Fairy King was only in the studio. Until then, the band could bring even a piano on stage during live performances. Mercury took here the opportunity to combine extensive piano sequences with Brian May's guitar sound. This piece is also distinguished by his voice reproduction ( overdubs ) and unusual harmonies progressions, similar to later in The March of the Black Queen and Bohemian Rhapsody. The song is in its free form, without the usual alternation of verse and chorus, until then the most complex song by Freddie Mercury: how they should be taken up again and again musical motifs in the course of the play and improvisation changed in a way that will be typical of him. In this piece Roger Taylor's characteristic, extremely high backing vocals ( " screams " ) can be heard.

My Fairy King is the only song on the album, the Queen have ( apart from short improvisations on piano ) never played live.

According to Brian May, there is a connection between My Fairy King and the artist name " Mercury ". A line of text from the piece reads: ". Mother Mercury, look what they've done to me, I can not run I can not hide" Mercury, who was known as Freddie Bulsara until then, was called from the time when he this had written title, Freddie Mercury.

The beginning of the text of My Fairy King has similarities to a work of English poet Robert Browning. The first four lines of Mercury's My Fairy King:

In Browning's poem The Pied Piper 1888 to published of Hamelin, the lines read 246-248:

Liar

The De Lane Lea version has different vocal parts and guitar solos and ends with motifs from Great King Rat and Brighton Rock. For the U.S. singles title was cut by more than half.

The Night Comes Down

Since the group production of The Night Comes Down was not happy with Roy Thomas Baker, the power absorbed by Louie Austin in the Trident Studios, De Lane Lea' demo version has also been adopted for the album. On the vinyl edition of this song is partially summarized with the following to a title.

Modern Times Rock ' n ' Roll

Roger Taylor sang the lead parts of the piece written by him. Short is heard the voice ( "look out") from producer John Anthony. In live performances, Mercury took over the lead vocals.

Son and Daughter

The extended BBC version of December 1973 ( released on the album At the Beeb ) includes an early version of May's Brighton rock guitar solo.

Jesus

The De Lane Lea version is rock -oriented and has some additional instrumental interludes pieces on.

Seven Seas of Rhye ...

This purely instrumental preview of the title in the Queen II album Brian May tried the technique of "multi- tracked guitar parts". Several guitar voices are recorded on different tracks so that the impression of a polyphonic guitar choir formed. The reference to the record sleeve " ... and nobody played synthesizer " ("... and nobody played synthesizer " ) should make it clear that this guitar sounds produced exclusively Brian May with his " Red Special ".

Mad the Swine

Originally it had been planned Freddie Mercury Mad the Swine as a title between the songs and Great King Rat My Fairy King. Due to disagreements between particular Roger Taylor and Roy Thomas Baker about the tone of the drums Mad the Swine did not end up on the album. The title appeared only in 1991 both as a bonus track on the new U.S. edition of the album and on the Maxi - CD single or Headlong.

Alternative song versions

The 1989 released album At the Beeb contains both the first and the third BBC radio session. The De Lane Lea' demos and the other BBC sessions have not yet been officially published and are only available as bootlegs.

Reception

Time Out ( UK ), 1973: " [ ... ] thrusting, dynamic, forceful, not to mention heavy. "

Rolling Stone (USA ), 1973, by Gordon Fletcher: " There's no doubt thatthis funky, energetic English quartet Has all the tools they'll need to lay claim to the Zep 's abdicated heavy-metal throne, and beyond did to become a truly influential force in the rock world. Their debut album is superb. The Zeppelin analogy is not meant to Imply did Queen's music is anywhere near as blues -based as the content of Led Zep I & II No, Their songs are more in the Who vein, straight -ahead rock with slashing, hard-driving arrangements did rate with the finest moments of Who's Next and Quadrophenia. Yet there's A Certain level of intelligence with Which the show is presented, a structured sanity did coexists alongside the maniacal fury did gives me the impression did the band must have had a lot of Yessongs On Their turntables [ ... ]. [ ... ] And where you'd normally expect to find holes in a three-piece tape 's sound you'll instead find May making excellent use of his instrument 's electrical attributes. A master of fuzz, wah and sustain, his solos are persistent, hard-hitting and to the point. Vocalist Freddie Mercury Has A strong, steady voice that never lacks for power and authority. [ ... ] Let's just say did the product of drummer Roger Taylor and bassist Meddows Deacon John is explosive, a colossal sonic volcano eruption Whose maketh the earth tremble. [ ... ] They're the first of a whole new wave of English rockers, and you'd best learn to love ' em now ' cause they're here to stay. Shelf bearings aside, Queen is a monster. "

The Herald ( USA ), 1973: " Queen's album, Queen ' ( Elektra records ) is an above average debut. [ ... ] The sound is loud, with thunderous drums and droning guitars. There is some distortion of vocals and shifting of sound from speaker to speaker. The vocals are fine with some Beatlesque harmonies Usually at times. Good listening is guaranteed [ ... ]. "

Winnipeg Free Press ( Canada ), 1974: "Queen is England 's latest candidate for superstardom, and do not be surprised if these guys do make it in a big way. Sure, the material is so derivitive it hurts ( listen to guitarist Brian May cop riffs from Jimmy Page, Black Sabbath's Tony lomi [sic ], Jimi Hendrix and Mick Box and you'll see what I mean), but the group Manages to inject seeking a fresh, energetic touch to most of it that I do not mind a bit. Modern Times Rock ' n ' Roll is a direct cop from Led Zeppelin 's Communication break- down, right down to vocalist Freddie Mercury's ability to ape Robert Plant. With its first album, Queen Has produced a driving, high energy set Which in time 'may be Looked upon with the same reverence Led Zep 1 Receives now. "

Chart positions

The album Queen reached in the charts following placements:

• # 24 - United Kingdom ( 18 weeks in charts; gold).
• # 52 - Japan.
• # 83 - U.S. (9 weeks in charts; gold).

The Singles ( Keep Yourself Alive and Liar ) came not in the official charts. The 1975 re- published in the U.S. Keep Yourself Alive single came in the " cash box" charts at rank 89

U.S. re-release

In the U.S., Hollywood Records in June 1991 brought the album as a new CD out. This edition has been digitally remastered by Eddy Schreyer, and also includes the following previously unreleased songs:

• Mad the Swine ( Mercury )
• Liar ( " 1991 Bonus Remix " by John Luongo and Gary Hellman, with additional percussion )