A fabulous UK group which formed in 1972 , consisting of Brian May (guitar) Roger Meadows-Taylor (drums), John Deacon (bass), and the one and only Freddy Mercury (vocals).
It took them 2 years of hard work to make the charts; they underwent strenuous rehearsals, with occasional shows at the Imperial College, while Freddy masterminded a flamboyant satin and silk image. Contracting with EMI, they released their first single Keep Yourself Mine which flopped..
From their first album Queen they negotiated a clever balance between early 70's glam rock and late 60's Zeppelin style heavy metal. They eventually hit the charts in 1974 wih Seven seas of Rhye. Within the same year they release another two albums, Queen II and Sheer Heart Attack. Their 5th hit single Killer Queen uniquely achieves following from Top 20 fans and heavy-metal enthusiasts..
Most of 1975 was spent preparing A Night at the Opera, one of the most extravagant and expensive albums of the era..Pilot single Bohemian Rhapsody was a brilliant demonstration of the group's harmonies and guitar work combined with Mercury's falsetto vocal. It stayed at the top of the UK charts for 9 consecutive weeks, and established Queen as one of UK's most popular and enduring groups.
It was Bohemian Rhapsody's success that made the group switch from their early heavy-metalish sound to more elaborate and grandiloquent works.Their image /style changed variably overr the years. Despite a lot of negative criticism regarding their posturings, they have earned respect for their cleverness and their music - which includes one of rock's most stylish guitarists, Brian May.
One of their strongest weapons in keeping their music at the top however, was their highly imaginative use of video, for which their act seems particularly suited. Queen's Greatest Flix consistently remained at the top of the video charts for many years.
They pursued international acclaim by touring South America and the Far East , in countries and places where no other great rock groups had even been before. They broke a world record of highest attendance (by a paying audience) with 130,000 people at their Sao Paulo concert in Brasil.
Freddy Mercury also made the top 10 in the UK without the band ; his highly enjoyable remake of the Platters' classic Great Pretender saw #4 in 1987 , whereas his cooperation with the Diva Montseratt Caballe in the beautiful Barcelona saw #8.
However disaster struck yet one more great band ..
Freddy Mercury was struck by AIDS and eventually passed away on November 24th 1991...
And that was the end of Queen.
Gone but never forgotten.

More people have AIDS than cancer. It is important that young people know about it. Information is the best prevention.
Roger Taylor, Queen.

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