MIKE MORAN

"After Time, Freddie very directly asked me to be involved in coproducing a record with him. He'd always wanted to do a cover version and decided upon The Great Pretender which we started in the studios I have at home and finished off at Townhouse. He was in something of a quandary as to how to end the song... I had a few ideas but as I tested each one he merely pronounced limply: "Very good, dear." I just knew it was not up to scratch. The ending just got longer and longer and seemed never to reach an end. He urged me to "do a few flashy beats, dear." He loved anything technically virtuoso. It was then he came up with Paganini... That was the key of the problem. From that as a starting point, I went into a violin arrangement that eventually ended the record. The mix saw our roles being somewhat reversed. Dave Richards, Queen's producer, came into London to mix the track at the Townhouse. I was rather nervous and very concerned about what was after all my co-production. The mix went on and so did my neurotic attention to every tiny teeny detail. On and on and on until Fred could stand it no longer.
"For God's sake, leave it alone. Let's f... off home, dear. You're doing a me!"
He was thrilled when the record went straight into the top five.
"That's what I like, dear. Straight in, up to the top and then out!"
He was thrilled. For those of you who know the video for Pretender, I shall say no more... Only Freddie could have made that entrance. It seemed to be the season for re-releases and covers. He was rather concerned that he would be labelled as just following the crowd. There was ultimately no danger of that, of course; no danger of comparison whatsoever.
As a performer, he was totally instinctive and original. Being on stage with this somewhat diminutive figure was amazing. He made you think he was a tall, big man. Before a performance, he was often a mess. People couldn't go near him. He consciously psyched himself up, spending ages in front of the mirror, making himself up as a part of the psych process. When Freddie was ready to go on-stage, there had been an incredible transformation. On-stage, the power he generated and radiated was immense. If he should, God forbid, pick up on a mistake on-stage, he would flash you 'that look' and it would be withering.
Really intimidating.

He's absolutely irreplaceable. He was my friend and I think of him everyday.

Mike Moran
© 'Freddie Mercury - The Real Life: The Truth Behind The Legend'
David Evans & David Minns

This page is dedicated to the Immortal Soul of
Freddie Mercury
whose memory will live in my heart forever