The band formed in London in 1970 after May and Taylor's former band Smile split after having released an album and single. Freddie replaced lead vocalist Tim Staffell, after the latter's departure from the original trio.
There was much deliberation as to what the band's name would be. May and Taylor had settled upon the Grand Dance, derived from a C.S. Lewis Trilogy of books Out Of The Silent Planet.
Ultimately, the band went with Queen, a name that was entirely Freddie's. Originally Roger and, especially, Brian did not like the name, though Mercury would eventually persuade them both that it was "right" for the band.
"Years ago I thought up the name Queen... It's just a name, but it's very regal, and it sounds splendid. It's a strong name, very universal and immediate. It had a lot of visual potential and was open to all sorts of interpretations. I was certainly aware of the gay connotations, but that was just one facet of it. "
- Freddie Mercury.
Queen went through several bass players before a young electronics major by the name of John Deacon arrived on the scene in January of 1971.
"Until John, it had been exploding bass player syndrome. If they musically worked they'd look all wrong, and if they felt all right they couldn't play. - Brian May.
This quite shy guy turned up with his immaculate Rickenbacker bass and immaculate amplifier, plugged in, and as soon as he started playing we realized it was right." - Brian May.
Later that year, the band was secured recording time at the newly built De Lane Lea studio, and used the opportunity to record several songs that would later appear on their debut album - Liar, Keep Yourself Alive, Jesus, and The Night Comes Down. The demo reel was passed around from producer to producer with little success, until a staff member of Trident records by the name of Roy Thomas Baker was introduced to the band by fellow Trident producer John Anthony. Baker dropped in to watch the band at work and, clearly liking what he heard, recommended Queen to his superiors.
It was eventually agreed upon that the fledgling band could record at Trident studios, though after already-established artists had finished their work, such as the likes of Elton John and David Bowie. Relegated to the wee hours of the morning to record the remaining tracks of their first album, the band nonetheless stuck it out until they reached their ultimate goal of "perfection".
Queen's self-titled debut album was released in 1973 and received little attention from the general public. They quickly followed it a year later with a second album, "Queen II" which also failed to generate much interest from music fans in Britain, despite the success of the album's single, Seven Seas of Rhye, which would reach #10 on the charts after the band's mimed appearance on Top of the Pops.
The band's second album was recorded with a higher budget than the first, and the band threw everything they had into recording it. Queen II was somewhat of a "concept album", split into "White Side" vs. "Black Side".
As was in their nature, the band pressed onward after the mediocre success of their first two albums, immersing themselves in a world-wide tour to promote Queen II. Queen played in America for the first time, as a support act for Mott the Hoople.
Sheer Heart Attack would be released later that year, focusing more on being accessible to listeners, than the grand and complex ideas of the previous two albums. The recording of their third album was met with some hardships, as May fell victim to a series of illnesses brought on by an infected inoculation, required for the band's rigorous touring schedule.
Sheer Heart Attack brought even more success for the band, with May's Now I'm Here and the song that would be the band's "turning point", the Mercury-penned Killer Queen, the latter of which would reach #2 on the UK charts.
During this time, the band began developing a huge following in Japan and witnessed their popularity for themselves when they visited the country, mainly in 1975, to promote their fourth and most famous album "A Night At The Opera", featuring the epic "Bohemian Rhapsody".
Queen's popularity grew steadily through the latter half of the 70s as they released hit album after hit album, reaching its peak in the mid-80s after their "Live Aid" appearance, and continuing into the early 90s before Mercury's untimely death on 24th November 1991. The official cause of death was bronchial pneumonia resulting from AIDS.
Over the course of their 30 year career, the band did sound tracks for two films ("Flash Gordon" and "Highlander"), released a string of live and studio albums, and had many many fans across the world.
In 1995, 4 years after Mercury's death, the band released the album "Made In Heaven". This album saw the surviving band members in the studio completing or reworking unused vocals, unreleased variations of Freddie solo material (a Queen version of "I Was Born To Love You" for example), and tracks where Brian and Roger added lyrics to flesh out a song ("Mother Love").
Queen have been on indefinite hiatus since 1997, when John Deacon decided to retire.
Several "Queen + ..." projects have been developed in the following years, a few of them mere remixes with no artistic involvement from the band. In 1999, a "Greatest Hits III" album was released. This featured, among others, "Queen + Wyclef Jean" on a rap version of "Another One Bites the Dust", a live version of "Somebody to Love" performed by George Michael, and a live version of "The Show Must Go On" performed live in 1997 with Elton John.
Brian May and Roger Taylor have performed together as Queen on several occasions (award ceremonies, charity concerts, and the like), sharing vocals with various guest singers. They have also recorded several covers of Queen's hits with guest vocalists, including "We Will Rock You" (first with Five and later Britney Spears, Beyonce, John Farnham and P!nk) and "We Are the Champions" (with Robbie Williams).
On the 14th of May 2002 the Queen musical 'We Will Rock You' opened in the Dominion theatre in London's 'West End'. A Musical about young people in the distant future who aren't allowed to listen to music not generated by computers. Various Queen songs are used in the story, played by a live band. This live band was supported by Brian May and Roger Taylor on the premiere evening.
At the end of 2004, May and Taylor announced that they would reunite and return to touring in 2005, with Paul Rodgers (founder and former lead singer of Free and Bad Company). Brian May's website also stated that Rodgers would be 'featured with' Queen as 'Queen + Paul Rodgers', not replacing Mercury. The retired John Deacon would not be participating.
Between 2005 and 2006 Queen + Paul Rodgers embarked on a world tour, the first leg in Europe and the second, Japan and then the US in 2006. On 15 August 2006, Brian May confirmed through his website and fan club that Queen + Paul Rodgers would begin producing their first studio album beginning in October, to be recorded at a "secret location". The album, titled The Cosmos Rocks, was released in Europe on 12 September 2008 and in the United States on 28 October 2008. Following the album the band again embarked on a tour through Europe, opening on Kharkiv's Freedom Square in front of 350,000 Ukrainian fans. The show in Ukraine was later released on DVD.
Queen and Paul Rodgers officially split up without animosity on 12 May 2009. Rodgers did not rule out the possibility of working together again.
Since 2012, Queen has been touring with Adam Lambert as the frontman.
More information about Queen + Paul Rodgers can be found on their last.fm page.
Official website: www.queenonline.com
Discography:
1.- Queen (1973)
2.- Queen II (1974)
3.- Sheer Heart Attack (1974)
4.- A Night at the Opera (1975)
5.- A Day at the Races (1976)
6.- News of the World (1977)
7.- Jazz (1978)
8.- The Game (1980)
9.- Flash Gordon (1980)
10.- Hot Space (1982)
11.- The Works (1984)
12.- A Kind of Magic (1986)
13.- The Miracle (1989)
14.- Innuendo (1991)
15.- Made in Heaven (1995)
Immigrant Song
Queen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We come from the land of the ice and snow,
From the midnight sun where the hot springs blow
The hammer of the gods
Will drive our ships to new lands,
To fight the horde, singing and crying,
Valhalla, I am coming!
On we sweep with threshing oar,
Ah, ah,
We come from the land of the ice and snow,
From the midnight sun where the hot springs blow
How soft your fields so green,
Can whisper tales of gore,
Of how we calmed the tides of war
We are your overlords
On we sweep with threshing oar,
Our only goal will be the western shore
So now you'd better stop and rebuild all your ruins,
For peace and trust can win the day
Despite of all your losing
In the opening lines of Queen's "Immigrant Song", there is a sense of mystery and wonder as the band sings "We come from the land of the ice and snow, from the midnight sun where the hot springs flow". These lines are indicative of the Nordic folklores that inspired them as the idea of the "land of ice and snow" is typically associated with the frigid lands of Scandinavia. The song takes a Viking-inspired turn as the lyrics mention the "hammer of the gods" which suggests that the song is an ode to Viking culture, strength, and power. The song's lyrics also seem to be alluding to the idea of the Viking warriors sailing forth to conquer new lands and battle their enemies while shouting their way to the halls of Valhalla.
The middle section of the song takes a different turn, with a change in tempo and the shift towards the idea of the Vikings being overlords. They announce that they are the ones who calm the tides of war and the possessors of strength and power. This is where the idea of the Viking being an invader and conqueror comes into play. The song concludes by reminding the listener that despite all their loss, peace and trust can win the day, perhaps suggesting that even the mighty Viking warriors must learn to live in peace.
Line by Line Meaning
Ah, ah,
An exclamation of pride and readiness.
We come from the land of the ice and snow,
We hail from a cold and harsh place, where we have endured and survived.
From the midnight sun where the hot springs blow
In a place where the sun never fully sets and nature continues to thrive despite the cold.
The hammer of the gods
A metaphorical reference to their strength and power.
Will drive our ships to new lands,
Our strength and power will guide us to new territories and opportunities.
To fight the horde, singing and crying,
We will fight our enemies with a combination of bravery and emotions.
Valhalla, I am coming!
The afterlife is calling us, and we are ready to face it.
On we sweep with threshing oar,
We continue our journey with a powerful and efficient stroke, like farmers threshing wheat on a field.
Our only goal will be the western shore
Our destination lies beyond the sea, towards the unknown and the unexplored.
How soft your fields so green,
We appreciate the beauty and peacefulness of the lands we encounter.
Can whisper tales of gore,
Yet, we are aware that even the most peaceful lands have witnessed violence and bloodshed.
Of how we calmed the tides of war
We take pride in our ability to bring peace to those lands, to calm the chaos and the conflicts.
We are your overlords
We assert our power as conquerors and rulers of the lands we have subdued.
So now you'd better stop and rebuild all your ruins,
We offer a chance for the defeated to rebuild and start anew, rather than suffer further destruction and misery.
For peace and trust can win the day
Through a mutual understanding and cooperation, we can achieve lasting peace and prosperity.
Despite of all your losing
Regardless of the defeat, there is still hope for the future and the possibility of healing.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Jimmy Page, Robert Plant
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@claudiang4133
Legends singing another legend’s song
@avpaavcomics1299
To everyone who's thinking this was bad, well this was just a fun little jam session. Queen didn't learn the song, they were just having fun there. If they were really going to cover it, there would have been many videos.
@wesmatron
You know you've made it when Queen are covering your songs
@claresykes7793
Led Zeppelin made it WAY more than Queen ever did. However, I love them both
@guillermoulloachacon7671
Clare Sykes worldwide, Queen is greater than Led...
@eatthisvr6
chaars123 chaars123 you do know this is a copy don't you
@eatthisvr6
most of their hits? go on then name them please
@rumblefish9
wesmatron you got it ALL WRONG. Led Zeppelin were larger than Queen. Freddie looked up to Robert and considered him the greatest vocalist.
@zinedineadrian8171
For the people who say that Freddie does the scream, that’s ROGER TAYLOR.
@vondamn9943
I had a long debate with ppl saying it was Freddie they even came to the point to tell me i can't tell Freddie to Roger...go figure