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)
It's A Hard Life
Queen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's no reason for living with a broken heart
This is a tricky situation
I've only got myself to blame
It's just a simple fact of life
It can happen to any one
It's a chance you have to take with love
Oh yeah, I fell in love
But now you say it's over and I'm falling apart
Yeah yeah
It's a hard life
To be true lovers together
To love and live forever in each others hearts
It's a long hard fight
To learn to care for each other
To trust in one another right from the start
When you're in love
I try and mend the broken pieces
Oh, I try to fight back the tears
Oh, they say it's just a state of mind
But it happens to everyone
How it hurts (yeah) deep inside (oh yeah)
When your love has cut you down to size
Life is tough on your own
Now I'm waiting for something to fall from the skies
I'm waiting for love
Yes it's a hard life
Two lovers together
To love and live forever in each others hearts
It's a long hard fight
To learn to care for each other
To trust in one another right from the start
When you're in love
Yes it's a hard life
In a world that's filled with sorrow
There are people searching for love in every way
It's a long hard fight
But I'll always live for tomorrow
I'll look back at myself and say I did it for love (oh)
Yes I did it for love
For love
Oh I did it for love
The lyrics of Queen's song "It's a Hard Life" revolve around the theme of love and loss. The singer in the song laments the end of a relationship and the pain it has caused. The chorus repeatedly emphasizes the difficulty of being in love and staying together forever.
The first two lines, "I don't want my freedom, There's no reason for living with a broken heart" show that the singer is willing to sacrifice their freedom for the sake of love. They believe that being single and free is not worth the heartbreak they are experiencing. The following lines, "This is a tricky situation, I've only got myself to blame" suggest that the singer is aware of their own role in the relationship's end.
The chorus, "It's a hard life, to be true lovers together, to love and live forever in each other's hearts. It's a long hard fight, to learn to care for each other, to trust in one another right from the start. When you're in love" encapsulates the essence of the song. It highlights the fact that being in love is a challenge that requires constant work, care, and trust. The rest of the lyrics show the singer's struggles in the aftermath of a failed relationship.
In conclusion, "It's a Hard Life" is a poignant and relatable song about the joys and hardships of being in love.
Line by Line Meaning
I don't want my freedom
I don't want to be free from the love that I was used to.
There's no reason for living with a broken heart
It's not worthwhile to live with a broken heart that is caused by a love gone wrong.
This is a tricky situation
This is a difficult and complex circumstance.
I've only got myself to blame
I'm the only one responsible and accountable for what happened in my love life.
It's just a simple fact of life
It's something that inevitably and naturally occurs in life.
It can happen to any one
Anyone can experience the same thing in their love life.
You win, you lose
Getting into a romantic relationship entails taking risks and experiencing outcomes; sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.
It's a chance you have to take with love
Engaging in a romantic relationship is a risk that you have to be willing to take.
Oh yeah, I fell in love
I was once in love.
But now you say it's over and I'm falling apart
But now that my love story is over, I'm emotionally breaking down.
It's a hard life
The realities of love and heartbreak can be difficult to handle.
To be true lovers together
To be together and experience genuine and sincere love.
To love and live forever in each others hearts
To love and cherish one another indefinitely in your hearts.
It's a long hard fight
The journey of loving, forgiving and building trust with one another takes time and effort.
To learn to care for each other
To learn and understand how to value, respect, and attend to each other's needs.
To trust in one another right from the start
To establish trust in each other from the beginning of the relationship is essential to make it work.
When you're in love
Being in love is a profound and powerful feeling.
I try and mend the broken pieces
I try to put back together the pieces of my broken heart.
Oh, I try to fight back the tears
I try to inhibit the tears from streaming down my face
Oh, they say it's just a state of mind
Some people may believe that heartbreak is only a figment of the mind.
But it happens to everyone
But in reality, it's something that can happen to anyone.
How it hurts (yeah) deep inside (oh yeah)
It's excruciating and agonizing deep within my soul.
When your love has cut you down to size
When the person you love humiliated, rejected, or hurt you greatly.
Life is tough on your own
Living alone and being single is arduous and burdensome.
Now I'm waiting for something to fall from the skies
Now I'm waiting for a miracle to happen to fix my broken heart.
I'm waiting for love
I'm waiting to be loved again.
In a world that's filled with sorrow
The world is full of grief and pain.
There are people searching for love in every way
People are out there, looking for love in various ways.
But I'll always live for tomorrow
But I will always keep pushing for better days.
I'll look back at myself and say I did it for love (oh)
One day, I'll reminisce the past and say I did everything for love's sake.
Yes I did it for love
Yes, everything I did was for the sake of love.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Freddie Mercury
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ammarirzalt
I don't want my freedom
There's no reason for living with a broken heart
This is a tricky situation
I've only got myself to blame
It's just a simple fact of life
It can happen to any one
You win, you lose
It's a chance you have to take with love
Oh yeah, I fell in love
But now you say it's over and I'm falling apart
Yeah yeah
It's a hard life
To be true lovers together
To love and live forever in each others hearts
It's a long hard fight
To learn to care for each other
To trust in one another right from the start
When you're in love
I try and mend the broken pieces
Oh, I try to fight back the tears
Oh, they say it's just a state of mind
But it happens to everyone
How it hurts (yeah) deep inside (oh yeah)
When your love has cut you down to size
Life is tough on your own
Now I'm waiting for something to fall from the skies
I'm waiting for love
Yes it's a hard life
Two lovers together
To love and live forever in each others hearts
It's a long hard fight
To learn to care for each other
To trust in one another right from the start
When you're in love
Yes it's a hard life
In a world that's filled with sorrow
There are people searching for love in every way
It's a long hard fight
But I'll always live for tomorrow
I'll look back at myself and say I did it for love (oh)
Yes I did it for love
For love
Oh I did it for love
@leonardsalinas3101
I wish I would’ve seen Freddie live with Queen but unfortunately I wasn’t born yet
but luckily my dad was the one who saw him live in 1981 in Puebla, Mexico during The Game Tour at the age of 11 my father was the luckiest man on earth
Story Time: When my dad was 11 years old he was starting to get into music one of the first bands he liked was The Beatles and his brother (my uncle who was 16 years old) got tickets to see Queen which he excited to see but had no one to go with so he invited my dad even though the only Queen song he knew and loved was Another One Bites The Dust
When they arrived at the venue which looked like it was falling apart there were very few people there (cause they arrived a little early) so they got to be in the front row when the show started everyone cheered and when the band started playing everyone was shouting and throwing shoes and beer cans at Queen which confused my dad but other than that the show was spectacular they played Bohemian Rhapsody, Killer Queen, Somebody to Love and of course my dad’s favourite Another One Bites The Dust and from that day on (October 17th 1981 to be exact) he became a Queen fan
Unfortunately after the second show on October 18th Queen would never return to Mexico ever again so that was the one and only time my dad would see something like that ever again
@xjilalx
it's a hard life without you, freddie
@TheHeman3
Very true
@louisebinion4003
I miss you everyday.
@IVAN84SUPEREXEERT
it,s hard life without Real music. the Queen it's symbol of Real music!
@boutrosboutrosghaliboutros3148
+GeoxImpossible999 yes. I fear we have lost it for good!
@kaasblokje9833
Very very true
@louiser.s5561
An underrated song
@mariegrimes8085
I just discovered and ABSOLUTELY fell in love with this song! Wow!! Legends!!!!!
@MrMe-yk5of
Louise R. S agree 100%
@ammarhasan7018
True only Queen fans know this. Maybe because it was only performed during The Works tour. And the album had other songs lile Radio gaga and I want to break free and Hammer to fall that cover this beautiful song.