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)
Machines
Queen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
in my belly button tonight
take me in your arms
there’s eternity in my
preservatives
if you open up your jaws
in its cellophane dress
line your gut with
its fine excess (yes)
you’ve undone
all my sine wave buttons
like the vending machine
at the laundromat
insomniac insomniac
wikipedia 4am
kerosene trampoline
genericide my heart
used to be your baby girl
your proper noun your favorite snack
now i’m caught in the vending machine
waiting to fall to
the hatch in the dark
i am a cyber girl
but i’d love you in meatspace
chew me up chew me out
masticate masturbate
i’m a hell of a treat
i’ll get you wired
that sugar high
till you get tired (of me)
left to play with
my own sine wave button
like the vending machine
at the laundromat
In the song "Machines," Queen presents a dystopian view of a future world dominated by machines. The lyrics reflect on the bleakness of a world that is run entirely by machines with no consideration for human emotions, love or freedom. The opening lyrics "It's a machines world, don't tell me I ain't got no soul" sets the tone for the entire song as a lament for the loss of humanity in a world ruled by machines.
The second verse in the song is a reflection on how machines have replaced humans in every aspect of life. They are unfeeling and hard, squeezing and compressing the humans that they now dominate. The idea that they freeze and burn the humans suggests the torture they inflict on their human counterparts. The chorus then proceeds to compare the humans and machines, highlighting the absence of emotions, conception of love or defeat, and the inability to cry or retreat. The song's lyrics challenge the listener to consider if these aspects are what makes us human and if we lose them to machines, have we truly lost our humanity?
The third verse appears to detail the machinic nature of the world, machines with "random access memory" and "bytes and megachips for tea." The listener is told not to worry, not to care for money or gold, because the software is the hardware, and the machine is self-perpetuating. The final lines of the verse is a commentary on the sexualisation of machines, "its sex life is quantised" and its being parahumanoidarianised highlights how the machines are becoming more human-like at the cost of being soulless and emotionless.
The song ends with the singer reflecting on how the world has changed, how we are living in a new world, and that thinking in the past won't change that. However, the final line suggests that even in this machine-dominated world, humans still have the power to reclaim their humanity, saying "Back to humans, back to machines, machine world."
Line by Line Meaning
It's a machines world
The world is now controlled by machines.
Don't tell me I ain't got no soul
The singer asserts that machines don't define his humanity.
When the machines take over
An inevitable takeover by machines is expected.
It ain't no place for rock and roll
The artist suggests that rock and roll, as a human art form, has no place in a world ruled by machines.
They tell me I don't care
Others believe that the artist lacks empathy or emotion.
But deep inside I'm just a man
Despite what others believe, the singer insists that he is in fact human.
They freeze me they burn me
The machines use various, painful methods to torture or punish the humans.
They squeeze me they stress me
Machines cause physical and psychological harm to the humans.
With smoke blackened pistons of steel they compress me
The machines exert immense pressure on the humans, both literally and metaphorically.
But no one but no one but no one can wrest me away
Despite the machines' efforts, the artist cannot be completely stripped of his humanity.
Back to humans
The singer yearns to reclaim his humanity and revert back to a human-dominated world.
We have no disease no trouble of mind
Machines are impervious to traditional human ailments and psychological conditions.
No thank you or please no regard for the time
Machines do not experience basic human social norms or keep track of the passing of time.
We never cry we never retreat
Machines don't succumb to vulnerability or fear.
We have no conception of love or defeat
Machines are incapable of love or surrender.
What's that machine noise?
The artist is disturbed by the sound of machines and their impact on the world.
It's bytes and megachips for tea
The machines' technology is so advanced that it is beyond human comprehension.
It's that machine boys
The machines and their impact on society are the focus of the song.
With random access memory
Machines' memories are not limited to a linear, human-like recall.
Never worry never mind
Machines are not concerned with human worries or problems.
Not for money not for gold
Machines don't possess human-like desires for wealth or material goods.
It's software is hardware
The machines are self-sustaining and self-regulating.
It's heartbeat is time-share
The machines' operations are based on a inhuman, efficient system.
It's midwife's a disc drive
The machines are capable of reproducing without the need of humans.
It's sex life is quantised
Machines' sexuality is limited to programmed functions rather than emotional and intimate connections.
It's self-perpetuating a parahumanoidarianised
The machines have become so advanced that they exist on a level of their own, surpassing human understanding.
Living in a new world
The emergence of machines has created an entirely different way of living for humans.
Thinking in the past
Humans struggle to comprehend the new technological advancements and yearn for the way things used to be.
How you gonna last?
Humans are questioning their ability to survive in a world dominated by machines.
Machine world
The entire world is now ruled by machines.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Julie Chen
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Michael Leeman
This is a perfect example of a Queen song: Freddie's voice is incredible (I just love the way he belts out "humans!")...and the song totally rocks (okay, so some dated effects, but it works)--most importantly, at the very end of the song, it transitions into a ballad-like melody, "living in a new world, thinking in the past...etc." It's hauntingly beautiful and whenever this song pops into my head, I always sing that last part over and over.
GAMING LEGEND
The instruments are not really Queen-like though, only really Brian's guitar
queenlover2023
@GAMING LEGEND Yeah, I'm pretty sure they used autotune......and electric drums ect.
Ostone
simply greatest band of all time.
Judith Aimes
@Lucy DUH Their the best band in the Universe obvi.
Hombre ruso de 40 años
Yeah
Cyrus Comstock
Netto shopper lmao no
David Yorkshire
@Judith Aimes Beatles is
Mikko Kylmänen
@Hombre ruso de 40 añosI have no huomenna uudelleen
Mikołaj
Yes I am blinded by my love for Queen, but still have no idea how they made most accurate song of today's situation 40 years ago.