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Queen of the Orient
Record Mirror May 24, 1975
Ray Fox-Cumming talks to Roger Meddows Taylor
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A few months ago Queen were the band everyone was talking about and the
only reason why their name hasn't been on everyone's lips just recently
is that they've been away on a world tour and thus let the Rollers take
over as most talked about group.
In Japan, however at this very minute, Queen are THE biggest. Big deal,
you may say, what's with Japan? But don't forget Japan is the second
largest record market in the world. Furthermore, a concert ticket in
Japan costs around #4.50 to #5 and Queen were selling out 11,000 seater
halls all over [the country where] there was the fan mania.
Queen's drummer Roger Meddows Taylor, "there were thousands of fans to
greet us *literally* thousands And at one gig we had between four and
five hundred security men"
Were they all necessary?
"Yes, I'm afraid they were. As it was a number of fans had to be
carried out unconscious and many more were nearly crushed."
Were you frightened?
"No, not frightened, but we were a little alarmed. We hadn't expected
anything like it. Nevertheless, Japan was definitely the highlight of
the whole tour. The Japanese are so good at organising things.
How about the earlier American leg of the tour?
"That was great, too. We were fairly confident from what we'd heard
that we would go down alright in the east and mid-west, but we were
warned not to expect too much in the south and far west, but the show in
San Francisco, for instance, was fantastic."
The American part of the tour was interrupted by illness, which has also
halted things in the more distant past.
"Ah yes," says Roger, "I think people were saying to themselves 'there
go those weeds dropping out again', but I don't think they realise just
how gruelling touring can be. Actually we're all pretty tough and
everyone's all right now.
"Apart from Brian's illness, Freddie was having terrible trouble in the
States with his throat. He had nodes and the doctors wanted him to stop
work for a month and get them operated on. He ignored them though and
managed to get through it without resorting to surgery."
Having been away so long Queen should now be coming up with a new single
and album, but, explains Roger, that can't happen for a while.
"We shall be starting to record the next album around mid-June, but we
won't be able to finish it all in one go, because we have got to go back
to America."
Why, surely the album's more important?
"Well, the trouble is that we spent an awful lot of money on the last
American tour and now we've been offered a good deal to go back and tour
for about a month in August. We really must do it to replenish our
funds. We simply can't afford not to, so the album won't be completed
until after we get back."
So that means it won't be out until about November.
"Well, if we're lucky it might be October."
How about a single. Is there any chance of one before the album?
"No, I don't think so, because we don't write singles as such. In
America they're going to put Keep Yourself Alive out again, because we
weren't well-known when it first came out there."
Do you think it's a good idea?
"Hmmm, I have my doubts about it."
As yet the group have next to no material ready for the next album, but
there are already ideas floating around for a title and for the sleeve
design, though Roger is keeping quiet about them. Sheer Heart Attack's
title was chosen by Roger and he's anxious to come up with something
just as striking for the next album. "I hated the title of the second
album, Queen 2, it was so unimaginative."
One of the peculiarities of Queen is that they do not appeal to one
specific sector of buyers. Their fans range from early teenagers to
older fans of basically 'heavy' music. So, whereas most bands with a
clearly defined market know pretty well before they release a single
whether it's likely to be a hit or not, Queen haven't a clue.
"Apart from Killer Queen," admits Roger, "which was obviously catchy,
I don't think of our singles as being immediately commercial. For
instance, when Seven Seas of Rhye was a hit, I was very suprised. It
was only intended really to draw attention to the album I thought that
Keep Yourself Alive was a much more commercial song.
"I think it is probably an advantage not to know exactly what will sell,
because then you are not inhibited in your choice of a single.
"Quite honestly," says Roger, "I've no idea whether the next single will
be a melodic thing like Killer Queen or an out-and-out rocker, although
I've got a feeling there will be plenty of rockers on the next album."
The new album will definitely be recorded in Britain, although they
don't know yet which studio they will use. But after all that
globetrotting and time spent in America in particular, do Queen still
think of Britain as their base?
"Yes," says Roger lugubriously, "unfortunately."
Why unfortunately?
"Because it's so depressing to come back. I'd like to have stayed in
Japan. You come back here and find everything's going wrong and in
the shops, people are so rude."
Are you contemplating joining the flood of tax exiles then?
"No, at least not in the forseeable future."
If Queen fans are getting alarmed about how long or short that
"forseeable future" might be, rest assured that it will last out at
least to the end of the year because once the next album is out, the
group will be touring here November/December--out to prove that, come
The Rollers or whatever else may--Queen still rule ... OK? Article 1
I AM THE CHAMPION
Why Fantastic Freddie Stole Live Aid Show
(Boogie time for winners) by Nick Ferrari
The Sun, Friday July 19, 1985
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Rock fans have been saying for years that Freddie Mercury is
the world's greatest.
Now the world knows how right they are--because Freddie and
his band, Queen, stole the honours at the star-studded Live
Aid concert.
His blistering show, with its haunting finale, left all the
other pop greats standing.
Freddie, a very energetic 38, cannot resist giving it all
he's got once he is on stage.
He says: "I have to win people over, otherwise it's not a
successful gig. It's my job to make sure people have a good
time. That's part of my duty. It's all to do with feeling
in control. That song We Are The Champions has been taken
up by football fans because it's a winners' song.
"I can't believe that somebody hasn't written a new song to
overtake it."
In a revealing interview Freddie talks freely and frankly
about his superstar friends, his astonishing song writing
output and his sad love life.
_Shock_
His composing has brought him into constant with Elton John,
Rod Stewart -- and the reclusive Michael Jackson.
He says: "I recorded about two or three tracks with Michael,
but none of them are out at the moment."
It was Freddie who started recording State of Shock with
Jackson, but he did not have time to finish it. Mick Jagger
stepped in--and they had a hit.
A Mercury-Jackson duo was also planned for the smash-hit
Thriller album, but that did not come off, either.
Not that Freddie worries over such set-backs. His recording
career did very nicely, thank you, when he released his solo
album _Mr Bad Guy_
"I was pleased with it," he says. "I was also pleased with
my voice. I like it husky. It's all the smoking. That's
why I smoke -- to get that husky voice."
So how did he reach the high notes? "I used the Demis
Roussos method," he says. "You get a pair of pliers under
the frock and go crunch!"
One of the tracks on Freddie's new album is entitled Love Is
Dangerous. Is that his view? He says: "I can be a good
lover, but I think after all these years I'm not a very good
partner for anybody. Maybe my love is dangerous, but who
wants their love to be safe?"
_Tragic_
"I'm possessed by love--but isn't everybody? Most of my
songs are love ballads and things to do with sadness and
torture and pain.
"In terms of love, you're not in control and I hate that
feeling. I seem to write a lot of sad songs because I'm a
very tragic person. But there's always an element of humour
at the end."
But for all his fame and adulation, Freddie remains a lonely
man.
He says: "The album track Living on My Own is very me. I
have to go round the world living in hotels. You can have a
whole shoal of people you know looking after you. But in
the end they all go away. But I'm not complaining. I'm
living on my own and having a boogie time."
And this man, with millions of fans all over the world
admits he has few friends.
Freddie says: "When you're a celebrity, it's hard to
approach somebody and say: 'Look, I'm normal underneath.'
Then what happens is the tread all over me because by trying
to be normal to somebody, suddenly I've come out of my shell
and become far more vulnerable than most people."
_Fun_
"Because I'm successful and have a lot of money, a lot of
greedy people prey on me. But that's something I've learned
to deal with.
"I'm riddled with scars and I just don't want any more."
Instead Freddie turns to his fans to feel wanted again. He
said: "I find even when people have let you down, you just
want to go on stage. It's very gratifying to know that all
sorts of people want you."
Freddie has also learned how to enjoy his fame. He says: "I
was caught up in being a star and I thought "This is the way
a star behaves. Now I don't give a damn. I want to do
things my way and have fun."
"If all my money ended tomorrow, I'd still go about like I
had lots of money because that's what I used to do before.
I'll always walk round like a Persian Poppinjay and no one's
gonna stop me."
"I love living life to the full -- that's my nature. Nobody
tells me what to do."
Article 2
TEARS TURN ME ON
The Sun, Friday July 19, 1985
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Freddie is a great admirer of modern band and current music
in spite of his years in the business.
He says: "I like Tears For Fears, Wham!, and Culture Club--
they're all very good. But Tears For Fears are among my
favourites because they're writing music I cam really relate
to."
_Dream_
"They've got a lot of rhythm and at the same time they've
got a lot of aggression. They also have very good songs.
But I love the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, above all
other singers. She must have one of the best voices ever.
She sings like a dream. I wish I could sing half as well as
she does. It's so natural.
"She puts her whole emotion into it. Each word she sings is
full of meaning and expression. I could listen to it
forever."
Freddie also reveals his deep love of opera. He says:
"Montserrat Cabelle is sensational. She has that same kind
of emotion as Aretha Franklin. The way she delivers a song
is so very natural. It's a very different gift."
But Freddie's favourite band remains Queen who have been
toether now for 13 years.
And he strongly denies making a solo album has threatened
the future of one of the world's greatest rock bands.
Freddie says: "It's probably brought us closer together and
will enhance our careers."
_Closer_
"It's like painting a picture. You have to step away from
it to see what it's like. I'm stepping away from Queen and
I think it's going to give everybody a shot in the arm.
"But I'll be working with Queen again. No doubt about that.
Queen are gonna come back even bigger." |  |
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WIMPY AND QUIPS
_John Ingham shares an eggburger with Queen's Brian May_
(Sounds September 27, 1975)
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It was an easy day; I was reading my old press clippings. The
phone rang. I almost didn't answer it but security can lull you.
I picked it up. The voice was persuasive, it belong to a
publicist. He was offering the mouth of a popstar. Business was
slow, I took him up. We agreed on a price. I was given a time
and address.
The microphone wasn't working--I tied the cord to the mike with a
rubber band and it sprang into action. The batteries were fresh.
I dropped into the tube and headed into East London. Sarm Studios
had few pretensions: it was an efficient hitmaking machine hiding
out in an obscure basement.
Brian May was leaning against the wall conferring with several
others, his blue work shirt was decorated with badges. He went
into the studio to get his black velvet jacket; lying on an amp
was the infamous .7 guitar. May confessed he'd had another built
to the same specifications, meaning that it had to be played with
the hand constantly damping the strings to prevent instant
feedback. His jacket was also decorated with badges.
We stepped outside; it was beginning to rain. We walked quickly
round the corner to the Wimpy. He ordered an eggburger while I
set up my recorder. A dilapidated character at the next table
gave May the once over. The black velvet suit spoke its own
language. His ashen Aubrey Beardsley visage and cherubic ratsnest
halo of hair added extra volumes -- obviously one of those goddamn
rock stars little girls go crazy for. He edged over to the end of
the table. I turned around.
"Beat it bub. This is classified" He shifted back to the other
end. I had instantly noticed that May spoke with a soft voice;
the hubbub of conversation swirled around us disconcertingly loud.
The muzak was like barbed wire being raked across the eardrum. I
put the microphone extra close to May's eggburger, pointing it
directly towards his kisser. I thought for a moment, and then
asked about Queen's recent management hassles. The interview had
begun.
"It affects your morale," he replied. "Your capacity for working.
It dries you up completely when you're worrying about business
things. We couldn't write at all in that three months. We came
back from Japan thinking, 'Great, we're going to finish the
writing and then record it,' but the whole thing with Trident blew
up at that point, and we spent the next three months being
businessmen, which is the last thing we wanted to be. But now it's
all sorted out -- all the emotions came out in a big flood -- and
I think it's going to be really good."
What prompted the blow up?
"It's been coming for a long time. It's difficult to know what to
say without being libellous. Mostly I feel less annoyed than
disappointed. They're a company which started out in a small way,
but recently I think their holdings got too big for them and got
on top of them. If we hadn't got out we would have been trampled
on. I think we saw it just in time."
So you saw yourselves being swallowed up in that empire rather
than receiving personal involvement?
"Yes, and not receiving our just rewards, and not getting treated
right. It's a great shame because the relationship used to be
very good. We weren't nasty about it at all. We said: 'look, it
isn't working. We want to get out and we want to pay the price'.
They got very emotional and it eventually got very nasty indeed
and it got to the point where" -- he paused for a long time, the
muzak swelling up in the silence -- "they just threw everything at
us they possibly could and it developed into a war but (he smiled
quickly) I think we won."
It seemed to be going well. The chap was talkative, had a droll
sense of humour. If only I could think of enough questions to
last the distance. I decided to wrap up this business trivia and
fired him a question about their new manager John Reid.
"We knew we were in a difficult position management-wise, but we
were in a good position overall. So we went around and saw
everybody that we could, and it just turned out that the only
situation that was suitable for us, really, was John Reid. The
whole framework suited our framework. It's a difficult situation,
being halfway in your career."
Brian elucidated on ensuring activities: a November British tour,
several nights at each venue, then to the States, Japan--"one of
our favourite places at the moment"---where they perform in a
couple of baseball stadiums, and then Australia and Europe. I
asked a truly hoary and creaking standard question: How do you see
the last album as a progression from the last one?
He answered instantly. "It's more extreme. It's varied, but it
goes further in its various directions. It has a couple of the
heaviest things we've ever done and probably some of the lightest
things as well." He thought, a discordant violin sawing in the
background. "It's probably closer to 'Sheer Heart Attack' than the
others in that it does dart around and create lots of different
moods, but we worked on it in the same way we worked on 'Queen
II'. A lot of it is very intense and very ... layered."
I started to ask a question and it vanished into the mists. I
stared blankly at Brian, ignoring thoughts that the questions had
dried up. And they call this a living? A synapose came to the
rescue. What of those rumours that you're closing in on your
second PhD dealing with astronomy?"
"No."
What about your first one?
"I wish I had the time; it's about 96 percent done. It breaks my
heart because I get no time to finish it. It's all written up,
all the work's done, but I can't get that last bit done. For a
time I could keep it up at the same time as the group, but it's
impossible now." This was a matter that had long intrigued me.
It seemed daft to pursue a course of studies when it seemed
certain that the knowledge would never be applied.
"Well, at the time it didn't seem like we had a chance. We
weren't really close to the music business. We were a band, but
we didn't have any contacts. We'd all done a lot of work in a
band and never got anywhere. We thought: 'well, it's there, but
we can't get to it.' And it was only gradually that we began to
realise that something was happening. I think the Mott tour was
the turning point, really."
Such caution took me by surprise. It had seemed almost ordained
from the beginning that Queen were On The Way Up. I shot him a
quick one about the idea of giving it up for life as an
academician.
"I didn't want to give it up. We always knew that if we got the
chance, we would. It's always been a dream."
Do you ever think you'll utilise that astronomical knowledge
practically?
"I hope so, I still keep in close contact with my astronomy
friends, and I still read the periodicals. I hope to some day."
I'd been a bit of an astronomy nut myself; I understood the
fever. I asked his reasons for pursuing astronomy.
"It was another sort of childhood dream, I think. I was always
interested in the stars. It just happened that the subjects I was
best at were maths and physics. It was a momentum thing, which
happens in schools to a certain extent. If you're good at
something then you're shoved into it, and I then discovered that
I'd got a physics degree and there was a place waiting in the
Astronomy Department, so I thought: 'must do it'."
He laughed softly and took another bite. I checked the cassette.
Godfrey Daniel! Hardly any tape had been used. I'd have to think
of more questions!
"I really enjoyed it. I still think it's as interesting as when I
was a kid. It was part theory and part practise. It's solar
system astronomy; I was looking at dust in the solar system."
Dust?
"Dust. There's a lot of it around. I was doing stuff on motion
of dust, using a spectrometer to look for Doppler shifts in the
light that came from them, and from that you can find out where
they're going, and possibly where they came from. It has a lot to
do with how the solar system was formed."
Space jockeys all, we continued to talk shop. Brian dropping the
fact that his research had helped establish that this dust had an
orbit. I chuckled at how the boffins must feel about this budding
scientist wasting his life in a rock band. He got up for another
cup of coffee. I took the opportunity to check the tape back.
Mother of pearl! My voice was louder than his! It was there,
though, that was all that mattered. He returned and I asked
teenybop questions about Queen's ultimate hysterical mob reaction
in Japan.
"It's good practise," he summated drily. The Olsen infatuation
with fame surfaced: if Brian wasn't interested in fame, what was
the point of playing in a macho ramalama band like Queen?
"The first ambition was to make an album. I wanted to make
something that would last for generations, because I thought I had
some worthwhile things to do. I was very, very keen on the
guitar, and there were lots of things I wanted to do like harmony
guitar parts, and there was no outlet. It was great to get the
first album out, and having done that it freed our mines to
actually start creating for its own sake. And the second album
was, I think the most creatively dense thing we've done. It was
done at a time when our heads were cleared of all the things we'd
always wanted to put on record."
I was running out of ideas. I decided to double back over earlier
ground from a different angle. Queen's fairly fast rise to power
had always fascinated me -- just who was manipulating who? When a
band creates its own demand and an audience subsequently rushes in
to fill the vacuum, is that audience aware of the manipulative
wires, and if so does it care? Just who masterminded that,
squire?
"Ooh, really hard to say. I suppose we did have a lot to do with
it. We always argued over what we should do; and there's a lot to
being in the right place at the right time. The Mott tour was
exactly the right tour to do. It's very easy to say that it's
come out all right and would have done anyway, but you never
really know what the contributing factor was.
"We've always been very demanding with the people we work with.
If there's something to be done we don't generally sit back and
let them do it, we interfere with them and make their lives hell
(he gave a small laugh)... Everybody who works with us has to
understand what we're trying to do. It's not just managing a
band, it's managing Queen, which is very different." He laughed
again.
"I'm very happy. The only thing I'm not happy about is not
getting enough time to think on an abstract level. You have to
tailor most of your thoughts to producing something, and it's nice
to think -- what is it? -- extrinsically as well as
intrinsically."
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