Did Queen ever fully recover from Hot Space in the US?

Hi USQUEENFAN...I think we're close. I think I'm a little older than you so the high school experience was different. Class of 83, I had the tail end of The Game and then Hot Space.  I will say that I now like a lot of HS  including side one.  Staying Power is great...very Earth Wind & Fire.
But, yeah, at the time, most other music fans I knew were finished with Queen.  Didn't matter, we still had them, right?
As I said once before....Queen did just fine without the U.S. fans.

as much as I think it's Queen's weakest album -  I do agree with Mack that it was a little ahead of its time.
I can easily envision it being a hit later on, when that type of sound was in fashion.

however - had it been a hit - who knows what "The Works" might have been....

It wasn't ahead of its time, just face it, its shit. Queen could have recovered from Hot Space, then some bright spark thought of the 'I Want to Break Free' video. Final nail in the coffin.

I Want It All could have created interest but alas, it was the beginning of the end...

The biggest compliment Queen ever got as far as the US is concerned is a mention in 'Quantum Leap'

here's a link from two months ago

http://www.queenzone.com/forums/1205690/did-queen-ever-fully-recover-from-hot-space-in-the-us.aspx

To the moderators:  album comments should be a 'sticky' at the top of each section.  Seems that this topic comes up every two months.

To the original poster of this thread:  perhaps it was the Flash soundtrack (which should have just been an EP).  Maybe it was the 'Greatest Hits' release (back then, a GH release almost signified the end of a band), or...............side one of the HS album was crap, and side two missed most of the Queen trademarks.

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[b]kzer_za wrote: [/b]



[i](I meant to put this here the first time but accidentally put in on general...mods, you can delete my general post).[/i]

The topic about Queen songs on the radio got me thinking about this.

It's well-known that Hot Space pretty much ended Queen's career as the
US was concerned. The Game had been a huge success in America, and then
Hot Space hurt them so much here that they never toured in the US
again. While the rest of the world forgave them for Hot Space, the US their career never really took off again.

In the US, at least from my experience, almost everyone likes Queen at
least somewhat but most people only know their biggest 70s/early 80s hits.
I Want it All is a half-exception, but only because of some use in commercials;
a lot of people don't even know it's a Queen song. More importantly, only a small
 minority of people know any of their album tracks at all.

So while Queen is respected in the US now after
being viewed as something of a joke in America for a long time (as I
understand it, I'm only 22), I feel like they still haven't quite
recovered from their fall from grace then. Sure they're considered a
classic band here now - but compared to other classic bands like The
Beatles or Pink Floyd, a lot less people have listened to even a single
one of their albums. Or even heard of any of them. I can't help but think
that maybe the disaster of Hot Space that made them irrelevant here
 for years is the reason for this.

Let's not turn this into a debate about the quality of 80s Queen please,
that's not really the point here.

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Although "Another One Bites The Dust" was a big hit in the U.S. and "The Game" sold well there, too, AOBTD's funk/dance style didn't set well with the rock crowd.

"Hot Space" was the death of Queen in the U.S.

Freddie's homosexuality (his flamboyant behavior) did not go over well with the U.S.  If "Hot Space" didn't kill Queen in the
U.S., then the video for "I Want To Break Free" took them off of life support.

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[b]sexmachine wrote: [/b]



well, i am not really sure about this because i am from europe, but...
the stones released "miss you" and kiss" i was made for loving you", also "disco-crap" for real rock fans and also very popular. both bands didn´t release any real good records after that to "win back" the rock fans but they didn´t loose their credibility as much as queen. correct me if i´m wrong.

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1) KISS put out some great cds after "I Was Made For Loving You":  "Creatures Of The Night", "Revenge", "Sonic Boom", for
starters.  They've also released some great singles:  "I Love It Loud", "Lick It Up", "Heaven's On Fire" , "Tears Are Falling", "Crazy Crazy Nights", "Reason To Live", "Hide Your Heart",  "Forever" , "God Gave Rock 'n' Roll To You II", "Unholy", "Domino", "Every Time I Look At You", "Jungle", "Psycho Circus", "Modern Day Delilah",  "Say Yeah".

2) "Dynasty" wasn't a disco lp, it was a rock lp.  "I Was Made For Loving You" wasn't a disco song, it was a rock song that
had a dance tempo (the drum beat was in the range of most dance/disco music at that time).  The rest of "Dynasty" was
not like IWMFLY.

3) Even though "I Was Made For Loving You" is KISS' biggest selling single, they never tried to record IWMFLY II.

[b]Sir GH wrote:
[/b]
Fair point.  But note that Miss You and I Was Made For Loving You came out in 1978 and 1979 respectively when disco was popular, while Body Language came out in 1982 when disco was completely unpopular.  The Stones and Kiss were just adapting to the times, while Queen were a couple years too late.


>>True. 

KISS weren't afraid to try something different.  Although they classify themselves as a rock and roll band, they've
recorded songs that have folk/country, dance, metal, rock/hard rock, grunge/alternative, and pop/commercial influences.



Sir GH wrote:

Another One Bites The Dust was therefore not so bad in 1980 for Queen's core fans in the US, as they generally hoped it was a slight hiccup and that their next record would be a rock record since disco was falling by the wayside.  But it wasn't to be.  After Body Language came Ga Ga and Break Free, and that was it.  Had they made Hammer To Fall the lead single from The Works, perhaps things may have been a bit different.  The success of Dust and Body Language in the pop charts was good in the short term, but ultimately damaging in the long term.  But of course, hindsight is always 20/20.  Queen more or less conquered the rest of the world in the meantime, anyway.



>>"Under Pressure" came out before "Body Language".

I'm almost positive "Hammer To Fall" was released as the first single in the U.S.  HTF was the first song I heard
on the radio from the new Queen lp and was the reason why I purchased the lp.

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[b]icmrocha (The Man From Planet Marzipan) wrote: [/b]

To my eyes (and ears!) it was only a matter of decisions and timing..

Maybe things would be different if they released Hot Space first (1980) and then The Game (1982), and, later on, released Hammer To Fall and It's A Hard Life as singles instead of Gaga And Break Free.

Let me add that this is a very good discussion indeed! Quality topic =)
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It wouldn't matter when "Hot Space" was released in the U.S.  The songs and music were not what the U.S. (rock audience)
was looking for in Queen.  Queen going away from their rock roots and turning towards pop didn't sit well here.

Skip wrote:
[/QUOTE]"Freddie's homosexuality (his flamboyant behavior) did not go over well with the U.S.  If "Hot Space" didn't kill Queen in the[/QUOTE]U.S., then the video for "I Want To Break Free" took them off of life support.
[/QUOTE]
[/QUOTE]Nice try Skip, but you couldn't be more wrong, unless you believe that a US audience actually accepted and embraced a man wearing multiple ballet outfits as macho at the height of the band's popularity.  If they couldn't accept the band dressing up as women, do you think American men went home after a Queen concert in the late 70s saying "that fucking guy in the diamond ballet suit is all man, they rock"?  I doubt it very much.  Because musically at the time, Queen were nearly peerless as a HARD rock act.  Fast forward to the early 80s, Brian May is put of the band as far as a presence and the US audience didn't care for it.  End of story, it was all, all, all about the music. [/QUOTE]

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[b]Sheer Brass Neck wrote: [/b]

Skip wrote:
[/QUOTE] "Freddie's homosexuality (his flamboyant behavior) did not go over well with the U.S.  If "Hot Space" didn't kill Queen in the [/QUOTE] U.S., then the video for "I Want To Break Free" took them off of life support.
[/QUOTE]
[/QUOTE] Nice try Skip, but you couldn't be more wrong, unless you believe that a US audience actually accepted and embraced a man wearing multiple ballet outfits as macho at the height of the band's popularity.  If they couldn't accept the band dressing up as women, do you think American men went home after a Queen concert in the late 70s saying "that fucking guy in the diamond ballet suit is all man, they rock"?  I doubt it very much.  Because musically at the time, Queen were nearly peerless as a HARD rock act.  Fast forward to the early 80s, Brian May is put of the band as far as a presence and the US audience didn't care for it.  End of story, it was all, all, all about the music.  [/QUOTE] [/QUOTE]

No, I'm absolutely correct.  Bible Belt America wanted nothing to do with Queen and Freddie's flamboyant behavior.  The video
for "I Want To Break Free" was not played.  The video for "Body Language" was banned.

Queen nearly peerless?  Please.  KISS, Van Halen, RUSH, Ozzy, Journey, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac,
Elton John, etc., were all playing sold out shows in the U.S.   Something Queen at that time wasn't doing.

Freddie's homosexuality, Freddie's flamboyant behavior, Queen abandoning their trademark sound for disco/funk/pop
music, and their refusal to fix things and try again in America ended their career in the U.S. 

End of story.

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[b]skip wrote: [/b]

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[b]Sheer Brass Neck wrote: [/b]



Skip wrote:

[/QUOTE]"Freddie's homosexuality (his flamboyant behavior) did not go over well with the U.S.  If "Hot Space" didn't kill Queen in the [/QUOTE]U.S., then the video for "I Want To Break Free" took them off of life support.

Nice try Skip, but you couldn't be more wrong, unless you believe that a US audience actually accepted and embraced a man wearing multiple ballet outfits as macho at the height of the band's popularity.  If they couldn't accept the band dressing up as women, do you think American men went home after a Queen concert in the late 70s saying "that fucking guy in the diamond ballet suit is all man, they rock"?  I doubt it very much.  Because musically at the time, Queen were nearly peerless as a HARD rock act.  Fast forward to the early 80s, Brian May is put of the band as far as a presence and the US audience didn't care for it.  End of story, it was all, all, all about the music. 

No, I'm absolutely correct.  Bible Belt America wanted nothing to do with Queen and Freddie's flamboyant behavior.  The video
for "I Want To Break Free" was not played.  The video for "Body Language" was banned.

Queen nearly peerless?  Please.  KISS, Van Halen, RUSH, Ozzy, Journey, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac,
Elton John, etc., were all playing sold out shows in the U.S.   Something Queen at that time wasn't doing.

Freddie's homosexuality, Freddie's flamboyant behavior, Queen abandoning their trademark sound for disco/funk/pop
music, and their refusal to fix things and try again in America ended their career in the U.S. 

End of story.


Freddie's sexuality/flamboyance had NOTHING to do with the commercial decline in the 80s, if that was true, then the US would've turn their backs on Queen in the 70s!











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[b]Gregsynth wrote: [/b]

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[b]skip wrote: [/b]



 

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[b]Sheer Brass Neck wrote: [/b]



 



Skip wrote:



 

[/QUOTE] "Freddie's homosexuality (his flamboyant behavior) did not go over well with the U.S.  If "Hot Space" didn't kill Queen in the [/QUOTE] U.S., then the video for "I Want To Break Free" took them off of life support.

 



Nice try Skip, but you couldn't be more wrong, unless you believe that a US audience actually accepted and embraced a man wearing multiple ballet outfits as macho at the height of the band's popularity.  If they couldn't accept the band dressing up as women, do you think American men went home after a Queen concert in the late 70s saying "that fucking guy in the diamond ballet suit is all man, they rock"?  I doubt it very much.  Because musically at the time, Queen were nearly peerless as a HARD rock act.  Fast forward to the early 80s, Brian May is put of the band as far as a presence and the US audience didn't care for it.  End of story, it was all, all, all about the music. 



No, I'm absolutely correct.  Bible Belt America wanted nothing to do with Queen and Freddie's flamboyant behavior.  The video
for "I Want To Break Free" was not played.  The video for "Body Language" was banned.



Queen nearly peerless?  Please.  KISS, Van Halen, RUSH, Ozzy, Journey, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac,
Elton John, etc., were all playing sold out shows in the U.S.   Something Queen at that time wasn't doing.



Freddie's homosexuality, Freddie's flamboyant behavior, Queen abandoning their trademark sound for disco/funk/pop
music, and their refusal to fix things and try again in America ended their career in the U.S. 



End of story.



Freddie's sexuality/flamboyance had NOTHING to do with the commercial decline in the 80s, if that was true, then the US would've turn their backs on Queen in the 70s!



 



 



 



 



 



 

[/QUOTE] [/QUOTE]
Wrong.  In the early/mid '70s glam and androgyny went hand in hand.  In the '70s Freddie was coy about his sexuality.  When
he went all Village People during the "Jazz" tour he wasn't being coy any more.  By the time of "Body Language" the majority
of rock record buyers new Freddie's secret.

When Elton John came out in the '70s he actually quit for awhile because his record sales had dropped.

Being a gay rock star in the '70s was not/is not the same as being a gay rock star in the '90s and beyond.
Being an out of the closet gay rock star in the '70s was not going to help your career.

i have to agree with Gregsynth summed it up very well what annoys me about Queen fans is some (not all) think they were the only rock band in the world. When Queen lost the U.S after Hot Space it wasn't too long for people like Def Leppard to come along with Pyromania & pick up the mantle

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[b]skip wrote: [/b]

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[b]Gregsynth wrote: [/b]





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[b]skip wrote: [/b]







 





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[b]Sheer Brass Neck wrote: [/b]







 







Skip wrote:







 





[/QUOTE]"Freddie's homosexuality (his flamboyant behavior) did not go over well with the U.S.  If "Hot Space" didn't kill Queen in the [/QUOTE]U.S., then the video for "I Want To Break Free" took them off of life support.





 







Nice try Skip, but you couldn't be more wrong, unless you believe that a US audience actually accepted and embraced a man wearing multiple ballet outfits as macho at the height of the band's popularity.  If they couldn't accept the band dressing up as women, do you think American men went home after a Queen concert in the late 70s saying "that fucking guy in the diamond ballet suit is all man, they rock"?  I doubt it very much.  Because musically at the time, Queen were nearly peerless as a HARD rock act.  Fast forward to the early 80s, Brian May is put of the band as far as a presence and the US audience didn't care for it.  End of story, it was all, all, all about the music. 







No, I'm absolutely correct.  Bible Belt America wanted nothing to do with Queen and Freddie's flamboyant behavior.  The video
for "I Want To Break Free" was not played.  The video for "Body Language" was banned.







Queen nearly peerless?  Please.  KISS, Van Halen, RUSH, Ozzy, Journey, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac,
Elton John, etc., were all playing sold out shows in the U.S.   Something Queen at that time wasn't doing.







Freddie's homosexuality, Freddie's flamboyant behavior, Queen abandoning their trademark sound for disco/funk/pop
music, and their refusal to fix things and try again in America ended their career in the U.S. 







End of story.







Freddie's sexuality/flamboyance had NOTHING to do with the commercial decline in the 80s, if that was true, then the US would've turn their backs on Queen in the 70s!







 







 







 







 







 







 





[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]
Wrong.  In the early/mid '70s glam and androgyny went hand in hand.  In the '70s Freddie was coy about his sexuality.  When
he went all Village People during the "Jazz" tour he wasn't being coy any more.  By the time of "Body Language" the majority
of rock record buyers new Freddie's secret.

When Elton John came out in the '70s he actually quit for awhile because his record sales had dropped.

Being a gay rock star in the '70s was not/is not the same as being a gay rock star in the '90s and beyond.
Being an out of the closet gay rock star in the '70s was not going to help your career.




[/QUOTE]====================[/QUOTE]
[/QUOTE]You said his "flamboyance" caused the decline in the 80s, that's not even true. What caused the decline was combination of bad promotion, the Hot Space saga, and the homophobic/bible-washer fans from the US crying "Queen's gay" during the "I want to break free" video (they didn't get the cross-dressing jokes in the video). Plus, the bandwagon fans jumping off after The Game.









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