I LOVED Cool Cat. Hell, I loved the entire "Hot Space" album. It's such a shame when an artist can't broaden their horizon because of whiny fans who are afraid of a little change.
As far as I'm concerend anyone who considers "Hot Space" their worst album isn't a fan very much at all!
[/QUOTE]
Agreed. It's easy to judge something based on its commercial success (or lack thereof). For its ambitiousness alone, it's better than The Works or A Kind Of Magic. And there's no doubt it influenced Thriller in some way, as MJ was into Queen at the time.
Wiley · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]Sir GH wrote:
[/b]Agreed. It's easy to judge something based on its commercial success (or lack thereof). For its ambitiousness alone, it's better than The Works or A Kind Of Magic. And there's no doubt it influenced Thriller in some way, as MJ was into Queen at the time.
[/QUOTE]
I completely agree with Mister GH here.
I think I still have Hot Space as my fave in my QZ profile. I like it a lot, just as much as I like ANATO, Races and The Game, which are the albums I enjoy the most and I listen more frequently.
It was the last time Queen actually took a BIG RISK in an album. Mixed results, yes, but it still managed to get a #1 single in the UK and a couple of Top 20-ish hits in the U.S.
Glad that you mentioned MJ and the influence on Thriller. I found this article a while ago (it's from Dec. 2007). http://www.elperiodicoextremadura.com/noticias/noticia.asp?pkid=341044
It's in Spanish but the last bit translates to:
Michael Jackson has recently acknowledged that Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker was one of his references at the moment he put together Thriller. It was "a piece in which every song was an ace", he claims. But [b]Queen's Hot Space was even more present during the recording[/b].
The Real Wizard · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]Wiley wrote: [/b]
Michael Jackson has recently acknowledged that Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker was one of his references at the moment he put together Thriller. It was "a piece in which every song was an ace", he claims. But [b]Queen's Hot Space was even more present during the recording[/b].[/QUOTE]
Very cool !!
Sebastian · Member since
We'd already commented that, and I'd already mentioned that article. And the conclusion's the same:
Did HS influence Thriller? Yes. But:
Would Thriller still have existed without Hot Space? Yes.
*goodco* · Member since
[b]Wiley wrote:
"[/b]Michael Jackson has recently acknowledged that Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker was one of his references at the moment he put together Thriller. It was "a piece in which every song was an ace", he claims. But [b]Queen's Hot Space was even more present during the recording[/b]."
RECENTLY acknowledged?!?!?!?
The Real Wizard · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]Sebastian wrote: [/b]
Did HS influence Thriller? Yes. But:
Would Thriller still have existed without Hot Space? Yes.
[/QUOTE]
But:
How different would it have been had Hot Space not existed?
That we'll never know.
mooghead · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]Sir GH wrote: [/b]
[QUOTE]
[b]BlazeGoldmine wrote: [/b]
I LOVED Cool Cat. Hell, I loved the entire "Hot Space" album. It's such a shame when an artist can't broaden their horizon because of whiny fans who are afraid of a little change.
As far as I'm concerend anyone who considers "Hot Space" their worst album isn't a fan very much at all!
[/QUOTE]
For its ambitiousness alone, it's better than
[/QUOTE]
For its ambitiousness alone it beats than the Sistine chapel. Unfortunately, ambitiousness is irrelevant.
The Real Wizard · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]mooghead wrote: [/b]
Unfortunately, ambitiousness is irrelevant.
[/QUOTE]
Umm... why, exactly?
Ambitious bands created records like Revolver, Led Zeppelin III, Exile On Main St., Tales From Topographic Oceans, Hot Space, Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and Zooropa.
Not all of them are great records, but the artists deserve credit for the risks they took.
Amazon · Member since
There is no doubt that HS was ambitious (although to claim it was more ambitious than the Sistine Chapel is a bit of a stretch), and ambition is important, but if the album isn't particularly good, then I don't think the ambition counts for much.
Personally, I really like HS. While it's not one of my favourite albums, I think it has some terrific songs (with Staying Power being my favourite rather than the overrated Under Pressure), has some wonderful performances from Freddie who was clearly enjoying himself and demonstrated Queen's versatility and willingness to explore different things. Staying Power, Put Out the Fire,Las Palabras de Amor and Dancer, and probably Under Pressure (certainly due its bass line) are arguably among Queen's best songs of 1982-'89. They aren't necessarily THE best of that era (each of the other albums have songs which would challenge them, and perhaps surpass them), but there's only really one song from that era which is so god that I think it leaves the entire HS album for dead. That's I Want It All, and it's from an album which I think is Queen's weakest.
GratefulFan · Member since
'I Want it All' seems so universally loved and respected that simply hearing it's name makes me feel like a bad fan. I find it tedious and dull.
But focusing on behind the hits: If your mission was to convert someone who had never heard of Queen, or someone who thought they didn't like them based on the hits or the singles, into a fan, what five songs would you introduce them to? So, no hits, nothing that's ever been released as a single and nothing that was on Greatest I, II or III.
My of the top of my head list that could change without warning:
Tenement Funster
Death on Two Legs (with the backstory)
I'm in Love With My Car
Dragon Attack
Hitman (with an explanation that I think it's about AIDS)
Ones that almost made the list:
She Makes Me
'39
More of that Jazz
The Real Wizard · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]Amazon wrote: [/b]
That's I Want It All, and it's from an album which I think is Queen's weakest.
[/QUOTE]
Interesting, the difference in opinion.. !
I think The Miracle is far stronger than the three records that came before it. There are a couple weak tracks, but The Miracle, Breakthru, and Scandal are amongst their top ten 80s songs in my books. Party and Khashoggi's ship are as classic Queen as it gets, with the trademark sounds combined with trying out new sounds.
Ziggy_SD · Member since
People who dismissed Hot Space as a bad album should be shot, killed, arrested. It was a millions times better than the trash that followed it like The Works and A Kind of Magic. Sonically speaking, it failed because it was black music produced by a white rock band. In the end, it sounded like wimpy white disco with no balls. But when those songs got translated on stage, they sounded hot and powerful.
Wiley · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]Sebastian wrote: [/b]
We'd already commented that, and I'd already mentioned that article. And the conclusion's the same:
Did HS influence Thriller? Yes. But:
Would Thriller still have existed without Hot Space? Yes.
[/QUOTE]
Did I say this was never commented before? No.
Is it against the rules to discuss previous topics again? No
Do I find people who answer their own questions to make a point over and over again a bit annoying? Yes.
Was Paul Rodgers Freddie's favorite sing... erm...
Sorry, that was YOUR line.
Amazon · Member since
[QUOTE]
[b]GratefulFan wrote: [/b]
'I Want it All' seems so universally loved and respected that simply hearing it's name makes me feel like a bad fan. I find it tedious and dull.
But focusing on behind the hits: If your mission was to convert someone who had never heard of Queen, or someone who thought they didn't like them based on the hits or the singles, into a fan, what five songs would you introduce them to? So, no hits, nothing that's ever been released as a single and nothing that was on Greatest I, II or III.
My of the top of my head list that could change without warning:
Tenement Funster
Death on Two Legs (with the backstory)
I'm in Love With My Car
Dragon Attack
Hitman (with an explanation that I think it's about AIDS)
Ones that almost made the list:
She Makes Me
'39
More of that Jazz[/QUOTE]
Yes, you're a terrible fan! Just kidding. Considering that I'm one of the few people on this site who isn't in love with ADATR and Innuendo, you are not alone in having unusual tastes.
Five non-hits that I would show to someone who had never heard of Queen: (this could change at any time)
1)The March of the Black Queen- one of the greatest songs ever made, the is arguably be the 'Bohemian Rhapsody' of non-hits.
2)Death on Two Legs- vicious, sadistic, and absolutely extraordinary. I can not believe that this isn't better known. It would also have been interesting to hear a metal group like Metallica's take on it.
3)The Prophet's Song- my favourite Queen song, it's not perfect, but is brilliant enough to warrent selection in any 'best of' list. It's a masterpiece!
4)Sleeping on the Sidewalk- arguably Brian's best lead vocal performance, and one of my absolute favourite May-written songs, this is IMO a superb example of a Queen song which does not feature Freddie on lead vocals (or at all).
5)In Only Seven Days- arguably Queen's greatest love song, this was IMO John's finest hour as a song-writer. Freddie was gorgeous as always (Ireally loved it when he crooned), and the song was magnificently written.
There are plenty of other non-hits that could qualify, but those are the five I would introduce to a non-Queen fan, at least for for today.
GratefulFan · Member since
[b]Amazon wrote: [/b]
There are plenty of other non-hits that could qualify, but those are the five I would introduce to a non-Queen fan, at least for for today.
[/QUOTE]
Sleeping on the Sidewalk! Forgot about that one...definitely would have been an honourable mention for me too.
I also really like Black Queen as well...in fact my list of my personal favourite non hit tracks would probably overlap but not exactly match my list of tracks I would initially introduce to a non fan. Queen I and Queen II both have many moments of greatness, but for the most part the sound is very much of it's era. I didn't choose any tracks off the first two for my list because unless the listener already has a taste for that very identifiable Uriah Heep-y late sixties/early seventies feel it might be a wash. It's a testament to Queen's musicianship that so many of their songs that followed could have been written then, or last week, or twenty years from now when they will still be revered. It's rarely a nostalgia trip with decades old Queen songs - it's just great tunes right now.
