Am I Alone? (late-era Queen)

The Miracle and Innuendo are much better albums than The Game, Hot Space or Flash Gordon. Some of the songs on these three albums are shit. Like the (Comming soon, Rock it, Action thise days, Calling all girls).

Yes, you likely are alone, or very close to it.  You won't find too many Queen fans who don't rate Innuendo as one of their strongest records - particularly the strongest post-Game record.

People usually like the Innuendo album for one or several or all of the following reasons:

* Wonderful vocals from Freddie, hitting some very high notes with such power and emotion.
* Wonderful instrumentation - no synth-bass for a change (first time since The Game/Flash).
* Wonderful drumming - real drums for most of the songs. Roger played very well.
* Wonderful guitar work - Days of Our Lives is the favourite solo of many people (me included).
* Steve Howe is there!
* It's got some marvellous songs - Show Must Go On, Innuendo, etc.
* The last album made before Freddie died.
* All four Queennies seemed to have loved it.

But I've also found people who don't like it, usually citing:

* Delilah.
* The fact the album Fred's swan song may've distorted the public's perception.
* Too many synths.
* MIDI drums on some songs, rather than Roger's actual playing.
* Too much processing on vocals ... it makes it sound 'fake' to some people.
* Headlong et al are considered good rockers, but (to some) very weak compared to their 70's heavy ditties.
* Some of the lyrics (as per usual on Queen albums).
* Innuendo (the song) being, reportedly, not even close to their 70's epics.
* Show Must Go On being, to some, a bit predictable (same sequence for 90+% of the song).
* Great solos, but not too much multi-tracking as in the golden era.
* Little to no piano.
* Remember when they used those wonderful acoustic guitars?

I think, at the end of the day, a lot of people are entitled to love the album, a lot of people are entitled to prefer, by far, their 70's output.

For me those two albums are the best they did in '80 (and start of '90 to be precise). IMHO their albums from The Game to The Works were the lowest point of their music. Starting with A Kind Of Magic it seemed to be better and better again. And I count Innuendo to their best works (oh well, I don't like Delilah, but so what?). When I first heard song Innuendo, I was shocked how good it sounded.

So... no, I'm not in the same company as you are. Even as I love Queen's old works the most (say from Queen to Jazz), I have to admit their last two albums are very good/great. (I don't count Made In Heaven to this, as it's another story).

And of course I speak from my point of view, as music is very subjective thing and I understand every (Queen) listener has different opinion to every (Queen) piece of music.

Sebastian...of course, I can only speak for myself, but I LOVED Innuendo on the day of it's release.

I had know idea that Freddie was near death(most American fans didn't).  I saw it as an album that totally exceeded my diminishing expectations.  The Miracle was quite good, to my ears, so I was optimistic that Queen were rebounding.

I'll never forget when I first played it...I was floored!  Yes, there are a lot of synths...but they sounded great and added atmosphere.

The Miracle, as I view it, was a good album for the most part, but sounds slightly dated. But it was the late 80's, and the sound fits in for THAT period of time. Gotta remember, the 80's were very synth heavy. I Want It All was the song that baited me when I was only 9 years old. Didn't get alot of radio airplay here in the states, but when I DID hear it, I was hooked. That drew me in. This was long before I knew anything about Freddie or any of the other guys, or long before AIDS became a big epidemic. I liked the music. Innuendo was even better. Headlong was a jam. I still love that song. The Hitman, Innuendo. The band was actually sounding like a band, not just a couple band members and a drum machine and synth bass.

bambams..."I Want It All" actually got a LOT of play on "rock" stations here in the U.S..  I heard it a LOT during the summer of '89.

In fact, I never heard "Radio Ga Ga" on the radio or "A Kind Of Magic"...so "IWIA" seemed kinda like a minor comeback for Queen over here.

Other than that, my fellow American, I totally agree with your post!

In Canada, I remember "Radio Ga Ga" on the radio and on MuchMusic (our MTV) from '84, when I was 8 years old. I don't remember "A Kind Of Magic" at that time, but maybe I didn't notice it. I do remember "I Want It All," which, like "Radio Ga Ga," had a memorable chorus. And that was all before I got into Queen in '92-ish.

I do remember the RSVP request show on MM playing "A Kind Of Magic" at 4 PM one day, just after I got home from school (this was after I'd bought Classic Queen and it was then, as now, a personal favourite). It was first time I'd seen the band outside the "Rhapsody" video after I got into Queen. The different look was fascinating. They looked like normal dudes having fun. It's still a favourite video, because of that unexpected moment, seeing them on TV playing a song I loved.

Word for word, your review reflected my feelings when 'The Miracle' and 'Innuendo' came out.  'The Miracle' sounded like Brian and John had got their kids to write all the lyrics, and Innuendo was bland.  Generally the songs were just weak and, in the case of the one's Roger wrote, naggingly reminiscent of relatively recent chart hits.  I was amazed when 'Innuendo' came out that none of the reviewers seemed to have noticed how weird Freddie's voice sounded -all thin and reedy, small and weark.  Of course, now we know why.  To me, Queen stopped being special around 1981.

I was there for AKOM but remember The Miracle coming out very clearly (it seemed like an ages between them!) To me it is a great summer album, Innuendo is a cold winter album and as such prefer the former. There is another thread about the Miracle track order which is mainly correct - there is a truely excellent record with the material we have. But that's not to dismiss what was actually released. May is on absolute fire, and there are points where the madness of early Queen is there. It's great.

The Miracle had a feel of a Band that was past their best, and was on their way out.....but had some fine moments...Innuendo sounded like a band that was out to prove those critics wrong and release a vintage Queen album, and that they did.  The first time I heard Innuendo i was blown away, and had no idea Mercury was sick...i Just thought it was a brilliant album the first time I heard it.   their best since the 70's.

I have mixed felings about Innuendo. I appreciate the variety of songs, and the fact they were reaching for something -- not just a return to the 1970s but possibly to end their career as Queen with something special. But I hate the synths and the overly-processed sound of Brian's guitar esp. on I Can't Live With You. Some of the songs are among the worst Queen have done e.g. Delilah and Headlong. There's some filler there too with Ride the Wild Wind and I'm Going Slightly Mad. However, there are also a few songs that wouldn't be out of place on any of their great 1970s albums, i.e. Innuendo, TATDOOL & The Show Must Go On. Definitely their best album since The Game but still not as strong as anything before The Game.

Slightly Mad is great IMO.....i do agree headlong isn't as good as the 70's rocker's...not even close.   The hitman you could add to that as well.  not horrible songs, but not as good as Tie Your Mother Down or stone Cold Crazy either.  The Game vs Innuendo....very close.

This is the nearest thread I can think to say that I've been listening to Live Magic for the first time in YEARS. It was the first Queen album I had (a proper cassette, compared to my parents greatest hits LP and a badly copied tape of the debut album - a curious mix for a young chap!).  For some reason I'd drifted away from it as I moved on to discover the other albums and as I learned more considered it a waste of time - edited versions of songs, uninteresting mix of songs etc. But reappraising it I must say it is a brilliant listen. The edits make it a really tight listen and the atmosphere is brilliant. Even the CD issue with the full versions of some songs loses something. Maybe I'm being nostalgic, but Live Magic is really super.

Regarding the negativity on Headlong, I heartily disagree. That song is a true rocker and a dynamite Queen classic.