Queen about to break up - the personal problems during 1982-1986?

Having seen the new Great Pretender - documentary this subject popped up again and again.

In the documentaries they always point out that the band was about to break up before Live Aid...or after Hot Space...or before Magic Tour.

We know about the fact that Hot Space album didn't sell that good, but apart from that what really was wrong with Queen?

I have had an impression that The Works album (excluding the IWTBF -video and U.S -situation) and the tour after that were quite succesful. At least they were not lowering that bands image?

Is this talk about breaking up and being fed up with each other something that really was happening? Or was it the press who made the headlines which Queen themselves had to shoot down?

There are many interviews where they say that being in Queen is like an marriage and its not easy always etc. But were they really about to break up..and if so...why?

There has been some talk lately about John Deacon and his personal problems especially during Magic Tour. He himself said 1986 it's difficult to be in a band now, when they have achieved everything...so they have no goals left.

Even Freddie says to David Wigg during Magic Tour 1986, that he thought the band would really split up after thte tour, but now he thinks differently...We know that Freddie stated this many times during concerts on that tour "these are false rumours". So at least there were rumours during that time?

If Queen was really on the verge of a break-up, it must have been a personal reasons + losing one's motivation? Cause the band was still doing great even before Live Aid?

Today it seems that Live Aid saved Queen. Saved Queen from what? I never thought they really faded out from the music buyers point of view?

Angelo wanted to know about the near break up of the band in the 80s.
There was a time before Live Aid when the Band had drifted apart, due to various things. Mainly Freddie was being influenced from outside the band. He was recording his first solo album and was being told by Paul Prenter that he was bigger than the rest of the band, that he would be better off on his own. Queen had been together for about 14-15 years at the time and Freddie thought that there wasn’t too much left that the band as a whole could give to the world. After a big band meeting in Switzerland they thought they would give it one more try, the results speak for themselves…. They came up with the Magic album, The Miracle, Innuendo and the tracks that Freddie recorded for the others before November 1991, and don’t forget Barcelona, which Freddie regarded as some of his best work. When it came down to it, Freddie knew that he could create what he wanted on his own, but his life, his music revolved around QUEEN.


Taken from Phoebe's blog @ Freddiemercury.com
http://www.freddiemercury.com/askphoebe/index.php/blog-9/

ploughman wrote:

Today it seems that Live Aid saved Queen. Saved Queen from what? I never thought they really faded out from the music buyers point of view?

I don't know if it saved Queen, but it certainly put them back on top. Lots of their stuff went back into the charts in a big way. Regarded as the best act on the day, Queen were back.

Media wasn't anywhere nearly as widespread or instantaneous as it is now. No You Tube etc. (My God! how did we live?), so there seemed to be sort of a mass rediscovery of Queen by the mainstream.

On the other hand, some acts like Bob Dylan and a couple of The Stones were crticised for their performance. But if you were good, or, better still great, you were heavily rewarded. I seem to recall The Cars song Drive also did extremely well following Live Aid.

I think they were *always* on the verge of breaking up from late 70's to late 80's and there was always something that kept the pro list a bit longer than the con one.

Or perhaps they were never on the verge of breaking up in the mid-80s and they started those rumours themselves in order to help shift concert tickets.

Good point. Each tour was a potential farewell tour. In the case of Magic, it was.

Nah, we can be pretty sure that there was some pretty intense band turmoil between 82-85.

Maybe that's what they wanted us to think. None of us, after all, was there. For all we know they could've been BFFs with each other and spent their nights drinking Scotch and saying 'look at all those idiots believing we're fighting and buying our records because of that.'

There was probably some discussion after Hot Space that if the next album wasn't successful they might call it quits. However, The Works was massive -- even a (minor) hit in the USA -- and after that I don't think they had any intention of quitting. But inferring that "this is our last tour" is great way to sell tickets.

Not to mention that anybody with half a brain would already know that any tour can be the last, considering tomorrow is never promised.

[QUOTE] [b]Sebastian wrote:[/b]

Maybe that's what they wanted us to think. None of us, after all, was there. For all we know they could've been BFFs with each other and spent their nights drinking Scotch and saying 'look at all those idiots believing we're fighting and buying our records because of that.'[/QUOTE]

Yes, in theory this is possible. But there is plenty of evidence to suggest that wasn't the case.

Things were pretty smooth-sailing for Queen between 76-81, and after that things went awry. Numerous times they have stated that they may have broken up had it not been for Live Aid bringing them back together.

boredom

-

[QUOTE] [b]The Real Wizard wrote:[/b]

[QUOTE] [b]Sebastian wrote:[/b]

Maybe that's what they wanted us to think. None of us, after all, was there. For all we know they could've been BFFs with each other and spent their nights drinking Scotch and saying 'look at all those idiots believing we're fighting and buying our records because of that.'[/QUOTE]

Yes, in theory this is possible. But there is plenty of evidence to suggest that wasn't the case.

Things were pretty smooth-sailing for Queen between 76-81, and after that things went awry. Numerous times they have stated that they may have broken up had it not been for Live Aid bringing them back together.[/QUOTE]


I still think the success of The Works meant Queen would not have broken up in the mid-1980s. Live Aid was successful for Queen because that album resurrected interest in the band in the UK and Europe. Live Aid was an affirmation of that. But it makes a nice story to tell journalists.

Live Aid is amazing!