Freddie didn't change much from 1979-1987

Despite all the people who say he was dying before our eyes....despite all the drinking, smoking, parties, HIV/AIDS.

Freddie looks almost the same. His hair is a bit shorter in 87 and he is just a slight bit fatter.

But that's it.

Most normal people would look a lot worse than this in 8 years time.

Who ever said he was "dying before our eyes" in 1987? He only started showing clear outwardly visible signs that he was seriously ill in 1989, or late 1988 at the earliest (bar the KS mark on his face in 1986/87, which would have been missed by most people). In 1987 he looked the same as he did in 1986, but without a moustache, and with a slightly puffier face. The only thing which kept him looking relatively healthy till around 1989 was the AZT.

I think his voice was noticeably deteriorated starting in 1984 not only in live performance(which was downright awful at times) but also in the studio. I realize that Freddie apparently *wanted* the lower/gruffer voice voice that smoking gave him. I'll never understand it. His '70's voice was soooooo much better(especially in the studio).

There *was* a slight return of the old voice on parts of The Miracle album and a real improvement in Innuendo. In hindsight I can hear the *thin-ness* in his voice but when it was released I was bowled over at the return of clarity and range in his voice.

Freddie changed alot from 1981-1982 to 1984. A lot of hair and skinny in the former period, he had a rounder face in 1984, you can clearly see it when the camera focuses on him when he sings "someone still loves you". And it's not because of the camera. Freddie's body was already starting to change because he was groing old and because he already had contracted the HIV virus. Starting 1986-1987, he was starting to put white or skinned color makeup to cover shingles/herpes blisters. He had an oedemic face starting 1986-87. Anyway that subject was covered in that thread:

http://www.queenzone.com/forums/1288222/freddie-mercurys-hiv-diagnosis-some-insight-1985-to-1987.aspx?page=1

[QUOTE] [b]PrimeJiveUSA wrote:[/b]

I think his voice was noticeably deteriorated starting in 1984 not only in live performance(which was downright awful at times) but also in the studio. I realize that Freddie apparently *wanted* the lower/gruffer voice voice that smoking gave him. I'll never understand it. His '70's voice was soooooo much better(especially in the studio).

There *was* a slight return of the old voice on parts of The Miracle album and a real improvement in Innuendo. In hindsight I can hear the *thin-ness* in his voice but when it was released I was bowled over at the return of clarity and range in his voice.[/QUOTE]

Yes! Nicely said! Bang on in my opinion! I wonder if he stopped or reduced smoking towards the end and that is what this improvement can be attributed to?

propably yes,quitting smoking brings your lungs and all that system like it was before smoking,so that helped a lot,or he did changed his singing technique due to his illness

He did have a lot of changes from Live Aid - The Great Pretender..

Not to be a cynic here, but stage make-up and lighting can add or subtract 15 years, make a corpse look like a supermodel and a supermodel like a corpse. Two staged photographs do not constitute anything resembling proof of the point TS makes. That aside, I do agree that Freddie didn't physically decline much before '89.

I think his face in general stayed very similiar even from the mid 60's to the late 80's. If i could be bothered i would put a moustache on the 18 year old Freddie from that lost footage and see if he looked too different. I don't think he would.

However saying that, i don't think any of the Queen members aged badly between 1970 and 1988, possibly John the worst.

[QUOTE] [b]thomasquinn 32989 wrote:[/b]

Not to be a cynic here, but stage make-up and lighting can add or subtract 15 years, make a corpse look like a supermodel and a supermodel like a corpse. Two staged photographs do not constitute anything resembling proof of the point TS makes. That aside, I do agree that Freddie didn't physically decline much before '89.[/QUOTE]

True, and with this in mind maybe the best photos to judge this on are ones taken in recording studios or sound checks where there has been no preparation.

IMO BM changed the least from the mid 70's till late 80's

[QUOTE] [b]Supersonic_Man89 wrote:[/b]

I think his face in general stayed very similiar even from the mid 60's to the late 80's. If i could be bothered i would put a moustache on the 18 year old Freddie from that lost footage and see if he looked too different. I don't think he would.

However saying that, i don't think any of the Queen members aged badly between 1970 and 1988, possibly John the worst. [/QUOTE]

Well, Roger kinda let himself go in the 80's, me thinks.

At the risk of sounding ghoulish something was up in '86: He looked - to me at the time - older and more serious. And then progressively so.

Well as proved, people seem to think Freddie was dying before our eyes during this period.....

ANd personally, I think the picture proves, it looks like nothing more than normal aging. Freddie aged better than most during an 8 yr period. People read way too much into his appearance during this time.

By 1989 aids was obvious. Before that, not really IMO.

This appears to be a sub-genre of the AIDS-porn genre - the "Freddie's changing looks" AIDS-porn variation.