Queen Set Lists: Do they suck?

"In their last 2 tours, Queen's concerts just seemed SO commercialized. I don't know if I can explain it, but do you guys know what I mean?"

Yeah, I do... but people tend to whine about the later setlists because they only included hit songs. Okay, so let's pick out the non-top 20 songs (not including covers, of course) played on the Works and/or Magic tours:

Keep Yourself Alive
Liar
Stone Cold Crazy
Great King Gat
Brighton Rock
One Vision (?)
Tie Your Mother Down
In The Lap Of The Gods... Revisited
Seven Seas Of Rhye
Tear It Up
Now I'm Here
Love Of My Life (see below)
Is This The World We Created

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think any of these songs were big hits (except LOML in Japan). Wow, after compiling this list, I re-realized how many hits Queen had... jeez!

Of course a band is "required" to play their hit songs, if they have them. If a band becomes tired of the hit song, then it's up to them to spice it up to keep it interesting for themselves. But if they don't, and it's your first time seeing the band, then I don't think it will really matter to that person in the audience, will it?

But back to the original point of spicing up the hit songs... Take Zeppelin doing Whole Lotta Love - there aren't two identical versions out of 300 on bootleg.

I think this topic is mostly reserved for people who listen only to Queen bootlegs, and have become bored with the same setlists. If you are one of these people, then maybe it's time to listen to something else.

I think someone in the audience would be very dissappointed if they didn't play BoRhap, Crazy little thing, A Kind of Magic, Under Pressure, Radio Ga Ga, Breakfree, Somebody to Love.

It's only less interesting for the bootleg collectors who can hear the songs as much as they want

Which brings me to another question-- why wasn't "Somebody to Love" played during the Magic Tour?

I know they can't please EVERYONE, but this should have been included instead of "I Want to Break Free". I like the song but I don't like it live.

I think Freddie didn't want too many of those songs where he was playing piano... Unfortunatelly....

That's sad because my favorite parts are when he does sit down and play piano.

"why wasn't "Somebody to Love" played during the Magic Tour?"

They had played it at most shows between 77-85, so my best guess is they just dropped it from the set in favour of some newer material.

But I think I've heard Freddie saying somewhere that there're not going to be too many of the songs with him sitting on the piano; they obviously had to play "BoRhap" or "We Are The Champions" (I actually could live without this one...) but... comparing to previous years Fred was playing piano not so often...

I think songs ran their course in terms of live performance and STL maybe had reached that point. There were others I would have dropped by the time of the Magic tour but I understand people want to hear the hits and you have to play them. I'd have dropped AOBTD though, I don't like it on record and I don't like it live (esp the versions on The Works tour).

I'm glad they didn't play Somebody to love on the magic tour. I have never really liked this song live, allways prefered the album version. This is mostly due to the vocal harmony's, which are so much better on record.

However, for the Magic tour I would have liked some more tracks from the AKOM album (e.g. one year of love, with guest musicians) They stuck to the singles from the album, and it would have been nice to play "the other" songs as well instead of Hammer to fall for example.

I actually always prefered the live version of STL- faster, more dynamic, more powerful- when Fred's voice was in shape, it was a highlight...

seems some never be in a band where setlists are key to the gigs

why dont we try to discover the fact why in the We will rock you concert in oneside of the stage there is a big fast and acurrate red glowing stop watch running all through the show... it amazed me when I first saw it then in the books of Queen I have I was fullfilled to know why they had such a thing.. and its a quite intersting and under estimated finding!!
I mean time is very inmportant in a gig

"esp the versions on The Works tour"

Yeah, gotta agree... sometimes Roger's electronic drums worked on record, but I never cared for them on stage.

"This is mostly due to the vocal harmony's, which are so much better on record."

Yeah, I agree... they could never get the harmonies even close. But as Gumby already said, STL live was all about Freddie, and when his voice was in good shape, it'd be the standout piece of the show. Examples, London 12-26-79, Tokyo 5-9-85, and just about any 81-82 version.

Azmandaman wrote:

seems some never be in a band where setlists are key to the gigs

why dont we try to discover the fact why in the We will rock you concert in oneside of the stage there is a big fast and acurrate red glowing stop watch running all through the show... it amazed me when I first saw it then in the books of Queen I have I was fullfilled to know why they had such a thing.. and its a quite intersting and under estimated finding!!
I mean time is very inmportant in a gig

I thought the stop watch was for the cameramen, not for the band. Saul Swimmer comments on it.

stop watches is used for every body but this one is blaitantly for the band/ stage crews

in my course next year we gonna make out a role play with timing while performing 3 songs... and its gonna be intersting I think.......

Queen setlist rocks.... every setlist gaurantee to rock your body ro a musically orgasmic pleasure of hits...
very very well choreagraphed I specially liked all the Mustapha intro to Bohemian rhapsody... and in the budapest and wembley 86 the "Liar" instrumental intro before tear it up! ROCK N ROLL!!

and the classic cover of medley reallly show they arehumane in their musical tastes and influences..... while in our present day we live in an era where people souly brought up in rap crap, and pop idolistic cover stealing smash hitters... with out not knowing who actaully freakin wrote the song!!

but anyways Queen rocks!!