i was only one when he died, so I can't say his death really had much impact on me then, but I agree the fact Freddie is not here any longer does make queen's music special.
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Well, long story short as possible...I had a friend in High School. We met in the early 80's - our strongest common bond was Queen. We were the best of friends. After HS, he moved to NYC for college. We kept in touch...till about 1985 - that's when I just didn't hear from him anymore. (It turned out that he got caught up in the drug scene and that's why he didn't keep in touch with me anymore. He knew that I would have killed him for that...anyway)
Jumping ahead - I met Brian in 1991. Because of that, I was *so determined* to find my old friend again. There was no internet or e-mail - I had to pray that I still had his parents old phone number and that it hadn't changed - I got lucky!
I called him...shock and awe - we were instantly reunited!!! (Thanks, Brian! - not that he reads this web site.) During our initial conversation, one of the things my friend said to me was, "you know, Freddie has AIDS." This was well before anything was made public. How did he know - well, I never asked - I just really didn't want to believe him. A few days later, I received a letter from my friend...he used Freddie's illness to brace me for what he needed to tell me about himself - that he too had AIDS. It hurt bad enough hearing about Freddie...but my friend - that was the *real* knife in my heart. Here I had just found him after so many years, only to realize that I would lose him again...only this time it would be permanent...
We lost Freddie in November of '91, and I lost John in June of '92. I lost two of the biggest loves of my life back then. It still hurts today.
But still, I still credit Brian for bringing John back to me - and that's something that I'll always be grateful for.
Jumping ahead - I met Brian in 1991. Because of that, I was *so determined* to find my old friend again. There was no internet or e-mail - I had to pray that I still had his parents old phone number and that it hadn't changed - I got lucky!
I called him...shock and awe - we were instantly reunited!!! (Thanks, Brian! - not that he reads this web site.) During our initial conversation, one of the things my friend said to me was, "you know, Freddie has AIDS." This was well before anything was made public. How did he know - well, I never asked - I just really didn't want to believe him. A few days later, I received a letter from my friend...he used Freddie's illness to brace me for what he needed to tell me about himself - that he too had AIDS. It hurt bad enough hearing about Freddie...but my friend - that was the *real* knife in my heart. Here I had just found him after so many years, only to realize that I would lose him again...only this time it would be permanent...
We lost Freddie in November of '91, and I lost John in June of '92. I lost two of the biggest loves of my life back then. It still hurts today.
But still, I still credit Brian for bringing John back to me - and that's something that I'll always be grateful for.
I guess his death has alerted me to AIDS and whenever I hear about it I think of Freddie. It's just made me think about things a lot more and I think that if Freddie was still alive today, the later music wouldn't have so much meaning for me.
Way back in November 1991 I was 14 years old, but I was into no music at all and thus not interested in Queen. However, I still can recall seeing the article on the frontpage of our newspaper... it was on the right side of the page lower third, and a picture of Fred's face from what I now know was from the Live Aid concert...
Strange that I recall that though it did not have a major impact on me.
Strange that I recall that though it did not have a major impact on me.
i think freddies death had a massive impact on everybody..
i think it alerted people that AIDS isnt a good thing at all.. and has made people more aware of it.
although, when freddie died i was to young to really even know who he was. But know as i have grown up listening to queen music, if i did remember freddie's death i think i would have been really upset. Because, you think about it nowadays, but queen isnt really queen with out freddie. i do appericate brian & roger doing what they do know because i think it is good how they keep queen together... but if only freddie was here.. things would be better. I might have even have got to have seen them in concert! (my dream)
i think it alerted people that AIDS isnt a good thing at all.. and has made people more aware of it.
although, when freddie died i was to young to really even know who he was. But know as i have grown up listening to queen music, if i did remember freddie's death i think i would have been really upset. Because, you think about it nowadays, but queen isnt really queen with out freddie. i do appericate brian & roger doing what they do know because i think it is good how they keep queen together... but if only freddie was here.. things would be better. I might have even have got to have seen them in concert! (my dream)
I heard it a day later being from America and all. I was working the night shift and my brother called me and told me to turn on MTV. I just couldn't believe this...I was crushed! I remember just sitting in the corner of my living room listening to Somebody to Love sipping on a nice Merlot and silently reflecting on the man, the legend.
How pleasant to see a poignant topic on Queenzone. Freddie's death impacted me in a few ways. At the time, I was 11 years old and had been a Queen fan for only a year and a half, if not less. I think perhaps even that early on I had realized that I, myself, was gay and that Freddie must have been, too. So I sort of watched him and took him in as my gay role model. I remember sitting in the back seat of my aunt's car, listening to the radio on November 24, 1991, when the annoucement was made to the effect of the "late Freddie Mercury" - I clearly remembering asking my aunt if "late" meant, in fact, "dead" - of course, it did. Currently, Freddie's death impacts me every time I watch "These Are The Days Of Our Lives" or any given Queen concert. I bought the new Queen On Fire at the Bowl DVD tonight and was completely taken back by the fact that Freddie was, indeed, on fire and that AIDS completely struck down the most amazing entertainer and composer of our time.
Currently, I volunteer for an AIDS shelter in Asheville, North Carolina. One of the primary motivating factors for doing so was, in fact, Freddie's death. One of the clients borrowed my copy of "Mercury and Me" and, even though the book obviously ends in tragedy, the client told me that it raised his spirits. How, I wonder? How can Freddie's misery possibly raise someone's spirits? Because he died in dignity and he died on his own terms.
Freddie Mercury's death teaches us that no matter how rich or popular, anyone can fall victim to an unhealthy and unprotected lifestyle.
Currently, I volunteer for an AIDS shelter in Asheville, North Carolina. One of the primary motivating factors for doing so was, in fact, Freddie's death. One of the clients borrowed my copy of "Mercury and Me" and, even though the book obviously ends in tragedy, the client told me that it raised his spirits. How, I wonder? How can Freddie's misery possibly raise someone's spirits? Because he died in dignity and he died on his own terms.
Freddie Mercury's death teaches us that no matter how rich or popular, anyone can fall victim to an unhealthy and unprotected lifestyle.
I don't remember Freddie's death at all, as I was only 6 years old, only now i've have grown to love the group and Freddie's music that i have come to realise what an impact his death had on me, after seeing documentaries on his life and the life of queen, and also what an impact it had on them, hat i feel deeply saddened about how much he actually suffered toward the end of his life.x