why did queen never make it as big in the states?

we will rock you is one of the biggest stadium anthems of all times. i never understood why the rest of the world got it & we didnt?

I'm not sure what part of the States you live in but in the places I've lived We Will Rock You has been mainstaple at every sporting event. And additionally, I hear Queen on the radio virtually every day. Sometimes, even unconventional Queen radio songs. For instance, Alice Cooper played Millionaire Waltz on his show tonight. Heard One Vision and Tie Your Mother Down last week. And I'm always hearing Fat Bottomed Girls, We Will Rock You, We Are The Champions, Bohemian Rhapsody, Killer Queen, and Another One Bites The Dust. And this is Arkansas...the least likely Queen friendly state in the nation. Granted, they're not topping the charts in the States right now but neither are Zeppelin, The Beatles, Elvis, or any of the other classics that Americans love. I'm not sure why people think Queen aren't popular in America. Since their resurgence in '91 they have always been highly revered in the classic rock circles I'm familiar with.

Cinderella:

I always wondered this too, since they were so talented...and Freddie has some hella good vocals...I know they stopped touring in the states when people started to realize that Freddie was gay, thats what Roger said in an interview:

http://queenzone.com/queenzone/news_view.aspx?news_id=3565

But thats soooo stupid, werent most of those male singers, musicians, etc in the 70's-80'd from the UK gay, or at least Bi?: (Mick Jagger,Elton John, David Bowie, Boy George, George Micheals, etc) What is that he (Freddie) put out there? I dont understand, so what if he was gay, when he and the band did their thing, it wasnt like they were trying to "make" anyone else gay, they were just simply "doing their thang." Thats so ignorant and stupid!!! The U.S can be soooo sterotypical and homophobic!!!!!

When queen started rigorous touring,they added america to their tour but under medical and private circumstances,they were forced to cancel some american dates.The same happened to them in australia.I think some american queen fans got the wrong impression that queen didnt wqant to play there.My opinion anyway

They killed all of their US momentum with the Hot Space album. Then, at the beginning of the MTV generation, they put out the Body Language video, followed by the IWTBF video....

Add to that the anti-Gay backlash in the mid 80's due to AIDS, and you get a great band that could not have gotten arrested in the US.

Now, had they decided to actually TOUR here in 84, 86, things would have been vastly different. Thus, they were forgotten, by and large, by the MTV generation until Waynes World.

and I want to break free....partly due to the fact that when USA saw it many people didn't understand the humour intended in the video... some took it too seriously... i think the video is fab! I'm sure many americans do aswell. It's a shame they under-rated the song.

Obviously the vid for IWTBF being banned was a major factor. Incidentally, does anyone know what else happened? Like, was it just played on radio (or was even that banned) or was an alternative vid made for it?
Anyone think if The Works had sold better Queen would have gone back to play America again?

Um, Queen WERE big in the States! I know this for a fact because I grew up here and went through the experience back in the late 70's with their tours and albums. Especially 77-80. After Hot Space it quickly faded until Freddies' death.

enough with this!Queen are probably at this point the most popular of the supergroups that evolved from the 70's.a few awful albums did cut into there popularity for a period but they have, as all quality bands do,risen back to there rightful place in history.I am convinced had they toured here for the works that album would have had much more success and had the Magic tour come to the states it would have turned this country on its head.I think Freddie was angry at us for not buying into the Hot Space project and that he decided there were other markets to play to.

Haystacks you're Spot on - if I may add in the mid to late 70's they were Big & getting Bigger (in terms of sales - if memory serves me they were bigger here than anywhere else) I think it was several factors not the least of which, the albums just weren't as good - sure there was a good song here & there but not solid from start to finish like the earlier stuff. when a new LP came out Rock Radio, which most of the fans would listen to,would always play 5 or 6 different cuts if not more.... once Hot space rolled around you got the single & maybe another rock oriented cut, for a week or so & then it would be gone (put out the fire comes to mind)...at that point I think what was left were the diehards & the Band made very little inroads after that ...my personal opinion is if they would've release The Works in 82 instead of Hot space they would've continued to grow or at the very least stayed status quo...I remember talking to an AR person at Capitol and she said the Only way Queen will tour the states is if they have a #1 album... which at that point wasn't gonna happen -

They were big here, but outside of real true fans, (which im sure there are more of here than people think)they seemed to have faded into the backround a bit. There are the exceptions however like WWRY,WATC and Bo Rhap, but there are some awesome DJ"s like Alice Cooper who do play some of Queens other stuff thats absolutely fab but were never released as singles.
The thing about the US was they didnt have as big a resurgence as they did in '91 w/ Waynes World and the Re-Release of Bo Rhap.
But the US has always been a kinda flavor of the month type place as far as music goes IMO anyway...
Yes they are recognized as one of the Greatest Rock Bands a bit more now, but its still not as strong as it is in Europe and the UK.
Which makes me sad that the US didnt get it because I do as an American. But when things are in the hands of corporate fat cats who are sometimes either wayyy to liberal (i.e rap rumpshakin w/ breasts out everywhere) or wayyy to conservative (i.e the banning of IWTBF)
I mean theres not much true fans can do about it if they dont come here. I can see why they did not tho. BUt im glad they're back in Freddies memory and i get to see them for the first time ever!

[QUOTE][QUOTENAME]Munchsack wrote: [/QUOTENAME]
Obviously the vid for IWTBF being banned was a major factor. Incidentally, does anyone know what else happened? Like, was it just played on radio (or was even that banned) or was an alternative vid made for it?
Anyone think if The Works had sold better Queen would have gone back to play America again?[/QUOTE]

yea i always thought that the IWTBF video was like the turning point in US interests in Queen..
well thats what i got from interviews
:)

Because America is full of a bunch of homophobes and they're evil because Freddie got a moustache and cut his hair. Poor Freddie *comforts him in corner*

[QUOTE][QUOTENAME]Lil*Queenie wrote: [/QUOTENAME]

yea i always thought that the IWTBF video was like the turning point in US interests in Queen..
well thats what i got from interviews
:)[/QUOTE]

That's always been Brian's excuse, but as a Queen fan in the states I can say that the video fell on deaf ears (blind eyes?) because they had already lost most of their fans due to reasons listed earlier in this thread. I think it has less to do with America's homophobia as it does with their taste in music.