"Who are Brian, Roger and John to tell people like Guns n' Roses and Metallica that they cannot pay tribute to an artist they loved just because their style of music wasn't Freddie's cup of tea!"
Well - they were in the perfect position to do so considering that they were running the show! Besides, Guns 'n' Roses and Metallica could easily have paid tribute by:
A). Playing better songs
B). Writing songs about Freddie.
"People on here must have a very low opinion of Brian if you think that after the death of a close friend the first thing on his mind is self-promotion."
Well - the point I was making, I wasn't trying to say that he 'was' or 'wasn't', but rather - we simply do not know. I have formed the opinion that the Tribute Concert was not self promotion. Those guys looked utterly miserable sometimes during that show (and inspired at others - take the audience participation during Somebody to Love), and since Queen were never convincing actors (Calling All Girls, anyone?) I tend to believe that in the Tribute at least, there was genuine emotion running the show.
To reiterate - maybe it was a Brian May Tribute, but I really don't think so myself, and I wouldn't presume to judge his character when I don't even know the guy! :D
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[QUOTE][QUOTENAME]Zebonka12 wrote:
The thing that bugged me wasn't really the setlist. I felt that much was appropriate.
It was the choice of singers + bands that played the thing. Guns'n'Roses? GUH. And Elton John might've been a pal, but really... he screwed up everything he touched that day.[/QUOTE]
Fair enough.I agree. Elton John did a mess. It was terrible...but anyway Freddie for sure would have liked him to be at his tribute...so, well, like you said he might have chosen songs which were not so beyond him, maybe something easier to sing....
The problem is: Did Mr. Freddie Mercury sing any easy song?
The thing that bugged me wasn't really the setlist. I felt that much was appropriate.
It was the choice of singers + bands that played the thing. Guns'n'Roses? GUH. And Elton John might've been a pal, but really... he screwed up everything he touched that day.[/QUOTE]
Fair enough.I agree. Elton John did a mess. It was terrible...but anyway Freddie for sure would have liked him to be at his tribute...so, well, like you said he might have chosen songs which were not so beyond him, maybe something easier to sing....
The problem is: Did Mr. Freddie Mercury sing any easy song?
"The problem is: Did Mr. Freddie Mercury sing any easy song?"
The only one that's in my range is I'm Going Slightly Mad. And maybe Tie Your Mother Down.
To wit, the guy had a way with music, and you'd have to be pretty skilled to make anything listenable out of a Queen song.
The only one that's in my range is I'm Going Slightly Mad. And maybe Tie Your Mother Down.
To wit, the guy had a way with music, and you'd have to be pretty skilled to make anything listenable out of a Queen song.
Paul Rodgers (Freddie's all-time secret idol) could've sung Slightly Mad since he likes it (although he called it 'Simply Mad')
[QUOTE][QUOTENAME]Sebastian wrote: [/QUOTENAME]Paul Rodgers (Freddie's all-time secret idol) could've sung Slightly Mad since he likes it (although he called it 'Simply Mad')[/QUOTE]
Nuno Bettencourt called it Simply Mad once in a guitar magazine interview. I've got that magazine still actually, it's from 1991 and has a couple of funny pictures of Brian in it.
of course, if he did sing Slightly Mad (just for arguments sake) he'd probably throw "HIT ME WITH YOUR HEART AND WITH YOUR SOUL" in odd places throughout it.
Nuno Bettencourt called it Simply Mad once in a guitar magazine interview. I've got that magazine still actually, it's from 1991 and has a couple of funny pictures of Brian in it.
of course, if he did sing Slightly Mad (just for arguments sake) he'd probably throw "HIT ME WITH YOUR HEART AND WITH YOUR SOUL" in odd places throughout it.
For those of us (myself included) who believe most (in my opinion at least 90%) of the setlist should have been Freddie songs, what songs would you have put in to replace Brian's songs, and who would have sung them?
Gary could have done something like Bicycle or Killer Queen, instead of Hammer To Fall. I think he deserved more than one number. Maybe Lisa doing I Was Born ... can't quite picture that but who knows. And Annie Lennox doing It's A Hard Life maybe ... it wouldn't be any like Freddie's but it'd be an interesting experiment and Brian could've arranged a nice guitar duet with Iommi. Seal doing Mother Love would be nice imo as well as Roger Taylor singing Don't Stop Me. A non-Freddie's song that could have been included is Great Pretender. And I think Mike Moran should have a lot more than just playing on one song and singing along another ... after all, he was apart from the other Queennies, the person whom Freddie shared the most musically.
"Seal doing Mother Love"
I didn't quite like his Who Wants To Live Forever, but I actually think it would've been nice to hear him sing Mother Love.
Here's another point that I have some thoughts about. Why didn't they include any MiH stuff? I know the album was 3 years away from completion, but surely they could've thrown some snippets around? Maybe they hadn't found all the songs yet?
(Mental picture of Brian stumbling across a tape labelled "It's a Beautiful Day, 1980" and smacking himself).
I didn't quite like his Who Wants To Live Forever, but I actually think it would've been nice to hear him sing Mother Love.
Here's another point that I have some thoughts about. Why didn't they include any MiH stuff? I know the album was 3 years away from completion, but surely they could've thrown some snippets around? Maybe they hadn't found all the songs yet?
(Mental picture of Brian stumbling across a tape labelled "It's a Beautiful Day, 1980" and smacking himself).
[QUOTE][QUOTENAME]Zebonka12 wrote: [/QUOTENAME](Mental picture of Brian stumbling across a tape labelled "It's a Beautiful Day, 1980" and smacking himself).[/QUOTE]
:D
:D
Bicycle Race would have been interesting by Gary Cherone...of course Extreme included that in their medley.
[QUOTE][QUOTENAME]Fone Bone wrote: [/QUOTENAME]I'm sure Paul could have handled more Freddie songs, and Brian certainly wasn't pushing him too hard. (No Somebody To Love, no Killer Queen, but when they add ONE new Queen song for the US Tour it's Dragon Attack !)
[/QUOTE]
You're insane if you think Paul rodgers could sing Somebody to Love.
[/QUOTE]
You're insane if you think Paul rodgers could sing Somebody to Love.
[QUOTE][QUOTENAME]Sebastian wrote: [/QUOTENAME] Seal doing Mother Love would be nice imo [/QUOTE]
Seal singing a song that wasn't even close to being finished? Yeah, that's a realistic thought.
Seal singing a song that wasn't even close to being finished? Yeah, that's a realistic thought.
He could've sung the verses Fred had already written and recorded ;)
btw, maybe we can clear something up please. I think I remember that Bob Geldof said that "Too Late God" is a song that he wrote together with Freddie. The Solo Collection doesn't feature any of it, and even Geldof's album doesn't credit the song to Freddie in any way, unless secretly. So what's the story about this? Sorry, but it's bugging me for a few years now.
Jan
Jan
"You're insane if you think Paul rodgers could sing Somebody to Love."
Aye. There's blues and soul and stuff, then there's gospel. They've similar roots, but they're oh so different in delivery and I don't think Paul Rodgers could do that song. I love being proven wrong. But - I'll stick to me guns on this score.
"Seal singing a song that wasn't even close to being finished? Yeah, that's a realistic thought."
Well what do you mean 'wasn't even close to being finished'? For one nobody actually knows when Brian's verse was done (the lyrical difference suggests that it was either a while before or after Freddie did his bits - take for example "I don't want to sleep with you/I don't want a stormy affair", compared to "My body's aching/My dreams are all the company I keep" - I say they're apart, but I just don't know which was first).
There were the makings of a song there, they already had a beat, the chord progressions would already have been there (heck, A Winter's Tale was played/programmed by Freddie, wasn't it?). I know it would've been an awful effort, but if they wanted to, they could have included a song like Mother Love.
Aye. There's blues and soul and stuff, then there's gospel. They've similar roots, but they're oh so different in delivery and I don't think Paul Rodgers could do that song. I love being proven wrong. But - I'll stick to me guns on this score.
"Seal singing a song that wasn't even close to being finished? Yeah, that's a realistic thought."
Well what do you mean 'wasn't even close to being finished'? For one nobody actually knows when Brian's verse was done (the lyrical difference suggests that it was either a while before or after Freddie did his bits - take for example "I don't want to sleep with you/I don't want a stormy affair", compared to "My body's aching/My dreams are all the company I keep" - I say they're apart, but I just don't know which was first).
There were the makings of a song there, they already had a beat, the chord progressions would already have been there (heck, A Winter's Tale was played/programmed by Freddie, wasn't it?). I know it would've been an awful effort, but if they wanted to, they could have included a song like Mother Love.