When, a few months ago, I received my ticket for the Berlin concert from the German Fan Club, accompanied by a short note written on letterhead depicting the Hubble telescope’s three pillars of creation, ‘a chrysalis for new stars’*, their terrestrial equivalent were in the course of developing their own chrysalis – that of the first Queen and Paul Rodgers studio album.

Now we can hear the result: Setting the pace with a racy party piece ‘Cosmos Rockin’, we are scarcely allowed to catch breath with the primeval echoes of ‘Time To Shine’, followed by ‘Still Burnin’’ which contains the explanation for bringing us this new opus along with its promotional tour. Although ‘Cosmos Rockin’’ is an obvious choice for a live performance, the fourth track, ‘Small’, provides a vivid image of a gentle, mass sing-along for a concert audience. (At the time of writing, we are living in hope that it will be added to the set list).

Just when you were being lulled into a sense of well-being, along stomp the ‘Warboys’, but hot on their heels is the haunting processional ‘We Believe’, an anthemic and visionary rallying cry.

Halfway through the album we have a cheery, foot-tapping fun ditty, ‘Call Me’. Then the fourth requisite for this ‘marriage’ of Queen with Paul Rodgers – to add to some things that are old, some things that are new, some things that are borrowed – is fulfilled with ‘Voodoo’ - some things that are blues! But next a bonus is brought to us by ‘Some Things That Glitter’, a deceptively simple ballad which I love.

Sandwiched between the familiar ‘C-lebrity’ and ‘Say It’s Not True’, both with their own particular statements, we find ‘Through The Night’, featuring the pleadings of a lost soul asking for guidance.

Just when you thought it was safe to get back in the water, the album draws to its conclusion with a piece of pure musical onomatopoeia: ‘Surf’s Up, School’s Out’. There remains only the double entendre of ‘small reprise’ which is both a reprise of 'Small' and a small reprise.

In the age of the i-Pod, we can be thankful that we have been reminded, and with such quality and style, of what an album actually is. Although the debate about life on other planets continues, Earth must be unique for rock ‘n’ roll of this calibre – it surely cannot exist elsewhere in the cosmos!

I keep thinkin' about what I lost And what I might have found I went to sleep and when I woke Everything had turned around

Autocue The utterly victorious rock show got underway on the dot at 19.30. With an exhilarating, playful song (‘Surf’s Up’), funny disguise (drummer Taylor wore a ‘grandpa’ mask for ‘’39’) and a never-ending hit repertoire from ‘Radio Ga Ga’ to ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘We Are The Champions’. New singer Paul Rodgers, thanks to comical autocue support (“Go four steps back”) had Queen’s yesteryear totally in his control, approaching it once for lyrical reference – on ‘I Want It All’.

Masterminds Taylor won them over with his terrific drum solo, but May was the mouthpiece: “After Strauß, there now follows our tribute to another genius, to my friend Freddie Mercury”, who participated at the Stadthalle “live” twice - on a video clip on the Queen classics ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘Bijou’.

Backstage “Through the whole concert I just thought: “I hope I won’t blow it with ‘The Blue Danube’!”” Backstage Brian May revealed his fears during the show and was delighted with the ‘Queen Special’: “I’ll have to bag ten of them for my family.” The celebration with red wine and champagne lasted so long that the private jet had to stay put at Schwechat airport and Taylor checked into the Intercontinental in the small hours.

Queen and Paul Rodgers are arriving for their Vienna concert at 3 pm from the last gig in Prague before going for a soundcheck in the Stadthalle. Shortly before the show they plan to hold a business meeting with Rudi Dolezal, who is working on producing the ultimate Freddie Mercury story on video early next year. After the show it's straight off to the airport for a midnight take-off!

I promise great rock’n’roll show

Author: A. Novakovic | 29.10.2008 - 09:05

The singer Paul Rogers and the British band “Queen” will perform tonight at the Belgrade Arena. In his interview for “Blic”, Rogers promises fantastic show and says that he is looking forward to his first performance in Serbia.
Rogers does not mind being compared to Fraddie Mercury, the legendary singer of the band “Queen”, who passed away in 1991. The former singer of the bands “Bad Company” and “Free” admits that nobody can replace Mercury.

“I am looking forward to our first performance in Belgrade. It will be a fantastic show, because “Queen” always has top-class concerts. We will sound great, we will have the biggest screen in the world and we will play both old and new songs. I know that our Serbian fans have waited for a long time to hear “Queen”. Come to the concert because this might be the only chance to see us live”.

How did you start collaboration with the band “Queen”?
“I cooperated with Brian May many times, we recorded an album dedicated to Muddy Waters, played at several humanitarian concerts, but we did not talk about the possibility to perform with “Queen” at the time. Four years ago we appeared together in a TV show, played several song of the band and my two songs… After the show Brian and Roger (Tylor) asked me to be their singer. I think it was very brave of them and I am proud to be part of one of the greatest rock’n’roll bands in the world.”

Do you plan to continue collaboration after the tour?
“We do not make any long-term plans. At the beginning, we decided to play at several concerts and then we went on the European, and then on the world tour… The tour finishes in December and at this moment I really don’t know if we are going to continue our collaboration.”

Of course, fans will always compare you with Freddie Mercury…
“I did not think about that when I accepted Bryan and Roger’s offer. Nobody can replace Freddy! He was an incredible singer with a unique stage performance. His influence on music is endless and that is the reason why we called this project from the beginning “Queen” and Paul Rogers. We have just put our strengths together.”

Last month you released “The Cosmos Rocks”, the first studio album of “Queen” after a 13-year-break.
“Two years ago after our concert in Vancouver we decided to enter the studio and start preparing some music material and we really enjoyed recording. Roger is an excellent drummer and a very talented composer, Bryan is a great guitarist,…Some songs are carefully produced, while some are just a result of a current inspiration. For example, the song “Voodoo” represents a real jazz session. I began playing the guitar and everybody joined. I think that we have managed to retain a positive atmosphere on that album.”

What are your future plans?
“(Laughing). I don’t play with superstars. I have my own band with which I perform during the breaks of the tour with “Queen”. I also collaborated with “Trans-Siberian Orchestra”, even “Bee Gees” invited me to sing with them… To be honest, I really need vacation and time to think about everything. I have a wonderful house in Canada with a view of the lake and there is no better place for vacation.”

“Blic” readers meet member of “Queen”

Author: A. N. | 31.10.2008 - 10:14

The British band “Queen” and the singer Paul Rogers held an excellent concert for 10,000 people at the Belgrade Arena two days ago. This event will always be of special importance for our three readers, who owing to “Blic” and “Lupa promotion” concert agency, had a chance to meet Bryan May, Roger Taylor and Paul Rogers.

“It was great. The meeting lasted only several minutes, but we got autographs, chatted with the band members and asked Bryan May to play the song “White Queen” from their second album, but they didn’t. In any case, the concert was great,” Nenad Savic from Belgrade says.
Aleksandar Djurdjev from Zrenjanin says that he is extremely happy about having a chance to meet the famous musician.
“They are so relaxed, honest and above all, good people. May asked me about my profession and I said that I sing in a church choir, which delighted him,” Djurdjev says.
Sasa Ninkovic from Belgrade had only words of praise for the English musicians and their performance.
“They are so cool, I will remember this experience for the rest of my life. Everything was great. Meeting them and the gig were phenomenal,” Ninkovic says.
If you were not at the Belgrade Arena on Wednesday evening, you missed a fantastic concert which lasted two hours and twenty minutes. The guitarist Bryan May and the drummer Roger Taylor delighted the audience and the general atmosphere was amazing. The audience was in a great mood, singing all songs with the band. However, Paul Rogers cannot really replace Mercury, but you just forget it when you hear “I Want It All”, “Radio Ga-Ga”, “Show Must Go On”, ”Bohemian Rhapsody”...
After the concert, Bryan May and the band left the concert with extremely positive impressions, adding that they really had a great time in Belgrade.

Queen Live 2008. Tuesday in Budapest, on Saturday in Vienna. - 'The
Cosmos Rocks' show progresses.

On 27 July 1986, Queen wrote music history once again; in the
Nepstadion, Budapest, they played the very first open-air concert in
the eastern bloc in front of 70,000 fans. Musically speaking, the fall
of the Wall - and the last great appearance of the legendary Freddie
Mercury. On Tuesday night they appeared again with new singer Paul
Rodgers at the "place of emotional triumph" (to quote Brian May) and
once again cheered the Hungarian spirit.

'Tavaszi Szel', a children's song in the format of 'Hänschen Klein' (a
19th century German folk/children's song) spontaneously extemporised
by Mercury in 1986, was also the highlight of a terrific show in the
Budapest Arena - a Brian May solo performed on the B-stage within the fans,

Grown Together

And there was the absolutely legendary to beat - With the new
album 'The Cosmos Rocks' up their sleeve, in front of 10 000
enthusiastic fans they did not present a complacent 'We are losing
ourselves in rarities'-show, but only the global hits. From the opener
'Hammer To Fall' to the grand finale with 'We Will Rock You' and 'We
Are The Champions' there was 140 minutes of participatory rock,
carried by anthems like 'Radio Ga Ga', 'Another One Bites The dust'
(with a bizarre wild west video) and 'I Want To Break Free'. Unlike
2005, when Rodgers was still an odd man out, tripping across the stage
with leanings towards karaoke on these Queen Classics, they have now
grown together into a stadium rock band. That was displayed most
notably with classics like 'I Want It All' or 'Tie Your Mother Down'
and in particular with the few excursions into Rodger's past.

The new hard rock arrangement of 'Bad Company' was a surprise, and even the
well-worn 'All Right Now' came across amazingly fresh with an epic
guitar section.

'Drum-Gag' and Freddie 'Live'

A spectacular highlight was a ludicrous 'Drum-Gag' where the drum was
built around Roger Taylor whilst playing his the solo. Freddie Mercury was
also 'live' in Budapest. On 'Bijou' and 'Bohemian Rhapsody', he sang
in video clips - as he will do this Saturday at the ÖSTERREICH concert in
the Stadthalle.

Picture caption: On 1.11 Queen and Paul Rodgers will also deliver a Mercury tribute.

Sold out! On 1 November Queen will be wowing 13,700 fans at the ÖSTERREICH Concert. “That the tickets have been selling even better than in Freddie’s time is almost unbelievable!” Brian May commented on the run on tickets for the Vienna concert on 1 November in the Stadthalle. Four weeks before the comeback CD The Cosmos Rocks makes its Austrian debut, the ÖSTERREICH concert was sold out: 13,700 tickets have gone – with the biggest possible capacity of the Stadthalle; the extensive stage structure including a 20-metre-long catwalk will not allow for any more attendees. The promoters LSK indicated enthusiastically, “We’re now trying to increase the ticket allocation though”.

At the Vienna concert, Queen, with singer Paul Rodgers, will not only deliver the essence of 35 years of rock history in 140 minutes, but a Mercury tribute as well – with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘Bijou’ played “live” from the video screen.

Concert. Queen’s ÖSTERREICH concert on 1 November has long since been sold out – that was the bad news for anybody who was still looking for tickets. Now the good news: as of today a further 500 tickets are available. “We have enlarged the Stadthalle, so to speak, and so can increase the allocation slightly”, explained the promoter LSK. The run on Queen tickets is more than understandable – the band is celebrating its big comeback 17 years after the death of singer Freddie Mercury.

Here is a digest of both fan and press commentaries from the German leg of the tour:

Extracts from Press Reviews

After the first seven songs in quick succession, hit after hit, Rodgers stood all at once alone on stage with an acoustic guitar and played a very fine version of ‘Seagull’. Of course, Brian May did not want to be left behind in any department, and followed, also solo, with a ‘sing-along for Freddie’ version of ‘Love Of My Life’, which was enthusiastically supported by the sold-out arena. Taylor joined the company and together they started the wonderfully cryptic ‘A Night At The Opera’ highlight ‘’39’, in the middle of which they break off their performance to get the rest of the musicians (without Rodgers) on to the B-stage with them to start the song over again. ..

Surprisingly, Taylor sang a really reasonable version of ‘A Kind Of Magic’ – May and the second guitarist (who funnily enough also played a copy of the Brian May guitar) presented the two-voiced guitar melodies as if on the studio version and you could determine, at that moment, that nobody could dispute the appearance of the band under the name ‘Queen’. ..

They turned the corner with a version of ‘Radio Gaga’ which again worked wonderfully, together with scenes from Fritz Lang’s ‘Metropolis’ on the video screen, as well as the ritual clapping of the audience, a happening staged so well that it could not go wrong. Another highlight was ‘The Show Must Go On’ – Rodgers managed to bring to this ‘Innuendo’ swansong a totally harmonious note of his own by means of his fine blues phrasing in best ‘Free’ manner. …

Jan Wölfer, ‘regioactive.de’, about Mannheim

No support band, no long wait, at a quarter past eight an evening began, which with 26 songs in just under two and a half hours developed into a huge surprise - not only for sceptics and Freddie fans. After a prelude of copious 'Cosmos' lightning and thunder, the band took a chance with a new song as opener - 'Surf's Up, School's Out'. It fitted superbly in line with the subsequent (age) old thrillers 'Tie Your Mother Down' and 'Fat Bottomed Girls'. Then a confident about-turn with 'Another One Bites The Dust', 'I Want It All' and 'I Want To Break Free'. Half an hour had not yet past, but the house was standing, singing and cheering. What was happening?

Evidently the band on stage was one that had found its soul again, and a way to deal with the void left by the ever missed Freddie. The often operatic lavishness once again had the easy irony that was so badly needed, the singing parts, often with many voices, were again closer to Mercury, May's guitar had all the freedom that it needed. At last Queen were again sounding queenier that was a really liberating experience for all concerned.

And perhaps also the meadowy air of Munich played its part, so that the musicians played their material in so relaxed and natural fashion as if it were the easiest thing in the world to bring a legend to life again. In any case they brought a fine Bavarian gag with them - after their visit to the Oktoberfest the previous evening - in (tourists') traditional garb and with 'singing tankard' they came on to a small stage in the middle of the arena and all started fervently warbling a ‘a Volkslied’ as Brian May said in German, namely the party sway-along 'Thirty Nine'. But even more noteworthy was the solo from Roger Taylor (the second original Queen member apart from May) on the very same spot: Sarting with only the sticks upon the strings of an electronic double-bass, he let hi-hat, snare, toms and cymbal be built around him until he at the end he could use the whole set of drums at full throttle for ‘Im In Love With My Car’.

The new songs were worked superbly into the programme, (‘C-lebrity’), really good (‘We Believe’), occasionally the new numbers were very reminiscent of the blues-rock from Rodgers’s ex-band ‘Free’. But their greatest hit ‘All Right Now’) is now so taken for granted in the repertoire, it is as if it was already tendered out in the 70s for the secondary use of Brian May…

Already before the encore, Freddie had given his band a quick nod from the video screen. For a performance without him, it could not have gone better.

Michael Grill, Abendzeitung, Munich

Fan Comments

I thought the concert was super, Brian was 5 or 6 metres from us the whole time – we were standing directly in front of his microphone! ‘Surf’s Up’ is a really cool intro, and ‘Cosmos Rockin’’ live was superbly brilliant, a really positive surprise!

It became quiet all around when May took himself to the end of the catwalk and there, sitting on a stool with his acoustic guitar in hand, announced ‘an old German folk song’. For a fraction of an eye-flutter you could touch the silence and hear the intro to ‘Alt wie ein Baum’ before Brian May quickly and purposefully turned it into the chords of ‘’39’. The tension dissolved in laughter, astonishment and enthusiasm; the auditorium went wild.

Dramatically and extremely skilfully he let ‘Love of My Life’ roll from his guitar and the crowd sang along to it. By this point we had gulped on our choice between a handkerchief and a lump in out throats.

Roger Taylor built, in the true sense of the word, up his drum solo at the end of the catwalk. Starting with the sticks on the strings of a bass he drummed together his kit piece by piece, which the roadies completed during the piece, so that an immense thunder and gale arose from the gentle drumming at the end – a solo that actually deserved the description and that Roger Taylor whipped to a dynamic climax with the singing of ‘I’m In Love With My Car’.

What Brian May drew from the guitar of wood from a fireplace and over several minutes let scream, whine, sing and blast, would have set so many guitarists brooding. Not only with his many solos was it obvious that an exceptional guitarist was at the strings, leaving so many of his international colleagues looking as old as the hills.

Several times during the evening Paul Rodgers had the opportunity to refer to his own career path. Whether along with just acoustic guitar or at the piano with the band with ‘Bad Company’, the man is a phenomenon and his voice like the force of a roaring waterfall or alternatively like the morning hoarfrost on the leaves. Rodgers lives the blues and is a rocker!

I was incredibly happy to have been there for the world premiere of ‘We Believe’. When it was played at the sound check, I knew that they would introduce it because it had already been played at the sound check in Munich so it was due. I found Brian’s introduction to this song worked well – he said before the song that they now wanted to sing about us, ‘whom they believe in’, so it was logical that he would also sing a few lines.

11,000 Fans acclaim Queen in Hanover

Queen are rocking the north, presented by NDR 2. The rock heroes of the seventies and eighties are back! Seventeen years after the death of their charismatic singer Freddie Mercury, Brian May and Roger Taylor are playing the old Queen classics with singer Paul Rodgers, well-known from Free and Bad Company. The band, with this new line-up, has now recorded its first "new" album "The Cosmos Rocks". On 4th October 2008 they were in Hanover. Queen were acclaimed with standing ovations by over 11,000 fans in the sold-out TUI arena.after over two hours of playing. NDR 2 reporter Dirk Plasberg was there – here is his report:

"It's A Kind Of Magic" – Taylor sang sitting at the second drum kit, assembled on the small stage at the end of the 15-meter-long catwalk, just over the heads of the fans. And they sang along. To turn back time for a few hours with the old hits, revelling in memories. The venue was sold out, the fans between 20 and 60: Three generations doting on one band – not many groups in the world can claim to have that.

"A great show from the old gents", "they have an aura’, "they make music from within and everything fits together – atmosphere, acoustics, mixture of old and new songs – simply an amazing concert experience", raved Queen fans, some of whom had come a long way - from Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Berlin and Thüringen – for this one show.

When Brian May’s guitar roars on "I Want To Break Free", the first chords sound of "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", when Roger Taylor’s drum sets the beat for "Another One Bites The Dust", then the time travelling back to youthful days is started. Brian May sang the song "Love Of My Life" first on the acoustic set - the Mercury anthem of the seventies from the LP "A Night At The Opera". And as "Bohemian Rhapsody" resounded, Freddie Mercury, faded in on the screen, sang the number with Paul Rodgers singing the close of the emotive song. Past and present blending together.

Queen had only four new songs in the bag from their current CD "The Cosmos Rocks". Apart from the title track they played "We Believe",the single "C-Lebrity", which ridicules the C-list fame of reality TV, and the opener "Surf’s Up, School’s Out", which quickly ran into the 70s song "Tie Your Mother Down". After that were the first fireworks of hits with "Fat Bottomed Girls", "I Want It All", "I Want Break free" and "Another One Bites The Dust". Those were the rhythms that made the fans ecstatic.

The middle part was marked by instrumental solos – Brian May held forth in the guitar solo, Roger Taylor also performed on drums. Too long a break to catch one’s breath for the hit fetishists, a treat in the other direction for acoustic freaks. Paul Rodgers played his part in an unspectacular way tonight; reserved at times, consciously not behaving as the dazzling front man because he knows about the myth of Freddie Mercury "whose" songs he sings with reverence and feeling. He is aware that he cannot simply replace the monument. It is treading a thin line that is emotionally not easy for the singer and for the fans of long-standing. Original and Imitation? Paul Rodgers does not want to be a replacement; he would lose face.

Many fans respect the new Queen singer for his performance: "He’s taking on a role appropriate to the circumstance – he’s a fantastic singer, accepting and interpreting the songs in his own way. As you can sense Freddie between every guitar riff, he’s always there during the concert. And that’s simply beautiful", said Ines from Thüringen. And Frank from Osnabrück thinks that Paul Rodgers does not rank behind Freddie in anything – he is a worthy successor, even if you cannot replace Freddie Mercury.

At the close Queen accelerated once more. The last three quarters of an hour belonged to "Radio Ga-Ga", "The Show Must Go On", "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", the Free classic "All Right Now" and "We Will Rock You". After 25 songs and 2 hours 15 minutes it was over. Standing Ovations from the fans. You couldn’t have more praise for the rock veterans.

God Save The Queen – even from herself: Queen and Paul Rodgers were rocking in the sold-out TUI-Arena in Hanover because…The Show Must Go On.

It was thundering and whirring, and a heavy storm descended on the projection at the back of the stage. Then the stars circulated, the planets flew and the guitar blasted off - the Cosmos rocked.

‘Queen & Paul Rodgers’ are on the ‘Cosmos Rocks’ tour through Europe, stopping off on Saturday at the TUI arena, Hanover. A crowd of 11,000 wanted to know what the two remaining members of the British super group Queen, Brian May (61) and Roger Taylor (59) together with the hired musician and successor to Freddie Mercury Paul Rodgers would make of Queen’s legacy.

Paul Rodgers (58), former singer of ‘Free’ and ‘Bad Company’, has never made a secret of the fact that he was not a second Freddie. He is the sincere rocker with blues in his voice, not an exalted Diva; he lacks the desire to pose and be emotive. On top of that, bassist John Deacon has long since parted company with the whole business. (As Brian May described the relationship with their former band member: ‘He lets us be and speaks with our accountants rather than with us’).

But can the band still be called Queen? The honest answer would be no; even May and Taylor know that. But a new start without the old songs? Unthinkable. The show must go on! So they continue to make use of their own history, but at least there is – apart from the musical ‘We Will Rock You’ guaranteeing the royalties – a new album, ‘The Cosmos Rocks’, from which, however, hardly anything was played this evening.

People do, after all, want to hear other stuff: “Tie your mother down“, “Fat bottomed girls“, “Another one bites the dust“, “I want it all , “I want to break free“. And so they came, the old songs, exactly in that order, mighty and grandiose, rich and full, but also a little ponderous. Yet May’s guitar sings just as creamily as before, and his tresses are still just as long and black as we have known them.

Rodgers and May romped the catwalk to the small stage in the middle of the auditorium, whenever possible, up and down again; light and video effects were opulent and inventive, the sound was loud – but the great feelings did not arise at first. It was too banal, what there was to hear – a proper rock band with a proper singer, though without the glitz and razzmatazz.

May, seizing his acoustic guitar, sat right at the front and asked in a theatrical way: ‘Please sing with me ‘Love of my Life’ – for Freddie’, a tear-jerker to commemorate the Queen front man who died in 1991. Then drummer Roger Taylor had his drum kit assembled at the front and sang, ‘I’m in love with my car’, with expression and grace. May stood next to him beaming, and suddenly there was an enthralling rock song from two older gents, full of spirit. Even the snappy ‘It’s a kind of magic’ was sung by Taylor, and you ask yourself, ‘Why doesn’t he do that more often?’ May let a brisk solo loose for that one, and suddenly we were enjoying ourselves in the arena in a downright queeny fashion.

It was going up and down, back and forth. The Majestic and the Everyday were conjoined. Rodgers was able to sing ‘Bad Company’, one of his old blues-rock hits, before May started his particular kind of a solo trip. Polyphone echo cascades and spherical ribbons of melody were gliding through the house, causing amazement - and there, there he was all of a sudden – Freddie! Only on video, but who cares?

He would have liked what Brian did there. ‘Radio Gaga’ acclaimed by 11,000 pairs of outstretched arms, led us up to the home straight, where ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ and ‘The Show Must Go On’ were waiting. And finally he came again; he whom one was always hearing, much as Paul Rodgers was also in front twirling at the microphone stand: Freddie Mercury. The band played ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, in memoriam, to the video-recording – up to the baroque middle part, which was illustrated with the most splendid and flashy pictures of Mercury and at which the ‘real’ (or is it imitation?) band was silent.

For the finale it could only be the two greatest triumphs of Queen - “We will rock you“ and “We are the champions“. Two and a quarter hours of rock history were over, spectacularly celebrated and worn to a frazzle at the same time. God Save The Queen – even from herself.

By Matthias Schmidt

http://www.rnz.de/RNZ_Metropolregion/00_20081004074200_Die_Koenigin_ist_wieder_auferstanden.html

The Queen has risen again

by Peter Wiest

Whether it would be a requiem or a resurrection celebration: a question, which may have arisen for purists before this concert, and they are clearly in the minority. Most of the well over ten thousand present at the Queen and Paul Rodgers concert in the sold out SAP arena were simply just happy that it offered them a chance they had never at all bargained for: Once more to bawl and stamp to ‘We Will Rock You’ in original version; once more to close their eyes and melt in sheer bliss with ‘Love Of My Life’. And once more, after more than two hours of a fascinating concert, to stretch their clenched fists into the air, feeling like Dietmar Hopp if 1899 Hoffenheim* have just won the German Championship – and sing, at the tops of their voices, ‘We Are The Champions’.

Queen are true Champions. There is no doubt about it after this concert. They have broken through the iron rule ‘They never come back’, which states, ‘If you were once right at the top and dropped out, you’ll never manage to come back at the same level as before’. More than that: Queen have made the impossible possible.

As in 1991, when singer Freddie Mercury died of AIDS, it was perfectly clear: That was the end of the band. Queen without Freddie – that was like the Rolling Stones without Mick Jagger, like the Doors without Jim Morrison; possible in theory, but completely unthinkable on a practical level. The charismatic Mercury had made too great a mark on this band.

Without him Queen would not be able to continue to hold their own – at best as a cheap copy of themselves, perhaps.

For well over two hours, what blustered over the stage of the SAP arena was everything – only a cheap copy it was not. On the contrary, it was rock music with the same intensity that formerly characterised this band. Perhaps with no longer quite the same vigour as back then – we have all got older. But, to make up for that, with an unconditional devotion, with a passion that was almost tangible - and with the accumulated experience of the almost 40 years which the old gents have by now spent in the music business.

"Another One bites the Dust", "Crazy little thing called love", "Tie your mother down": The songs that made the band famous were almost all to be heard this evening. Okay: Singer Paul Rodgers is not Freddie Mercury, of course. That granted, here is the astonishing thing – he does not have to be him in any way - the Queen magic is still there just the same. Mercury was Mercury, Rodgers is Rodgers: He delivers the songs he commands, as an experienced rock singer with his wonderful blues voice, with absolute brilliance. Initially he does not touch others, like the ballads, at all. These were then taken on by guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, both amazingly good singers as well, or by the audience. In this way, ten thousand sang the chorus of ‘Love of my Life’ which Brian May sang actually with almost as much touching beauty as Freddie Mercury once did – that really has almost something sacred about it.

Apart from that there was a lot of scope for Brian May’s guitar solos which sound more powerful than ever; for Roger Taylor’s percussion escapades with which he delighted the audience for almost 15 minutes – and thankfully also for Paul Rodger’s own music.

‘Bad Company’, the song after which he named his second band in 1973, became one of the absolute highlights of the evening; and the Free hit ‘All Right Now’ heard once more, is also not bad – the song is over four decades old – it came off as if it had been composed only yesterday.

It has many facets, this new Queen show – some here or there even bordering on kitsch; for instance, all of a sudden after a wonderful guitar solo, Freddie Mercury is actually brought in from the screen and allowed to sing ‘Bijou’. We could have been spared this tear-jerker as well. On the other hand the whole concert showed that Queen manage Freddie’s musical legacy more than worthily – and have actually found a well-nigh perfect form in which to present it live.

No, it was not a requiem. It was a true resurrection. Queen are back again – Long live the Queen!

* As per www.whoswho.de, Dietmar Hopp is a sports-promoting businessman on the board of the software company SAP, who supported both the building of the SAP arena in Mannheim where the concert took place, and for several years also the football team 1899 Hoffenheim which succeeded in entering the first division of the Bundesliga in 2008.

The mis-spelling ‘Freddy’ throughout the article has been corrected by the translator.

The Show Simply Has To Go On

Rock group Queen are inspirational with Paul Rodgers in the completely sold out Munich Olympiahalle

Munich. ‘It’s a Kind of Magic’ – Yes! A phenomenal appearance: ‘One Dream, One Soul, One Prize’. 17 years after the death from Aids of their charismatic front man Freddie Mercury, the remainder of the British group Queen rocked the Olympiahalle, which was full to the brim, on Wednesday evening. The 12,000 totally enthused fans raised the roof as the ‘new one’, Paul Rodgers, sang the wildly acclaimed classic ‘We Are The Champions’.

By now it is supposed that even ex-master of ceremonies Freddie, who is sitting up on his cloud casting a long shadow over the stage, is getting the lighter out of his pocket. Because such a rhythm could not elude anyone. Of course, guitarist Brian May built on the fact that most were proficient Queen fans – people who could sing every line off by heart.

‘The Cosmos Rocks’ tour began with lightning and thunder and an enormous meteor shower. There was particular excitement over 58-year old Paul Rodgers, the former singer with Free and Bad Company, a blues trained bellower who is among the top-ranking of his craft. Would he carry off the hard rock-focused Queen sound? The warm up songs ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’, ‘I Want It All’, ‘I Want To Break Free’, convinced us. Rodgers added his own touch to them.

The songs from the new album were not out of line, fitting seamlessly into the overall artistry. At the centre of the show was Brian May, the doctor of astrophysics, who excelled on the typical Queen guitar broadsides. He was the one who was constantly talking to the audience. “We were at the Oktoberfest yesterday”, he declared in faultless German. “We had a lot of fun”. As proof, he was adorned with a costume hat and was swinging a kitschy singing beer tankard from the festival grassland.

50 per cent of the show was staged on the catwalk, which allowed the musicians to perform well into the crowd of howling fans. Rodgers was brandishing his microphone stand and May added garnish with poses and crazy guitar sounds. In the event both of the active members of Queen, May and drummer Roger Taylor, joined together right at the front for a fabulous hillbilly number. Taylor was awarded extra applause for a fantastic drum solo at the close of which he sang ‘Say It’s Not True’.

Now there was one hit after another. ‘The Show Must Go On’, ‘Radio Ga Ga’ – which was supported by sequences from the silent film ‘Metropolis’ – ‘We Will Rock You’. A few times Freddie was paid homage via the video screen and integrated into the show. There was a moving ‘goose pimple’ feeling with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. Here Mercury sang entirely alone at the beginning, accompanied only by his old sidekicks May and Taylor. Great idea at the end of the song: The Mercury – Rodgers duet.

A tremendous light show, an excellent zapped up sound, powerful beats and a conveyor belt of hits. Less theatrical bombastics than in the 70s and 80s, but instead, thanks to Rodgers, more blues rock. Queen were worth every cent of the entrance fee. And singer Paul Rodgers could, as an added extra, deliver Bad Company’s ‘Feel Like Making Love’ and, as the penultimate encore, the Free Classic ‘All Right Now’. The arena was a sea of waving arms.

Even without the charismatic Freddie Mercury, the Queen concert in the Olympiahalle Munich was impressive - as singer Paul Rodgers does not attempt to imitate him.

Brian May donned a traditional green costume hat and walked slowly along the catwalk which stretched almost into the middle of the Olympiahalle. May took his guitar, bowed and said, “Let’s sing it for Freddie”. Then he quietly started to sing ‘Love Of My Life’. The audience, deeply moved, sang along.

In 1991 the singer of the legendary rock band Queen, Freddie Mercury, died of AIDS. But that did not mean that it was finally all over for the band. For a few years now. guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor have already been appearing with Paul Rodgers, the former singer of ‘Free’ and ‘Bad Company’. This year the three of them have even released a new album and are currently on tour under the name ‘Queen and Paul Rodgers’.

A lot of people would certainly have thought that Queen without the charismatic Freddie Mercury was like the CSU in Bavaria without an absolute majority. But the past few days have shown that both are possible - and also can be absolutely effective. Even a band like Queen, for whom the singer took so much the centre stage, can exist without him - at least to a large degree.

It is the glamour, the big feeling, the irony and the virtuosity, hallmarks of Queen, which May and Taylor still manage to put across, as, for example, in the scene described at the beginning.

The new singer Paul Rodgers has also mastered his task well. He does not, thank God, try to imitate Freddie Mercury. Rodgers was wearing plain black trousers and a t-shirt – no comparison to Freddie Mercury’s extravagant costumes. His gestures are constrainedly non-glamorous; only sometimes twirling the microphone stand through the air as the Queen singer once did. The 58-year-old looks decidedly more like DJ Bobo than Mercury.

Rodger’s voice is more mellow, it has more blues, but carries the great Queen hits just as it is – and there were plenty of them to be heard at the show: ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘We Are The Champions’, ‘Another One Bites The Dust’, ‘Radio Ga Ga’. Within a good two hours, almost all were played.

With the songs from the new album, ‘The Cosmos Rocks’, Queen and Paul Rodgers were, by contrast, more restrained. Songs like ‘C-lebrity’ compare badly with the Queen classics. They are clumsier, simpler and plainer. The atmosphere in the audience immediately sank. After all, most fans had come stand in quiet remembrance, to grieve a little for Freddie and to enjoy the show.

In the background, video animations were running, May and Taylor establishing the tempo. At one point, drummer Roger Taylor sat at the front of the catwalk beating a drum. Bit by bit his drum kit was put together by the crew, and bit by bit he built up the rhythm. He even sang ‘It’s A Kind Of Magic’. For ten minutes Taylor stood alone in the spotlight – in former times that would have been unthinkable. The show is different from that of the Queen epoch, but it is still good.

At the end Freddie Mercury did appear on the stage. On the big screen, the singer was seen singing ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. Presentations from earlier performances were faded in with May and Taylor playing and Rodgers standing down to the left of the stage. It was not like that with Freddie Mercury. Still, the clock cannot now be turned back.

The rock band Queen is back. The new singer Paul Rodgers is roaring at concerts and now on new songs on the album ‘The Cosmos Rocks’. WELT-ONLINE spoke with guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor about men in women’s clothing and the impact of the gay ex-singer in America.

The album, ‘The Cosmos Rocks’ (Capitol) has just been released. Here the band combines knowledge of astrophysics, which guitarist Brian May introduces as an academic with a doctorate, with the penchant of their new singer for classic blues-rock. Where possible any too obvious echoes of the band in the seventies and eighties were avoided.

WELT ONLINE: Mr. May, don’t you know as a doctor of astrophysics that the cosmos vibrates rather than rocks?

Brian May: The completion of my PhD thesis was actually planned in 1970. But then my career in a rock band interrupted it. It was not until the 2005 tour that I managed to add some structure to my old notes. Since it appeared a bit absurd to all of us that a rock type like me should achieve his PhD at the advanced age of 60, the tongue-in-cheek title seemed to us to be suitable for the new album.

WELT ONLINE: Is it not absurd that half of the band Queen has kept the name in a totally new formation?

Roger Taylor: We thought long and hard over just this point. Queen in the intrinsic sense certainly cannot exist without Freddie Mercury and John Deacon. But if we had given ourselves a new name along with Paul Rodgers, our fans would still presumably be asking today what the two active Queen members May and Taylor are actually doing.

May: We sent him the new album, but he did not respond, which is a good sign. If he disapproves of something, he ‘phones to tell us so at once. He lets us be and speaks with our accountants rather than with us. Queen without Freddie probably makes no sense to him.

WELT ONLINE: In fact, [his] courage to be ridiculous is certainly missed on your new album.

Roger Taylor: Of course, because we all miss him. There is not the frivolity that used partly to produce the patently ridiculous. Nevertheless I would not describe it as devoid of humour.

WELT ONLINE: Was it Freddie Mercury’s singing that first enabled the ironic breaks in grandiose rock?

Taylor: Nobody could or can position the baroque vocal harmonies like him. I really think that not only his singing but also his whole personality released a kind of readiness in the three of us to take artistic risks. For example, it was he who gave me the courage to write a song like ‘Radio Ga Ga’ which was originally called ‘Radio Kacka’.

May: Which we can be glad about. Men over 60 in women’s clothing would be painful in the eyes of the beholder. Seriously though: Without Freddie, we can no longer use certain ingredients of the original ‘Queen-Cosmos’. But with Paul Rodgers we can focus more on blues-rock, which Roger and I were involved in even before the founding of Queen.

Taylor: At the end of the day, the new start with Paul Rodgers is a risk because we have to prove ourselves worthy of the history of our band, of course, but at the same time sound that much different so we are not considered as one of our own cover bands.

May: Good question. If you are 62 [sic - Brian is 61] years old like me you really don’t know how much more time you have with your family and you would actually prefer to stay at home. But the 16-year-old in me is urging me out to the music and the audience. It’s sure to sound like a cliché, but passion is still compelling me to make music in front of other people.

Taylor: With me it’s certainly also the wish to maintain some merit in an art form that is becoming increasingly worthless because there are more and more people with no talent cavorting about in it.

WELT ONLINE: You have already dedicated your new single, ‘C-lebrity’ to them.

Taylor: The term ‘Celebrity’, which originally implied something like talent, is totally devalued through completely talentless people who, when they are not just scratching their heads, are asleep on talk shows. Vulnerability, as a basic characteristic of our species, is something I like. But the vulnerability that is openly shown with a view to greed for the necessity to be loved at any price, which is shown by these modern ‘C-lebrities’, I find utterly repellent.

WELT ONLINE: Your former singer put off the American Mid-West with his leather campness. Will Paul Rodgers be the career saviour for Queen in America?

May: Of course it feels good that we can again fill arenas in America with Paul Rodgers, who enjoys a high standing with American rock audiences. But we met America’s aversion to Freddie’s openly displayed gayness with a ‘Stuff You’ attitude, which has done us nothing but good in other parts of the world and from which we still profit in Europe.

WELT ONLINE: Who actually belongs to the Queen company for production and performance rights?

Taylor: Brian, me and our manager, whose perspective is mostly more balanced than ours. We try not to plunder our own history to the extent that it looks like a closing-down sale. On the other hand, we don’t have to, because with the songs ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘We Are The Champions’, we created two anthems which are still happily used at sporting events today, so that even in 2008 every ten-year-old can still sing along to them.

WELT ONLINE: How come, then, that you, as a self-confessed hater of musicals, have agreed to a sequel to your West End success ‘We Will Rock You’ ?

Taylor: It’s true that musicals well and truly get on my nerves because, not uncommonly, a bad song idea is warbled in eleven different variations. I saw a musical of Lloyd Webber’s once and found it atrocious. I only agreed to our musical because we could take rock into a hitherto rather lousy form of theatre. What’s more, we keep control over all aspects of the production. That guarantees quality.

May: I don’t have so many reservations about musicals because I am married to an actress. Ben Elton, our stage writer, has written a script of the next story of Scaramouche and Galileo for a sequel of ‘We Will Rock You’, and when the time is right, I would be glad to translate it into a new musical.

On December 11 2004, it was announced that Queen would undertake their first tour in nineteen years with Paul Rodgers, formerly of Bad Company and Free, undertaking the task of lead singer. The ‘beans were spilled’ by Roger Taylor in the course of an interview with the German channel ZDF.

The three performed together at the UK Hall of Fame awards in Hackney, London, on November 11. For more pictures of this event, click here.

(translated by myself. Please note that I have re-translated only Brian's responses, not the questions).

KURIER: Hätten Sie je gedacht, noch einmal unter den Namen Queen in der Wiener Stadthalle zu spielen?
BRIAN MAY (Gitarre): Das war nie geplant. Ich hatte mein Queen-Leben abseits unseres "We Will Rock You"-Musicals bereits abgeschrieben. Doch dann kam eine Einladung zum 50-Jahre-Fender-Festival, und dort spielte ich zufällig auch mit Paul Rodgers. Ich habe das Band dieses Auftritts danach an Roger Taylor (Queen-Schlagzeuger; Anm.) gesandt und auch er war begeistert. Ein paar Wochen später sollten sowohl Queen als auch Paul bei der Hall Of Fame Show in London spielen. Und wir dachten uns, es sei den Versuch wert, es doch einmal zu dritt zu probieren. Plötzlich hat es Klick gemacht, und da wussten wir, dass da mehr dahinter steckt.

Nun wird die Tournee punkto Ticket-Verkäufen nur noch von U2 übertroffen.
Ich hatte zwar gehofft, dass wir noch ein paar Leute bewegen, aber dass wir die größten Hallen Europas in kürzester Zeit ausverkaufen, ist schier unglaublich.
Weshalb gibt es keine Zusatz-Konzerte?
Weil diese Tour spontan entstanden ist, wir in vielen Städten nur mehr das nehmen konnten, was zwischen anderen Konzerten verfügbar war, und wir auch nur eine gewisse Anzahl an Konzerten in Serie spielen können, um Pauls Stimme zu schonen. Aber wir planen einige Open-Air-Konzerte im Sommer.

Warum fehlt Bassist John Deacon?
Natürlich wäre es schön, wenn er bei unserem Tour-Comeback dabei wäre. Aber er hat nun mal den musikalischen Ruhestand gewählt. Da kann man nichts machen. John genießt sein Leben fern ab des Tour-Stress, ist aber in unseren Herzen mit dabei, so wie natürlich auch Freddie!

Ohne Freddie Mercury und John Deacon – manche Kritiker bezeichnen diese Queen-Tour als Mogelpackung.
Das ist Queen, weil Roger Taylor und ich Queen sind! Uns geht es dabei nur um die Musik. Wir wissen, dass wir gemeinsam mit Paul Rodgers sehr gute Musik machen können. Sehr gute Rockmusik, etwas, das dem Musik-Business ohnedies seit Langem fehlt. Und daran sollten sich die Kritiker erfreuen! Die Fans tun das, was der Vorverkauf ja beweist.

Wird Paul Rodgers dabei der einzige Sänger sein?
Nein, auch Roger und ich werden Vokal-Parts übernehmen. Und auch Freddies Stimme wird manchmal erklingen.

Wird man auch Ihren allergrößten Hit hören, "Bohemian Rhapsody"?
Das ist eine sehr schwierige Entscheidung, die wir noch nicht getroffen haben. Denn dieser Song ist viel zu sehr Freddies Baby. Letztendlich muss es Paul entscheiden, ob er das Stück singen will. Doch zum Glück haben wir nicht nur diesen einen Hit. Das schwierigstes Unterfangen auf dieser Tour heißt nämlich nicht: Was spielen wir? Sondern: Was spielen wir nicht? Aber wir werden schon deutlich mehr Queen- als Free- und Bad-Company-Songs spielen.

Sie waren seit 19 Jahren nicht mehr mit Queen auf Tour. Auf welche Songs freuen Sie sich am meisten?
"All Right Now" und "Can’t Get Enough Of Your Love" und all die anderen Songs von Paul Rodgers! Denn nun auch die Songs aus seiner grandiosen Karriere zu spielen, das ist das wirklich Spannende an dieser Tour. Das ist viel spannender als unsere Songs. Aber durch Paul entdecke ich gerade viele Queen-Songs ganz neu. Und auch Freddie war mir durch ihn schon lange nicht mehr so nahe wie in den letzten Tagen.

Ist diese Tour nun der würdige Abschied der Band Queen – oder ein Neubeginn?
Das wird mit Sicherheit nicht als unsere Abschieds-Tournee laufen. Diese Zusammenarbeit mit Paul Rodgers öffnet uns so viel neue Möglichkeiten. Es wird weitere Konzerte geben, auch in den USA, wo wir zuletzt 1982 gespielt haben. Und auch wieder neue Musik. Vielleicht spielen wir ja schon den einen oder anderen brandneuen Song auf dieser Tour.

Artikel vom 26.02.2005 |KURIER (Printausgabe) |Interview: Thomas Zeidler

Some of the biggest news to hit the classic rock world of late is the union of the surviving members of Queen with Paul Rodgers. Rodgers - who you know best from songs like "All Right Now" and "Feel Like Makin' Love" - told us the thing came about by mere happenstance, plus a bit of good chemistry.

"The U-K Music Hall of Fame asked me to go play there and I asked Brian (May) if he was going to be along because they were being nominated. He said, 'Yup.' And he asked me if I'd do a couple of Queen songs and I said, 'I'd only be too honored. Fantastic.' And it was just such a buzz to do, it just felt so very good. We walked off stage and we looked at each other and said, 'We gotta do this, we gotta take this on the road.' You know?"

As of right now, Queen and Paul Rodgers have about 24 dates planned for Europe and the U-K. Rodgers says things are shaping up pretty good for the tour to come over here to the States - as soon as we have official word, we'll let you know.

ON THIS DAY...
In 1974...Free's Paul Rodgers formed Bad Company with members of Mott the Hoople and King Crimson.

This month's of new edition of Rollingstone, out tomorrow reports on upcoming Queen tour with Paul Rodgers, "filling in on vocals", though "set to proceed without bassist John Deacon who chose not to participate".

Paul Rodgers: "I'm not trying to replace Freddie. I'm coming into this as myself, playing some of their material and some of mine. It's very challenging, because Freddie was a great frontman."

Brian May: "It will never be the same without Freddie. But it will be different in a very challenging and entertaining way. Rodgers was a real hero to Freddie. And a big influence - you can hear it on the early stuff."

Rodgers "officially at Queen school," studying the Queen catalogue, might yet be seen "trading vocals with a video image of Freddie" on Bo Rhap.

Tour kicks off (Mar 19) in South Africa, followed by European arena dates and likely a U.S. leg in the autumn.

It has now been confirmed that Jamie Moses will be joining the Queen + Paul Rodgers European Tour as a 2nd guitarist. Danny Miranda (WWRY Vegas band) will be performing bass duties. Keyboards will be handled by long-time Queen associate Spike Edney.

Queen + Paul Rodgers - European Tour
Paul Rodgers
Brian May
Roger Taylor
Spike Edney
-----------
plus Jamie Moses and Danny Miranda
For more information go to:

Interviews about the Tour on Dutch TV (Download viewed on www.roger-taylor.net):

Roger Taylor said that the idea of a tour didn’t feel right before, but that Paul Rodgers was taking it somewhere – in his own direction.

Brian May mentions that Paul Rodgers is a poet, that he interprets way he feels, and mentions the blues style of Paul Rodgers.

Paul Rodgers says that they love to play, that they are prepared to put up with the travelling because it just feels so good – that they’ll be playing Queen songs and his songs live – putting that together he’s really looking forward to that.

‘All Right Now?’ - Paul Rodgers Interview in Uncut Magazine (March Edition):

‘All we’re doing is following the feeling’ says Paul Rodgers, about going out to play live music with Queen. ‘We’ve talked about writing and recording together’. But they will see how the tour works first.

Paul feels that he is entering the tour as an equal partner with Queen. There are both those who want it to fail and Queen fans who think ‘it won’t be the same’. He pointed out, however, that they were not trying to make it the same.

He was asked about the differing styles between him and Freddie – he stated that he came from a blues/soul background whereas Freddie was a theatrical performer. However, they did share an ability to get an audience going and a conviction about being a live act.

Paul went on to speak about the taking of drugs in the 70s and 80s, but said that it got serious when ‘people started to drop off and die’.

He said they were currently working out the set list, realising that some things would work only in the studio and some live. There would also be some ‘Free and Bad Company stuff’.

When asked if there were any Queen numbers he wouldn’t want to sing, he said that he loves ‘Im Going Slightly Mad’ but doesn’t think he could sing it – To tackle something like that, maybe I’d have to loosen up a little bit’.

The Queen song Paul most wishes he’d written is ‘We Will Rock You’ as ‘it has all the qualities of a classic rock song. It’s got the beat, it’s got the enormous hook, you just get carried along by it. It’s one of those songs that brings everyone together, and that’s a magical thing’.

He assured us that he won’t be copying Freddie’s look in any way – ‘I’m just going out there to do my own thing’.

(NB - I have since learned that Paul has complained of being 'very much misquoted').

Q + PR HAVE LANDED!
London, England

The first week of rehearsals for Queen's Brian May, Roger Taylor, singer/songwriter Paul Rodgers, keyboardist Spike Edney, New York bassist Danny Miranda and guitarist Jaimie Moss.

"I did find it a little hard to concentrate, 'cause since I was a kid I've thought that Paul Rodgers has the best voice on the planet. He and Ray Charles are my favorites, If I had thought that one day I'd be playing with Paul I would have thought I was crazy to even think that. Zany how life comes full circle. To find people that I admire most are also beautiful people is a huge bonus and we're actually in the same room making music!!!
Someone pinch me"

Putting together the DVD version of Queen's 1986 Live at Wembley album rekindled something for guitarist Brian May. "It's been a voyage of rediscovery," he told Rolling Stone last night at the Songwriters Hall of Fame induction in New York. "What impresses me most is the spontaneity. You can see us kind of eyeing each other to see what to do next. We were a great partnership."

Those memories might finally push May and drummer Roger Taylor back on the road for a new tour, with guest-star singers replacing the late Freddie Mercury, who died of AIDS in 1992. "We're getting closer to the idea," Taylor admitted.

"We wrestle with it daily," May said. "We don't want to go out and replace Freddie. It would be unseemly, and it wouldn't feel right. But if we can go out in some kind of partnership way, and have some special guests, we'd be up for it. We love Robbie Williams, who's quite a loose cannon but quite a phenomenal artist. George Michael, Elton. It would probably be more than one special guest."

May and Taylor warmed up to the idea even more after backing Pavarotti at his charity concert in Modena, Italy, last month. "The whole audience treated us a like it was 1986 and we were still something to scream and shout about," May said....

VH1 NEWS:
PAUL RODGERS FIT FOR QUEEN

When you reach the wise age of most classic rockers, you've probably learned a thing or two about how to keep your performance stamina up through night after night of touring. In the '80s, that usually meant a lot cocaine and whiskey. For Paul Rodgers, who is about to embark on a worldwide tour with Queen, nowadays, that means something quite different. (Actuality #1) "I do meditate, I do yoga, I do work out and I do take care of things. And I think, deep breathing and it shows, yeah. So, I mean, I find that with singing, it's a whole body thing, it's not just the voice. It comes from the whole being." Paul Rodgers will be doing a lot more yoga in the coming months: starting in mid-March with a concert in South Africa, he and Queen will be on the road to play 27 shows. And that's just the European leg. As always, we'll let you know when that itinerary grows.

What do Roger and Brian do before a performance? They were asked backstage at the 46664 Concert in Cape Town, November 2003:

Brian – I just kind of pace up and down like I’m having a baby or something!

Well, I've been reeling over the amount of material in these middle two weeks of March - the Capital Gold interviews, BBC Breakfast TV feature at rehearsals - check out http://www.brianmay.com/queen/tour05/menu.html

As regards Thomas Becker's article (below) who are these 'purists' who will mourn? There are so many Queen fans like myself for whom this tour is nothing but a great joy. I've just listened to the recording of 'We Will Rock You' and 'We Are The Champions' from Fancourt - I don't see any reason why we should dwell on Paul's forgetting the lyrics. I am SO looking forward to Brixton!

Some perspective and some more respect for Mr Mandela would have been a lot more gracious.

The legendary rock band rises again – but without Freddy (sic) Mercury the effect is a little lifeless.

George – 19 March 22.48 – Paul Rodgers launches in - coming out with the others, and grabbing the microphone, bawls ’Tie Your Mother Down, tie your mother down’ into the midst of the thundering guitar. With a flash of his teeth he throws the man-sized microphone stand into the air, whirls it above his head, turns it in his fingers – and we already have the first déjà-vu. The man who for twenty years was right at the forefront of the Queen's bombastic rockers had a special relationship with the microphone stand, using it like a stripper does a metal rod - for a lascivious or even aggressive, wild dance. But the Narcissus Freddie Mercury died thirteen and a half years ago and instead Paul Rodgers stands on stage with the remainder of Queen: Brian May and Roger Taylor. Two minutes have not yet passed and the microphone stand falls out of his hand after a daring caper and crashes to the floor. Paul Rodgers laughs.

He knows what he’s let himself in for. The news of the Queen comeback, let out of the bag right at the launch of the Queen musical in Cologne in Thomas Gottschalk’s ‘Wetten, dass?’ in the middle of December, made for much scepticism among the fans of the band who were so successful in the 70s and 80s. Queen without Freddie? That’s just like the Stones without Mick Jagger – how’s that going to work? Others were more forthright - they spoke in the fan forums of robbing from the dead, and of poor Freddie, who would turn in his grave. After the appearance of Queen and Paul Rodgers at the Aids charity concert of the Mandela foundation in the South African coastal town of George just at the launch of a European tour of more than 30 concerts, one thing is certain - the fan base will remain divided. Brian May knows the problem. The exceptional guitarist, who three years ago was allowed to play his extra special version of the National Anthem from the roof of Buckingham Palace for the Golden Jubilee of the namesake Queen, was and is the brain of the band. His most favourite subjects were maths and physics; he even studied astronomy. He always turned down requests for a Queen comeback -right from 23 (sic) November 1991, the day that Freddie Mercury died of Aids.

The speculation about a successor extended from George Michael to Elton John to Robbie Williams. But nothing more than a few short performances, mostly at charity events, ever came of it. The united message was that the phenomenon of Freddie could not be replaced.

And now Paul Rodgers, 55, founder of the blues-rock groups Free and Bad Company. He had his biggest hit ‘All Right Now’ in 1970 – when Queen did not yet exist. Only the following year did Mercury, May, Taylor (drums) and John Deacon (bass) come together as a foursome, which was to set the rock world alight with its extravagant style.

But they had always thought Paul Rodgers, blues singer, was great, as Roger Taylor has now said in an interview: They heard him in the sixties in the London clubs, later playing his songs for fun - Freddie was a great fan. Brian May is complimentary: ‘Paul has a wonderful voice and lots of feeling for our music’, adding straight afterwards by way of justification, ‘he doesn’t try to take Freddie’s place at all. He’s so unlike Freddie because he’s coming from his own place’.

On the site of the official Queen fan club (www.queenworld.com) May keeps a diary. He takes a lot of time to clarify that, of course, they’re not doing it for the money, that Rodgers ‘isn’t a member of Queen’, for which reason the tour is dubbed ‘Queen and Paul Rodgers’.

Almost a plea for absolution: Dear fans, let’s just give it a go with him! The entry ends with the words ‘With love, Brian’. Last September Rodgers, May and Taylor (sic) (Deacon withdrew from the scene a long time ago) played together for a few minutes at the concert in Wembley for the 50th anniversary of the Fender Stratocaster guitar, two months later in the UK Hall of Fame there were a couple more songs – the idea of a tour together began to develop.

Wanting to be spared from the frustration of just playing three or four songs from the abundance of the combined material, it was to become a complete show. May, 57, father of three children, says ‘I never thought that I would do this again. I was always against bringing someone in to replace Freddie. But now from nothing a big juggernaut has been set in motion which is unstoppable. So much for my family life’.

With Rodgers there should be a new form, the songs should be interpreted differently - a brave concept, as shown by the first minutes of the concert in Fancourt, the chic golf club of the prospering little garden-route town of George. It could not have got underway better than with the straight-down-the-line rock of ‘Tie Your Mother Down’ but the goose bumps over Brian May’s guitar riffs had gone when ‘Can’t Get Enough of Your Love’ – a Paul Rodgers song - followed.

‘I Want To Break Free’, a classic of the South African freedom movement, and ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ bring the 15,000-strong audience back into the realm of Queen. Rodgers asks rhetorically ‘How are we doing so far?’ But the all too soft guest voice of the worthy Katie Melua makes the atmosphere fall through the floor. There’s even whistling.

As Roger Taylor suddenly leaves his drum kit and starts singing with a delicate voice, and even the silent Brian May grabs the microphone, sounding out ‘Hammer To Fall’ having donned a completely new outfit from the boxes, it’s clear that they’re serious about the new start.

Good that the performance lasted a little more than an hour – the scale of the event allowed for no more. Queen and Paul Rodgers were to be the highlight of a concert lasting almost ten hours, but others stole the show from them. Nelson Mandela, for example. The 46664 campaign started one and a half years ago – usig his prisoner number during 18 years on Robben Island .

It’s now a symbol for the struggle against Aids, in which the state president Mbeki still refuses involvement. Mister Eversmile, the never-tiring Handshake machine Mandela, taking on a lot at the age of 86, visited, together with participating musicians, Aids victims in the clinics and homes of the town, and of course attended the concert in the evening.

Annie Lennox delivers a passionate and almost furious plea for safe sex and leaves the strongest impression as a female artist. 46664 Ambassador Will Smith entertains brilliantly but as he at 22.48 announces the first Queen concert since 1986, the good atmosphere isn’t holding out for so long.

The constant change from Queen to Rodgers and back again doesn’t work - one has the feeling of being somewhat cheated. John, a priest from Emden living in George says ‘It’s sad really, that Freddie’s still in your mind, you see his teeth, his power. It’s a shame’.

However, the halls and stadiums in Europe – six concerts are taking place in Germany – the first on 14 April in the Olympiahalle in Munich – are already or will be sold out. They want the memory, knowing very well that the former figure won’t be there.

Queen’s first single in 1972 (sic) was called ‘Keep Yourself Alive’ that’s exactly what they’re trying to do now, a two-edged sword. The fans will have to forgive some things. In George, Paul Rodgers forgets the words of ‘We Are The Champions’ - of all songs - for a second – it doesn’t really matter. The purists will be in mourning when Queen + Paul Rodgers are on the road.

At home they’ll take the vinyl records out of the worn covers or even turn on the Brian May VBM amplifier, obtained for £99.99 in the Internet fan shop. And once again dust off the £219.19 Freddie Mercury statue – the one with the microphone stand.

"I'd say, I hope we rock you, Freddie'. If he's up there looking down on us, I hope he's smiling".

Brixton Review by Christian Rischer - (excerpts):

After these introductory words, at exactly 20.45 it was underway. Music history was being written at Brixton Academy – Paul Rodgers appeared alone in front of the curtain and sang a solo acoustic version of ‘Reaching Out’. Paul Rodgers, together with Brian May and other musicians, released this song in 1996 as a charity single for the Nordoff Robbins Foundation under the name ‘Rock Therapy’. An unusual but successful start to the show. Brian May appeared in front of the curtain beside Paul Rodgers and played the first riffs of ‘Tie Your Mother Down’. The curtain fell to give a clear view across the stage. Nineteen years of waiting for Queen’s live comeback were off-loaded in one single second. The audience didn’t hold back anymore. The crowd bounced up and down, clapped and sang as if there were no tomorrow. Paul Rodger’s singing was submerged in the elation of the fans. You almost couldn’t hear Paul – The swirling crowd sang along to every word. What happened in those first minutes is indescribable. Queen is back! Queen rocks!

Although Brixton Academy is too small for a complete stage production and therefore the catwalk, a small second stage and some of the light installations will only come into use in the big halls or even the stadiums, the stage was more than impressive....the light construction above the stage was mobile and conjured up for the respective song the suitable atmosphere and lighting. The sound was loud, impressive and crystal clear. Queen were definitely still forerunners with regard to the stage show. Spike Edney on keyboards, Jamie Moses on guitar, and the new bass player Danny Miranda shared once side of the stage, while Brian and Paul, as main protagonists, swept across the whole stage.....
Then it went rocking with full power – ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ with crystal clear acapella intro boomed through the speakers. As the next surprise, ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Loved’ was on the setlist, on which Brian and Paul let rip on newly constructed ‘Invisible Red Specials’. These new guitars consisted only of a red guitar neck and the edge of a guitar body. Paul did his job as a singer very well. The song was shorter here than in the familiar long live versions.
Queen surprised us once again by not holding the acoustic/unplugged part of the show near the end, as was the case in previous tours, but after the fifth song. All musicians left the stage apart from Paul Rodgers. Paul accompanied himself on the Bad Company classic ‘Seagull’ . In the middle of the wonderfully sung ballad, Roger came on to the stage to provide backing on bongos....
The acoustic section was rounded off by ‘Hammer To Fall’ which was performed in the slow/fast version. Brian played the song on the original Red Special and sang the slow version himself. On the fast version Paul took over the vocals once more and Queen rocked, to the point that the stage bent? Roger pounded the drums so that the rhythm vibrated inside the stomach. That’s how rock music has to be played!

Later on...

Queen and Paul Rodgers, having changed clothing for the first set of encores, which was devoted to Bad Company and Free. On ‘Feel Like Makin’ Love’, Brian played the ‘Invisible Red Special’ again. In interviews before the tour, Brian had stated repeatedly how much he would like to sing this song live. So here we were. It was nice to see the joy and ambition with which Brian and Roger performed the song live...
The crowning finish was ‘We Are the Champions’. The audience was a surging sea of hands. People who were total strangers were in each other’s arms with tears in their eyes. Paul Rodgers threw his microphone stand in the air for the last time and caught it again skilfully. Brian May sent a last riff into the raving crowd. Roger Taylor whirled again on the drums. Then it was over and done with – Queen had passed the live test before the most critical public of the world, their fans. Queen were celebrating a triumphant live comeback.
All the musicians came to the edge of the stage to the traditional tones of ‘God Save The Queen’. Roger Taylor gave his drumsticks away to the loyal fans in the first rows. You could see how happy Brian, Roger, Paul, Spike, Jamie and Danny were over the successful start of the tour. One last bow to the uproarious fans and then Queen and Paul Rodgers left the stage after 122 minutes of total live power at exactly 22.47.

(This picture was also reproduced in the Official Fan Club Spring 2005 magazine, along with the following scanned items):

Queen is a child of love. Queen is a co-creation between the band and its fans. A unique thing in show business. And this spirit will never die.

The writer says there was a full house, many of the audience were young. It was truly a memorable concert, and praised the Spanish spirit of audience participation which was such that the writer jokes that they would have managed very well even if Paul and Brian had lost their voices!

The writer heard others praise Paul’s performance - that his blues vocals were truly brilliant and also commented on the slow version of ‘Hammer to Fall’ – ‘delighted’ to hear it in this concert.

The writer was a bit disappointed that some songs ‘dear to my heart’ were not played, but remarked that to avoid disappointment it would be necessary to have a concert the length of all the albums put together!

Brian sang ‘Love of My Life’ and ‘’39’ at the edge of a gangway that led from the stage into the audience. Paul was also in the same position for another song, during which a guy managed to get on to the stage, run towards Paul and put a red cap on him before being removed by security. This surprised Paul, who flunked a line, but then continued, smiling!

Rome/Milan/Pesaro

Rome:

(The following three pictures of the Rome show were posted by 'Alex 82' on the Italian fan club forum):

http://www.freeforumzone.it/viewmessaggi.aspx?f=49497&idd=756&p=4

(Italian Fan Club)

Posted by 'william gallagher' about the Rome show - I have translated some extracts to the best of my ability, here is a descriptive summary of his account:

The writer comments that the audience really sang 'till their throats split'(!) on I Want To Break Free - they were absolutely crazy!
'39 was simply perfect and 'Love of My Life' was one of the best moments of the concert - everyone singing tightly together in one chorus.
He comments about the slow start of 'Hammer to Fall' - forming a bridge between the acoustic guitar at the beginning and the rock part which followed, the acoustic guitar giving way to the explosion with all the 'bursting power' of Brian's guitar!
He commented that Roger lowered the key for the second verse of 'I'm in Love with my Car' and that the performance was good.

'Last Horizon' was very touching, there was a comment on the video trip to the stars, and that if you closed your eyes you could imagine being transported at sea on waves towards untouched and uncontaminated shores...
Radio Ga Ga made everyone crazy, with everyone clapping their hands!
He commented that Paul didn't know the words to 'The Show Must Go On' at times, leaving the singing to the audience.
During 'All Right Now' Paul had an excellent rapport with the audience.
He didn't have the words to describe 'We Will Rock You' and commented on the effort made by Roger, who appeared very tired by the end of it!
'We Are the Champions' was beautiful, with everyone singing, lit up with lights.

More on Rome
http://www.freeforumzone.it/viewmessaggi.aspx?f=49497&idd=756&p=1

(Italian Fan Club)
Post by 'bdsklo' (selected extracts):

It was a dream to have heard them play - the hall was full of banners for Freddie and Queen (one for Paul Rodgers)...
Suddenly we heard those unmistakable harmonies..'Tie Your Mother Down'. This song seemed just right and done deliberately for the start of the concerts - jumping, singing, sweating, screaming, crying with joy...
The two hours of the concert went by in a flash...an incredible concert, with an unimaginable intensity, Brian and Roger are on top form...the Red Special made the windows shake during the Brighton Rock solo, Roger is a powerhouse, he played and sang at the same time as in the golden days. Paul is a true singer, has a great voice, interpreting the numbers in his own way without wishing to imitate anyone...

More descriptions of the Rome concert from the Italian fan club forum:

Post by Ziosam1:

During ‘Tie Your Mother Down’ we jumped at the same tempo as Brian and his guitar – on ‘I Want To Break Free’, Paul hardly opened his mouth, the audience practically sang it alone. What a moment it was when Brian sang ’39 and the wonderful Love of My Life. It is not easy to express one’s emotions.

Roger kept up so much energy in drumming, and Brian played Brighton rock and then the space rock of Last Horizon brought on goose bumps.

During ‘We Are The Champions’ such was the singing that I never heard Paul’s voice…

At the end, a thousand thoughts pass through your head – when they took their bows during ‘God Save The Queen’: Who knows when I’ll see them again, but with an awareness that I can say that I was there…

Then from Lurex 1981:

Everyone was jumping during ‘Tie Your Mother Down’, completely crazy and everyone started to do so again ‘During Fat-Bottomed Girls’ as if they were possessed!

Paul said that he had written the song ‘Seagull’ on the seashore, sang it whilst playing acoustic guitar, it was very beautiful…

‘Love of My Life’ was dedicated to ‘a special person whom we have lost recently’.

‘Days of Our Lives’ I have to say was very very sad…with the Japanese pictures on the screen…

‘A Kind of Magic’ and ‘I Want It All’ were really fantastic, Brian’s solo at the end was

 literally overwhelming! Everyone sang along to Bohemian Rhapsody with Freddie on

video, it was a unique emotion. I’d always thought that I might hear it live one day and

yesterday I managed to even though it wasn’t Freddie in person.

In the encore ‘All Right Now’ was really good, everyone sang along....

Rome photo from Lurex 1981. Source: Italian Fan Club Fan Forum

Milan:

Posted by 'Matteo' at http://www.queenitalia.it/

(Again, just selected extracts are described):

The writer said he was worked up like a kid - he never thought he would see them again in 2005 playing their hits and that they were fantastic!
Brian's guitar riffs are incredibly exciting. He thought that everyone got goose bumps when Brian played and sang 'Love of My Life'.
Paul Rodgers is a great singer with a lovely voice, excellent technique and stage presence and he is worthy of the current Queen! Roger still has a marvellous voice. They're great, great, great!

(Thanks to OBrasilo with his help in translating).

Pesaro:

With thanks to OBrasilo, extracts from comments on the

'Made in Heaven Queen Forum'
(see the link at the very bottom of my Queen page):

Before the beginning of the show there was no music for a long time, then a man came on-stage and said, that the Pope liked the music, so the Queen music won't harm him, and that we had to stand up, because there was 1 minute of silence. Then, the 1 minute of silence. Then, some music started, which ended with Eminem (!). Then, finally - QUEEN CAME ON STAGE! They were behind a curtain (but I was sitting almost in a corner up there, so I could see behind the courtain, then the curtain fell. They were playing 'Tie Your Mother Down'...

...A Kind Of Magic was damn well performed...

Tie Your Mother Down had an extended ending (the last instrumental part (with the repeated "All your love tonight" lines) was longer, than usual).

And why the h*ck didn't Brian perform the whole '39, as Queen used to perform it back in the 1978/79. Why did he decide to perform it the same length as the version, performed on The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, back in the '92? * sigh *

Damn great performance of The Show Must Go On, We Will Rock You, and We Are The Champions.

Fat Bottomed Girls - the part after the stanza was performed as in the single version, not as in the performance of '82; a damn good performance with a very extended ending.

Crazy Little Thing Called Love - it's nice that it begins like it used to begin in the old days. I really hate the drumless beginning, used on The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert.

I Want To Break Free - apart the beginning (which was as the used to perform it back in 1984/85), the ending stunned me. They don't end the song, like they used to in Freddie's times. Instead, they end it with an ending, which is a slightly shorter version of the ending, used on The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert.

Guitar Solo - well, well, well, it seems like Brian returned in his old times, when he used to performed his Guitar Solo as stand-alone since the 1982 ( @ the guitar problems he had on the Milton Keynes concert). Kinda a usual performance. But I would prefer to hear the complete Brighton Rock, as they used to perform it back in 1978/79.

I Want It All - nice, and all, but WTF? Why the h*ck do they perform the Queen Rock versions of it? I mean, the single-style a-cappella intro, and the rest is just like the album. I would prefer hearing the instrumental intro (album-style) instead, that would rock, when performed live. And I miss that extended instrumental part at the beginning, after the a-cappella part from The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert. Also, the end is now as short as in the usual version, not as nicely long as on The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert...

NB Paul sang the lead vocals on 'I Want It All'.

More on Pesaro, from

http://www.queenitalia.it/

Post by Albi (summary):

It was truly great. The performance of the songs was excellent and there was a better set list in my opinion because of the insertion of 'Say It's Not True' and the acoustic part was was opened with 'Long Away' (as an experiment, as Brian said). The 10,000-strong crowd of wild fans sang continually and the best numbers for me were: I Want It All, A Kind Of Magic The Show Must Go On, and obviously all the acoustic parts, Brian's solo and the marvellous 'Last Horizon'. There were two Paul songs - 'Can't Get Enough..' and 'All Right Now'.

What happened at Basel? Some comments from a fan with inside knowledge:

The writer described the atmosphere as sluggish, in contrast to the ‘madness’ of the Italian concerts. Paul was still struggling with his voice. During ‘I Want It All’, he was singing but suffering from his bad throat. Just before Brian’s solo the sound cut out on his instrument, then on Jamie’s, on Paul’s microphone and then Spike’s keyboard. Only drums and bass could be heard. Paul led the audience in clapping while Spike went to explain the situation to Roger, who continued with Paul’s rhythm, the sound returned and then the song was finished. Thanks to Paul and Spike for their cool reactions! The writer found out afterwards that two amplifiers had exploded!

Posted in French by Mitch:

http://forum.aceboard.net/6302-1192-18603-0-Bale-resume-QueenFrance-concert-vraiment-part.htm

'Queen zwischen Selbsthuldigung und ordentlichem Rock-Konzert'

Queen: Between Self-Homage and Neat Rock Concert

The band appear in Vienna with guest singer Paul Rodgers

Thirteen years after the death of singer Freddie Mercury, the British rock band Queen is back on tour for the first time. On balance after the performance on Wednesday in the Vienna Stadthalle: Together with guest voice Paul Rodgers of the two remaining original members Brian May and Roger Taylor are rocking neatly. It was also enjoyed by those members of the audience who were neutral. However, the show slipped elsewhere whenever the guitarist or the drummer took over the microphone - into an emotional maintenance of the historic monument. Only committed Queen fans really understand the significance of that.

“Queen ft. Paul Rodgers playing Queen, Free and Bad Company Songs’ read the ticket, and underneath, full price: 78 Euro” (seated). On average around 10,000 people pay as much for the pleasure each evening. The Stadthalle was fairly full, even if not to capacity. A few years ago May and Taylor, on tour using only their own names, had to be content with filling Planet Music - an audience of about 800. People just want big names – Queen has one.

And the audience knew what was on offer: the intro, an Eminem track, was the only concession to the present. ‘Tie Your Mother Down’ started the journey to an era when guitarists splayed their legs, tossed their long curly locks over their shoulders and stood with instrument at the ready. For that, at least, Brian May does not have to act the part. ‘I Want To Break Free’ followed, the audience taking over the chorus, ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ and ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ then fitted seamlessly into the first section.

The songs were well suited to Rodgers, who in his approach does not attempt to imitate Mercury’s affectations and way of singing. In the third section, interpretations of classics like ‘We Will Rock You’ or the inevitable finale ‘We Are the Champions’ were to prove a success. ‘Queen ft. Paul Rodgers’ was working! The addendum ‘playing Queen, Free & Bad Company Songs’ was not incorrect, but rather an exaggeration, as there was only one song in each section from the guest singer’s former bands. At least ‘All Right Now’ set the venue alight.

The second section belonged to May and Taylor and gave them the opportunity to pay homage to themselves. ‘The spirit of Queen is still alive’ mumbled the guitarist into the microphone and dedicated the schmaltzy ‘Love of My Life’ to the deceased Freddie. On ‘Hammer To Fall’ the ‘prehistoric rocks’ shared the vocal parts before rock history’s most distinctive curly head started a guitar solo (including waltz – how novel) which appeared a lot longer than the actual length of ten minutes. Taylor croaked* his way through ‘These Are The Days of Our Lives’ and ‘Radio Ga Ga’ while the drum computer provided the beat. The pinnacle of emotion: ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ with Mercury on video and his voice on tape.

Rodgers returned for ‘The Show Must Go On’ and demonstrated with Queen that the resurrection of a rock dinosaur need not, in fact, be painful. To be continued?

APA Tirol.com – Mein Tirol online – 14.04.05

*Translator's comment: Shame on you! Otherwise it's a good article!

Original:

http://portal.tirol.com/szene/international/7723/index.do

********

'Queen-Beben lässt München erzittern'

Queen-Quake Shakes Munich

Brian May, Roger Taylor and Mercury’s successor Paul Rodgers commemorate the good old rock era

The Show Must Go On – Freddie Mercury recorded this song, but never came to celebrate it with a live performance. Almost 14 years after his death from Aids, another singer, Paul Rodgers, whom Mercury himself knew and according to guitarist Brian May rated very much, was making up for this. The former singer of the bands Free and Bad Company did his new job very well in the sold-out Olympiahalle in Munich on Thursday night. It was loud, it rocked, crashed and clattered – it was a Queen-quake that could only be produced by May’s amazing guitar sound, Roger Taylor’s thundering drums and the indestructible song catalogue of this band.

May delivered the slogan before the tour that people should simply come for enjoyment’s sake. From the first beats of ‘Tie Your Mother Down’ onwards, the two active members of the original Queen line-up, with Paul Rodgers and the valiant backing musicians on bass, rhythm guitar and keyboards, allowed no doubt that this night was devoted to all those who still want it all: ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’, ‘This Thing Called Love’ (sic), ‘A Kind Of Magic' , and - with video recordings of Mercury –‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. Forming the encore of the two-hour-long show were ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘We Are The Champions’ and Rodger’s indestructible rock classic ‘All Right Now’.

At the start May affirmed that without the wondrous meeting of the three at a British show last September there would have been no Queen tour nineteen years after the last with Mercury. All these years May and Taylor had not, at best, excluded the possibility of a Queen comeback, but had found neither George Michael nor the young whippersnapper Robbie Williams suitable to occupy the place of Freddie.

And Rodgers does not try to imitate Mercury at all. True, he twirls the microphone stand around, but in everything he appears and sounds somewhat more earthy and bluesy. On ‘Can’t Get Enough Of Your Love’ May and Taylor well and truly paid tribute to Bad Company. ‘All Right Now’ became the climax, at which Rodgers confidently called on May, before the solo, to ‘Take the people higher’.

Taylor and May also presented solos to the audience in which age-wise a good mixture of all Champions from youth to senior citizens was represented. Taylor sang a relatively new composition in honour of Nelson Mandela and his fight against Aids: ‘Say It Isn’t So’ (sic). May related how he still had to keep pinching himself to be sure that he was really standing on the stage at a Queen concert: “You have kept the Queen spirit alive for 19 years – thank you!” Then he played acoustic guitar in the quietest part of the concert to ‘Love Of My Life’ as a ‘song for Freddie’. Then he led on to a version of ‘Hammer To Fall’ which was restrained at first, before the band joined in with full force. ‘Waiting for the hammer to fall’, the lyrics state – in the concert a special tribute to the loyal audience was made from those words.

There followed an excellent drum solo from Taylor to the classic instrumental ‘Wiped Out’ before May performed an unbelievable guitar solo. In Taylor’s ‘Days of Our Lifes’ (sic) Mercury was again on the video screen. ‘I Want To Break Free’ and ‘Radio Gaga’ were also part of the performance. Queen’s music has an everlasting magic, even if it cannot ever again be sung by Freddie Mercury. Music also has to be played in order to live on, and to that idea May and Taylor, who, after the sale of 150 million discs are now really financially independent, appear to have devoted themselves. A Queen concert with both of them plus Rodgers is - and remains - a perfect rock show. What is missing is a few new songs from the three of them – whether under the name of Queen or whatever.

Tour information: After the concert hall tour (sold out), Queen are additionally appearing in the RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne on 06.07.

AP, 15.04.05, Stuttgarter Nachrichten Online

Original:

http://www.stuttgarter-nachrichten.de/stn/page/detail.php/908534

******

'Alte Herren begeistern in Leipzig'

Old Gents are an Inspiration in Leipzig

freiepresse.de, 18 April 05

“Queen” acclaimed by 10 000 fans at their only concert in East Germany

At the end they sang “We Are The Champions”: Brian May, Roger Taylor and Paul Rodgers. The fans ‘outvoted’ the band. After a concert of two hours everyone was putting their arms in the air and tapping each other on the shoulder: The musicians on the stage and the people in the auditorium of the sold-out Leipzig Arena. “Queen”, the legendary British band of the 70s and 80s is back on tour, and on Sunday evening in Leipzig they staged their only concert in East Germany. Without the late Freddie Mercury, without bassist John Deacon, but, in return, with the old anthems and the former ‘Free’ and ‘Bad Company’ frontman Paul Rodgers. Without the eccentric charm of earlier stage shows, renowned to this day, but, in return, with an enthusiasm which could be both felt and heard.

When, at the start of the concert, the tones of ‘Reaching Out’ were heard, thousands of arms shot up - Paul Rodgers set about rocking. When Brian May struck up the first chords on the guitar, the people in the hall cheered. A sea of hands clapped along with the beat of “Tie Your Mother Down”. Then a short, disturbing moment, when on “I Want To Break Free”, for every last member of the audience it started to sink in that it was not Freddie Mercury who was singing. “That sounds quite strange” one man muttered, and some others nodded. A few seconds later the spotlight fell on Brian May, in whose guitar artistry this short-lived moment of ill-humour was forgotten. The fans were overjoyed. Nineties style, at least, appeared to have passed May by without a trace - with curly mane, trainers and drainpipe jeans, he was, this evening, a guarantor of the continuity of this band.

Roger Taylor then took over the reflective role for a while. He dedicated “Say It’s Not True” to Nelson Mandela and his fight against Aids. Shortly afterwards he exchanged his place on the gangway with May, who not only gave
his best to “’39” but with “Love of My Life” sang a song “by and for Freddie”. He sat alone on the stage and listened to the chorus as sung by the fans. Only the security people, sternly watchful, were unmoved by it.

Certainly there was less flashing from lights than from digital cameras. However, the solidarity between the audience and the artists was scarcely ever so great than at that moment. ‘The spirit of Queen lives, I thank you for that” exclaimed May. A short time after, he performed an impressive guitar solo. He is still master of his art, and it could be seen that he enjoyed being on stage again. “Radio Ga Ga” and “A Kind of Magic” followed “These Are The Days of Our Lives”; the light show, in any event lavish, was stepped up again for this “kind of magic”.

Paul Rodgers danced and sang with his microphone stand and philandered with the audience, who liked him all the more for it. He did not try to imitate Mercury, and sang many songs differently. He was not on the stage for very
long at all – letting the ‘Queen’-players have the limelight. So all of a sudden he was standing in the dark. Then Freddie Mercury sang “Bohemian Rhapsody” on a video screen; the 10 000 fans in the hall cheered as if it were him in person. When film clips allowed the charismatic artist to come ‘alive’ again, it became clear who the real “spirit” of Queen was.

So the atmosphere in the arena was then even harmonious rather than euphoric as Rodgers took over the microphone again. “That a few old gents have got together here to make cool music” as one member of the audience remarked, cannot be ignored, “but it’s not ‘Queen’ as we once knew them”. Be that as it may, at the encore, everyone acclaimed “The Show Must Go On”, the Free hit “All Right Now” and “We Will Rock You”. No doubt, when they sang “We Are The Champions”, everyone really meant it.

© Copyright ddp Nachrichtenagentur GmbH

Original:

http://www.freiepresse.de/TEXTE/NACHRICHTEN/SACHSEN/TEXTE/211017.html

*****

'Zum Niederknien'

Bringing Them to Their Knees

by by Juergen Roth, Frankfurter Rundschau, 21 April 05

Queen are on tour for the first time for 19 years – and in the Frankfurt Festhalle, singer Paul Rodgers is a splendid successor to Freddie Mercury.

That won’t do of course. No, not at all. ‘Put your cigarette out!” a misery guts from security grouched at us while we were waiting in the ranks at the Frankfurt Festhalle for the start of a concert which to all appearances had been feverishly awaited by a huge and loyal fan base for nearly two decades. Queen, that loud British glamour band, which in the 70s and 80s knew, like hardly anyone else, how to encode the monstrosity of the rock business in a positive way and amalgamate it with artistic finesse, are back on tour again for the first time in nineteen years. The protruding, domed building was chock-a-block, the mood, readily conjured up on such occasions, was expectant and festive, with an inkling of a papal election.

No, that won’t do at all. You can’t separate smoking and rock music; they belong together like salt and breakfast eggs, like water and swimming. But the frowning watchman is adamant. “Go outside and smoke, into the hallway! The guitarist doesn’t want it”. What has become of rock music? Where is the excess, at least when it comes to puffing up smoke? Outside, next to an ash tray, an American woman – an American woman! – asks for a light. The six Queen concerts in Germany are all sold out – she explained how she had travelled over especially from Minnesota. Whoever has fans like this can make unreasonable demands of them. But having said that, Brian May, the guitarist who doesn’t allow smoking, is himself anything but an unreasonable demand: a good-natured and astonishingly ageless person and on top of it, a musician whose incomparably humming, whirring, singing, twanging sound, which in melodies threatens a deluge at times, has, to this day, been emulated by nobody. That may result from the guitar which, with his father, he once glued together from a selected piece of wood, or from the fact that May uses coins rather than plectrums, or that both in the studio and live he always sets several guitar tracks on top of each other, slurring them with the help of a whole battery of effects. His extended solo part in the middle of the programme showed that this concept of sound is within it.

Brian May does not want to age, he has to go out – on the road. For some time he and drummer Roger Taylor have been searching for a successor to the singer Freddie Mercury who died fourteen years ago from Aids, to that 'diva' who appeared to be irreplaceable. George Michael and Robbie Williams were both mentioned. How fortunate that we were spared that. Because, in Paul Rodgers, previously Free and Bad Company frontman, who intermittently worked with Jimmy Page, they could probably have engaged the greatest rock singer of any pop era next to Ian Gillan.

A Piece for Pitch-Training

Everything started up well after Brian May, slipping through the curtain which at first covered the stage, opened the show with one of his famous riffs to an Eminem rap babbler. Even in that type of solid chord, in such a sound wall, there is more warmth to be felt than in the most delicate melodiousness of a Rossini aria. Paul Rodgers, as proved by the opener Tie Your Mother Down, possesses a vocal colour and a technique that, despite its grounding in Blues, and despite the dreaded milky acoustics of the Festhalle, had the effect of bringing people to their knees that came close to that of Mercury’s vocal acrobatics, even on a piece for pitch-training like ‘The Show Must Go On’.

On the one hand, the set perhaps lays a bit too much store by the stadium pounders and brutish hits of the 80s, by A Kind of Magic and I Want To Break Free, and on the other on longer quiet sections where the rock event became a requiem; completely so when Freddie Mercury, was ‘re-incarnated’ near the end via video for Bohemian Rhapsody and was able to make his contribution to the festival of pomp and power.

At the end Brian May held his instrument triumphantly above his curly crown - in the hallowed, smoke-free air. The real star was, however, the splendid Paul Rodgers.

Original:

http://www.fr-aktuell.de/ressorts/kultur_und_medien/feuilleton/?cnt=665098

*****

'Trotz Rauchverbot die Herzen berührt'

Queen: Touching Hearts Despite Smoking Ban

Rheinische Post, 26 Apr 05

Queen concerts are associated in most people’s minds with sold-out halls, enthusiastic dancing fans who join in every song and wafts of mist from cigarette fumes. The Dortmund Westfalenhalle was sold out on Monday night, the fans were also enthusiastic too – only there was no trace of smoke: at the request of the band there was a complete ban on smoking. Even rock icons get older and more health conscious.

In 1986 was the last time that “Queen” were on tour, in 1991 the charismatic singer Freddie Mercury succumbed to the illness of the immune system Aids. In fact the group never disbanded, and even released discs after Mercury’s death containing pre-recorded tracks; but a tour without a frontman was not possible. The footprints that Mercury had left behind were too huge. Now someone who manages the balancing act of singing “Queen” songs in the way the audience likes while staying true to himself, Paul Rodgers, has the courage to step on to the stage.

Rodgers, formerly voice of “Free” and “Bad Company” had a difficult job on Monday. The expectations of the mainly older fans of the bombastic British rockers were enormous. They had been obliged to do without the band for too long. Now, flags with the image of the late singer were swaying everywhere. Instead of drunken, long-haired rock fans in grubby leather, teachers and officials, who had taken their old leather jackets out the wardrobe, were waiting for the first bars to be played.

The tension became unbearable as Mercury’s voice resounded from the loudspeakers. Suddenly Rodgers stood alone on the gangway between the rows of chairs, and as guitarist Brian May emerged charily behind the curtain, a blast of frenetic cheers greeted him. There followed two hours of rock music which touched souls and dazed ear drums for the subsequent two days.

It was already evident after the first few songs that Rodgers was going quite well about his business. He contributed his own classics like “All Right Now” to the success of the show and otherwise took a back seat. First and foremost it was “Queen” people wanted to see and hear.

Guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor – bassist John Deacon has given up touring – also took the microphone. Rodgers left the stage to them, often disappearing in the darkness behind the loud speaker towers.
In the spotlight the distinction between him and Mercury was made manifest. Freddie loved the big pose and the emotive. Rodgers, if he were a sportsman, would be more of a soccer player.

Still, ”Queen feat. Paul Rodgers” let it rip. The over 50-year-olds still give it what they’ve got. Hit after hit followed. Unlike other groups, each member of “Queen” has penned at least world-wide hit over the years. The talent was not confined just to Mercury and May.

The rock brought sweat to the brow and the quiet moments tears to the eyes; for instance when May, sitting on a stool, played “Love of My Life” on acoustic guitar. The stool next to him remained empty for his old friend Freddie. The fans formed a vast choir which sang every line loudly along with him.

After the show Brian May and Roger Taylor went to a get-together with the cast of the musical “We Will Rock You”. Outside, meanwhile, the fans acclaimed the musicians on the way to the car park. “It was great. Rodgers did his job unbelievably well. I wouldn’t have expected it” enthused Michael Burmeister (45) from Krefeld. Peter Weiss (44) from Bochum agreed. “Freddie was nearly not lacking at all; the music doesn’t rely so much on the singer – it’s that good, it carries itself”.

Original:

http://www.rp-online.de/public/article/magazin/musik/news/87041

*****

Thomas Zeidler's review of the tour progress so far, 18 Apr 05 (translated by myself):

User name: Guest
Password: Guest1

http://queentour2005.blogspirit.com/archive/2005/04/21/my_review_of_the_tour.html

Cologne Open Air Reviews:

'Queen begeistert im strömenden Regen'

Queen are an inspiration in the pouring rain

Rheinische Presse, 7 July 05

Queen fans had to put up with wet and cold on Wednesday evening at the additional concert in the Cologne RheinEnergie stadium. But the band didn’t leave their fans out there in the cold and rain. The successor to Freddie Mercury, Paul Rodgers, came out of the warm and dry time and again to rock in the pouring rain.

Guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, who also turned his hand to singing now and again, proved, by stepping out repeatedly, that they were not hydrophobic either. An audience of more than 26,700 revelled in this dedication and in the enduring music of Queen.

Well, perhaps it wasn’t all perfect at this penultimate concert of the European leg of ‘Queen and Paul Rodgers’, under which name go the trio of rock Flintstones backed by a bass player, a second guitarist and a keyboard player. A 26,700-strong audience is a lot, but they looked a bit lost in the spruce stadium where the gaps in the upper tiers were too large. Perhaps this was an indication of weakening appeal after a sold-out concert hall tour earlier this
year.

But nowhere does the glamorous pomp of Queen function better than in a stadium. Especially an open-air one, where May’s long guitar solo can distend without hindrance into the zero gravity of outer space, where, during ‘We Will Rock You’, a sea of outstretched arms becomes one of clapping hands, and ‘We Are the Champions’ is in its natural environment. Even with only two founding members left, Queen remain a rock institution.

An element of that is a particular attitude to the music. Not only a professional one, but also one which May, Taylor and Rodgers celebrated this Wednesday – they shared their music with the fans mainly in the stadium interior which was overwhelmed by an awful lot of rain. Nevertheless there were hardly any umbrellas; there was singing, acclaim and applause. It was just ‘A Kind of Magic’.

The first tour without Mercury (and the first)* for 19 years has shown that the charismatic frontman who died in 1991 could not, in fact, be replaced. The playing of the video of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ allows for no other notion. On the other hand, Rodgers was, wisely, never advertised or ‘sold’ as the ‘new’ Mercury. Rodgers brought in his own band history and harmonised magnificently with May and Taylor. His Free and Bad Company songs ‘Wishing Well’, ‘Can’t Get Enough’ and ‘All Right Now’ enriched the programme.

The powerhouses in their mid fifties put on a wonderful rock show and above all there was the recognition that Queen’s music lives on; not only as a recording for the winning of the area championship in football, handball or mini golf, not only as the soundtrack for a whacky musical, but also as a live event for fans from 15 to 65.

*Words in brackets added for clarity

Original:

http://www.rp-online.de/public/article/magazin/musik/news/97097

'Niemals geht man so ganz: Freddie sang mit'

Never completely gone from us: Freddie sang too

6 July 05, by Jan Wördenweber, Kölnische Rundschau

One bleak cloud after another gathered in the evening over the RheinEnergie Stadium. Not the best weather for the only open-air Queen concert in Germany. Freddie Mercury would certainly have wished for better conditions for his fellow band members Brian May and Roger Taylor and last but not least for the loyal fans.

Shortly after 20.30 the show could start: On the huge stage, Paul Rodgers, who had taken over the singing in the place of the late Mercury, went absolutely flat out, roaring and rocking in every way possible. The ex-frontman from Bad Company and Free was so clever, abstaining from the drama and the large gestures for which Freddie had been famous. Instead he made his personal mark on the great Queen songs with his very bluesy voice. ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’, ‘Radio Gaga’ and other classics of the British group are today sounding different.

On the other hand, nothing has changed in the guitar department; an audience of nearly 27 000 was totally beside themselves as Brian May conjured solo after solo out of his sleeve in double quick time. With his curly mane and reddish-black home-made guitar, he still looks as if he is making an appearance in a 1986 calendar. It was in that year that Queen were last on a large world tour. A short time later, Freddie Mercury was already too ill – in November 1991 he died of Aids.

That the ‘diva’ with the sawn off microphone stand remains unforgotten is demonstrated by the success of the DVD and CD ‘Queen on Fire – Live at the Bowl’. Before Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor were chauffered to the stadium sound check yesterday, there was a platinum award from the record company EMI at the Hyatt Hotel for sales of 200 000 of the concert recording from 1982.

And suddenly he was there again, the charismatic Queen singer: as the concert neared its end after over two hours came Bohemian Rhapsody; Freddie appeared on video, sitting at the piano as he used to do for the song. Thunderous applause broke out as his singing pervaded the stadium. It would not really be complete without him.

At the big finale there were some more well-known faces to be seen. The cast of ‘We Will Rock You’ came on stage to promote the Cologne musical. ‘We Will Rock You’ and every sportsperson’s anthem ‘We Are The Champions’ were accompanied by those in lead roles such as Alex Melcher and Vera Bolten. There followed prolonged ovations on the stands and in the stadium interior; a regal finish.

Original:

http://www.rundschau-online.de/kr/KrCachedContentServer?ksArtikel.id=1120580125766&listID=1037966279508&openMenu=1039082845263&calledPageId=1039082845263

(A Vote of Thanks to the German Fan Club forum for being a constant source of links to press reviews throughout the tour!!!)

Thomas Zeidler’s Cologne Review for the Rock Radio:

http://www.therockradio.com/reviews/queen-cologne.html

Why no positive Hamburg Review?

The overwhelmingly negative article by Tino Lange 'Recycling of Royal Remains'*,

was all I could find by way of a press review for the Hamburg concert. It's actually

a shame that I was not able to complete my page of German language press reviews

on a positive note with regard to the last indoor concert on German-speaking territory,

when every other venue had produced at least one positive review.

I think that others could accuse me of focusing too much on one side of this concert tour -

that is why I wouldn't attempt to write a concert review for general public consumption myself,

 because I know it would contain very little objectivity. I write for this site - which is my outlet -

and not for any generally available publication. Similarly, Herr Lange would have done better

to keep his own feelings about the constitution of the band - '90% Freddie' (why the need to

quantify? - I prefer Roger's 'He was the postman, we were the sorting office') -

in his own personal space and concentrate more on the quality and atmosphere of the concert

which he does mention, along with a compliment about Paul's voice.  Unfortunately, his more

positive remarks in these areas are somewhat drowned in the general tone of the article, which

is coloured by his prejudices. He describes Paul as 'pot-bellied rock uncle', for example, and the

conclusion is that Brian, Roger and the fans had their fun but that it wasn't Queen.

I think that it is unprofessional of Herr Lange to write like this, even if a press critic thinks he or she

has a remit to be subjective. He is allowing too much of his personal feelings about Freddie's legacy

to encroach on the content of the article.

The saga of Herr Lange's article didn't just finish after its publication, though -  since reading some of

the criticism from fans on the German fan club forum, he started to post comments there in his defence.

There will follow some of the points raised in the discussion which ensued.

*Link to original article from the 'Hamburger Abendblatt':*

http://www.abendblatt.de/daten/2005/04/30/428170.html

An English summary of comments posted by members of the German fan club forum:

Herr Lange said that he was writing a 'criticism' and therefore not just a report -

he felt he should write subjectively and honestly, not spinelessly.

He noted that others may evaluate the contribution of other members differently.

He acknowledged he had made an error by suggesting that 'God Save The Queen'

had not been played live, admitting that he had left during 'We Are The Champions'

to get home.

He was criticised on the forum for getting a fact like this wrong, and for

suggesting that Paul was copying Freddie. Furthermore, it was stated that

the description given of Paul was unfair, and in any case it was a rock concert,

not a beauty contest!

Others expressed their admiration that he had entered the forum to answer

the comments made on his article - into the 'lions' den' as it were!

Also, it should be considered what effects his writing was having - he may

think he has the right to be subjective, but did not take account of all the

happy faces, and did not qualify his remarks by saying that his views were not

representative of those of the majority who enjoyed the gig. Furthermore,

subjective can mean more than just expressing one's own opinion - it can

mean 'one-sided' and 'biased' as well. He was not writing what the fans think.

Most of all, Lange had made a 'pre-judgment'.

The feelings of one fan had also been going in same direction as Lange's,

but had been won over by the quality of the concert attended. This was not,

after all, a one-off concert but part of a tour where many concerts had

been played already. One fan said that the concert attended had not just met

but exceeded expectations. Almost all thought it was worth the money, and one

instructed Lange to consider his contribution both as a fan and a journalist.

One fan agreed that it wasn't Queen, but another commented that Lange had not

justified his points - if it was all about 'Queen', the name, that didn't make any

difference to the concert as Freddie's spirit had been all-pervading. (The absence

of John Deacon was also mentioned in Lange's article). Never had this fan felt so

at ease with playback in a concert as when Freddie appeared on video for

'Bohemian Rhapsody'.

Lange said that he had seem some boredom on the part of some of the audience.

For him it was all to do with the charisma of Freddie - Paul was like 'a dancing bear

with a microphone stand' - the difference from having 'a diva with a rod'.

One fan, though, did challenge Lange's percentage evaluation by raising

the topic of solo albums.

The best comment came from a suggestion as to what Freddie would have said:

"It's just a bloody Tour! People get so excited about it!!"

Transcripts of interviews with 'Planet Rock' at the time of the Hamburg concert:

Chief sound engineer Trip Khalaf:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/tour05/interviews/planetrock_tk_28apr05.html

Paul Rodgers:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/tour05/interviews/planetrock_pr_28apr05.html

Roger Taylor:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/tour05/interviews/planetrock_rt_28apr05.html

Brian May:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/tour05/interviews/planetrock_bri_28apr05.html

Thanks to Michael for the following pictures of the Dortmund show:

Thanks to 'freddievtb' who posted the following pictures of the Rotterdam concert on the German fan club forum:

Click on the link below for Thilo's blog about the Hamburg concert - great pictures!!!:

http://www.myblog.de/comment.php?blog=deathfield&id=1259133

Also previous blog from Dortmund:

http://www.myblog.de/comment.php?blog=deathfield&id=1242808

Selected sections of the above blogs are translated/summarised in English below:

Dortmund –

It was hardly believable that I could
get to see Queen – they are older than my parents but
still want to make music – live music - despite family,
the possibility of quiet afternoons in the garden or
evenings by the fireside. We were about
15m away from the end of the gangway.

When the concert started, ‘at
last…unbelievable…really…happy. Loud. Light.
Brilliant! Queen live! And we’re here! In front of the
chairs – even before the first notes of the guitar
sounded, nobody was sitting anymore. During the first six
songs, though, several people tried to stand in the aisles but were moved back by security.–
. Then Brian May said something like ‘I’m a bit thrown by the
chairs here – please come forward if you want to – this
isn’t a folk music concert, after all….’ So people did
so, and we finished up in the second row
in front of the gangway…Then the party really got underway
– the atmosphere was alight – the floor shook, as did
the walls, and the roof was coming off…

I was in a trance throughout the concert – I would have
preferred to have been more conscious of it – but was that
a protection mechanism of my body, to prevent an
over-reaction?

We were so close to the action that we could see tears in
Brian’s eyes as he played ‘Love of My Life’, with the
empty stool next to him. At the end, during the applause
after ‘We Are The Champions’, I could read the word
‘incredible’ from Brian’s lips.

Negative points: The Security – they were unfriendly and bored – working against the band!
Slushy sound quality/acoustics
The use of playback during Roger’s singing
Cost of merchandise

Positive points: Lavish light show
Freddie brought in on Bohemian Rhapsody on video
Paul Rogers did an excellent job
Singing the songs in his bluesy style, bringing that
together with Queen songs – brings out an independence
which guards against comparisons with Freddie. Paul’s own
songs – ‘All Right Now’ and ‘Can’t Get enough of Your Love’
were among the highlights of the concert!!!

The encores started with "The Show Must Go On“ and the
concert ended with "God Save the Queen“ – what kind of
messages are those???!!!

Hamburg –

An audience of 16000 – sold out – and also completely seated.
First row in the front on the left, just at the join between
the stage and the gangway. We could see the faces of the
musicians – not looking as if they had been on tour for
four weeks, but that they had been able to play again after
a long time.

'Wishing Well’ was heard for the first time this evening
– having just been inserted into the setlist.

The backing band stood in the dark which makes them
difficult to photograph and they also wore black.

In 'A Kind of Magic’, there were twelve beams of light
crossing each other, moving up and down with all different
colours – it was like being in the video of the song!

I didn’t know Roger had such a good voice.

He played the drums as if he were 30 years
younger!

One of the longest concerts of the tour – 27 songs in all.

Review of the Stockholm show:

http://www.thelocal.se/article.php?ID=1363

Fan Review of Stockholm (this was written by Andrew Brel,

who runs the website for Spike Edney's SAS Band):

http://www.andrewbrel.com/queenreview.html

Newcastle Review:

http://icnewcastle.icnetwork.co.uk/0300entertainment/whatson/tm_objectid=15476686&method=full&siteid=50081-name_page.html

Manchester Feature (BBC):

http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/articles/2005/05/18/040505_queen_live_feature.shtml

Peter Kay joins Queen on stage at Manchester:

http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/entertainment/comedy/s/157/157405_peter_kay_joins_queen_on_stage.html?ref=emtaf&archive=archive

Fan Review of Manchester:

http://www.chrishigh.com/reviews/gigs/queen_paul_rodgers.htm

Birmingham Review:

(Many thanks to Graham Young and the Birmingham Evening Mail):

‘Queen are in great voice’ by Graham Young, Birmingham Evening Mail

Sat May 7 2005

QUEEN AND PAUL RODGERS NEC Arena

I last saw Paul Rodgers in his dressing room undies reflecting on Bad Company’s NIA gig 30 months ago. He didn’t look like the late Freddie Mercury then and he didn’t last night during the year’s most unexpected comeback.

But that’s the point. Now 55, Rodgers was Free’s 1970s star when Queen were still in nappies.

Brian May called it a “miracle” Queen were back, thanks to Rodgers “having a voice to die for”.

The 23-song, two-hour set was only marred by Middlesbrough’s finest resting for 45 minutes, thus allowing drummer Roger Taylor to sing too often*.

Ironically, Rodgers’ early blasts of Tie Your Mother Down, Fat Bottom Girls and his own Wishing Well had the worst sound before it later excelled.

The set closed with video of Freddie singing Bohemian Rhapsody 14 years after his death.

Encores Under Pressure, All Right Now, We Will Rock You and We Are The Champions closed a stupendous night blessed with wonderful stage lighting.

GRAHAM YOUNG

*I'm not too thrilled about this, Graham!

Cardiff 'Review'

(My comments are in italics below):

http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0900entertainment/0050artsnews/tm_objectid=15495246%26method=full%26siteid=50082-name_page.html

With regard to this gem of a quote:

May, who seems to have a terminally awful taste in clothes...

Is it a fashion show?

...yanked on the heartstrings with an emotional rendition of Queen live favourite Love Of My Life. But he also over-indulged on his guitar solo to Nigel Tufnel proportions. I bet Brian's tongue wasn't in his cheek for the entire 10 minutes he 'guit-ah'ed' the Arena.

At Wembley I was devastated when the ten minutes were over. ('And endless guitar licks? If only they were endless!' - Diane Davies)

Back to the review...

Personally I got bored and went to the loo.

'Shit' journalism, then! You were supposed to be writing a review, not a blog - or even a blog in the bog...

It's like pretending that jam is tomato sauce and would therefore go well with your chips.

Maybe you shouldn't try that in future.

Well done, Sarah Davies of Pontypridd, who wrote the following in response:

(See http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/letters/southwalesecho/tm_objectid=15513506&method=full&siteid=50082&headline=friday--13-may-2005-name_page.html)

Queen concert review was ridiculous
I AM utterly disgusted by the ridiculous review by Jo Manning in the Echo regarding the Queen and Paul Rodgers concert.

I was there, but I am not convinced Ms Manning was at the same concert! If she had bothered to research anything whatsoever about this tour (or even about Queen) then she couldn't have written such a negative review! The whole point of the tour is for fans to celebrate Queen's music, and enjoy a great singer, Paul Rodgers, sing both his own and Queen's music.

He is not trying to replace Freddie, as he has said in every interview he has given about this tour.

Brian May is an exceptional guitarist, to compare him to a fictional parody of a '70s guitarist is insulting and derogatory.

Every concert Queen has ever done, he has done a guitar solo. This is what the fans expect, and demand!

Queen was not just Freddie Mercury.

Freddie always said that he wanted his music to live on after his death, indeed, even when he was extremely ill, he recorded as much material as he could to be used after his death.

Ms Manning says it's steep to pay £50 for a ticket on the back of Freddie Mercury.

Did Ms Manning expect Freddie to appear?

Certainly the fans who sold this concert out in a matter of hours didn't, and I would bet that £50 on the fact that this reviewer didn't pay for her ticket!

Maybe she would be better off reviewing Girls Aloud, and leave the real concerts to the music fans.

Here's a (more decent) Fan Review of the Cardiff show:

http://www.bittersweetembrace.co.uk/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=447

Sheffield Review:

http://www.heathenangel.co.uk/qprsheffmay05.html

Article about Sheffield:

http://www.sheffieldtoday.net/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=58&ArticleID=1022139

A fan Review of Wembley:

http://www.getreadytorock.com/reviews/queen_gig.htm

Belfast Review, with thanks to Neil McKay and the Belfast Telegraph (appeared there on 14 May):

Why they're still the Champions

Queen And Paul Rodgers, Odyssey Arena

Of course it wasn't really Queen on stage - how could it be without Freddie Mercury? - but in every other sense this was a true royal command performance.

It was triumphant vindication for Brian May and Roger Taylor's decision to go back on the road and play their music . . . and for their wisdom in doing it with Rodgers.

The former Free and Bad Company singer brought his own formidable gifts to the table, and wisely steered clear of trying to emulate Mercury in any way.

Rodgers is of the old school of frontmen, a blues belter to Mercury's prancing show-off, and while his voice may have lost some of the power and command of his heyday, he more than got the job done.

Not surprisingly he was most comfortable on his own songs including a rousing encore of All Right Now, a very welcome first tour inclusion for the Free classic Fire And Water, and a superb Can't Get Enough.

But this tour is really all about May and Taylor's attempt to do justice to their legacy. And what a legacy, for as last night proved, nobody before or since has straddled pop and rock with the flair and tunes of Queen.

The set, a stamina-sapping 25 songs and almost two and a half hours long, was stuffed with anthems and wall to wall hits.

Tie Your Mother Down, I Want To Break Free, Fat Bottomed Girls, Another One Bites The Dust, Crazy Little Thing Called Love, and Under Pressure . . . and they were straight off the reel from the start of the show.

May and Taylor both had acoustic interludes and their own instrumental solo spots, and there was even a rare outing for Taylor's I'm In Love With My Car. He took the mic again for Radio Ga Ga, the sign for mass synchronised crowd clapping (as in the original video), and a breathless run to the finish with A Kind Of Magic, I Want It All and a truly exultant Bohemian Rhapsody, with Mercury on the giant screen leading the band through the opening piano section before Rodgers took over for the finale.

They couldn't possibly top that, but encores of The Show Must Go On, All Right Now, We Will Rock You and We Are The Champions came close.

Not Queen then, but for last night at least May, Taylor and Rodgers were kings of all they surveyed.

Neil McKay

Pre-Open Air Interviews, June 2005:

1. Radio:

Roger and Brian on Radio 2:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/tour05/interviews/hpkint_b&r_jwalker_220605.html

Roger on XFM:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/queennews/queennewsjun05.html#54

Roger and Brian on Capital Gold:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/queennews/queennewsjun05.html#55

Capital Gold - Hyde Park:

Roger on 14 Jul:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/tour05/interviews/rt_dj_capgoldint140705.html

Roger, Brian and Paul on 15 Jul:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/tour05/interviews/bm_rt_pr_capgoldint150705.html

NB - Here are a few internet links relating to the Hyde Park concert:

About the offer of free tickets to the Emergency Services:

http://www.fazed.com/musicnews/Queens_tribute_London_concert.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4685317.stm

Emergency Services picking up their free tickets:

http://www.queenworld.com/artman/publish/article_213.shtml

2. Press:

Cologne Express Interview with Brian (Translated by me, of course!):

http://brianmay.com/queen/tour05/interviews/bm_kolnexpress280605.html

Bild Interview with Roger:

The Reviews are better than they were with Freddie Mercury

by Daniel Cremer, Bild-Zeitung, 6 July 05

NB Translated from German, therefore not verbatim quotes.

Cologne – Rarely have the Queen reviews been so princely. Rarely has the band itself been so self-assured. Roger Taylor is interviewed by the ‘Bild’: ‘We’ve never even liked ourselves this much’.

Mr Taylor, the way fans are acclaiming Queen, it’s as if Freddie had never been there. How much do you miss him?

Very much, of course. Freddie was a musical genius. When it came to the music, we never received such good reviews with him.

What’s different without the genius?

Well (laughs) I have to sing more. Be more at the front. I still haven’t got used to that. Freddie always fulfilled that role superbly. His ego towered above everything.

How does Paul Rodgers fare?

He’s brilliant. He’s giving us a musical depth that we didn’t have before. We don’t sound like the old Queen now.

Did you never have doubts about the way he would be received?

No. He was already an established artist beforehand. We couldn’t have stuck any other poor bloke in there.

What’s awaiting us at the Open Air?

An even bigger, more brilliant show. We’re crazy about the amount of young people who come – it’s tremendous. There in Germany we’ve never been forgotten.

*****

14 July 2005

Sending my translation of the interview from the Cologne Express with Brian to his webmaster Jen enabled her to obtain and substitute his original words on the first section of one answer, still economically translated into German. I put the link here as an interim update some days ago.

I’m not happy with the emphasis of the Roger interview. It is included here for information, but is very much to be read in conjunction with his interview – since transcribed by myself underneath - on BBC Breakfast time this morning, which, I feel, provides a more balanced representation of Roger’s opinions.

*****

3. Television:

BBC Breakfast Time Interview with Roger Taylor, 14 July 05

BT: Bill Turnbull

NK: Natasha Kaplinksy

RT: Roger Taylor

(NK introduced the interview by saying that tickets for the Hyde Park concert were being offered to members of the Emergency Services as a gesture of thanks for their work after the London bombings, also in the hope that the postponed concert will become something of a tribute to their work).

BT: The band’s guitarist Brian May called them ‘heroes for getting London’s wheels turning again’, well, to tell us more, the drummer Roger Taylor is with us, Good Morning!

RT: Good Morning.

BT: How’s it all going to work, Roger?

RT: I hope it’s all going to work well - I suppose it was due to be the last concert in our tour; obviously we had to postpone until the next Friday and it’s turned into a sort of concert of defiance in a way.

NK: Where did the idea come from?

RT: I think it was a general feeling that it would be nice to recognise the magnificent work of the Emergency Services.

NK: And magnificent it certainly was, you can’t give them enough praise really with all the emergency plans just swinging into action as they did. So you’ve invited a thousand of them, personally, or you’ve just asked them to come and get tickets?

RT: I don’t know how many - it’s quite a lot more than that – seven thousand I think – have already taken up the offer and we’re hoping it’s going to be a really good celebratory day in a way, it’s a good bill , we’re gonna try and make it fun.

BT: When you say it’s a good bill, it’s not just Queen, there are other bands?

RT: We’ve got Peter Kay..

BT: Gosh I wonder what he’s going to sing?

NK: Who knows?

(laughter)

RT: I hope he’s not going to sing too much! He should lighten up the proceedings and we’ve got a great new band called Razorlight who’ve really been doing well lately - I think they should be great too.

NK: We’ve got a reminder actually of the wonderful music that’s made you so well known, so successful and what people are going to enjoy…

(Excerpt of Queen + Paul Rodgers concert)

Do you still rehearse?

(RT Laughs)

Will you practise for something like this?

RT: We’re pretty match fit at the moment because we’re at the end of a long European tour. We did rehearse actually, because it’d been an awful long time, and we weren’t sure at our advanced age if we could actually manage two and a half hours. But it’s been fantastic, especially with our new singer.

BT: I’m going to come to that, but you’ve been named, Queen, the biggest band ever in the UK, bigger even than the Beatles, that’s an extraordinary mantle, isn’t it?

RT: Well it is, I think it’s just one of those statistics really. I think it was based on album - chart points I think; I think it’s a statistic more than a fact.

BT: Let me talk to you about Paul Rodgers – a very well known singer but a big task really for him to fit in as the lead singer, because everybody would remember Freddie Mercury. How’s it been going?

RT: Of course, Freddie still lives with us daily, really. But Paul .he’s not trying to be anybody else - he’s not trying to be Freddie Mercury – he is and already was Paul Rodgers. He was a great favourite of ours. He was one of our vocal heroes and it’s great, it’s very good mixture, a real incendiary mixture.

NK: How did the tour go? You said two and a half hours- whether or not you’d manage – are you absolutely exhausted?

RT: It’s sort of slowed down now – this is the end of it. Yes, I have been quite exhausted. But it’s been fantastic, it’s been packed out all over Europe, and the reaction has been better than we could have hoped for, I think.

BT: Have you got new material that you’re playing on this tour?

RT: We’ve got just a couple of new songs.

BT: Do you ever get tired of Bohemian Rhapsody?

RT: I get tired of talking about it.

NK: That’s that question dead!

BT: That’s a very diplomatic answer!

(laughter)

NK: I suppose it must be one of things that everyone wants to talk to you about and one of those things that you’ve talked to death!

RT: That’s right yeah, especially as nobody really knows what it means..

NK: Do you?

BT: Who did know what it meant though?

NK: We’re talking about it! He doesn’t want to talk about it!

BT: He’s carried on the conversation...just one more question. Who did know what it meant? Was it Freddie’s song?

RT: If anybody did, it was Freddie, but he didn’t explain much, I think it’s fairly self-evident.

NK: But then, as you were saying, with new singer, new blood in the group, new material coming, you said there’s a couple now, but what does the future hold for you?

RT: We have been doing a bit of work in the studio. There will be some new things coming but we want them to come naturally..

NK: Because you don’t have that hunger any more.

RT: No, and we don’t want to do too much too quickly.

BT: Hyde Park, first time you’ve been back for, what, nearly thirty years?

RT: Yeah, I’m afraid it is. I think it was ’76, so that’s yeah, an awful long time

NK: Nevertheless, you’re very well used to doing these big performances, if you think about Buckingham Palace, God Save the Queen and various other huge things..

RT: Yes, it was our sort of forte, really, we’re better than we used to be, so…

BT: You did the Brixton Academy, which is a smallish, medium-sized theatre and a really good place to get up an atmosphere and then you’re doing this Hyde Park with tens of thousands of people. Do you approach the gig in a different way when you play a different venue like that?

RT: Very much so. Brixton is about 4 or 5000, I think and obviously it’s a completely different concept - so this would be the full show in Hyde Park.

BT: You have to hit the drums harder when you’re in the park.

RT: I think you do, actually! Subconsciously, you definitely do!

NK: Well it’s fantastic to meet you, thank you very much and I’m sure that the gesture you’ve given to all the ambulance workers and the fireman and the policemen is so well appreciated, thank you, and I hope it goes really well.

RT: So do I.

NK: Thanks for coming and talking to us.

RT: Thank you.

Fan review of Arnhem:

http://saturnnl002.tripod.com/QPR_arnhem_eng.html

Hyde Park review:

http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/music/reviews/article299851.ece

Another press review of Hyde Park:

http://www.queenpluspaulrodgers.com/index.php?news_id=69

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE!!!

Queen + Paul Rodgers Tour Promo

Pic: Andy Earl

18 Aug 2005

The number of hits this page has had had just passed the 3000 mark. So thanks to all of you who have visited, and please do return whenever you like!!!

This is a fan site and I reach the world from this cellar (right) in Rochester, Kent, UK!

God save Queen and all who sail with them!

Alison

Now-im-here.com Promo

Pic: Peter Burt

RETURN OF THE CHAMPIONS

(Dedicated to Michelle Bruheim, a young Queen fan who passed away in a tragic accident on Wednesday August 17th 2005, taken too young).

Isn’t that our music?

It belongs to you and me

A miracle brought this about

Who thought it could ever be?

It was never going to be the same

We knew that from the start

An empty stool was showing

He was there in every heart.

Isn’t that our music?

It belongs to you and me

We’re bringing it back

With that great singer from Free

pic:queenpluspaulrodgers.com

I could sense up on that stage

Joy and fun in many a song

Like you were having a party

And had invited us along

Hyde Park pic: Danny Clifford, queenpluspaulrodgers.com

Isn’t that our music?

It belongs to you and me

Thank you for the chance we took

For this day we got to see.

Picture: Michael Simons

Aruba Music Festival:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/queennews/queennewsoct05b.html#40

USA Reviews:

New Jersey:

http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/reviews/live_review_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001350925

Los Angeles:

http://www.calendarlive.com/nightlife/reviews/cl-et-queen24oct24,0,5968547.story

Japan:

Pictures: Getty Images

Fan Review by Yukari:

http://www.brianmay.com/queen/queennews/queennewsnov05b.html#47

I promise great rock’n’roll show

Author: A. Novakovic | 29.10.2008 - 09:05

“Blic” readers meet member of “Queen”

Author: A. N. | 31.10.2008 - 10:14

'The Cabinet reshuffle: supergroup, or a sad tribute act?

Gordon Brown has reunited the stars that gave Labour its glory days - but can they rock the nation?'

Extracts from Press Reviews

Jan Wölfer, ‘regioactive.de’, about Mannheim

Michael Grill, Abendzeitung, Munich

Fan Comments

11,000 Fans acclaim Queen in Hanover

http://www.rnz.de/RNZ_Metropolregion/00_20081004074200_Die_Koenigin_ist_wieder_auferstanden.html

The Queen has risen again

by Peter Wiest

Q + PR HAVE LANDED!
London, England

VH1 NEWS:
PAUL RODGERS FIT FOR QUEEN

Brixton Review by Christian Rischer - (excerpts):

Later on...

Rome/Milan/Pesaro

'Queen zwischen Selbsthuldigung und ordentlichem Rock-Konzert'

'Queen begeistert im strömenden Regen'

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE!!!

I promise great rock’n’roll show

Author: A. Novakovic | 29.10.2008 - 09:05

“Blic” readers meet member of “Queen”

Author: A. N. | 31.10.2008 - 10:14

'The Cabinet reshuffle: supergroup, or a sad tribute act?

Gordon Brown has reunited the stars that gave Labour its glory days - but can they rock the nation?'

Extracts from Press Reviews

Jan Wölfer, ‘regioactive.de’, about Mannheim

Michael Grill, Abendzeitung, Munich

Fan Comments

11,000 Fans acclaim Queen in Hanover

http://www.rnz.de/RNZ_Metropolregion/00_20081004074200_Die_Koenigin_ist_wieder_auferstanden.html

The Queen has risen again

by Peter Wiest

Q + PR HAVE LANDED! London, England

VH1 NEWS: PAUL RODGERS FIT FOR QUEEN

Brixton Review by Christian Rischer - (excerpts):

Later on...

Rome/Milan/Pesaro

'Queen zwischen Selbsthuldigung und ordentlichem Rock-Konzert'

'Queen begeistert im strömenden Regen'

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE!!!

Q + PR HAVE LANDED!
London, England

VH1 NEWS:
PAUL RODGERS FIT FOR QUEEN