Queen, like Kiss, Aerosmith and a few others, embodied the pure excess of the '70s like few others could. They created their brand of arena rock mixing the British pomp of progressive rock and heavy metal while creating a huge, operatic sound with layers of thick, unique guitars and overdubbed vocals. For years, their albums boasted the motto "no synthesizers were used on this record," signaling their allegiance with the legions of post-Led Zeppelin hard rock bands. It was Freddie Mercury's unique voice along with the phenomenal guitar sounds of Brian May all brought together by Roger Taylor and John Deacon. Freddie Mercury was a bisexual, despite the fact that most people suspected it, he managed to keep his sexuality in the closet until his death from AIDS in 1992. I use to own a very large Queen record collection. For some reason I have not even attempted to update my cd collection yet, but I will eventually.

Queen (Hollywood) 1973

1."Keep Yourself Alive" (3:47)
2."Doing All Right" (4:09)
3."Great King Rat" (5:43)
4."My Fairy King" (4:08)
5."Liar" (6:25)
6."The Night Comes Down" (4:23)
7."Modern Times Rock 'N' Roll" (1:48)
8."Son and Daughter" (3:20)
9."Jesus" (3:44)
10."Seven Seas of Rhye..."-instrumental (1:15)
11."Mad the Swine" (3:20)
12."Keep Yourself Alive"-"long lost re-take" (4:04)
13."Liar"-1991 bonus remix (6:25)

Of the Hollywood reissues, this album is probably the best one due to the fact that it includes two prime bonus songs, the acoustic track "Mad the Swine" and the "Keep Yourself Alive" outtake. The majority of the reissues just include annoying remixes. Even the "Liar" remix on this one isn't bad. Queen's self titled debut is a glam, heavy metal classic. I know, by today's standards, Queen would not be considered heavy metal. However, being a fan of the band during the 70's they were then considered heavy metal. Some of the music is a bit trippy, but what I actually want to say is that Queen, the album, is an artistic rock 'n roll masterpiece. Can't believe it took me so many years to finally secure a cd copy.

Queen-Sheer Heart Attack (Hollywood) 1974

1."Brighton Rock" (5:08)
2."Killer Queen" (2:57)
3."Tenement Funster" (2:48)
4."Flick of the Wrist" (3:46)
5."Lily of the Valley" (1:43)
6."Now I'm Here" (4:10)
7."In the Lap of the Gods" (3:20)
8."Stone Cold Crazy" (2:12)
9."Dear Friends" (1:07)
10."Misfire" (1:50)
11."Bring Back That Leroy Brown" (2:13)
12."She Makes Me (Stormtroopers in Stilettoes)" (4:08)
13."In the Lap of the Gods...revisited" (3:42)
14."Stone Cold Crazy"-1991 bonus remix (2:12)

I have always been amazed at the sheer number of guitar sounds that Brian May acheived on this disc. I mean, he must have used a different amp, guitar and mic on every song. 'Sheer Heart Attack' is another in a long line of classic Queen albums. "Brighton Rock" is an awesome song with tons of experimentation and is without a doubt one of the band's finest. I do find the version on 'Live Killers' to be a bit better though as it has a more raw, heavy sound. "Killer Queen" was a big hit for the band, as was "Stone Cold Crazy," a song capably covered by Metallica. Besides having a bunch of hits, "Sheer Heart Attack" also has interesting lyrics, a killer production for 1974, and some of Queen's finest songwriting. Only Zeppelin or perhaps, Deep Purple, were truly giving Queen a run for their money in '74.

Queen-A Night at the Opera (Hollywood) 1975

1."Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to...)" (3:44)
2."Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon" (1:07)
3."I'm in Love with My Car" (3:05)
4."You're My Best Friend" (2:50)
5."'39" (3:30)
6."Sweet Lady" (4:02)
7."Seaside Rendezvous" (2:14)
8."The Prophet's Song" (8:20)
9."Love of My Life" (3:34)
10."Good Company" (3:17)
11."Bohemian Rhapsody" (5:59)
12."God Saves the Queen"-instrumental (1:12)
13. "I'm in Love with My Car" -remix (3:05)
14."You're My Best Friend" -remix (2:50)

Besides containing Queen's magnum opus "Bohemium Rhapsody," this disc contains some of Queen's best 70's experimental material. While their earlier discs were much more straight ahead hard rock, "A Night At the Opera" has a wide variety of sounds and styles. My copy is the Hollywood re-issue with the bonus track remixes. I personally don't care about the remixes but the mastering on these new discs are superior to the first cd pressings.

Queen-News of the World (EMI) 1977

1."We Will Rock You" (2:01)
2."We Are the Champions" (2:59)
3."Sheer Heart Attack" (3:24)
4."All Dead, All Dead" (3:09)
5."Spread Your Wings" (4:32)
6."Fight from the Inside" (3:03)
7."Get Down, Make Love" (3:51)
8."Sleeping on the Sidewalk" (3:07)
9."Who Needs You" (3:07)
10."It's Late" (6:27)
11."My Melancholy Blues" (3:29)

Unfortunately this album will be forever known as the album that had the "We Will Rock You"/"We Are the Champions" double-hit. Fact is the whole album is spectacular. "Spread Your Wings" is a fabulous power ballad and "Sheer Heart Attack" is a fast, hard rocking song. There really isn't a bad song on this disc.

Queen-Jazz (Hollywood) 1978

1. "Mustapha" (3:05)
2. "Fat Bottomed Girls" (4:12)
3. "Jealousy" (3:15)
4. "Bicycle Race" (3:05)
5. "If You Can't Beat Them" (4:17)
6. "Let Me Entertain You" (3:02)
7. "Dead on Time" (3:28)
8. "In Only Seven Days" (2:27)
9. "Dreamers Ball" (3:32)
10."Fun It" (3:18)
11."Leaving Home Ain't Easy" (3:13)
12."Don't Stop Me Now" (3:44)
13."More of That Jazz" (4:13)
14. "Fat Bottomed Girls (1991 Remix)" (4:22)
15. "Bicycle Race" (4:59)

You gotta love these idiotic chain stores that sell a bonified classics like "Jazz" for $3.99 in the used bins while sitting right next to it they have a gigantic pile of Britney Spears cds for $9.99. No complaints here. Anyhow, as I said, this is a classic. The two best-known tracks are undoubtedly the fun riff-rocker "Fat Bottomed Girls" and the carefree "Bicycle Race." I have read that "Fat Bottomed Girls" caused a bit of a stir amoung certain woman's groups. Man, can't anybody take a joke? The album received some other attention because the band staged an all-nude female bicycle race at London's Wimbledon Stadium, with a poster of the event being included in vinyl copies of Jazz. The Hollywood cd reissue has the poster printed on the inside of the cd insert. "Don't Stop Me Now" was also a huge U.K. Top Ten single. It didn't do as well in the U.S., probably due to the lyrical references to Freddie's favorite past time. 'Nuff said. The thunderous heavy metal tune "Dead On Time" is also worthy of mention.

Queen-Live Killers (Hollywood) 1979

Simply one of the finest live albums ever released. "Live Killer" contains some of Queen's finest material. Somehow in the live setting, the songs become even more alive than they sometimes are in the studio setting. This was the first Queen album I looked for after selling all my vinyl. One annoyance is during the intro to "Death on Two Legs" the record company felt it necessary to bleep out whatever Freddy Mercury was saying.

Queen-The Game (Hollywood) 1980

 1. "Play the Game" (3:32)
 2. "Dragon Attack" (4:15)
 3. "Another One Bites the Dust" (3:03)
 4. "Need Your Loving Tonight" (2:48)
 5. "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" (2:44)
 6. "Rock It (Prime Jive)" (4:32)
 7. "Don't Try Suicide" (3:52)
 8. "Sail Away Sweet Sister" (3:32)
 9. "Coming Soon" (2:49)
 10. "Save Me" (3:42)
 11. "Dragon Attack" -1991 remix (4:20)

As with many of the great 70's bands, the 1980's ruined them as they fought to stay afloat in a fickle U.S. market that was no longer accepting of your average hard rock band. Several bands, including Kiss, Angel, and Queen explored with a sound that was closer to disco than the heavy metal/hard rock they had become known for. It didn't work for Kiss and Angel as their fan base dwindled even further. For Queen however, their popularity exploded. "The Game" was one of Queen's biggest selling U.S. studio albums due to the funky, infectious single "Another One Bites the Dust," and the Elvis Presley inspired "Crazy Little Thing Called Love."  ("Play the Game" and "Save Me" were also huge hits in Europe.) Unfortunately, it was also their last popular album in the U.S.  Overall, this is a good experimental album for the band showcasing their talents in funk, disco, rockabilly, and even new wave ("Rock It (Prime Jive)"), but there is little in the way of good old hard rock and heavy metal with the possible exception of "Need Your Loving Tonight." While Brian May is still present, his unique guitar tone and stellar lead work is not as evident. Even the layered vocals are tamed down quite a bit. I lost interest in Queen after this one. It's sort of funny though, that I have seen several cd collector's pages similar to mine who slag bands like Aerosmith for "changing styles," and "moving away from heavy metal" but they held onto Queen as if they never changed.

Queen-Live at Wembley '86

Clever album title don't ya think? Bet ya can't guess where and when this one was released. Anyhow, the music on this disc is suberb! Apparently this was Queen's last show before Freddie Mercury died. Originally, this show was released as a single record called "Live Magic" in 86, with only half the songs. Finally in 1993 this double cd was released containing the full show on Hollywood Records. The performance of the band is the tightest they ever were and Freddy Mercury absolutely knows how to work a crowd up. Not sure I would put this one above 'Live Killers,' but a nice disc nonetheless. Contains a few rare jems in a blaze of past glory "Seven Seas of Rhye" and the fun radio hit "Under Pressure."

Queen-Too Much Love Will Kill You (Parlophone) 1996

1. "Too Much Love Will Kill You" (4:21)
2. "Spread You Wings" (4:34)
3. "We Will Rock You" (2:02)
4. "We Are the Champions" (3:02)

A nice slime-case collector's single, but not much else since none of the material on this single is unreleased on any of their regular album releases.

Also see the Queen tribute "Dragon Attack."

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