QUEEN IS BACK!

...WITH A BIG, MASSIVE, UTTERLY FABULOUS AND QUITE LOUD BANG! OFFICIALLY, UNDENIABLY AND UNABVOIDABLY! SCARA HEREBY PRESENTS TO YOU, DEAR READERS, THE NEW QUEEN SONG "SAY IT'S NOT TRUE":

Credits: written, produced and composed by the Brilliant Threesome known as Q+PR: original Queen members Dr. Brian May and the main writer himself, Roger Taylor, along with former frontman of pop groups Free and Bad Company, Paul Rodgers. As seen on Youtube today, after following a link from Brian's SoapBox - and thus, let it be said, Mr. May himself acknowledges this publication! Or stealing, or whatever, he said it was okay. ;) First reaction: breathtakingly beautiful, gobsmackingly überfantastic. Moreover, I am so happy, I'm slightly out of words. So I'm gonna leave this an unusually short blog post. (Considering the topic in question.) All I can say is how magnificent it is to hear them sing and play again, and so brilliantly too, after such a very long absence of sound. We've been without proper Queen recordings for...well, more than fifteen years, so it's certainly about time the loyal bunch of fans are provided with some new material. And after finally being able to download the (free!!!) piece of music, my immediate thought is: what a treat! Give-away of the century, no doubt; go and grab, everyone! Seeing them live in Germany was indescribably marvellous, hearing this was possibly even better. And, best of all, first and foremost: Brian and Roger singing a duet! Now, that doesn't happen every day! Had to skip back three times before I believed my ears. Then I got shivers down my spine, and gave way to a really, really broad smile. Then, most importantly, there's Brian's guitar solo (which was what eventually had me absolutely speechless; my GOD, how the man rocks!!) and the whole tempo-passage-overlapping thing, the change of rhythm and speed, which was utterly amazing. Brian's improvisation and the tune-in voices, Roger's drumming, Paul's finale, it's just perfect. Indeed, took some time to get used to the vocal effects; but after the fourth time of listening through the song, I declared myself content. And somewhat relieved. I was, admittedly, rather sceptical towards the Q+PR union, but here Paul Rodgers also exceeds my expectations and proves his voice fits with the atmosphere of the Queen writings and that his - what should I call it - spirit, his attitude, is in tune with the rest of the band. I am tempted to add the obvious "but he can never replace Freddie"-comment, but I think I'll leave it be. I mean, it is obvious and hence not necessary; we all know it, for a fact, but there's nothing to be done about it - and as long as Queen can commit comebacks like this, with the evident help of Mr. Rodgers, I have no objections whatsoever. For once, he didn't try and copy the Master Mercury either, which was a pleasant surprise. He did his own "thing", which suits him far better. And they've got to combine the vocals, that's frankly superb. They're all such grand singers, in their own respect, we need to hear a little from each and every one of them, on every track. There's the risk of its being a little over the top, but then again; Queen always was. Need to follow the traditions! I want this show to go on and go and on! Great lyrics, too; although we've already learnt them by heart, they still manage to have an impact with the new rendition of the melody. Impressive. (And that adjective goes for the whole song, in fact.) Doubt the Queen-haters will like this, but since they hate Queen in the first place, might be just as convenient. They've got enough loyals out there to make up a sufficient arsenal of listeners, anyway. As for the video; in a word, touching. Lovely. Moves you to tears. Plain and simple, and yet so effective. Their support for Nelson Mandela is remarkable. Keep up the good work, boys! Looking forward to the album, now, a lot! Judging from the reactions amongst the rest of the fans, that feeling is quite common. Genuine and mutual. As distinct from the other "classic band", like Stones, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, that lot, Queen actually comes up with new ideas and stay up-to-date with the movements in the world. Their continuing fight against ADIS being the most clear evidence of this. Also, they can still rock; they still play and produce (almost) the same way they did when they were in their thirties, which is admirable to say the least, and they add modern twists (like the vocalization and surprising arrangements), they use remixes and synthesizers in a good, respectful manner - you can't ask for more than that. Oooh, me is happy. Listened to the song about ten times now, and checking the Queen boards for new discussions reagrding this topic. What a gift for Christmas! And Brian's making promises for the new album, saying - and I quote: "...will you please accept our sincere thanks for the support...it will be a real boost for our morale, when we go back in to shape what we hope will be a worthy new studio album." (Credit: Bri's SoapBox) Fingers crossed, Bri! Don't you dare disappoint us! (And I'm only saying that because I know you won't.) Best Band in the world prove they still know how to be Best. Can't beat that.

Two very minor details however: I miss John Deacon. Heavily. The current Queen has a great backing lineup, I must confess - and pose a very good crew, overall - but it's not quite the same without Deacy. Can't they beg him on their knees or something? "Please join in, we've got spanking new and sexy T-shirts!" Or, better, offer him a doubled salary? More royalities? What is the man doing these days, anyhow? Out of work, out of things to do, slightly bored, tired of his (huge!) family - I can think of many reasons why he could find it desirable to get back on stage! Except, of course, that he hates fame, probably hates Paul Rodgers - and is still mourning Freddie. Yeye. But I do hope he knows that he's missed. (I don't think he hated the fans, did he?) Second, I can't help ignoring the abbreviation used by Queen to promote their newest song: "SINT". Which translates to "angry" in Norwegian. Now, how unsuitably funny is that?!