Quote:
Originally Posted by Crowe
But look at the glaring flaw in your logic here. "You can see Queen slipping into that stereotypical sound that they are known for" - can you look at this sentence and tell me what's wrong with it? They weren't SLIPPING INTO ANYTHING "stereotypical" THEN. At the time, it was a brand new sound for them and the world, it doesn't become stereotypical until they release 11 more studio albums and then new generations remark upon it.
Go back to 1975, When Night at the Opera is released, and think about the people who would laugh in your face if you called Queen stereotypical. The first 2 Queen albums are magnificent of course, but it's during Sheer Heart Attack, Night at the Opera and a Day at the Races when they fully develope their own sound.
What you said above nearly blows my mind. I take back what I said about you getting these thoughts from an article, because anyone who knows anything about Queen would never make some of these ridiculous comments. Potential? I mean... they are considered by many to be one of the greatest bands of all time! What else could Queen accomplish!? Oh yeah, in their homeland, they have spent more time on the charts than any other artist EVER (yes, that includes the Beatles) - Queen's Greatest Hits? Yeah, in the UK - it's the ALL TIME BEST SELLING ALBUM.
Look on the Queen's Greatest Hits (you can pick the ones released in 81, or the most well known one, Greatest Hits Red, 92) tracklist and tell me how many of those songs come from Queen, or Queen II. The only one you will find is Seven Seas of Rhye - which came off of Queen II. It isn't until the box sets start arriving when Greatest Hits II features some off of Queen or Queen II, and you get a couple of more in Queen Greatest Hits III.
Now... I think you are letting personal preference get the better of you here - I LOVE Queen and Queen II, don't get me wrong... but they don't become the QUEEN we all know and love (which you called stereotypical, which may be the most blind statement you could make here... I have to reiterate this) until the second half of Sheer Heart Attack, you could argue, or until A Night at the Opera hits in 1975.
Mercy.
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The fact that many songs on Queen and Queen II are
not on the Greatest Hits compilation is exactly my point. Both of these albums were daring steps forward for Queen as a group. Night At The Opera and Day At The Races saw the start of this slip into a definite pattern which would define Queen's later 80's radio-friendly stuff.
Dont get me wrong, I dont think A Night At The Opera is awful, at no point could you say it was a bad album. I just see it as the start of the slippery side into a bland pattern (only shook up occasionally with experimenting with another genre). Like you said, THEN it was nothing stereotypical. But with the benefit of hindsight I see the beginnings of a decline in the edge of Queen's music. The fact that the earlier albums were not "The Queen we all know and love" is exactly what I mean, it was bold, different and still can be seen as quite out there.
I dont think my comments are ridiculous at all. I'm actually looking from a standpoint where I am no longer obsessed with Queen yet still have the knowledge (and back catalogue) to make a fair judgement.