Queen: The Complete Works (122 page)

BOB GELDOF: HOW TO COMPOSE POPULAR

SONGS THAT WILL SELL
(Roger Taylor)

Mercury 274 745-2, February 2011

Roger is listed as providing backing vocals and percussion on Geldof’s first album in ten years, though no details have sneaked out on the specifics of which tracks.

A. BBC RADIO SESSIONS

Queen’s BBC radio appearances weren’t particularly frequent, given their long history: they recorded only six sessions proper between 1973 and 1977 (three each for Bob Harris and the late, great John Peel) and broadcast only a handful of specially performed live concert performances. Two of the studio sessions were released in December 1989 by independent label Band Of Joy on a record called
Queen At The Beeb
. This went out of print rather quickly, but Hollywood Records offered their own version in March 1995 titled
Queen At The BBC,
which included the same songs from the 1989 release. Both of these albums featured material recorded during the first and third sessions from 1973, but why these sessions were chosen (seemingly at random) is anybody’s guess.

In 1996, rumours circulated that EMI and Hollywood were going to release a double disc set called
Live At The BBC
with all twenty-four performances; three remastered songs – ‘My Fairy King’, ‘Doing All Right’ and ‘Liar’ – were even released on the second CD single of ‘Let Me Live’ in June 1996, with a sticker proudly declaring “from the upcoming release,
Live At The BBC
”. Unfortunately, EMI hadn’t offered anything new – the three songs had actually been taken from the 1989/1995 BBC release – and the rumoured album fell by the wayside. Given the success of other bands’ BBC releases around this time (The Beatles, The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Kinks, Jimi Hendrix, Cream and David Bowie, to name but a few), an updated release is badly needed to supplant the fans’ current option: poor-quality downloads from the internet.

Queen Productions has started to rectify this issue, finally releasing some of the rarer and more interesting selections on the 2011 deluxe reissues of each respective album, hinting that a more complete set will be available in the not-too-distant future. To add further fuel to the rumour fire, the discovery – and subsequent BBC TV broadcast – in 2009 of Queen’s 1975 Hammersmith concert led many to speculate that an all-encompassing box set of the BBC sessions, with the DVD and CD of the Christmas Eve show, will be released. As ever, Queen fans wait with a mixture of baited breath and scepticism.

JOHN PEEL’S SOUNDS OF THE

SEVENTIES (SESSION 1)

•
Recorded:
5 February 1973 •
Broadcast:
15 February 1973 •
Venue:
Langham 1 Studio •
Producer:
Bernie Andrews •
Engineer:
John Etchells

‘My Fairy King’ (4’06), ‘Keep Yourself Alive’ (3’48), ‘Doing All Right (4’11), ‘Liar’ (6’28)

Queen’s first radio session took place before they had established themselves as a household name; they hadn’t even released a single yet. As the band were recording their debut album at the time, they were more concerned with finalizing the result instead of rushing out to record four fresh versions of songs they had painstakingly worked on for the past few months – though they knew that this kind of exposure would be exceptional. So, a compromise was drawn, with the band delivering the backing tracks of four songs, with new vocals recorded by Freddie (and Roger).

The result is underwhelming, though, at the time, these unheard-of songs from Queen, especially ‘My Fairy King’ (which hadn’t been performed live), were a real treat to the band’s early fan base. There’s not much to praise here in hindsight, though: Freddie’s lead vocal isn’t drastically different on any of the songs, excepting the odd ad-lib here and there, but the real
treat of the session is to hear Roger sing lead vocal on the final verse of ‘Doing All Right’, an arrangement which hadn’t been attempted by the band in either the studio or the live setting. Unfortunately for Queen fans, Band of Joy picked perhaps the least interesting session to release on
Queen At The Beeb
.

BOB HARRIS’ SOUNDS OF THE

SEVENTIES (SESSION 2)

•
Recorded:
25 July 1973 •
Broadcast:
13 August 1973 (without ‘Keep Yourself Alive’) •
Repeat:
24 September 1973 (with ‘Keep Yourself Alive’) •
Venue:
Langham 1 Studio •
Producer:
Jeff Griffin •
Engineers:
Chris Lycett and John Etchells

‘See What A Fool I’ve Been’ (4’21), ‘Keep Yourself Alive’ (3’41), ‘Liar’ (6’28), ‘Son And Daughter’ (6’00)

When the band returned to Langham 1 Studio to record another radio session, Queen had just been released and they appreciated as much exposure as possible. Another odd arrangement was struck up, in which the band brought two master tracks – ‘Keep Yourself Alive’ and ‘Liar’ – and recorded new lead vocals, and then performed two new renditions of ‘See What A Fool I’ve Been’ and ‘Son And Daughter’, which could be undertaken rather quickly as they were fairly standard blues numbers.

The appearance of ‘See What A Fool I’ve Been’ was interesting, as the band hadn’t included it on their debut album despite the fact that it was an integral part of their live show, usually performed as an encore. ‘Son And Daughter’, more indicative of Queen’s live show at the time, was extended to nearly twice the running time of the album version, allowing for plenty of improvisation from the three instrumentalists. Freddie altered the “a woman expects a man to buckle down and shovel shit” line to end with “shhh” the first time around, and changed it to just “it” when repeated. The improvisation featured plenty of feedback and was one of the first recorded appearances of the ‘Brighton Rock’ solo that had already become a favourite in the live setting.

Excepting the two pre-recorded songs, this session offered a tantalizing glimpse into Queen’s live sound at the time, which would be explored more fully during the next radio session.

IN CONCERT (RADIO ONE)

•
Recorded:
13 September 1973 •
Broadcast:
13 September 1973 (without Rock ‘n’ Roll Medley)

•
Venue:
Golders Green Hippodrome •
Producer:
Jeff Griffin •
Engineers:
John Etchells and Paul Deley

‘Procession’ (1’26), ‘Father To Son’ (4’57), ‘Son And Daughter’ (6’44), ‘See What A Fool I’ve Been’ (4’20), ‘Ogre Battle’ (5’24), ‘Liar’ (6’56), Rock ‘n’ Roll Medley (‘Jailhouse Rock’, ‘Shake, Rattle & Roll’, ‘Stupid Cupid’, ‘Be Bop A Lula’, ‘Bama Lama Bama Loo’, ‘Jailhouse Rock
(reprise)
’) (3’47)

A good month before Queen’s official European tour in support of their debut album, the band were approached by the BBC to perform a concert specifically for radio use. The band agreed and rehearsed diligently for about a week before the taping to ensure that things went smoothly. With a restructured set list, including three new compositions from the upcoming second album and a smattering of concert favourites and old hits, the band launched into a surprisingly raw and thrilling set with an opening salvo of ‘Procession’ (which was broadcast over the PA system) and ‘Father To Son’, distinctly rearranged and lacking the “a word in your ear” coda.

The band was in truly fine form here and, while the performance wouldn’t be long enough for a standalone release, it really does deserve to be officially released in some form. The between-song commentary from DJ Alan Black isn’t particularly enlightening, though there’s a moment when he introduces each band member, and, using the debut album’s liner notes as a reference, calls John “Deacon John”. Freddie is heard to remark on mic, “No, it’s not.”

The original broadcast lacked the concluding Rock ‘n’ Roll Medley, and rumours have circulated over the years (by no less than Greg Brooks in his book Queen Live) that ‘Hangman’, ‘Stone Cold Crazy’ and ‘Keep Yourself Alive’ were all performed after ‘Ogre Battle’, with ‘See What A Fool I’ve Been’ closing the first part of the set. If these songs were performed that night, they haven’t yet seen the light of day. In addition, Black clearly stated that the band would not be performing “their first single”, though, again, this might have just been added for broadcast purposes.

JOHN PEEL’S SOUNDS OF THE

SEVENTIES (SESSION 3)

•
Recorded:
3 December 1973 •
Broadcast:
6 December 1973 •
Venue:
Langham 1 Studio •
Producer:
Bernie Andrews •
Engineers:
Mike Franks and Nick Griffiths ‘Ogre Battle’ (4’57), ‘Great King Rat (5’56), ‘Modern
Times Rock ‘n’ Roll’ (2’00), ‘Son And Daughter’ (7’08)

Queen’s third BBC radio session in twelve months wrapped up an eventful year. Broadcast three days after recording, the band offered four fresh new items: three from their debut album and one from their upcoming second release. This session shows the band in their rawest form yet, a surprisingly refreshing approach from a band that thrived on perfection. The session commenced with a rendition of ‘Ogre Battle’ (taken at a slightly slower pace than the album version), which had been featured prominently in the live setting, and had been performed during Queen’s broadcast from the Golders Green Hippodrome.

‘Great King Rat’ deviates little from the original studio version but is a far more energetic performance, and contains an obvious guitar solo overdub as well as poor vocal double-tracking at some points. ‘Modern Times Rock ‘n’ Roll’ and ‘Son And Daughter’ are both extended past their normal playing times, the latter track more than doubled in length to allow the band plenty of room for improvisation (making it similar to the version from the second session).

This session was chosen to be released on the
Queen At The Beeb
album in 1989, although one edit was made: ‘Ogre Battle’ lost its introductory sixty seconds of guitar feedback and screaming due to a mangled master tape. This introduction often popped up in less than decent quality on bootlegs throughout the years, dubiously labelled as an alternate take, though it’s now assumed that the original master has been damaged beyond repair and the introduction is lost for good.

BOB HARRIS’ SOUNDS OF THE

SEVENTIES (SESSION 4)

•
Recorded:
3 April 1974 •
Broadcast:
15 April 1974

•
Venue:
Langham 1 Studio •
Producer:
Pete Ritzema

•
Engineer:
unknown

‘Modern Times Rock ‘n’ Roll’ (2’37), ‘Nevermore’ (1’26), ‘White Queen (As It Began)’ (4’46), ‘The March Of The Black Queen’ (6’42)

An interesting session, this set saw the band perform two new numbers and rework an old favourite. ‘Modern Times Rock ‘n’ Roll’ is given its second BBC broadcast, taken at a slower tempo with suitably raucous vocals from Roger. Just as the first version had contained an appropriate “it’s not that I’m bright, just happy-go-lucky” interjection from its author (delivered in a broad Cockney accent, no less), the new version was noteworthy in that it featured a weird whistle-blowing as well as Freddie and Roger screaming “Rock and roll!” towards the conclusion of the song.

‘Nevermore’ and ‘White Queen (As It Began)’ are certainly the highlights of the session, as they feature some lovely ensemble playing, and it’s in the simplicity of the arrangements that both succeed. The first is given a heavier treatment, with drums and guitar entering before the final verse, while the second features a breathtaking piano and guitar duet in place of the album version’s acoustic guitar solo. While ‘Nevermore’ was finally released in 2011 on the deluxe edition of Queen II, ‘White Queen (As It Began)’ still remains unfairly under wraps.

The only complaints lie with the selection of the introductory track (why not ‘Seven Seas Of Rhye’? – an obvious choice, considering it had been released as a single six weeks before) and the disappointing inclusion of ‘The March Of The Black Queen’ – disappointing in that the band don’t actually attempt to recreate this epic composition, but instead play the standard album version, fading out pointlessly as the strains of ‘Funny How Love Is’ are heard. Opinions have wavered over the actual version that was presented; Greg Brooks has stated that there were further guitar and percussion overdubs, and that it was officially a remix, though a more in-depth listen reveals that there were no overdubs administered.

BOB HARRIS’ SOUNDS OF THE

SEVENTIES (SESSION 5)

•
Recorded:
16 October 1974 •
Broadcast:
4 November 1974 •
Venue:
Maida Vale 4 Studio •
Producer:
Jeff Griffin •
Engineer:
Jeff Griffin

‘Now I’m Here’ (4’13), ‘Stone Cold Crazy’ (2’13), ‘Flick Of The Wrist’ (3’12), ‘Tenement Funster’ (2’46)

A disappointing session, this penultimate set saw the band bring the master tapes of four tracks from
Sheer Heart Attack
to Maida Vale 4 and merely record new lead vocals. It is because of this different-but-not-different approach that many bootleggers have attempted to disguise these recordings as alternate or early takes. But a cursory listen reveals that the songs are identical to their original counterparts, excepting the vocals.

‘Now I’m Here’ and ‘Stone Cold Crazy’ are boring for this reason alone, while ‘Flick Of The Wrist’ and ‘Tenement Funster’ (featuring a more aggressive vocal
from Roger) are interesting in that they feature slightly different edits due to their appearance as part of a medley on
Sheer Heart Attack
. Instead of ‘Tenement Funster’ fading into ‘Flick Of The Wrist’, it instead finishes on a distinctive power chord, fading into nothingness (it was this edit to the backing track that was later used for the
Queen’s First EP
release in 1977). ‘Flick Of The Wrist’ is faded in, instead of using a clean intro as on the ‘Killer Queen’ single, and ends with a flash of feedback from Brian’s guitar. These two selections were released on the 2011 deluxe edition of
Sheer Heart Attack
. Along with the first session, session four is the most inessential one of all six...