We’re certainly big fans of the band Queen here on TG, and Freddie Mercury was an extraordinary talent, the likes of which we’ll never see again.
It’s also especially tragic that we lost Freddie on the eve of the band’s big comeback, where Bohemian Rhapsody was a big hit in the States again, thanks to the movie Wayne’s World.
Queen swore they would never play the States again unless they could still headline big places, and that was on the verge of happening again when Freddie died of AIDS on November 24, 1991 at the age of 45. There’s no reason to think that Freddie wouldn’t still be performing today if he was s around. Hell, he’d probably have more energy than someone half his age, even if he lived to be a senior citizen.
And now Mercury’s life is being recalled in Mercury: An Intimate Biography of the vocalist, which has just been released by Touchstone in the States. As the Hollywood Reporter tells us, Lesley-Ann Jones, the author of Mercury, conducted over one hundred interviews for the book, and that it is a “key source” for the upcoming biopic of Mercury, where he’ll be played with Sacha Baron Cohen.
The book reveals that Queen would fight like cats and dogs when writing songs, but notes Freddie was the diplomat of the band who would get everyone to reach a middle ground. Lyricist Tim Rice (The Lion King) also reveals why he feels Bohemian Rhapsody was Freddie’s coming out song.
And towards the end of the book, Queen drummer Roger Taylor poignantly tells author Jones that he’s never gotten over Freddie’s death.
Whatever’s out there that will keep Freddie’s memory alive, whether it’s this book, the upcoming film, and of course, the music itself, it’s all good.
Freddie was indeed one of the greatest frontmen ever, and his incredible voice and song-craft still lives on after all this time. It’s indeed sad he couldn’t have given us more, but in the brief time he was here, he sure gave us a hell of a lot.
