 Queen formed in 1971 and in 1973 signed their first recording contract for
EMI. That year they released their first album, QUEEN. The same year saw their
first major UK tour, and in 1974 they released QUEEN II as well as making their
first UK headlining tour. They made their first US tour, and in November
released SHEER HEART ATTACK which was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic.
1975 saw their new release, A NIGHT AT THE OPERA, and - significantly - the
single Bohemian Rhapsody. At 5' 55" it should have been too long for successful
radio play but it became one of the greatest singles of all time, staying at No.
1 in the UK chart for nine weeks. The video, directed by Bruce Gowers, is
credited with being the first genuine promotional video. The song has regularly
featured in all major pop polls and was recently named again as the best single
of all time. The success of A NIGHT AT THE OPERA was equally stunning, giving
the band their first platinum album.
In 1976 they toured the US and Japan and by spring all four albums resided in
the UK Top Twenty. Later that year they released A DAY AT THE RACES, and gave a
free concert in Hyde Park to an estimated crowd of 200,000 fans. The album was a
huge success, advance orders alone amounting to over 500,000. The following year
saw two major US tours, the band's sixth album, NEWS OF THE WORLD and the
legendary double A side single, WE WILL ROCK YOU and WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS.
1978's JAZZ, included another huge hit single in Bicycle Race and Queen
toured the US and Canada. They spent much of 1979 touring in Europe and Japan,
as well as releasing their first live album, LIVE KILLERS. They were also
approached to write the score for a forthcoming feature film, FLASH GORDON.
Before that they released THE GAME in 1980 which went five times platinum in
Canada alone! Another One Bites The Dust became the band's biggest selling
American single. Later that year the soundtrack for FLASH GORDON was released
and by the end of the year Queen had sold over 45,000,000 albums worldwide.
In 1981 they toured the Far East and were the first band to make a stadium
tour of South America. They played to 131,000 people in Sao Paolo, the largest
paying audience for any band anywhere in the world. GREATEST HITS, GREATEST FLIX
and GREATEST PIX were released simultaneously later in the year and Greatest
Hits has rarely been out of the UK album charts since. Greatest Flix was the
first collection of promo-videos released commercially by any band. Next year
saw the release of the band's twelfth album, HOT SPACE whilst they were in the
middle of a European tour.
1984 saw THE WORKS and the single Radio Ga Ga became a worldwide hit,
reaching No. 1 in 19 countries. Another huge hit was I Want To Break Free,
featuring one of their most famous videos, all dressed in drag. In 1985 they
were the headlining act at Rock in Rio, the biggest festival to be held anywhere
in the world. They again made history that year with the show-stealing
performance at Live Aid from Wembley Stadium, which proved to be a turning point
for the band, One Vision being the first post Live Aid release.
1986 saw their 14th album, A KIND OF MAGIC, which was the soundtrack to the
Russel Mulcahy film, Highlander. The title track became another worldwide smash
and the album entered the UK charts at No. 1; later in the year the 2nd live
album, LIVE MAGIC, went into the charts at No. 3. Between 1988 and 1991 Queen
released three more albums, THE MIRACLE in 1989 and in 1991 INNUENDO and
GREATEST HITS TWO. All three entered the UK charts at No. 1, as did the single
Innuendo.
On 23rd November 1991 Freddie Mercury announced to the world that he had AIDS
and the next day he died peacefully at his home, surrounded by family and
friends. He remains the most high profile loss from the disease in the
entertainment world and the news shocked fans throughout the world. As a tribute
Bohemian Rhapsody /These Are The Days Of Our Lives was released as a double
A-sided single to raise funds for the Terence Higgins Trust. It entered the UK
chart at No. 1, where it stayed for five weeks, raising over £1,000,000 for the
charity and Queen became the first band to have the same single top the UK
charts twice. In December of that year Queen had 10 albums in the UK Top 100. In
1992 Freddie was awarded posthumously the BRIT's "Outstanding Contribution to
British Music" and Days Of Our Lives won Best Single. On 20th April many of the
world's top stars joined Brian, Roger and John on stage at Wembley for an
emotional tribute to Freddie.
In 1995 the tracks that Queen had begun in 1991 were completed by Brian,
Roger and John and the long-awaited MADE IN HEAVEN was released worldwide. It
was the end of an era. Since then the phenomenon of Queen has remained, however,
with continuing sales for their recorded output on CD and video. A ballet of
their music by famous French choreographer Maurice Bejart was premiered at the
National Theatre in Paris in 1997 and in May 2002 the hit musical We Will Rock
You opened to sell-out audiences in London's West End and continues to play to
packed houses and standing ovations every night. Queen’s first DVD Greatest
Video Hits Vol.1 was released at the end of October 2002, and yet another piece
of Queen product entered the UK charts at number 1. October 2002 also saw Queen
receive their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, joining The
Beatles as only one of a handful of non-US bands to receive the much coveted
honour. Last year, 2004 they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Walk of Fame,
and in the UK were voted by the public into the first UK Music Hall of Fame.
Queen’s musical has since opened in Australia, Spain, Las Vegas, USA, Russia,
Germany and is scheduled to open in Japan this May.
Brian and Roger continue to be ambassadors for Nelson Mandela’s 46664
HIV/AIDS awareness campaign and this month, March, played a second benefit
concert for 46664 in Fancourt, South Africa.
Brian and Roger take Queen back onto the touring circuit for the first time
since 1986 this Spring, joined by former Free/Bad Company singer, songwriter and
musical Paul Rodgers playing concerts across the UK and throughout Europe. The
tour covers over a dozen countries over a six week period, followed in July by 4
major outdoor concerts including London’s Hyde Park on July 8, a venue they last
played in September 1976 when playing a free concert, they attracted a record
audience of 150,000 to the Royal Park.
Contact Grabow for more information or to book Queen + Paul
Rodgers for your next corporate or private event.
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