In the decade before strong>Freddie Mercury’s death, Queen were well into their bonkers phase, with a string of quirky, eccentric singles (such as “I’m Going Slightly Mad” and “Innuendo”) that took them beyond self-parody and into the realms of surrealist pantomime rock. This ill-fitting rebirth, fronted by the defiantly ungay, unIndian and uneccentric Paul Rodgers, can be seen as an attempt to ditch the Mercury-inspired absurdity and bolster Queen’s hard 'rawkin’credentials. The 14 tracks here, all co-written by Rodgers, Brian May and Roger Taylor, are either workmanlike pub-rock exercises (“Cosmos Rockin’”, “Surf’s Up, School’s Out”), largely turgid ballads (“Small”, “Voodoo”, “Through The Night”, “Say It Ain’t True”), or humourless Led Zep-ish ethno rock stompers (“Time To Shine”, “C-lebrity”). Only the funky military swagger of “Warboys” and the beautifully-crafted Freddie tribute ballad “Some Things That Glitter” (possibly Rodgers’ finest vocal performance since his Free heyday) survive this faintly ridiculous project with any credit. JOHN LEWIS
In the decade before strong>Freddie Mercury’s death, Queen were well into their bonkers phase, with a string of quirky, eccentric singles (such as “I’m Going Slightly Mad” and “Innuendo”) that took them beyond self-parody and into the realms of surrealist pantomime rock. This ill-fitting rebirth, fronted by the defiantly ungay, unIndian and uneccentric Paul Rodgers, can be seen as an attempt to ditch the Mercury-inspired absurdity and bolster Queen’s hard ‘rawkin’credentials.
The 14 tracks here, all co-written by Rodgers, Brian May and Roger Taylor, are either workmanlike pub-rock exercises (“Cosmos Rockin’”, “Surf’s Up, School’s Out”), largely turgid ballads (“Small”, “Voodoo”, “Through The Night”, “Say It Ain’t True”), or humourless Led Zep-ish ethno rock stompers (“Time To Shine”, “C-lebrity”). Only the funky military swagger of “Warboys” and the beautifully-crafted Freddie tribute ballad “Some Things That Glitter” (possibly Rodgers’ finest vocal performance since his Free heyday) survive this faintly ridiculous project with any credit.
JOHN LEWIS
