Stone POLLd Crazy: The ILM Queen Poll Voting Thread (#68? in a series)

^^ that does rock pretty hard.

on the topic of '39, yeah i really like it. it does become a bit earnest and Bill Joel-like once the vocals begin, however.

my favourite May-sung Queen song is probably Sail Away Sweet Sister.

heard this Axl tribute of sorts a long time before I knew it was a Queen song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntrZa3n0L_0

I don't 'mind 'Drowse', especially the change into the 'Out here on the street' section (I was going to call it a middle eight, but not sure whether it technically is?)

Never particularly been a fan of 'Teo Torriate'. It's grown on me a little over the years, but I still think it's a bit of a half-baked sing-song finale.

Not really a huge fan of '39' or 'Spread Your Wings' either. Both so-so in my book.

'Father to Son' though--now we're talking! Will definitely figure in my votes.

Am also trying to find a spot for 'Backchat', 'Keep Yourself Alive', 'Jesus', and 'Great King Rat', but as I said upthread, this top 20 thing is a tough undertaking! One thing that's surprised me a bit is how many tracks from the debut I'm considering voting for. Sure, the songs don't quite have the production values of later work, but they're generally packed with ideas, and still retain some magic after decades of listening.

And finally, a track that I don't think anyone's mentioned, which will definitely be right up there in my ballot:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0e4Odk-v3oU

I voted for the Seven Seas from Queen II, actually!

hell yeah, Great King Rat. could have easily voted for that one, but my appreciation & fondness for it is a little too recently cultivated and therefore susceptible to possible flux. agree that Queen I is killer.

Rhye is a stone cold classic. wonder whether I should make some kind of concession in the vote tabulation for the two different versions, or is it reasonable to assume most people are opting for the version on II?

lol I made sure to specify in mine for that reason.

I figure more people would vote for the one from II than I but dunno that one should assume that when tabulating!

I'm all about some Ogre Battle too....

Just to clarify, the video I linked to above is 'Seven Seas of Rhye' from Queen II. But I had been discussing the debut immediately before I linked to the video, so that was kinda confusing now that I think about it!

But yeah, I think it's probably safe to assume people would be voting for the Queen II version? I do love how the version on the debut rounds things off after 'Jesus' though--a nice bit of sequencing.

I have to confess that I dream of the alternate reality where Roger Taylor took the Genesis gig offer, Phil Collins joined queen as the singing drummer, and Genesis became the Prog band that couldn't play and Queen would have gone supernova.

wow that's an interesting idea

man Sheer Heart Attack is such a strange-sounding song. so muffled and strangled sounding in a way that must have been deliberate. the similarities between this song and Sister by Prince have been well documented, right?

All Dead, All Dead, is about May's cat he got as a young teenager, which I just learned and find heartbreaking.

Lobbying for this May tune: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5xBeuB01jc

Anybody like "In the Lap of the Gods"?

I loved the arena reprise too

Any "39" fans?

The world needs more skiffle songs with lyrics about time dilation.

Anyone like their novelty pastiche numbers? Bring Back That Leroy Brown, Seaside Rendezvous etc. Did they pretty much drop them after A Day At The Races (Crazy Little Thing Called Love excepted I guess)?

I looove Seaside and Lazing on a Sunday afternoon

yeah 39 is great. May has a wee moan that it wasn't a single in the Classic Albums show about A Night At The Opera

and THIS was surely a big surprise at the Freddie tribute show. he clearly loved it and the audience reaction when it starts up is killer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvpZuFX681o

I love 'Sail Away Sweet Sister', definitely one of my highlights of The Game, that.

Anyone like their novelty pastiche numbers? Bring Back That Leroy Brown, Seaside Rendezvous etc. Did they pretty much drop them after A Day At The Races (Crazy Little Thing Called Love excepted I guess)?

― めんどくさかった (Matt #2), Sunday, September 13, 2015 7:36 PM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

No, they carried on doing them for a while after. 'Sleeping On The Sidewalk', 'Dreamer's Ball', 'Man On The Prowl' etc.

One of my favourite Innuendo deep cuts...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7kUc5RcMqc

Innuendo really is a huge step up after The Miracle, which i don't dislike but find very uneven.

Innuendo has a far more "serious" mood to it than The Miracle, and the band hadn't released an album with that kind of mood for quite some time, which I think is one of the reasons why fans rate it so highly. It's not without its flaws though: 'Delilah', the programmed drums on 'I Can't Live With You'. I think both Innuendo and The Miracle have their highlights, but The Works is the most "complete" late-period Queen album for me. A Kind Of Magic for me is one of their lesser albums.

I saw footage recently where Brian May mentioned that The Miracle is one of his favourite Queen songs. interesting choice as I find it to be a bit treacly, despite appreciating the sentiment/ celebration of life informing it.

Yeah, 'treacly' sums up 'The Miracle' (i.e. the song), I reckon. I was surprised when Brian said it was one of his favourites.

The programmed drums on 'I Can't Live With You' were replaced by Roger's drum track in the 'retake' released on Queen Rocks:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgrrICRcQyY

(X-post)

i feel like a lot of musicians rate their more sentimental work more highly than others do. it makes sense, really, they probably wouldn't take a turn for the sappy in the first place if they didn't believe in it.

Anyone like their novelty pastiche numbers? Bring Back That Leroy Brown, Seaside Rendezvous etc. Did they pretty much drop them after A Day At The Races (Crazy Little Thing Called Love excepted I guess)?

― めんどくさかった (Matt #2), Monday, September 14, 2015 5:36 AM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Detractors might say that every Queen track qualifies as a novelty pastiche number! And in fact I'd say that a fair chunk of their catalogue can be appreciated in that vein; there's usually at least an element of tongue-in-cheek involved. But on the other hand, I agree with Turrican's point about the more 'serious' mood that pervades Innuendo ... or at least parts of the album (e.g. the title track, 'Don't Try So Hard' 'All God's People', 'Bijou', 'The Show Must Go On', etc.)

One of the things I've always loved about Queen is their ability to constantly shift moods across an album, or indeed within the space of a track. I can think of a lot of acts who can do 'bipolar' shifts from soft to loud, sad to joyful, or what have you, but not many acts can jump around within a palette of moods like Queen can. Critics and fans will often point to the band's willingness to dabble in many styles and make them their own, and the fact they had four talented songwriters. No doubt these factors overlap with and contribute to the multiplicity of moods in their work. But it's one thing to 'capture' a mood; it's something else to dance across and between moods, and to make this seem effortless--and for me this is what Queen can do when they're on song.

listening back to the albums now - "Jealousy" is such a nice little number

yes, all of that is very true, Wordy. at the same time, i can't help but think that Queen's final albums are characterised by a newfound investment in expressing the gravid authenticity of particular moods rather than the invention of mood for the sake of artistic leverage. this change, conscious or otherwise, lends some of the later stuff a kind of earnestness that i am still a little bit ambivalent about. i mean, a song like Bohemian Rhapsody has undeniably sad moments, but it's a cabaret-style sadness that is patently light-hearted at its core, therefore enabling the flippant and frequent shift of moods that is so emblematic of Queen at their most inspired. a song like The Miracle seems to be contained by its own moralism, not that i think the band weren't entitled to sing about moral issues, or that these themes weren't relevant to Freddie's plight in his last years.

yes, Jealousy is a tasty discovery for me also.

x-post

i feel like a lot of musicians rate their more sentimental work more highly than others do. it makes sense, really, they probably wouldn't take a turn for the sappy in the first place if they didn't believe in it.

― some dude, Tuesday, September 15, 2015 12:24 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yes, I think you're probably right.

And I also agree with your points about the shift in the final albums, where there does seem to be more of an investment in authenticity (of mood), and an earnestness that tends to come with this. I'm happy to admit that 'Innuendo' (the song) can come across as earnest--but I still love it, whereas something like 'The Miracle' just makes me cringe for the most part. Not entirely sure where the difference lies, but I guess I can buy into the hope of 'Innuendo' when it's alloyed with the 'whatever will be, will be' attitude and the sheer beauty and complexity of the piece. Whereas 'The Miracle' seems forced; the hope seems closer to naivete and the wonder is oh-so-subtly underscored by those clichéd 'miraculous' synth lines.

In other news ... ballot sent!

thanks Wordy - received!

by the way: even if you're the most casual of Queen fans or not a fan per se at all, i urge you to cast a ballot. surely everybody knows and loves 20 Queen songs.

Thing is, I actually like 'The Miracle' ... it's got a great set of chord changes!

'Jealousy' also, in my humble opinion, is one of Queen's most underrated ballads... having said that, I think the majority of Jazz is underrated.

Jealousy is beautifully song. it's easy to lose sight of this at first due to the subtlety of the vocal line.

beautifully SUNG.

Another deep cut worthy of consideration...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaSB0M7iTpA

Also, I'm surprised we've got this far in the thread without anyone mentioning 'The March Of The Black Queen'(!)

That was in my top 3. Love everything about that glorious tune.

Really pleased to see Drowse, Father To Son, Jealousy and especially She Makes Me already being referenced, looking forward to a nice diverse result list.

I know I'll throw together my ballot in under four minutes at the last possible chance and don't feel like revisiting much of their albums atm, but what this thread already made me do is flick through some obscurities, b-sides and the unreleased stuff that popped up even on the official channels over the years. Especially Soul Brother would have been a nice touch on (the unfairly maligned) Hot Space, and there are several incredible live renditions of Hangman for which apparently not even an unreleased studio version exists.

Speaking of Hot Space, and while it's easy to see why it drew so much hate, I find myself playing this more often than any other album lately. Way more fun than the imo plodding and calculated The Works.
Back Chat could well make it on the ballot.

'Back Chat', 'Under Pressure' and 'Put Out The Fire' are probably the only songs from Hot Space that I'd consider for inclusion on my ballot (which I haven't put together yet, and will probably put together at the last minute) ... I've never liked 'Soul Brother', it's nothing more than a jam session with Freddie singing various Queen song titles really.

I think calling The Works "calculated" is a bit harsh, though. Yes, I guess there was a sense of Queen trying to win back their audience after they didn't take to what they were doing with Hot Space, but The Works is a mix of not only songs in recognisable past Queen styles, but also material that was undoubtedly influenced by what was going on at the time. I don't think they were consciously trying to ape any past Queen album with it, and it helps that the tracks on there that are recognisable as being styles that they'd touched upon before were good, even great songs.

One could argue that Hot Space was "calculated" in the sense that it was an attempt to build upon the audience that had fallen in love with 'Another One Bites The Dust'.

i do actually also find The Works to be a bit calculated, mainly due to some especially flashy playing from May that tends to shape a lot of the songs before you're able to properly sink your teeth into them.

i've been playing Hot Space quite a lot recently, though admittedly strictly with this Poll in mind. it has revealed itself to be an enjoyably unique experiment, the anomalies of which are flattered by perspective, which enables us to situate the album as an interesting deviation in the band's diverse overall picture. i can see why it might have been considered a disappointment at the time.

the results are starting to take interesting shape. i'm having a lot of fun with this - please keep your ballots coming!

I almost don't want to send one! I'd feel like the guy who goes into mock drafts and takes Tim Tebow* in the first round.

_________

* A much ballyhooed American football player who's handsome and Christian and has 10 million fans, but can't throw a ball to a receiver to save his life.

haha well you could submit a Queen ballot that's wall-to-wall radio staples and it would still be inspired, such is the unconventional nature of so many of their best-known tracks (the appeal lay so often in the sophistication of arrangement and performance rather than a strict adherence to anything overly formulaic), and the diversity in compositional outlook supplied by the input of four distinct songwriters.

kinda wishing i voted for Sheer Heart Attack (the song), because it's growing on me to the point that i can't stop playing it.

Does anyone have suggestions for tracks they rate from the solo records? I have this suspicion I'll be wasting my time on investigating Roger's albums in-depth...

Fun in Space is probably your best bet as far as Roger's albums go. Future Management is one of the highlights there.

favourite Freddie track is probably There Must Be More to Life than This.

never made it very far with Brian's solo records.

I've just drawn up my first draft of my ballot and now down to the difficult pruning/ranking stage, it's so difficult to put a list together of 20 tracks for a band that have 14 studio albums! I'm increasingly thinking that the "deep cuts" only route is the way to go...