Published on Jan 3, 2006
To be honest, when I first heard news of the
remainder of Queen going out on tour, I was apprehensive. Who could
possibly manage to fill the enormous shoes (ballet slippers, to be
specific) left by singer Freddie Mercury’s premature death in 1991?
Amazingly enough, seemingly out-of-left-field choice Paul Rodgers
materialized at what was supposed to be a one-off performance with
the band at the Hall of Fame awards in 2004 and from there, has
embedded himself in the book of Queen history that most had deemed
shut for good.
Rodgers, formerly of Free, Bad Company and The Firm,
is an unlikely stand-in, especially when rumors of George Michael
or Robbie Williams had been circling for ages. But somehow that’s
what makes the Queen + Paul Rodgers outing a success — Rodgers has
made it clear he’s not out to replace the absolutely irreplaceable
Mercury but instead, put his own spin on classic Queen hits. Along
with the incredible Brian May back on guitars, drummer Roger
Taylor, additional guitarist Jamie Moses (who also performed with
May during his solo outings a few years back) and bassist Danny
Miranda, standing in for John Deacon who opted to remain behind the
scenes, the tour was a smash hit in England and ended up in New
Jersey, Los Angeles and Japan before an announcement of additional
dates in the US in the springtime.
Return Of The Champions, taken from their
performance in Sheffield in May, welcomes back the members of Queen
for their first tour in an unbelievable nineteen years. Rodgers
shines on perennial crowd favorites like the blistering “Tie Your
Mother Down” and Bad Company classic “Feel Like Makin’ Love,” while
both May and Taylor step up for vocal duties on “Love Of My Life”
and the subdued “These Are The Days Of Our Lives,”
respectively.
But the standout performances on Return Of The
Champions for me are from May and Taylor, who manage to sound
just as incredible, if not better, than the last time they toured
together in 1986. The two have gained even more of a mastery of
their instruments and, with Rodgers and the rest of the touring
band, create a strong, in sync sound that’s astounding for a group
who came together just months before.
My only wish for future Queen shows and live albums
is a wider offering of material. With the amount of songs available
in both Queen and Paul Rodgers’ back catalogues, I would love to
see them abandon the play it safe route for a bit and bring out
some songs not on featured on a greatest hits collection.
Return Of The Champions is a promising debut
from some of rock’s most talented performers, and I for one can’t
wait to see where they’re headed next.