Has Queen surpassed everyone to be the 2nd most popular band ever?

[PixelDream]

At the moment, at least here in The Netherlands, Queen is by far the no. 1 classic band. Because of the movie, lots of young folks are listening to their music again.

[cramx3]

speaking of the movie, there may be another...

http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/queen-music-video-director-says-bohemian-rhapsody-sequel-is-being-discussed/?fbclid=IwAR109NV_mJKVg9MGbECxf3BvXQKR-1at8p1ScVPRw1M4EFnptUYPcbBAeBo

that article also says this which also just shows how hot Queen is at the moment and how they are capitalizing

At the moment, there are two other QUEEN-related films on the way: "Freddie Mercury: In His Own Words", a collection of Dolezal's interviews with the singer; and "The Show Must Go On: The Queen + Adam Lambert Story", which will air in April on ABC. Dolezal is also working on a book titled "My Friend, Freddie".

[Skeever]

Queen are getting more popular but also a lot of bands people assumed would endure forever (like Zep) maybe aren't enduring that much past the lifespan of their original listenership the way people thought they would. Bands like the Beatles and Queen that made common human experiences the core of their music and had a timeless sound will always resonate with future generations more than a band that made albums about weird runes and such.

[Cool Chris]

They are making a movie about the Adam Lambert era of Queen? 

[cramx3]

They are making a movie about the Adam Lambert era of Queen? 

I only see the title and that it's on ABC but comes off more as a documentary than a movie.  I'm guessing if they do another movie that it will be about after Live Aid and Freddies death.  Just my guess though.

[Cool Chris]

Well documentaries are still movies. I can see an intriguing story spanning post-Live Aid, his death, the tribute concert, and how the other guys moved on. But let's not tap this well too dry folks.

No one is clamoring for the ACDC w/ Axl Rose documentary. 

[Stadler]

How are they going to ret-con the debacle that was the whole "I'm dying of AIDS so I'm going to use the world's biggest audience in 1985 to go out with a bang" with the "we put out three - maybe four - great albums and a major world tour (the "Kind Of Magic" tour) and ended on a critical and commercial success with "Innuendo"" chronology? 

[KevShmev]

Well documentaries are still movies. I can see an intriguing story spanning post-Live Aid, his death, the tribute concert, and how the other guys moved on. But let's not tap this well too dry folks.

No one is clamoring for the ACDC w/ Axl Rose documentary.

I'm still waiting on the Van Halen documentary that covers the Gary Cherone years.

[cramx3]

 

[Skeever]

How are they going to ret-con the debacle that was the whole "I'm dying of AIDS so I'm going to use the world's biggest audience in 1985 to go out with a bang" with the "we put out three - maybe four - great albums and a major world tour (the "Kind Of Magic" tour) and ended on a critical and commercial success with "Innuendo"" chronology?

With reality? Try "we put out three - maybe four - great rock albums, and then we continued to put out great, chart topping, platinum selling albums one-after-another while purists, snobs, and critics picked their noses and pretended we were the ones doing something wrong."

[rumborak]

I think what made Queen special in comparison to other bands is a) their vast diversity of songs, from stadium rock to operatic indulgence to pop, and b) they never suffered from the "our heyday was album 2 and 3, now we're just putting out meh albums to support our tours". Essentially every album of theirs featured a hit (in order: Keep Yourself Alive, Father to Son, Killer Queen, Bohemian Rhapsody, Somebody to Love, WWRY/WATC, Fat Bottomed Girls, Another One Bites The Dust, Under Pressure, Radio Gaga/IWTBF, A Kind of Magic/WWTLF, I Want It All, Innuendo). They managed to stay musically relevant for almost 20 years, very few bands manage that.

[Skeever]

I think there's also something to be said for that fact that their music and lyrics were always emotionally relatable and came from a place of common humanity, even at their most grandiose and presumptuous. Even during their "rock" phase, they were, fundamentally, a pop band. The kinds of emotional and lyrical hooks have broad appeal across generations. No offense to Led Zeppelin, but their music (with little exception) is about as emotionally relatable as watching paint dry. Queen in many ways were in touch with an emotional and sentimental side that many other 70s classic rock bands only every delivered under several layers of posturing. Queen had a ton of attitude too but it was always secondary to writing highly relatable songs that people would connect with.

[Anguyen92]

Speaking of Queen, I stumbled upon this Japanese commercial.  If only all school assembles can have their speakers sing We Will Rock You and get the kids pumped up like this commercial does.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deWkfCrq0l4

[Peter Mc]

How are they going to ret-con the debacle that was the whole "I'm dying of AIDS so I'm going to use the world's biggest audience in 1985 to go out with a bang" with the "we put out three - maybe four - great albums and a major world tour (the "Kind Of Magic" tour) and ended on a critical and commercial success with "Innuendo"" chronology?

I didn’t read that into it to be honest. The movie made out that this was Queen’s big comeback, not that it was his last show. They could still carry on with showing them doing the remaining albums and not touring them (apart from AKOMM) as Freddie was not well but it would be a fairly depressing movie. Can’t see anyone being interested in anything post Freddie. Think it’s better left alone.

[Stadler]

How are they going to ret-con the debacle that was the whole "I'm dying of AIDS so I'm going to use the world's biggest audience in 1985 to go out with a bang" with the "we put out three - maybe four - great albums and a major world tour (the "Kind Of Magic" tour) and ended on a critical and commercial success with "Innuendo"" chronology?

I didn’t read that into it to be honest. The movie made out that this was Queen’s big comeback, not that it was his last show. They could still carry on with showing them doing the remaining albums and not touring them (apart from AKOMM) as Freddie was not well but it would be a fairly depressing movie. Can’t see anyone being interested in anything post Freddie. Think it’s better left alone.

Sasha Baron Cohen was on Stern a couple years ago, and he was initially interested in playing Freddie, and decided to step away.  One of his beefs was with Brian and Roger, who were hoping to focus on how Queen - the band - persevered after Freddie's death.  Sasha was like, "who gives a fuck about that?".  Not fair, but not far off, either. 

[Peter Mc]

Yeah, I think he said that Freddie was going to die midway through the movie and the 2nd half of the film was about how the band has carried on. Brian and Roger have both said that this was bullshit. Depends who you believe I suppose but I agree that no one really cares too much about Queen without Freddie even if they do still sell a shitload of tickets to hear the old songs.

I will admit to going to see them with Paul Rogers but that’s only because they played on my doorstep and I never got to see them with Freddie (I was 10 years old when they finished touring). As it happens I really enjoyed them and they weaved Freddie into the show in a nice way. I thought I wouldn’t be all that excited to see them play a bunch of their hits that I’d heard a million times but, live, those songs still sounded great. I can still remember when the riff to Tie Your Mother Down kicked in and I was, like, I forgot how awesome these songs are!

[SoundscapeMN]

I met someone once who claimed Queen ripped off Sweet, and having not heard Sweet at the time, but later doing so, I can kind of follow his line of thinking.

[Stadler]

Yeah, I think he said that Freddie was going to die midway through the movie and the 2nd half of the film was about how the band has carried on. Brian and Roger have both said that this was bullshit. Depends who you believe I suppose but I agree that no one really cares too much about Queen without Freddie even if they do still sell a shitload of tickets to hear the old songs.

I will admit to going to see them with Paul Rogers but that’s only because they played on my doorstep and I never got to see them with Freddie (I was 10 years old when they finished touring). As it happens I really enjoyed them and they weaved Freddie into the show in a nice way. I thought I wouldn’t be all that excited to see them play a bunch of their hits that I’d heard a million times but, live, those songs still sounded great. I can still remember when the riff to Tie Your Mother Down kicked in and I was, like, I forgot how awesome these songs are!

I regret not seeing that, but because of Paul Rodgers.  He's my second favorite singer (behind Freddie) and I can listen to him sing the Mueller report. 

[Cruithne]

I met someone once who claimed Queen ripped off Sweet, and having not heard Sweet at the time, but later doing so, I can kind of follow his line of thinking.

That sounds like a rather sour take on it. At what point does "influenced by" become "ripped off"?

Nobody's truly original, we're all uniquely derivative. The real trick is to be derivative of sources that combine in a fashion that seems to be truly original on the surface.

[Trav86]

I just want to say that I'm 32 and I've been a Queen fan probably my whole life. I have very early memories of their music. I've felt that their Live Aid performance is the greatest 25 mins in Rock N Roll since I was able to have an opinion on such matters. I'm thankful that the movie has brought it to the attention of so many people that didn't know it, the youtube views prove that. I can't watch it without getting chills and maybe a little tear in my eye.  That is all.

[ShadowWalker]

Until the Elton John biopic gets released (assuming it gets the same critical and fan reception) and pushes his music to the top of the charts...

[KevShmev]

Until the Elton John biopic gets released (assuming it gets the same critical and fan reception) and pushes his music to the top of the charts...

Elton John is not a band.

I just want to say that I'm 32 and I've been a Queen fan probably my whole life. I have very early memories of their music. I've felt that their Live Aid performance is the greatest 25 mins in Rock N Roll since I was able to have an opinion on such matters. I'm thankful that the movie has brought it to the attention of so many people that didn't know it, the youtube views prove that. I can't watch it without getting chills and maybe a little tear in my eye.  That is all.

 

[Peter Mc]

Not a huge fan of Elton John but, similar to Queen and The Beatles, he also has a hell of a lot of hugely popular songs we all know and could sing along to.

[Adami]

Until the Elton John biopic gets released (assuming it gets the same critical and fan reception) and pushes his music to the top of the charts...

Pish posh. Wait til The Dirt comes out! Look out Oscars!

[Architeuthis]

I didn't care much for the movie. It kind of annoys me that there's all of a sudden this big hype about Queen hitting the album charts again, when there are bands out there that deserve a way more honorable mention in our modern time.
 Oh there's this great band called Dream Theater with a really kick-ass new album,  anyone ever heard of them??   
   So typical mainstream America.. 😤
 
 

[NunoTenniscourt]

I have found it amusing that the media has managed to brainwash so many people into believing they're massive Queen fans. People I've known for decades, who never breathed a single word about Freddie or Queen were posting things on Facebook like "OMG!!! Can't wait for the movie!! I LOVE QUEEN!!!" before the movie came out.

So silly.

[MirrorMask]

The "problem" with Queen's popularity and crossover appeal to basically any kind of genre is that they have so many famous songs, that someone knowing only the Greatest Hits albums would feel legitimated in considering himself a Queen fan.

I mean, someone who is not a metalhead and likes Nothing Else Matters wouldn't call himself a Metallica fan. I don't consider myself a Lady Gaga fan because I love the rock cover and the piano version of Bad Romance. But someone who knows not only Bohemian Rhapsody but also the vast majority of the songs of the first Greatest Hits would call him or herself a fan, and the setlists of their current shows, give or take, would further sustain that claim. Then you talk to them of stuff like The Prophet's Song, Death on Two Legs, Ogre Battle, Flick of the Wrist, Keep Yourself Alive, The March of the Black Queen, Great King Rat and You Take My Breath Away (just to name some fantastic songs) and you get blank stares.

[Peter Mc]

Not sure why that’s a problem. I’m not really into this gatekeeping thing where you’re not allowed to be a fan of something unless you know every single thing about it. People can like Queen without having to own every album. I actually think they are a better singles band than album band. I find a lot of their albums quite patchy but I suppose that could also be down the eclectic nature of their music meaning that I’m not going to enjoy everything they do. I actually found their later albums such as Innuendo and The Miracle more consistent than some of their more classic albums.

[MirrorMask]

But of course everyone is allowed to call themselves a Queen fan, or a fan of any other band, without owning every single album. I was just pointing out how, while it's fairly common that the two opposites are present - hardcore fans of bands and casual listeners of a single song, see my Nothing Else Matters example - , with Queen the situation is more complex because they have so many famous songs that everyone knows, that it's easier to find people who are fans of the band (even if they only own the Greatest Hits), while someone would never say "Well, I'm not a Metallica fan, I just like Nothing Else Matters and I heard once or twice Enter Sandman and I guess it's not bad".

[Trav86]

while someone would never say "Well, I'm not a Metallica fan, I just like Nothing Else Matters and I heard once or twice Enter Sandman and I guess it's not bad".

You think no one would ever say that?  You’ve obviously never met my wife.

[MirrorMask]

I phrased it poorly. EVERYONE would say that, of course. I meant that no one would call himself a Metallica fan just because they literally know two songs.

[Stadler]

But this is music today, not just "Queen".   I love my kid, and for an 18-year-old girl in 2019, she's remarkably open-minded and likes what she likes.  Having said that, she'd tell you that she "likes" Queen, and she doesn't even own Greatest Hits.  I'd wager that she has three, four songs TOPS on her "playlist".   That whole scene in the movie where Freddie talks about the "album" as an "opera" is an anachronism.   

Plus, you can tell there is some traction to this idea of "Queen" being hot, because - and I've noted this before - you hear Queen in every third ad on television.   

And as much as I love Queen (legit; Queen II is a top ten album for me, and I'm very very partial to A Kind Of Magic, to the point I have most of the b-sides with the sound scapes from the movie) this is going to fade.  I don't know if it will be Sir Elton that does it, or some one else dies, whatever, but it WILL fade.   This is not like the Beatles, who are still No. 1 49 years after the release of their last contemporaneous new material. 

[KevShmev]

There can be only one.

[Trav86]

I phrased it poorly. EVERYONE would say that, of course. I meant that no one would call himself a Metallica fan just because they literally know two songs.

True. My wife definitely wouldn’t call herself a Metallica fan! 

[KevShmev]

Not sure why that’s a problem. I’m not really into this gatekeeping thing where you’re not allowed to be a fan of something unless you know every single thing about it. People can like Queen without having to own every album. I actually think they are a better singles band than album band. I find a lot of their albums quite patchy but I suppose that could also be down the eclectic nature of their music meaning that I’m not going to enjoy everything they do. I actually found their later albums such as Innuendo and The Miracle more consistent than some of their more classic albums.

I am totally on board with this.  If someone likes one song by the band and calls him or herself a fan, it doesn't bother me.

As for the consistency of their albums, they really only have a few albums I can listen to from start to finish and not want to hit the skip button (Sheer Heart Attack, A Night at the Opera and Innuendo), so I am with ya on that.  Even though A Day at the Races, News of the World and Jazz all have multiple classics, they all have some crap that I will be okay with never hearing again.