Frogtoon Music

A Day At The Races (Album) by Queen

Artist Biography For Queen

Queen Is An English Rock Band Originally Consisting Of Four Members Vocalist And Pianist Freddie Mercury Guitarist Brian May Bass Guitarist John Deacon And Drummer Roger Taylor. The Band Formed In London In 1970 After May And Taylor's Former Band Smile Split After Having Released An Album And Single. Freddie Replaced Lead Vocalist Tim Staffell After The Latter's Departure From The Original Trio. There Was Much Deliberation As To What The Band's Name Would Be. May And Taylor Had Settled Upon The Grand Dance Derived From A C.S. Lewis Trilogy Of Books Out Of The Silent Planet. Ultimately The Band Went With Queen A Name That Was Entirely Freddie's. Originally Roger And Especially Brian Did Not Like The Name Though Mercury Would Eventually Persuade Them Both That It Was "right" For The Band. "Years Ago I Thought Up The Name Queen... It's Just A Name But It's Very Regal And It Sounds Splendid. It's A Strong Name Very Universal And Immediate. It Had A Lot Of Visual Potential And Was Open To All Sorts Of Interpretations. I Was Certainly Aware Of The Gay Connotations But That Was Just One Facet Of It. "
- Freddie Mercury. Queen Went Through Several Bass Players Before A Young Electronics Major By The Name Of John Deacon Arrived On The Scene In January Of 1971. "Until John It Had Been Exploding Bass Player Syndrome. If They Musically Worked They'd Look All Wrong And If They Felt All Right They Couldn't Play. - Brian May. This Quite Shy Guy Turned Up With His Immaculate Rickenbacker Bass And Immaculate Amplifier Plugged In And As Soon As He Started Playing We Realized It Was Right." - Brian May. Later That Year The Band Was Secured Recording Time At The Newly Built De Lane Lea Studio And Used The Opportunity To Record Several Songs That Would Later Appear On Their Debut Album - Liar Keep Yourself Alive Jesus And The Night Comes Down. The Demo Reel Was Passed Around From Producer To Producer With Little Success Until A Staff Member Of Trident Records By The Name Of Roy Thomas Baker Was Introduced To The Band By Fellow Trident Producer John Anthony. Baker Dropped In To Watch The Band At Work And Clearly Liking What He Heard Recommended Queen To His Superiors. It Was Eventually Agreed Upon That The Fledgling Band Could Record At Trident Studios Though After Already-Established Artists Had Finished Their Work Such As The Likes Of Elton John And David Bowie. Relegated To The Wee Hours Of The Morning To Record The Remaining Tracks Of Their First Album The Band Nonetheless Stuck It Out Until They Reached Their Ultimate Goal Of "perfection". Queen's Self-Titled Debut Album Was Released In 1973 And Received Little Attention From The General Public. They Quickly Followed It A Year Later With A Second Album "Queen II" Which Also Failed To Generate Much Interest From Music Fans In Britain Despite The Success Of The Album's Single Seven Seas Of Rhye Which Would Reach #10 On The Charts After The Band's Mimed Appearance On Top Of The Pops. The Band's Second Album Was Recorded With A Higher Budget Than The First And The Band Threw Everything They Had Into Recording It. Queen II Was Somewhat Of A "concept Album" Split Into "White Side" Vs. "Black Side". As Was In Their Nature The Band Pressed Onward After The Mediocre Success Of Their First Two Albums Immersing Themselves In A World-Wide Tour To Promote Queen II. Queen Played In America For The First Time As A Support Act For Mott The Hoople. Sheer Heart Attack Would Be Released Later That Year Focusing More On Being Accessible To Listeners Than The Grand And Complex Ideas Of The Previous Two Albums. The Recording Of Their Third Album Was Met With Some Hardships As May Fell Victim To A Series Of Illnesses Brought On By An Infected Inoculation Required For The Band's Rigorous Touring Schedule. Sheer Heart Attack Brought Even More Success For The Band With May's Now I'm Here And The Song That Would Be The Band's "turning Point" The Mercury-Penned Killer Queen The Latter Of Which Would Reach #2 On The UK Charts. During This Time The Band Began Developing A Huge Following In Japan And Witnessed Their Popularity For Themselves When They Visited The Country Mainly In 1975 To Promote Their Fourth And Most Famous Album "A Night At The Opera" Featuring The Epic "Bohemian Rhapsody". Queen's Popularity Grew Steadily Through The Latter Half Of The 70s As They Released Hit Album After Hit Album Reaching Its Peak In The Mid-80s After Their "Live Aid" Appearance And Continuing Into The Early 90s Before Mercury's Untimely Death On 24th November 1991. The Official Cause Of Death Was Bronchial Pneumonia Resulting From AIDS. Over The Course Of Their 30 Year Career The Band Did Sound Tracks For Two Films "Flash Gordon" And "Highlander" Released A String Of Live And Studio Albums And Had Many Many Fans Across The World. In 1995 4 Years After Mercury's Death The Band Released The Album "Made In Heaven". This Album Saw The Surviving Band Members In The Studio Completing Or Reworking Unused Vocals Unreleased Variations Of Freddie Solo Material A Queen Version Of "I Was Born To Love You" For Example And Tracks Where Brian And Roger Added Lyrics To Flesh Out A Song "Mother Love" . Queen Have Been On Indefinite Hiatus Since 1997 When John Deacon Decided To Retire. Several "Queen ..." Projects Have Been Developed In The Following Years A Few Of Them Mere Remixes With No Artistic Involvement From The Band. In 1999 A "Greatest Hits III" Album Was Released. This Featured Among Others "Queen Wyclef Jean" On A Rap Version Of "Another One Bites The Dust" A Live Version Of "Somebody To Love" Performed By George Michael And A Live Version Of "The Show Must Go On" Performed Live In 1997 With Elton John. Brian May And Roger Taylor Have Performed Together As Queen On Several Occasions Award Ceremonies Charity Concerts And The Like Sharing Vocals With Various Guest Singers. They Have Also Recorded Several Covers Of Queen's Hits With Guest Vocalists Including "We Will Rock You" First With Five And Later Britney Spears Beyonce John Farnham And P!nk And "We Are The Champions" With Robbie Williams . On The 14th Of May 2002 The Queen Musical 'We Will Rock You' Opened In The Dominion Theatre In London's 'West End'. A Musical About Young People In The Distant Future Who Aren't Allowed To Listen To Music Not Generated By Computers. Various Queen Songs Are Used In The Story Played By A Live Band. This Live Band Was Supported By Brian May And Roger Taylor On The Premiere Evening. At The End Of 2004 May And Taylor Announced That They Would Reunite And Return To Touring In 2005 With Paul Rodgers Founder And Former Lead Singer Of Free And Bad Company . Brian May's Website Also Stated That Rodgers Would Be 'featured With' Queen As 'Queen Paul Rodgers' Not Replacing Mercury. The Retired John Deacon Would Not Be Participating. Between 2005 And 2006 Queen Paul Rodgers Embarked On A World Tour The First Leg In Europe And The Second Japan And Then The US In 2006. On 15 August 2006 Brian May Confirmed Through His Website And Fan Club That Queen Paul Rodgers Would Begin Producing Their First Studio Album Beginning In October To Be Recorded At A "secret Location". The Album Titled The Cosmos Rocks Was Released In Europe On 12 September 2008 And In The United States On 28 October 2008. Following The Album The Band Again Embarked On A Tour Through Europe Opening On Kharkiv's Freedom Square In Front Of 350 000 Ukrainian Fans. The Show In Ukraine Was Later Released On DVD. Queen And Paul Rodgers Officially Split Up Without Animosity On 12 May 2009. Rodgers Did Not Rule Out The Possibility Of Working Together Again. Since 2012 Queen Has Been Touring With Adam Lambert As The Frontman. More Information About Queen Paul Rodgers Can Be Found On Their Last.Fm Page. Official Website Www.Queenonline.Com Discography 1.- Queen 1973 2.- Queen II 1974 3.- Sheer Heart Attack 1974 4.- A Night At The Opera 1975 5.- A Day At The Races 1976 6.- News Of The World 1977 7.- Jazz 1978 8.- The Game 1980 9.- Flash Gordon 1980 10.- Hot Space 1982 11.- The Works 1984 12.- A Kind Of Magic 1986 13.- The Miracle 1989 14.- Innuendo 1991 15.- Made In Heaven 1995

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Frogtoon Music Album Info: A Day At The Races

A Day At The Races Is A Rock Album By English Band Queen Released In December 1976. A Day At The Races Was The Band's First Self-Produced Album After Co-Producing Their First Four Albums With Roy Thomas Baker For Queen Queen II Sheer Heart Attack And A Night At The Opera And John Anthony Queen . A Day At The Races Was Recorded At Sarm East The Manor And Wessex Studios In England And Engineered By Mike Stone. The Title Of The Album Followed Suit With Its Predecessor A Night At The Opera In Taking Its Name From A Film By The Marx Brothers. A Day At The Races Peaked At Number 1 In The UK In Japan And In The Netherlands. It Reached Number 5 On The US Billboard Album Chart And Was Queen's Fifth US Album To Ship Gold In The U.S.. It Subsequently Reached Platinum Status In Sales In The U.S. Track Listing Side One
"Tie Your Mother Down" May – 4 47 "You Take My Breath Away" Mercury – 5 09 "Long Away" May – 3 34 "The Millionaire Waltz" Mercury – 4 54 "You And I" Deacon – 3 25 Side Two
"Somebody To Love" Mercury – 4 56 "White Man" May – 4 59 "Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy" Mercury – 2 54 "Drowse" Taylor – 3 45 "Teo Torriatte Let Us Cling Together " May – 5 50 Bonus Tracks 1991 Hollywood Records CD Reissue "Tie Your Mother Down" 1991 Remix By Matt Wallace – 3 44 "Somebody To Love" 1991 Remix By Randy Badazz – 5 00 Song Information Tie Your Mother Down
Main Article Tie Your Mother Down
"Tie Your Mother Down" Was Written In Tenerife When Brian May Was Earning His PhD In Astronomy In Early 1975. He Wrote It On Spanish Guitar And Thought He'd Change The Title And Chorus Later On But Mercury Liked It And They Kept It That Way. The Song Is Preceded By A One-Minute Instrumental Intro Using A Shepard Tone Guitar Figure Which Is Actually A Reprise Of The Ending Of "Teo Torriatte" This Was Intended To Create A "circle" In The Album Typical For Example Of Pink Floyd's Albums. The Ascending Scale Was Created By Recording A Descending Scale On A Guitar And Playing It Backwards For The Record. The Main Theme Of The Intro Is The Same As That Of "White Man." You Take My Breath Away
"You Take My Breath Away" Was Written By Freddie Mercury And Based On The Harmonic Minor Scale. All Of The Vocals And Piano Were Done By Him And He Performed It By Himself At Hyde Park Before Recording It. There Is A Vocal Interlude Between This Song And The Next One That Begins With A Wash Of Vocals Repeating The Words "long Away" Created By Echoes Of A Multitracked Mercury Regenerating In Reverse Which Gradually Evolves Into The Repeated Phrase "you Take My Breath Away " And Reintegrates Into The Next Track "You Take My Breath Away." Long Away
Main Article Long Away
"Long Away" Was Composed And Sung By May. He Used A Burns Double Six 12-String Electric Guitar For The Rhythm Parts Instead Of His Red Special. He'd Wanted To Use A Rickenbacker Because He Admired John Lennon But He Didn't Get Along Well With The Thin Neck Of The Instrument. The Millionaire Waltz
"The Millionaire Waltz" Was Written By Mercury About John Reid Queen's And Elton John's Manager At The Time . It's Another Multi-Key And Multi-Metre Song Like Bohemian Rhapsody Using Abrupt Arrangement Changes And Including Brian May Doing Multi-Tracked Guitar Choirs. You And I
"You And I" Is John Deacon's Song On The Album. It Features Him On Acoustic Guitar And Mercury Playing Elton John-Esque Piano Parts. It's Arguably Deacon's Only Dark Sounding Song On Any Album. This Song Was Never Played Live. Somebody To Love
Main Article Somebody To Love Queen Song "Somebody To Love" Is The Hit Single Of The Album. It Was Freddie Mercury's Own Favourite Song. Like "Bohemian Rhapsody" The Major Hit From Queen's Previous Album This Song Has A Complex Layering Of Vocal Tracks This Time Based On A Gospel Choir Arrangement. It Was The First Single Off The Album A Day At The Races. It Is A Rock Ballad On Which Band Members Mercury May And Taylor Multi-Tracked Their Voices To Create The Impression Of A 3-Voices Gospel Choir. The Lyrics Especially Combined With The Gospel Influence Create A Song About Faith Desperation And Soul-Searching The Singer Questions Both The Lack Of Love Experienced In His Life And The Role And Existence Of God. Staying True To Queen's Guitar-Driven Style It Was Also Filled With Intricate Harmony Parts And A Solo By May. Mercury Recorded A Huge Range Of Notes Going From A G2 In The Last Choral Verse To A Ab5 At The Peak Of His Melisma On "ooh" Over The Choir Break . It Went To Number 2 On The UK Charts And Number 13 On The U.S. Singles Chart. White Man
"White Man" Was Written By May About The Suffering Of Native Americans At The Hands Of European Immigrants. Its Riff Was Used For The Album Intro Similarly To "Father To Son" And "Procession" Some Years Before. This Song Would Be The Focal Point For A Freddie Mercury Vocal Solo On The A Day At The Races Tour And Would Serve As Both A Mercury Vocal Solo Spot And A Brian May Guitar Solo Spot On The 1977-78 News Of The World Tour. The Song Is One Of Queen's Heaviest Works Thematically And Musically. Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy
Main Article Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy
"Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy" Was Written By Mercury. The Song Starts With A Piano And Vocal Introduction By Mercury Then Continues With The Bass And Drums Adding On At The Start Of The Chorus. The Second Verse Is Sung Followed By Another Chorus. At This Point The Drums Bass And Guitar Drop Out Which Then Leads Into The Bridge Sung By Freddie Mercury And Mike Stone. Following The Brian May Guitar Solo Another Verse Is Sung And Then The Chorus Ends The Track. Multi-Tracked Vocals Enhanced The Song As Well As May's Guitar Choirs. The Song Was Once Performed Live On Top Of The Pops In June 1977 With Roger Taylor Singing The Mike Stone Part. Most Of The Track Was A Concert Staple On The "A Day At The Races" And "News Of The World" Tours. Drowse
"Drowse" Was Roger Taylor's Song In 6/8 Having Him Playing Rhythm Guitar And Timpani And Doing All Of The Vocals. May Played Slide Guitar During This And "Tie Your Mother Down" The Second Guitar Solo In The Middle Of The Song . Teo Torriatte Let Us Cling Together Main Article Teo Torriatte Let Us Cling Together "Teo Torriatte" Was Brian May's Tribute To The Japanese Fans. The Song Is Notable For Having Two Verses Sung In Japanese It Is One Of Only Three Queen Songs The Others Being "Las Palabras De Amor" From Hot Space And "Mustapha" From The Album Jazz In Which An Entire Verse Is Sung In A Language Other Than English. The Song Features A Piano A Plastic Piano And A Harmonium All Of Which Are Played By Brian May. It Is The Only Point In The Album In Which Mercury Does Not Play Piano. The Album’s Closing Guitar Melody Is Also Its Opening Melody The Sequence Was Attached To The Beginning Of "Tie Your Mother Down" The First Track On The Album. May Described It As "a Never-Ending Staircase" Otherwise Commonly Known Musically As A Shepard Tone. Singles
In The UK The First Track To Be Released As A Single Was Somebody To Love On November 12 1976 EMI 2565 . It Reached Number 2. Tie Your Mother Down Followed On March 4 1977 EMI 2593 Reaching Number 31. In The US Somebody To Love Was Released On 10 December 1976 Elektra E45362 And Reached Number 13. It Was Followed By Tie Your Mother Down Elektra E45385 In March 1977 Which Reached Number 49. Both Of These Were Released In Japan In Addition Teo Torriatte Was Also Released Exclusively In Japan. Personnel
Freddie Mercury Lead Vocals Piano Backing Vocals Brian May Electric Guitars Acoustic Guitars Lead Vocals Backing Vocals Piano Plastic Piano Harmonium Roger Taylor Drums Percussion Lead Vocals Backing Vocals Electric Guitar John Deacon Bass Acoustic Guitar Mike Stone Additional Vocal On "Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy" Charts
Country Charts Sales Peak Position Weeks Certification Austria 8 12 Germany 10 Gold 350.000 Japan 1 Gold 200.000 Netherlands 1 100.000 Norway 3 17 Sweden 8 8 United Kingdom 1 24 2x Platinum 750.000 Canada Platinum 200.000 United States 5 19 Platinum 1.500.000

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