Queen is one such band that you can easily turn a blind eye to. It’s not that they are too difficult to notice, it’s just that their presence is just too stark. They are ubiquitous! Just like air, they are everywhere. They are like that tall skyscraper that you kind of take for granted because you just can’t seem to remember when was the last time that they weren’t dominating all of your peripheral vision. Conspicuousness of this sort can blur the story behind how it all came to be. Most of us won’t bother thinking about how Mt. Everest got to be where it is today. We will just accept the fact that it exists, appreciate it for its greatness and move on. We can say the same for the magic spun around with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘We Will Rock You’.
It shouldn’t be the slightest bit surprising that the story and facts that form the very fibre of Queen is one that is innovative, vivid and downright fabulous. They didn’t need free Will kits to bequeath their music to the world; they did it just like that!
So this post is dedicated to shedding light on some facts that people do not generally know about the making of Queen. Let’s get started.
What’s in a name?
Ever wondered what sort of parents would name their child Freddie Mercury? That’s the beauty of rock n roll names – they are usually grown into and not handed down custom made. As shocking as it might be, Freddie Mercury wasn’t the birth name of the lead vocalist of Queen. He was born bearing the name Farrokh Bulsara to pious Zoroastrian parents hailing from India. He attended a private school there where he started going by the name Freddie. He changed his last name to Mercury when he went to college and that was around the same time he became involved in forming Queen.
Imagine what a tongue twister it would have been to pronounce Farrokh Bulsara! We all probably sleep a little better knowing that Freddie Mercury rolls off the tongue easily not to mention it saved the band way too much time where interviewers wondered out loud about how it was pronounced.
The Majestic and Regal Crest
Getting the band logo right is no mean feat unless you have one of the most iconic rock star of all time as your design guy. As if Freddie wasn’t content performing some of the best-selling, most admired songs of all time, he went ahead and designed what would come to be known as the band’s crest. It consisted of zodiac signs of all the band’s members – a Cancer crab for Brian May, two Leos for John Deacon and Roger Taylor and two fairies that symbolised Freddie’s Virgo. If you wish to see what it was like, you can take a look t Mercury’s original sketch of the logo on the back side of the group’s first ever album.
Brian May Is Not a Rock Star
Yeah, that’s because he is busy being an asteroid! May might not essentially be a domestic name but it will be quite a task for you to find someone who doesn’t recognise his work. As the guitarist for Queen, he penned “We Will Rock You”, “Brighton Rock” and “Fat Bottomed Girls”. That in itself will be an accomplishment of a lifetime for most of us but not for Brian, no!
So, Brain May was a college dropout. He gave up on his studies because he wanted to pursue music and make it big! Considering his track record, he did pretty well for himself and by pretty well, we mean he completely smashed it! Later on, he decided to get back to school after almost a 30 year hiatus and complete his doctoral theory in astrophysics. Within a year, he managed to finish it which is really extraordinary given his break spanning over three decades.
He also worked with NASA on projects that are beyond our understanding and to add to that, in 2008 he also has an asteroid named after him. All of this might seem extremely bizarre considering May’s rock n roll way of life, but it goes perfectly well with his insane Doctor Who inspired hairdo!
There are layers to what Queen was as a band and if you are a true fan, you will get to the bottom of it all with much enthusiasm! Hope we got your interest all piqued!
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Plinx.com Team