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Joined: December 29 2011
Location: france
Status: Offline
Points: 55
Posted: August 14 2012 at 14:27
HolyMoly wrote:
I was a huge fan back in high school, and it was always Roger's songs that I looked forward to the most. He was kind of my hero for a while. I think I remember making a mixed tape of just Roger Taylor songs. He only had 1 or 2 songs per album, but I always loved them.Freddie and Brian were probably "best" - more prolific, certainly, and more central to the Queen sound -- but I'm giving my vote to Rog.
Exactly the same for me !
I have my special Roger's songs playlist.
My favourite ones are Tenement Fuster and I'm in love with my car.
Every sunday morning when I see my neighbours washing their car, I have this little tune in the head ...
Joined: August 11 2005
Location: Philly
Status: Offline
Points: 15784
Posted: August 14 2012 at 15:35
The Doctor wrote:
someone_else wrote:
I like the songs of Brian May and Roger Taylor, but I cannot vote for anyone but Freddie Mercury: he wrote Bohemian Rhapsody and Innuendo.
Actually, while Freddie played a large role in the song, Innuendo wasn't quite his song, the way Bohemian Rhapsody was. The music was based on a jam between the other three members which Freddie molded into a song and the lyrics were mostly Roger's.
@llama - I agree with you on Deacon. Most of his stuff seemed rather generic. Roger did write a lot of songs I loved though - Drowse, Sheer Heart Attack, Human Body, A Kind of Magic, the lyrics to One Vision and Innuendo, Breakthrough, Invisible Man, and so on. I will admit though that Rock It was not his best work. Why it made it to the album and Human Body (a much better song) was relegated to a b-side I'll never know.
Drowse is such a monster of a song. I would add I'm in Love with My Car. I've always loved that silly slong.
"One had to be a Newton to notice that the moon is falling, when everyone sees that it doesn't fall. "
Joined: February 01 2011
Location: Michigan
Status: Offline
Points: 13097
Posted: August 14 2012 at 18:38
Hmmm...when people list "Ogre Battle" as a great instance of Mercury's songwriting, I would say that it wouldn't be much of anything without the violence of Brian May's guitar. Same thing with "Stone Cold Crazy" or "Brighton Rock". I mean, even a hit song written by Mercury like "Killer Queen" would be not so great without Brian May's loopy guitar leads using an English penny as a pick.
Two favorites of mine from May are"'39" and "Good Company", but it's really a tough call though, as Mercury was far more prolific.
Bah, I'll go with May simply to be difficult.
Edited by The Dark Elf - August 14 2012 at 18:38
...a vigorous circular motion hitherto unknown to the people of this area, but destined to take the place of the mud shark in your mythology...
Joined: June 18 2009
Location: Mexico
Status: Offline
Points: 12768
Posted: August 14 2012 at 19:35
someone_else wrote:
I like the songs of Brian May and Roger Taylor, but I cannot vote for anyone but Freddie Mercury: he wrote Bohemian Rhapsody and Innuendo.
That does it for me. Innuendo is probably my favourite song from Queen... though I might just as well say the same thing about Bohemian Rhapsody. The only problem, is that I only know their greatest hits, haven't gotten into their discography. I thought I liked enough from the hits, but there were many songs I didn't like so much and didn't want to spend money on their whole discography. Though lately I've been curious about getting their earlier albums, up to a Night at the Opera, I guess.
Joined: January 14 2012
Location: Quebec
Status: Offline
Points: 1266
Posted: August 14 2012 at 19:45
The Dark Elf wrote:
Hmmm...when people list "Ogre Battle" as a great instance of Mercury's songwriting, I would say that it wouldn't be much of anything without the violence of Brian May's guitar. Same thing with "Stone Cold Crazy" or "Brighton Rock". I mean, even a hit song written by Mercury like "Killer Queen" would be not so great without Brian May's loopy guitar leads using an English penny as a pick.
Two favorites of mine from May are"'39" and "Good Company", but it's really a tough call though, as Mercury was far more prolific.
Bah, I'll go with May simply to be difficult.
Ogre Battle was written by Freddie on guitar.
Poseidon wants to Acquire the Taste of the Fragile Lamb
- Derek Adrian Gabriel Anderson, singer of the band Geneyesontle
Joined: May 29 2006
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 8368
Posted: August 14 2012 at 20:10
Dellinger wrote:
someone_else wrote:
I like the songs of Brian May and Roger Taylor, but I cannot vote for anyone but Freddie Mercury: he wrote Bohemian Rhapsody and Innuendo.
That does it for me. Innuendo is probably my favourite song from Queen... though I might just as well say the same thing about Bohemian Rhapsody. The only problem, is that I only know their greatest hits, haven't gotten into their discography. I thought I liked enough from the hits, but there were many songs I didn't like so much and didn't want to spend money on their whole discography. Though lately I've been curious about getting their earlier albums, up to a Night at the Opera, I guess.
I generally like their album tracks better than their hits, especially the first two albums that don't really have any hits.
My first rock and roll love. This band got me into heavy rock, metal and prog, many many moons ago.
The only songwriter I'm not a great fan of was Deacon. Someone on this thread noted that there's no such thing as "just a pop song". Well there is, and that's what Deacon wrote. As to who's best. Taylor wrote some great stuff including the magnificent Drowse, but it's got to be a toss-up between Fred and Brian. What I would say is that most of the great stuff they wrote worked mainly because of the input of the other (and of John and Roger). Ogre Battle or Black Queen were made by Brian's guitar, and the immense It's Late by an unbelievable vocal from Freddie. That's why (even with the nonesence like Don't Try So Hard and Back Chat ) this band worked, but didn't hit the same level with the great Paul Rodgers on board. On balance though, my vote goes to Mr Farrokh Bulsara.
Joined: February 10 2010
Location: Barcelona Spain
Status: Offline
Points: 5154
Posted: August 15 2012 at 03:20
Brian wrote plenty of amazing songs but Freddie in his prime was more original, more "musician" in a broad sense.
Brian wrote more using the rock idiom while Freddie wrote more as a pre-rock musician, introducing all those elements from classical, Sinatra standards, cabaret, dixieland, big band, swing etc.
While Brian was a huge pillar of the Queen sound, Freddie contributed more than any other to the uniqueness of Queen's musicality, with songs like My Fairy King, Nevermore, March Of The Black Queen, Killer Queen, Lily Of The Valley, In The Lap Of The Gods (both parts), Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon, Seaside Rendezvous, Love Of My Life, Bohemian, You Take My Breath Away, Millionaire Waltz, Somebody To Love, Good Old Fashioned Loverboy, My Melancholy Blues etc.
Queen made a lot of great rock and pop-rock songs, including several by Deacon and Taylor, but it was songs like those above by Freddie that for me made Queen an unrepeatable band, not following the paths explored by other prog bands and yet reaching beyond the rock musical idiom, which is also a kind of progressiveness in my book.
Joined: February 01 2011
Location: Michigan
Status: Offline
Points: 13097
Posted: August 15 2012 at 20:53
geneyesontle wrote:
The Dark Elf wrote:
Hmmm...when people list "Ogre Battle" as a great instance of Mercury's songwriting, I would say that it wouldn't be much of anything without the violence of Brian May's guitar. Same thing with "Stone Cold Crazy" or "Brighton Rock". I mean, even a hit song written by Mercury like "Killer Queen" would be not so great without Brian May's loopy guitar leads using an English penny as a pick.
Two favorites of mine from May are"'39" and "Good Company", but it's really a tough call though, as Mercury was far more prolific.
Bah, I'll go with May simply to be difficult.
Ogre Battle was written by Freddie on guitar.
And yet he did not play any of the guitar on the recording. That was all May. It's one thing to come up with the riff, it's entirely another playing it like May did.
...a vigorous circular motion hitherto unknown to the people of this area, but destined to take the place of the mud shark in your mythology...
Joined: August 15 2011
Location: Cambridge
Status: Offline
Points: 320
Posted: August 31 2012 at 06:16
None of the members of Queen were particularly great songwriters, just OK ish. The best song was Radio Gaga, most complete and flowing. Freddie was amazingly old-fashioned in his writing, almost vaudeville - it was strange to hear such a powerful and rocking band batter those songs into something that passed as "rockified". Some of their most anthemic 'songs' were banal and repetitive, perhaps ideal for crowd-singing beer-swilling karaoke fodder.
A great band, fine musicians, but songwriters? - never.
Joined: May 29 2006
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 8368
Posted: August 31 2012 at 07:43
DiamondDog wrote:
None of the members of Queen were particularly great songwriters, just OK ish. The best song was Radio Gaga, most complete and flowing. Freddie was amazingly old-fashioned in his writing, almost vaudeville - it was strange to hear such a powerful and rocking band batter those songs into something that passed as "rockified". Some of their most anthemic 'songs' were banal and repetitive, perhaps ideal for crowd-singing beer-swilling karaoke fodder.
A great band, fine musicians, but songwriters? - never.
I apologize for the assumption if it's wrong, but it sounds like you have only heard their greatest hits based on your comment. I assume the anthemic song you are referring to is We Will Rock You, which I agree doesn't have much to it. But how can you say songs like It's Late, White Queen, The Prophet's Song, '39, Love of My Life, etc. aren't well written?
Joined: August 15 2011
Location: Cambridge
Status: Offline
Points: 320
Posted: August 31 2012 at 14:13
thellama73 wrote:
DiamondDog wrote:
None of the members of Queen were particularly great songwriters, just OK ish. The best song was Radio Gaga, most complete and flowing. Freddie was amazingly old-fashioned in his writing, almost vaudeville - it was strange to hear such a powerful and rocking band batter those songs into something that passed as "rockified". Some of their most anthemic 'songs' were banal and repetitive, perhaps ideal for crowd-singing beer-swilling karaoke fodder.
A great band, fine musicians, but songwriters? - never.
I apologize for the assumption if it's wrong, but it sounds like you have only heard their greatest hits based on your comment. I assume the anthemic song you are referring to is We Will Rock You, which I agree doesn't have much to it. But how can you say songs like It's Late, White Queen, The Prophet's Song, '39, Love of My Life, etc. aren't well written?
No need to apologise, but nice of you to take the precaution of saying so. I have heard most of their songs, and I stand by my comments. Too many people are fooled by the production and often-excellent musicianship, strip all that away and though the songs are never bad, they are often average or non-songs. (IMO)!
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geneyesontle wrote:
