The Obnoxious 1986 Poll

It does, and I love it! I like a lot of non Western classical music (eg Hindustani, Carnatic, Persian) and traditional music like Gamelan. One of my favourite albums from last year was from Eishan Ensemble, which fuses Persian classical music with jazz. It works incredibly well, because Persian classical music (like a lot of non-Western classical music) relies on improvisation as well as composition. Another favourite 2020 release, from the same record label, was from 3,14 who sought to combine Western and Eastern musical modes as a representation of the Silk Road, and at the same time, the Silk Moth that allowed the Silk Road trade to exist.

It’s pretty cool to see there is an increasing recognition of musical traditions beyond the conventional Western point of view, and a lot of Western bands are taking onboard some of the ideas (in a positive manner, rather than as appropriation or a gimmick, which has unfortunately often been the case on the past).

I think it’s because I think of prog as being progressive (so, for me, a lot of prog bands aren’t particularly prog at all, and a lot of non-prog bands exhibit a greater sense of progressive adventure. By progressive, I don’t mean they need to find something new, so much as have a sense of musical adventure and experimentation. That what the bands of the classic prog band had. That they happened to be making something new was by the by.

In that sense, DD were always looking to progress and change their sound. Or even change it up, within one album. Their albums reveal a far greater depth than their singles (something that is often the case of a lot of bands). The sheer roster of talent on Arcadia was astounding, and largely overlooked at the time, and probably still now. And the band had as its members over time, not just the original talented musicians, but Zappa alumnus Warren Cuccurullo, and esteemed drummer Stirling Campbell.

Simon Le Bon mentioned in a recent documentary I saw, how the band looked a little to Bowie, for the way he would do what he wanted, regardless of what he had done previously, and regardless of whether he thought his audience would enjoy it. Their albums from Notorious onwards show this. The band knew Notorious would not be what their fans wanted, and they went ahead with it. Their record label wasn’t happy with Notorious, and they went ahead with it. After their brief hiatus, rather than “rectifying” the “aberration” of Notorious, they went on to make Big Thing, which is a bloody fabulous album that hardly anyone bothered to listen to.

They pretty much had fallen out of relevance, and didn’t really care, and just kept on making albums. Ordinary World put them back on the scene, but it was a bit of a fortunate accident, and is no reflection really of the album it was pulled from.

Thank You, which is absolutely my least favourite DD album is the band hav8ng fun off the back of the success of The Wedding Album. It’s almost the equivalent of “sorry, not sorry”, but thank you, no thanks. Again, the band didn’t expect it to go down well, and it didn’t, but they didn’t think they’d have the opportunity to afford to be able to make that album otherwise, so they seized their chance. And they are still happy with the album themselves, regardless of what others think. In that respect they have actually beaten Bowie at his own game, as he tended to agree with critical opinion after the fact, even if it made his own views appear contrary (and sometimes almost hypocritical).

The best thing about the documentary was seeing how grounded and down to Earth the boys from Brum were and remain. For all the ostentatious finery and grandeur, they are just a bunch of friends out to make music that they enjoy. They can, and do, laugh at their failings and failures. They don’t take themselves at all seriously. I think I just like their attitude, and that attitude is somewhere between punk and prog, even if their music isn’t anywhere close to either.

 

Interesting, as it’s hardly an impressive album (and I say that as a Queen fan). It has some quite awesome songs, and some absolute crap. I would rate The Miracle as a better album, just because it has far greater consistency. It doesn’t have the high points of Magic, but nor does it have the low points. And Innuendo is probably their best album not from the ‘70s.

A few years ago, after reading a Classic Rock article ranking Queen’s albums, I figured I'd decide on my own ranking. My ranking ended up not that dissimilar to Classic Rock's, especially towards the "worst" end. I disagree more with Classic Rock, when it comes to the "best".

15. Hot Space (14 by Classic Rock)

I'm sure people like it, but it's not for me. At all.

14. Made in Heaven (15 CR)

I was incredibly disappointed when I first heard this, as it was hyped to be something more than it ended up. It has some good songs, but it doesn't flow as an album, and the songs are obviously plucked from different points in time. Putting a Queen backing track to a Freddy solo track does not make a Queen song. I don't dislike anything on here, but it's hardly a Queen album. I can see why Classic Rock listed this as their worst album, and if I liked Hot Space more, or disliked the remodelled tracks on this more, I would agree.

13. Flash (13 CR)

It's not bad, per se, but as Classic Rock points out, it falls somewhat flat without the visuals to accompany the instrumentation. Some soundtracks are good enough to stand on their own. This isn't. The title track though is, of course, pure gold.

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WEE GAP

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12. The Game (12 CR)

The first album not to have the "no synths" tag, and the first of the more mainstream and commercial sounding Queen.

11. The Works (8 CR)

A triumphant return to form after the horror (to my ears) of Hot Space.

10. A Kind of Magic (11 CR)

It was hard to decide whether to place this below or above The Miracle. I probably like the good songs on this more than I do the good songs on The Miracle - but the bad songs on this are far worse. For (lack of) consistency alone, this gets the lower position.

9. The Miracle (10 CR)

A comeback album of sorts, despite being only three years after the last album. More uniformly good than A Kind of Magic, but while that means the low points aren't as low, nor are the high points as high. Still, in retrospect, knowing now what we know of Freddy's health, this really is a remarkable album.

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HUGE GAP

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8. Jazz (4 CR)

Again, it was hard to decide whether to place this below or above the next album - this time, News of the World. Lack of consistency is probably once more what keeps this in the lower position.

7. News of the World (7 CR)

An album so much more than the two most well-known songs. The only song I don't particularly like is Get Down Make Love - but this is only on the album. I like it when it is performed live, which goes to show it is still a good song - merely that I don't like this studio recording.

6. Innuendo (9 CR)

How to go out with a bang. Again, retrospectively, this album is so much greater than it seemed at the time. The title track is tremendous, and it's hard not to read a lot into Days of our Lives. The Show Must Go On is triumphant. This really is the only album from Queen's latter days which can be compared with their earlier albums. It still doesn't reach those dizzy heights, but it is infinitely closer than anything else from the '80s or '90s.

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WEE GAP

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5. A Night at the Opera (1 CR)

I can't help but feel that this was placed at #1 by CR because of "that song". Admittedly, this is a fantastic album, and has some of my favourite songs on it - but I can't help think that ADATR refined the formula, and made a better album because of it. There are clear comparisons between the two albums, and you can almost identify which song on one album is the equivalent of one on the other - but ADATR has better consistency and flow.

4. A Day at the Races (5 CR)

As per above.

3. Sheer Heart Attack (3 CR)

An explosive start with Brighton Rock. The killer song everyone knows with Killer Queen. The exquisite 1,2,3 of Tenement Funster, Flick of the Wrist and Lily of the Valley. The belting Now I'm Here. Back in the days of album sides, side one is incredible! Side two is a little less cohesive, but every song is still wonderful, and the last two songs are perfect.

2. Queen (2 CR)

A million miles away from where Queen ended up, this hard rocking debut is still one of my favourite Queen albums, and includes some of my favourite Queen songs.

1. Queen II (6 CR)

I can't quite believe that Classic Rock rated this as low as six. Barring Greatest Hits, this was the first Queen album I actually bought, and it was nothing like what I expected. The whole idea of having a white side and a black side (instead of sides one and two) appealed to me, and with each side having a Queen of the appropriate colour. The March of the Black Queen is probably my favourite Queen song, but so much of this album is great. I love the songs. I love the way the songs segue together, and the suite this creates on the black side.