Geddy
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Post by Geddy on Apr 6, 2021 4:36:20 GMT
As I'm sure most of you know, during the 1984 shows of the Works tour Queen tried out something a bit different for them: giving a solo spot for the guest keyboardist, Spike Edney. This was an odd experiment for Queen and they dropped the keyboard solo in 1985, so I guess they ultimately felt it didn't work out so well, but I'm curious to what general opinion is on those parts of the shows.
Personally I'm of two minds. I actually like listening to these keyboard solos - they have a very Tangerine Dream-esque sound to them that's pleasing to listen, they go well with the vague "machines" aesthetic they had in the Works tour (with the Metropolis backdrop, moving cogwheels and the intro), and the transition to Brian's guitar solo was nice. It's also a bit of a refreshing breather before the band segued into the end of the concert with the hits. But still, I don't think it overall fits in a Queen show! It's weird to give a solo spot to one hired musician (this isn't meant as a knock on Spike in any way), especially a synthesizer solo, and even more odd to have it right after two deep cuts from the band's hard rock/no synths era and before the ending of another song from said era. It would feel less out of place as, for example, a prelude to Radio Ga Ga. I can definitely understand Queen deciding to drop this part of the show after the 1984 part of the tour.
But enough of my rambling - what are your thoughts on this certainly unique live experiment?
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littlequeenie97
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Post by littlequeenie97 on Apr 6, 2021 7:41:25 GMT
I like the keyboard solos, specially the first couple where Brian and Spike played together, they sounded really good.
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pg
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Post by pg on Apr 6, 2021 18:06:50 GMT
I thought Brian's guitar slots were over-indulgent and overlong, and he was IN Queen.
Getting Spike to do a solo so they can all go off and have a drink was a shocking decision. They're all getting a couple of breaks throughout the set anyway, and they're all in their 30s.
The quality of the solo is utterly irrelevant. It's like bringing the support act back half way through the main set....
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BrƎИsꓘi
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Post by BrƎИsꓘi on Apr 6, 2021 18:17:37 GMT
I thought Brian's guitar slots were over-indulgent and overlong, and he was IN Queen. Getting Spike to do a solo so they can all go off and have a drink was a shocking decision. They're all getting a couple of breaks throughout the set anyway, and they're all in their 30s. The quality of the solo is utterly irrelevant. It's like bringing the support act back half way through the main set.... this ^ either do it yourself, or have a fucking intermission. the Works Keyboard Solo sums up almost everything that was wrong with Queen between 80-86. i'm sure if Freddie had never got ill, then the 1989 tour, would've had a twenty minute instrumental slot (incl guitar and drum solo) - performed entirely by the Kids From Miracle video.
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emrabt
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Post by emrabt on Apr 6, 2021 18:56:27 GMT
It was bloody awful, 3 to 5 minutes too long and stops the momentum from the medley of two really fast rockers dead in it's tracks, Imagine instead if the medley ended with a fast tempo version of the "I rule with my left hand, I rule with my right" section of March of the Black Queen leading to the guitar solo ......
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Geddy
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Post by Geddy on Apr 6, 2021 19:18:08 GMT
this ^ either do it yourself, or have a fucking intermission. the Works Keyboard Solo sums up almost everything that was wrong with Queen between 80-86. i'm sure if Freddie had never got ill, then the 1989 tour, would've had a twenty minute instrumental slot (incl guitar and drum solo) - performed entirely by the Kids From Miracle video. I wonder why they never did have an actual intermission spot. I imagine a lot of people would rather go for drinks or a bathroom break during the long solos anyway...
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Lord Fickle
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Post by Lord Fickle on Apr 6, 2021 19:22:57 GMT
this ^ either do it yourself, or have a fucking intermission. the Works Keyboard Solo sums up almost everything that was wrong with Queen between 80-86. i'm sure if Freddie had never got ill, then the 1989 tour, would've had a twenty minute instrumental slot (incl guitar and drum solo) - performed entirely by the Kids From Miracle video. I wonder why they never did have an actual intermission spot. I imagine a lot of people would rather go for drinks or a bathroom break during the long solos anyway... Most of the shows were less than two hours long. As has been said, they all had breaks at various times during the shows, so I don't really think a full intermission was necessary.
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baronlutenvank
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Post by baronlutenvank on Apr 7, 2021 5:51:53 GMT
I mean, it's not exactly a musical theater they're doing. I thought those are what the intermissions are for.
I always thought their acoustic set is the closest to an intermission. With the band slowing things down a bit, the audience can get off their seat for a toilet break, at least it was before everyone started singing Love Of My Life
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n39
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Post by n39 on Apr 7, 2021 9:07:44 GMT
Just listened to the solo. Bloody awful. Sounds extremely dated, and very out of place with the rest of the set. It wasn't needed.
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emrabt
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Post by emrabt on Apr 7, 2021 16:39:14 GMT
It's a real shame too as I love the 1984 setlist.
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oreno
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Post by oreno on Apr 7, 2021 18:33:52 GMT
Funny isn't it, conventional wisdom has it that Hot Space/82 tour were Queen going down a blind alley, 84/Works they were back on form. Yet the 82 tour saw the band in amazing shape, and the Hot Space songs were blistering on stage. 84 however, despite much great stuff, there were the keyboard solos, some lousy electronic drums, ressurrecting old 70s stuff and subsuming it into choppy medleys, and Freddie's voice often being shot.
One of several reasons they've avoided proper live DVD releases from that era perhaps, even Rio has been quietly forgotten about.
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baronlutenvank
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Post by baronlutenvank on Apr 7, 2021 21:11:44 GMT
Funny isn't it, conventional wisdom has it that Hot Space/82 tour were Queen going down a blind alley, 84/Works they were back on form. Yet the 82 tour saw the band in amazing shape, and the Hot Space songs were blistering on stage. 84 however, despite much great stuff, there were the keyboard solos, some lousy electronic drums, ressurrecting old 70s stuff and subsuming it into choppy medleys, and Freddie's voice often being shot. One of several reasons they've avoided proper live DVD releases from that era perhaps, even Rio has been quietly forgotten about. The early '82 and '84 tours have some of the most interesting setlists in the band's history. The former being an experimental period for the 1st few nights before settling on more or less final setlist by the end of the European leg. '84's setlist was nice blend of past and present songs with a little showcase for the new guy before they watered it down by '85. Shame that the only professionally recorded documents of The Works Tour was from '85.
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Post by metalmadtom on Apr 7, 2021 21:18:21 GMT
Love it! Gives it a real 1980s future vibe!
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Post by saintjiub on Apr 8, 2021 0:18:10 GMT
Should the moderators move this topic to the "Spike" subforum in the "Solo Recordings" forum? ...
... Sorry, I am suffering from severe brain damage ...
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Geddy
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Post by Geddy on Apr 8, 2021 22:12:59 GMT
Funny isn't it, conventional wisdom has it that Hot Space/82 tour were Queen going down a blind alley, 84/Works they were back on form. Yet the 82 tour saw the band in amazing shape, and the Hot Space songs were blistering on stage. 84 however, despite much great stuff, there were the keyboard solos, some lousy electronic drums, ressurrecting old 70s stuff and subsuming it into choppy medleys, and Freddie's voice often being shot. One of several reasons they've avoided proper live DVD releases from that era perhaps, even Rio has been quietly forgotten about. It's funny how the tours for these two albums are inversely popular to what they were promoting. Agreed about the choppy medleys - on first glance it might seem cool for them to have been doing stuff like Seven Seas of Rhye and Liar again, but it was pretty rushed. The transition from Keep Yourself Alive to Liar in particular always seemed awkward and even sloppy to me.
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Post by Hammett To Fall on Apr 10, 2021 17:45:54 GMT
For me, the most awkward transition between songs on The Works tour was when they went from "Staying Power" into "Dragon Attack" - a cold stop into a slower-tempo song. This may be why the shortened "Staying Power" only lasted a dozen shows, though also a quite demanding number for Freddie. Apparently the first show of the tour in Brussels starting very late as the soundcheck turned into a cramming session, as the band had rarely been all turned up together for rehearsals. This may explain why a lot of the setlists, while they look good on paper, were more disappointing in their execution.
As for Spike's solo, it's a generous move on the bands part, and it's a pleasant-enough curio, but not really what you expect from a Queen show. Brian's solo is welcome by comparison; maybe that's why they included it?!
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NathanH
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Post by NathanH on Apr 11, 2021 8:28:43 GMT
I think the only reason why they included a keyboard solo was simply so Brian could have a rest. Otherwise apart from a minute between some songs (depending on Freddie's mood), Brian would have to do nearly two hours on stage.
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Post by The Real Wizard on Apr 12, 2021 22:55:21 GMT
Just listened to the solo. Bloody awful. Sounds extremely dated, and very out of place with the rest of the set. It wasn't needed. All kinds of artists now say that what seemed cutting edge in the '80s didn't date well. Pink Floyd even redid A Momentary Lapse of Reason citing the same thing.
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Post by The Real Wizard on Apr 12, 2021 23:02:55 GMT
Funny isn't it, conventional wisdom has it that Hot Space/82 tour were Queen going down a blind alley, 84/Works they were back on form. Yet the 82 tour saw the band in amazing shape, and the Hot Space songs were blistering on stage. 84 however, despite much great stuff, there were the keyboard solos, some lousy electronic drums, ressurrecting old 70s stuff and subsuming it into choppy medleys, and Freddie's voice often being shot. One of several reasons they've avoided proper live DVD releases from that era perhaps, even Rio has been quietly forgotten about. It's funny how the tours for these two albums are inversely popular to what they were promoting. Agreed about the choppy medleys - on first glance it might seem cool for them to have been doing stuff like Seven Seas of Rhye and Liar again, but it was pretty rushed. The transition from Keep Yourself Alive to Liar in particular always seemed awkward and even sloppy to me. People have always been divided on the medley thing. I'm sure even some of the band members weren't keen on it. The guys in Dream Theater differed on it - Mike Portnoy loved medleys but John Petrucci didn't.
Medleys can be a great way to fit more bits of songs into the set, especially if the transitions are musically clever - but then plenty of people want to hear the whole song. Genesis and Rush always put together great medleys, but it's not hard to picture people feeling a bit short-changed from hearing only the tail end of Watcher of the Skies in '76, or Rush chopping the tail end of YYZ in '84 to go into Temples of Syrinx.
The medley Yes did on the Tormato tour is probably the best medley a band ever did - a half hour long, and I doubt anyone complained. The medleys Queen did in '84 were pretty good, but they don't touch Yes in '78 or even their own medleys from the same period.
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Post by The Real Wizard on Apr 12, 2021 23:07:28 GMT
Apparently the first show of the tour in Brussels starting very late as the soundcheck turned into a cramming session, as the band had rarely been all turned up together for rehearsals. This may explain why a lot of the setlists, while they look good on paper, were more disappointing in their execution. Where'd you hear that ?
It wouldn't surprise me, though - opening nights of Queen tours often found the band playing a bit sloppy.
This review from 1980 comes to mind:
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Post by The Real Wizard on Apr 12, 2021 23:09:28 GMT
I think the only reason why they included a keyboard solo was simply so Brian could have a rest. Otherwise apart from a minute between some songs (depending on Freddie's mood), Brian would have to do nearly two hours on stage. Brian never had a rest on any other tour, apart from My Melancholy Blues in '77/'78. Why did it have to be any different in '84 ?
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Geddy
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Post by Geddy on Apr 13, 2021 4:04:17 GMT
People have always been divided on the medley thing. I'm sure even some of the band members weren't keen on it. The guys in Dream Theater differed on it - Mike Portnoy loved medleys but John Petrucci didn't. Medleys can be a great way to fit more bits of songs into the set, especially if the transitions are musically clever - but then plenty of people want to hear the whole song. Genesis and Rush always put together great medleys, but it's not hard to picture people feeling a bit short-changed from hearing only the tail end of Watcher of the Skies in '76, or Rush chopping the tail end of YYZ in '84 to go into Temples of Syrinx. The medley Yes did on the Tormato tour is probably the best medley a band ever did - a half hour long, and I doubt anyone complained. The medleys Queen did in '84 were pretty good, but they don't touch Yes in '78 or even their own medleys from the same period. I'm not against medleys in general, in fact I think Queen usually did them well (NOTW, Jazz and Crazy Tour/The Game medleys - *chef's kiss*). I don't think songs like Somebody to Love and Liar worked very well in the format, though, and the transitions in the Works tour medley were a bit odd (but I like the way Seven Seas of Rhye went into Keep Yourself Alive). I guess it can be attributed to the band having been a bit burnt out and not all that "in touch" - they were in a better state for the Magic tour and the medley in that was executed better, in fact. I'm also a fan of the Genesis, Rush and Yes medleys. Might have listened a bit too much of that Genesis one from the "Way We Walk: The Longs" live album as a kid
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NathanH
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Post by NathanH on Apr 13, 2021 7:45:24 GMT
I think the only reason why they included a keyboard solo was simply so Brian could have a rest. Otherwise apart from a minute between some songs (depending on Freddie's mood), Brian would have to do nearly two hours on stage. Brian never had a rest on any other tour, apart from My Melancholy Blues in '77/'78. Why did it have to be any different in '84 ?
Well this is where I'm going to go against you, I believe that Brian must've had breaks to recover during shows. One of them was during Roger's drum solos which existed during Keep Yourself Alive which got longer after 1978 until they suddenly stopped after 1981. (On Hot Space there was about a minute after Brian's solo and Under Pressure where he could've had a quick drink.) Freddie's introductions to songs in the 70s and vocal improvisations in the 80s were longer so he got more time there. I think really on The Works Tour other than the keyboard solo or Freddie's vocal improvisation (which varied in length from time to me) there really wasn't much time for Brian to rest so these little things were great recovery time for him.
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Post by The Real Wizard on Apr 13, 2021 21:07:57 GMT
Brian never had a rest on any other tour, apart from My Melancholy Blues in '77/'78. Why did it have to be any different in '84 ?
Well this is where I'm going to go against you, I believe that Brian must've had breaks to recover during shows. One of them was during Roger's drum solos which existed during Keep Yourself Alive which got longer after 1978 until they suddenly stopped after 1981. (On Hot Space there was about a minute after Brian's solo and Under Pressure where he could've had a quick drink.) Freddie's introductions to songs in the 70s and vocal improvisations in the 80s were longer so he got more time there. I think really on The Works Tour other than the keyboard solo or Freddie's vocal improvisation (which varied in length from time to me) there really wasn't much time for Brian to rest so these little things were great recovery time for him. You're right - I forgot about the tympani solo ! That's about a couple minutes each night. Good catch.
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pg
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Post by pg on Apr 13, 2021 22:02:37 GMT
..and everyone gets a minute off in Bo Rhap
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georg
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Post by georg on Apr 13, 2021 23:10:13 GMT
..and everyone gets a minute off in Bo Rhap Still enough time for a quick one for Fred...
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NathanH
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Post by NathanH on Apr 14, 2021 18:44:57 GMT
Brian doesn't need much time in a show for a breather (he always got changed during the opera tape bit of Bohemian Rhapsody, not the most relaxing break!) however I do think they did cleverly choose moments which he wasn't required. But having had said that he is still by far the most active person on stage. All he gets now is a two minute break in the middle of the show whilst there is a drum battle! Roger says he doesn't like drum solos so surely this is a moment for Brian...
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Post by The Real Wizard on Apr 14, 2021 18:57:09 GMT
..and everyone gets a minute off in Bo Rhap Still enough time for a quick one for Fred... The emboldened text has no idea what you mean.
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georg
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Post by georg on Apr 14, 2021 19:16:06 GMT
Brian doesn't need much time in a show for a breather (he always got changed during the opera tape bit of Bohemian Rhapsody, not the most relaxing break!) however I do think they did cleverly choose moments which he wasn't required. But having had said that he is still by far the most active person on stage. All he gets now is a two minute break in the middle of the show whilst there is a drum battle! Roger says he doesn't like drum solos so surely this is a moment for Brian... Brian did have a break between 76 and 78 with You Take My Breath Away and My Melancholy Blues... I think those were the only two songs live where he was surplus to requirements.
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NathanH
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Post by NathanH on Apr 16, 2021 8:31:49 GMT
Brian doesn't need much time in a show for a breather (he always got changed during the opera tape bit of Bohemian Rhapsody, not the most relaxing break!) however I do think they did cleverly choose moments which he wasn't required. But having had said that he is still by far the most active person on stage. All he gets now is a two minute break in the middle of the show whilst there is a drum battle! Roger says he doesn't like drum solos so surely this is a moment for Brian... Brian did have a break between 76 and 78 with You Take My Breath Away and My Melancholy Blues... I think those were the only two songs live where he was surplus to requirements. Yes they are the only songs for certain but he wasn't required when Roger did his drum and timpani solos (after those two songs weren't played). Also once Roger stopped doing these longer solos, Freddie's vocal improvisations with audience were longer too. They were nearly two minutes on the Magic Tour so that for Brian is quite a long time!
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