Queen: The Complete Works (138 page)

46664 – LONG WALK TO FREEDOM

In March 2003 Brian and Roger flew to South Africa for a week to record with former Eurythmics founder Dave Stewart and local African musicians. The sessions took place between 5 and 8 March at Milestone Studios in Cape Town, and were immediately productive: the trio recorded a slew of ideas, with the germ of an idea (presumably ‘Amandla’) being completed so quickly that no one had time to switch on the machines. Thankfully, one of the singers, Muddy, captured the groove (with Dave on acoustic guitar and Brian on piano) on mini-cassette, using the recording as a sample while Roger overdubbed drums and Dave keyboards, with Brian adding some finishing touches with The Red Special.

Four known tracks were recorded during these sessions – ‘Invincible Hope’, written by Roger; ‘46664 – The Call’, written by Brian; the aforementioned Amandla’; Roger’s acoustic ballad ‘Say It’s Not True’, which became a concert favourite. A fifth song was mentioned by Brian on his website under the title ‘Under African Skies’, but no other information was revealed. It’s likely that these songs won’t be released as part of any Queen-related project; a 46664 studio album was planned at one time, but has now been shelved indefinitely.

A series of concerts was also performed between 2003 and 2006: the inaugural concert was on 29 November 2003 in Cape Town, and Brian and Roger (under the name Queen) were the stars of the show. The next such concert came in March 2005, again in South Africa, and marked the live debut of Queen + Paul Rodgers, while Brian performed a set in June 2006 in Norway as a solo artist. Queen + Paul Rodgers returned in June 2008 in Hyde Park, three months before the official start of their
Rock The Cosmos
tour.

GREEN POINT STADIUM, CAPE TOWN, SOUTH

AFRICA

29 NOVEMBER 2003

Musicians:
Brian May
(guitars, vocals, lead vocal on ‘46664 – The Call’, acoustic guitar on ‘Say It’s Not True’ and ‘Is This The World We Created...?’)
, Roger Taylor
(drums, vocals, lead vocal on ‘Say It’s Not True’ and ‘Radio Ga Ga’)
, Dave Stewart
(acoustic guitar on ‘Say It’s Not True’, guitar on ‘Amandla’)
, Andrea Corr
(lead vocal on ‘Is This The World We Created...?’)
, Zucchero
(lead vocal on ‘Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime’ and ‘I Want It All’)
, Thandiswa ‘Tandy’ Mazwai
(lead vocal on ‘I Want To Break Free’)
, Soweto Gospel Choir
(gospel vocals on ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’)
, Anastacia
(lead vocal on ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘We Are The Champions’)
, Spike Edney
(keyboards, vocals)
, Jamie Moses
(guitars, vocals)
, Steve Stroud
(bass guitar, vocals)
, Eric Singer
(drums)
, Chris Thompson (backing vocals, lead vocal on ‘The Show Must Go On’), Treana Morris
(backing vocals)
, Zoe Nicholas
(backing vocals)

Repertoire:
‘Say It’s Not True’, ‘Invincible Hope’, ‘46664 – The Call’, ‘The Show Must Go On’, ‘Is This The World We Created...?’, ‘Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime’, ‘Amandla’, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ / ‘I Want It All’ / ‘I Want To Break Free’ / ‘Radio Ga Ga’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘We Are The Champions’

The inaugural 46664 concert in Cape Town was a star-studded event. Along with Brian and Roger appearing as Queen, Beyoncé, Bob Geldof, Paul Oakenfold, Shifty Shellshock, TC, Amampondo Drummers, Baaba Maal, Youssou N’Dour, Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens), Peter Gabriel, Angelique Kidjo, Bono, The Edge, Dave Stewart, Annie Lennox, Abdel Wright, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Bongo Maffin, Johnny Clegg, Jimmy Cliff, The Corrs, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Abdel Wright, Danny K, Watershed, Zucchero, Ms Dynamite, Anastacia, Andrews Bonsu, Thandiswa Mazwai, and the Soweto Gospel Choir and Cast made up a day that fused rock with traditional African and world music.

Staged as a variant of Live Aid in a packed stadium of 40,000, the concert was atypical in that no full band (except The Corrs) was featured. Instead, a host of musicians, usually from other bands, would back up the highlighted artist; for instance, Bono and The Edge from U2 performed with Brian, Roger, Dave Stewart, Anastacia and Andrews Bonsu on ‘Amandla’, and Roger provided drums on The Corrs’ ‘Toss The Feathers’.

Queen’s set started with one of several new songs of the night, ‘Say It’s Not True’, and was performed on a catwalk (during a set change) by Brian and Dave Stewart on acoustic guitars, with Roger providing lead vocals. The band then appeared later in the night after a speech by Nelson Mandela, performing a medley of ‘Invincible Hope’ (sung by backing vocalists Treana Morris, Zoe Nicholas and Chris Thompson), ‘46664 – The Call’ (sung by Brian) and ‘The Show Must Go On’ (again, sung by the backing vocalists).

Brian and Roger would appear throughout the night on several other artists’ performances: as mentioned, Roger played drums on ‘Toss The Feathers’, and Brian and Andrea Corr performed ‘Is This The World We Created...?’ Unsurprisingly, the show ended with a lengthy Queen medley of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, ‘I Want It All’, ‘I Want To Break Free’, ‘Radio Ga Ga’, ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘We Are The Champions’ (the latter pair with Anastacia singing lead vocals).

The concert was a success, and Brian enthused about it on his website afterwards. The performance was released on both CD and DVD in 2004, with all proceeds donated to AIDS charities worldwide.

FANCOURT, GEORGE, SOUTH AFRICA

19 MARCH 2005

Musicians:
Brian May
(guitars, vocals, lead vocal intro on ‘Hammer To Fall’)
, Roger Taylor
(drums, vocals, lead vocal on ‘Say It’s Not True’ and ‘Radio Ga Ga’)
, Paul Rodgers
(vocals)
, Spike Edney
(piano, keyboards, vocals)
, Danny Miranda
(bass guitar)
, Jamie Moses
(rhythm guitar)
, Katie Melua
(lead vocal on ‘Too Much Love Will Kill You’)
, African Children’s Choir
(backing vocals on ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘We Are The Champions’)

Repertoire:
‘Tie Your Mother Down’, ‘Can’t Get Enough’, ‘I Want To Break Free’, ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’, ‘Say It’s Not True’, ‘Too Much Love Will Kill You’, ‘Hammer To Fall’, ‘A Kind Of Magic’, ‘Feel Like Making Love’, ‘Radio Ga Ga’, ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’, ‘The Show Must Go On’, ‘All Right Now’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘We Are The Champions’

Along with the confirmation of a European and UK tour for the spring of 2005, a second 46664 concert to be performed at Fancourt Country Club Resort was announced to draw attention to Nelson Mandela’s
AIDS awareness charities. After the controversy attached to their 1984 concerts, there was some trepidation as to the response, but times had clearly changed: apartheid legislation had been removed in the early 1990s, though most of the population still lived in poverty. The new band flew into George, South Africa on 17 March 2005, with final preparations taking place the following day (the band had rehearsed throughout most of February).

Fan response was generally positive, though many were quick to note that Paul was nervous and forgot more than a few lines; considering that only three songs of the fifteen performed – ‘Can’t Get Enough’, ‘Feel Like Making Love’ and ‘All Right Now’ – were from either Bad Company or Free, the odd flub was understandable and forgivable. A guest vocal on ‘Too Much Love Will Kill You’ from Katie Melua, who topped the British charts in 2003 with
Call Off The Search
, was a welcome surprise.

While the band was initially rusty and hesitant, it was still a positive experience for them, and they were enthusiastically received both by those in attendance on the night and those who were able to download from the Internet a short four-song clip of ‘Tie Your Mother Down’, ‘Too Much Love Will Kill You’, ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘We Are The Champions’.

FYLLINGEN, TROMOSO, NORWAY

11 JUNE 2005

Musicians:
Brian May
(vocals, guitars, acoustic guitar and lead vocals [one verse only] on ‘Cosi Celeste’)
, Spike Edney
(keyboards)
, Jamie Moses
(guitars)
, John Marte
(drums)
, Steve Stroud
(bass guitar)
, Jivan Gasparyan
(duduk on ‘Theme From The Gladiator’ and ‘The Last Temptation Of Christ’)
, Peter Gabriel
(vocals on ‘The Last Temptation Of Christ’)
, Zucchero
(vocals on ‘Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime’, ‘Senza Una Donna’, and ‘Cosi Celeste’)
, Sharon Corr
(vocals on ‘Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime’)
, Johnny Clegg
(vocals on ‘Asimbonanga’)

Repertoire:
‘Theme From The Gladiator’, ‘The Last Temptation Of Christ’, ‘Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime’, ‘Senza Una Donna’, ‘Cosi Celeste’, ‘Asimbonanga’

Brian appeared solo for this 46664 concert, and hinted on his website that he would be playing with Jivan Gasparyan, but that their set was still to be determined. Gasparyan, an Armenian musician and composer, is a professor at the Yerevan Conservatory where he instructs performers to professional levels in performance of the duduk (a double-reed instrument, cousin to the oboe). Brian and Jivan performed ‘Theme From
The Gladiator
’ and ‘The Last Temptation Of Christ’, with Peter Gabriel on lead vocals, before Brian returned on his own to play guitar on ‘Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime’, ‘Senza Una Donna’, ‘Cosi Celeste’ (singing one verse on this song, his only vocal performance of the night) and ‘Asimbonaga’. As with the first 46664 concert, the house band consisted of Spike Edney on keyboards, Jamie Moses on guitars, John Marte on drums and Steve Stroud on bass.

HYDE PARK, LONDON

27 JUNE 2008

Musicians:
Brian May
(guitars, vocals, acoustic guitar on ‘Is This The World We Created...?’)
, Roger Taylor
(drums, vocals)
, Paul Rodgers
(vocals)
, Spike Edney
(piano, keyboards, vocals)
, Danny Miranda
(bass guitar, vocals)
, Jamie Moses
(guitars, vocals)

Repertoire:
‘Is This The World We Created...?’
(Brian and Andrea Corr)
, ‘One Vision’, ‘Tie Your Mother Down’, ‘The Show Must Go On’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘We Are The Champions’, ‘All Right Now’, ‘Free Nelson Mandela’
(all-star finale)

Three months before the
Rock The Cosmos
tour was due to start, Queen + Paul Rodgers interrupted the final recording sessions for
The Cosmos Rocks
to play at the Hyde Park concert for Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday celebration. Annie Lennox, Zucchero, The Corrs, Amy Winehouse, and Razorlight were on the bill (rumored appearances from U2 and Eminem failed to materialize), all compered by an enthusiastic Will Smith, and Brian likened the experience to 1985’s Live Aid. The sextet rehearsed extensively for the tour, trimming down six songs to twenty minutes, and offering up five Queen favourites and a rousing rendition of ‘All Right Now’. There were some hiccups – Paul was clearly not fully prepared for the twists and turns of ‘One Vision’, starting to sing the bridge instead of the second verse – but they truly came alive with ‘Tie Your Mother Down’ and had the audience cheering wildly and singing along.

Earlier in the show, Brian appeared with Andrea Corr to sing an impassioned rendition of ‘Is This The World We Created...?’, and, much like Live Aid’s ‘Do
They Know It’s Christmas’, an all-star finale helped out with Jerry Drammers’ ‘Free Nelson Mandela’, recorded by The Special A.K.A. and produced by Elvis Costello in 1984. Amy Winehouse sang the opening verse, before a cast of a hundred bounced out onto the stage to bring the show to a close. Everyone was in high spirits, with Brian and Paul grinning wildly and clearly having a ball – a marked contrast from the spirits they would be in as the year came to an end.

QUEEN + PAUL RODGERS

EUROPEAN TOUR

28 MARCH TO 30 APRIL 2005

Musicians:
Brian May
(guitars, vocals, lead vocal on ‘’39’ and ‘Love Of My Life’, lead vocal intro on ‘Hammer To Fall’, acoustic guitar)
, Roger Taylor
(drums, vocals, lead vocal on ‘Say It’s Not True’, ‘I’m In Love With My Car’, and ‘Radio Ga Ga’, congas on ‘Seagull’)
, Paul Rodgers
(vocals, acoustic guitar on ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’)
, Spike Edney
(piano, keyboards, vocals)
, Danny Miranda
(bass guitar, vocals, acoustic guitar on ‘Say It’s Not True’)
, Jamie Moses
(guitars, vocals, acoustic guitar on ‘Say It’s Not True’)

Repertoire:
‘Reaching Out’, ‘Tie Your Mother Down’, ‘A Little Bit Of Love’, ‘I Want To Break Free’, ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’, ‘Wishing Well’, ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’, ‘Say It’s Not True’, ‘’39’, ‘Love Of My Life’, ‘Hammer To Fall’, ‘Feel Like Making Love’, ‘Let There Be Drums’, ‘I’m In Love With My Car’, Guitar Solo, ‘Last Horizon’, ‘These Are The Days Of Our Lives’, ‘Radio Ga Ga’, ‘Can’t Get Enough’, ‘A Kind Of Magic’, ‘I Want It All’, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, ‘The Show Must Go On’, ‘All Right Now’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘We Are The Champions’, ‘God Save The Queen’, ‘Seagull’, ‘Long Away’, ‘Tavaszi Szel Vizet Araszt’, ‘Danube Waltz’

Itinerary:

March 28: Brixton Academy, London

March 30: Le Zenith, Paris, France

April 1: Palacio de los Deportes, Madrid, Spain

April 2: Palau Sant Jordi, Barcelona, Spain

April 4: Palalottomatica, Rome, Italy

April 5: Forum, Milan, Italy

April 7: Nelson Mandela Forum, Firenze, Italy

April 8: BPA Palas, Pesaro, Italy

April 10: St Jakob’s Halle, Basel, Switzerland

April 13: Stadhalle, Vienna, Austria

April 14: Olympiahalle, Munich, Germany

April 16: Sazka Arena, Prague, Czech Republik

April 17: Arena, Leipzig, Germany

April 19: Festhalle, Frankfurt, Germany

April 20: Sportpaleis, Antwerpen, Belgium

April 23: Arena, Budapest, Hungary

April 25: Westfalenhalle, Dortmund, Germany

April 26: Ahoy, Rotterdam, Netherlands

April 28: Colour Line Arena, Hamburg, Germany

April 30: Globen, Stockholm, Sweden

It must be said that the 2005 touring band – consisting of Brian May, Roger Taylor, Paul Rodgers, former Blue Öyster Cult bassist Danny Miranda, and familiar stalwarts Jamie Moses and Spike Edney – is not the Queen we all know and love. “For years, I couldn’t see the point of doing Queen again,” Brian explained in 2005. “I couldn’t visualize it. Then we performed some songs with Paul, and it was like a door opened in my mind. It suddenly occurred to me that we could do something which will give people a little bit of what they want but will also take it to a new place. I’m starting to wonder why we didn’t think of it before.”