Queen - "Queen - The Platinum Collection: Greatest Hits I, II & III"
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Free Music Notes for "Queen - The Platinum Collection: Greatest Hits I, II & III"
Free Music Review: Ehh...
Hit: 3 Stars
Let me start by saying, I am a Queen fan(atic). Have been since I was 9 years old. I can pretty be counted on to A) buy any Queen merchandise and/or products, or B) or least give said merchandise and/or products a fair look before I pass by. That having been said, I don't think this greatest hits set is really the best representation of the most versatile band ever. That's right, Beatles, I said "ever".
The problem with sets like these is that the average listener will buy it and think, "Well, that's Queen taken of, then", stick it on their shelf and forget about it. But then they'll miss out on great stuff like "Tie Your Mother Down", "Stone Cold Crazy", "In The Lap Of The Gods", "Mustapha", "It's Late", "Flick Of The Wrist"...the list literally goes on and on. Also, this just may be my inner anal-retentive fanboy speaking here, but some of the songs on this set are rather annoyingly edited, at least to my ears. For example, on this set's version of "Under Pressure", Queen's seminal 1981 New Wave collaboration with David Bowie, the second refrain of "This is our last chance" is--POOF!--completely gone. It's very unnerving, and takes someone who's heard the song that way their entire lives completely out of the moment. Further examples include the truncated version of "Fat Bottomed Girls" on Disc One, which on this version fades out, rather than coming to its usual strong finish in the unedited version, which can be found on the original album "Jazz" or the 1992 U.S. maroon-colored release, "Queen's Greatest Hits".
As for the much-maligned "Greatest Hits III" (Disc Three), it's not quite as bad as all that. "Princes Of The Universe" was erroneously left off of most of the previous hits collections; long overdue to be included, as it's one of the best known Queen songs, thanks to the "Highlander" films and TV series. Also, it was good to have some cuts from Freddie Mercury's side projects, most notably "Barcelona" with Monserrat Caballe and "Living On My Own" from the "Mr. Bad Guy" album, which can prove difficult to find. Elton John's passionate rendition of "The Show Must Go On" is very moving in the context of things, and even George Michael acquits himself admirably with a joyous take on "Somebody To Love". Both performances serve as fitting tributes to Freddie Mercury's spirit. As for the remix of "Another One Bites The Dust" by Wyclef Jean? Well, to my surprise, I really didn't think it was as bad as some have made it out to be, especially when compared to some of the Rick Rubin remixes from the 1991 album re-releases (Anybody else remember that remix of "Bicycle Race"? Ick.)
Anyways, to sum up, I personally think it would be better for the beginning Queen listener to at least delve into some of Queen's studio albums first, but being that we live in a world where everybody's in a mad hurry, it's quite understandable that people would pick up the most concise collection of material. Just don't make the mistake of ending your search here.
Free Music Review: Queen - The Platinum Greatest Hits I, II & III
Hit: 5 Stars
Absolutely OUTSTANDING. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys the musical genius of Freddie, Brian and the band.
Free Music Review: Queen Greatest hits, Platinum Collection
Hit: 5 Stars
I have just recenty rediscovered Queen with the Wembly concert. So it was an absloute treat to recieve this collection to add to my ever growing Queen collection. I was absolutely blown away with the songs "I want it all", "The show must go on" and "Hammer to fall" I was also amazed at the version of "Somebody to love" that George Michaels did with Queen. ALMOST as good as Freddie. There is a few songs that were not so good on the last disk but most is an absolute treat to the ears. Not to mention the soul. Also, going through the little booklet was great too since it had a little background knowledge on each of the songs not to mention the great pictures.
If you are a Queen fan this is a must to own and cherish!!! The only BAD thing about this whole set is after you've played them all it leaves you wanting more. Freddie was a great entertainer and showman and died way too soon but at least we have collections like these to remember just how great the band was and how talented they all were.
Free Music Review: queen platinum album
Hit: 5 Stars
this collection is perfect if you love queen. you won't be skipping tracks to get to your favorites - they are all good!Free Music Review: A Queen Compilation that provides the most value
Hit: 5 Stars
Looking back at the 1970s, sometimes many forget how big the band Queen was. Even as Queen moved into the 1980s, while their popularity did slightly decline in the United States, it continued to be very high in Europe. Their performance at Live Aid is widely considered one of the greatest of all-time and their subsequent "Magic" tour is considered one of the all-time greatest concert tours. If it weren't for Freddie Mercury's death in 1991, we might still be talking about Queen being as big a band as the Beatles. Numerous compilation albums are available containing much of Queen's music. The period from 1974-1980 is considered the period where Queen achieved its most popularity - especially in the United States. Following 1980, Queen's popularity continued, but this was mostly in Europe. However, there was a lot of good music still done by Queen, thus continuing their legacy. In 1981, Queen released an album "Greatest Hits" covering that 1974-1980 period. Ten years later, Queen would release a second greatest hits collection - "Greatest Hits Volume II", that would cover the post 1980 period until Mercury's death in 1991. After Mercury's death, Queen would not officially disband. However the majority of the work in the 1990s would consist of "projects" or live performances. In 1999, a compilation of this project work, live performances, and solo work would be released under the title of "Greatest Hits III". In 2000, These three collections would be packaged into a single boxed set entitled "Queen - The Platinum Collection: Greatest Hits I II & III".
Queen is an example of the sum of the parts actually being greater than the whole. However, if you take each of the four members of Queen, they easily stand on their own as a top musician in their profession. Freddie Mercury is easily known to be the emotional and flamboyant lead vocalist of Queen who indeed has a legendary voice. Brian May is the legendary lead guitarist and probably the second most popular member of the band. Roger Taylor and John Deacon go extremely underrated. Listen to Taylor's thundering drumming in the studio or live and one can easily understand why he was asked to participate in an All Star Drum Jam (The S.O.S. All-Stars) at the Live Earth concert. As for John Deacon, he might be one of music's all-time underrated bass players. Many of his bass lines have proven to be the foundation for Queen's musical sound. In addition to being top musicians, all four members play integral roles in the songwriting.
The first CD represents "Greatest Hits I" and covers eight of the nine albums from 1973 through 1980. The albums represented on the 1981 UK Version are "Queen II" ("Seven Seas of Rhye"); "Sheer Heart Attack" ("Killer Queen", "Now I'm Here"); "A Night at the Opera" ("Bohemian Rhapsody", "You're My Best Friend"); "A Day at the Races" ("Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy", "Somebody to Love"); "News of the World" ("We Will Rock You", "We are the Champions"); "Jazz" ("Fat Bottomed Girls", "Bicycle Race", "Don't Stop Me Now"); "The Game" ("Another One Bites the Dust", "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", "Save Me", "Play the Game"); "Flash Gordon" ("Flash"). The only album not represented is "Queen", however it is important to know that technically "Seven Seas of Rhye" appeared in an "unfinished" version on the "Queen" album. On "Queen II" the full version of "Seven Seas of Rhye" appears on that collection and that is the version that is included on this version of "Greatest Hits".
The second CD is "Greatest Hits II" and covers the five albums from 1981 to 1991. These albums include: "Hot Space" ("Under Pressure); "The Works" ("Radio Ga Ga", "I Want to Break Free", "It's a Hard Life", "Hammer to Fall"); "A Kind of Magic" ("A Kind of Magic", "Who Wants to Live Forever", "Friends Will be Friends", "One Vision"); "The Miracle" ("I Want it All", "Breakthru", "The Miracle", "The Invisible Man"); "Innuendo" ("Innuendo", "Headlong", "I'm Going Slightly Mad", "The Show Must Go On").
From "Greatest Hits III, there is a nice mix of Queen remixes, solo material from both Freddie Mercury and Brian May, material from "Made in Heaven" (the album released posthumously after Mercury's death), Queen's Christmas song - "Thank God It's Christmas", and two collaborations (also posthumous to Mercury's death) with both Elton John ("The Show Must Go On") and George Michael ("Somebody to Love").
One thing that disappoints me about this collection is that despite the fact the two volumes are divided by time, the songs are not ordered in chronological order on each disco. One reason why I like greatest hits collections to be chronologically ordered is because it often shows how a band has progressed over time. Queen originally started as a good mix of progressive rock and early heavy metal. Queen would eventually move away from their progressive roots and incorporate a variety of other types of musical genres including a more theatrical type of element, a pop element, rockabilly, and even Dance/Disco (as demonstrated on the "Hot Space" album) The shuffling of the order of these sounds really takes away from seeing how Queen evolved their sound.
As mentioned above each of the volumes are available as single volume releases. There also is a compilation that just includes "Greatest Hits I & II". One other boxed set worth mentioning is "The Crown Jewels". This is a boxed set that includes all Queen's first eight albums in their entirety (but doesn't include anything from "Volume II or III").
The liner notes include a nice booklet that has a detailed discography with background on each of the songs packaged in this collection. With the exception of "Tie Your Mother Down" not being included, Queen does a good job at providing a good snapshot of their musical portfolio. Overall, I'd recommend this greatest hits collection from Queen because it provides the most completeness and most value for your money.