In a similar vein to my last review (George Michael Tribute, April 24th), I am a massive Queen fan and honoured to have seen them live; only once but possibly at their best in Live Aid. The energy they emanated to the crowd was infectious. In the late 1980s I happened to be joined on the dance floor by Freddie Mercury himself in a basement club in Earl’s Court that I frequented in my student days. I guess the icing on the cake was a brief invitation to visit his mansion and gardens in Logan Place, Earl’s Court, London a few years ago (long story how this random event happened).
Queen represents a big part of my growing-up and adolescent timeline. Borrowing my brother’s records was the starting point and nagging parents for change to put in the juke box at the local pub, rocking the place out with “Fat Bottomed Girls“ was a regular occurrence – along with a pack of salt ‘n vinegar and lemonade.
Killer Queen’s vocalist, Patrick Myer’s is a well-known figure to many Queen fans. In fact, he has been playing the part of Freddie since 1993. This however was my first time seeing this band, or any Queen tribute for that matter. The first thing I noticed at the event was the very broad audience. In my row there was a little lad of about seven years with his extended family. People of just about every age and persuasion in fact. As the back-lights dimmed a short musical instrumental compilation played as the band…drummer Roger Taylor, bassist John Deacon and long-haired iconic guitarist Brian May unobtrusively appeared on stage. The audience screamed as the stage lights up in Queen iconic style with “One Vision” – an unpredictable but great opening number from the 1986 A Kind of Magic album; and a great soundtrack to the film Highlander.
Freddie (aka Patrick) enters the stage sporting his iconic A Kind of Magic tour yellow jacket. He is rather shorter than expected (Freddie was about 5 foot ten), and perhaps a cuddly, older version than we remember. Visually somewhat like Freddie, definitely camp, maybe even more so at times than Freddie. But what about the teeth? Does he have Freddie’s teeth? Well yes, he most certainly does. According to my dentist Adam (who is also a massive Queen fan), and for all you nerds out there, Freddie had what is called a “Class 2 division 1 malocclusion with a deep overbite”. Braces were not very available in his early years and maybe that was a good thing as it no doubt added to his characteristic vocals.
Anyway, moving briskly on, the audience were delighted with their first look of their lead vocalist. From the start we saw a Freddie who interacted with the audience. His banter, like “Are You OK?” is a running question throughout. Killer Queen move effortlessly into “I Want it All”.
Banter continues. “Hey, Hey, Hey…Good to be back in Cardiff”. Freddie get’s the audience “Up off your ass” in rock and roll mode with “A Kind of Magic” before winding down a little to “You’re My Best Friend” on the piano. I was not certain at first, from my remote perspective in the arena if Patrick was indeed playing the piano. As the concert continued I realised that indeed he was – rather well in fact. The contrast continues with an audience clapping and foot stomping to “Killer Queen”. I imagine tonight’s venue was the type that Queen learned their stage-craft, before they did the stadiums which became part of their brand. The band’s Brian May really starts to show his musicianship. I think it is important to remember that Queen was not all about Freddie. I recall an interview where Freddie corrected an interviewer, pointing out that he was not the ‘leader of the band’, but the ‘band’s lead singer’. Queen was ultimately very much a co-operative; all four members being exceptional musicians, songwriters and contributors.
Straight into late 1970s era next with “Bicycle Race”. I didn’t realise that this song, from the “Jazz” album (1978) references “Fat Bottomed Girls”, which followed – my jukebox favourite! As one would expect from a Queen concert, and partly to allow Freddie to have a quick break and outfit change, ‘Brian May’ and ‘Roger Taylor’ take hold of the stage for a virtuosic interlude. I don’t recall Brian’s hair being so square and Georgian-esque – where are the Queen fashion police when you need them?
Freddie pimps the stage wearing his memorable pop-art style T-shirt with “Hammer to Fall”. Patrick suddenly seems to look and feel more like Freddie. He really shines in this number, especially when you hear him call out “One more time!”. The next song, from possibly my favourite album “The Works”, the band give us that very memorable hit “I Want to Break Free” – although there is no sign of a vacuum cleaner on stage. With a little reminder that Freddie did not lead on all the hits, Brian leads vocals on “Is this is the World We Created” and “Sail Away Sweet Sister”; the latter is a lovely but rarely heard song written by May. “These Are the Days of Our Lives” intersects with the video backdrops shown throughout the show – a very effective addition. The connection with the audience is emphasised with that iconic hit, “Somebody to Love” where Patrick pays a personal tribute to Freddie. A great way to finish the first half.
A leather-clad Freddie takes the stage, kicking-off the second half of the show with “Now I’m Here” and “Made In Heaven”. In acapella style he gets to do that audience participation thing that gets everyone involved. I actually found the lyrics can you believe…
Ay-oh (Ay-oh)
Ay-oh (Ay-oh)
Ay-oh (Ay-oh)
Ay-oh (Ay-oh)
Ay-oh (Ay-oh)
Ay-oh (Ay-oh)
Ayyyyy-oh (Ayyyyy-oh)
Ay-oh (Ay-oh)
Ay-oh (Ay-oh)
De-da-di-da-di-da-di-de-do (De-da-di-da-di-da-di-de-do)
De-do (De-do)
De-do (De-do)
Alright (Alright)
Moving on, I get the feeling that I must really be a bit of a Queen geek as I’m getting the names of each song after just one or two notes. Maybe everyone in the room was doing the same? These songs are so memorable they just hang around in your head. “Under Pressure”, co-written with the late David Bowie in Montreux is performed very well. “Another One Bites the Dust” follows, winding down to “Who Wants to Live Forever” – like many of Queen’s songs, titles and lyrics seem to predict Freddie Mercury’s fate. “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” and that famous Elvis cover “Jailhouse Rock” shows us the band’s agility. It was great to see Patrick with his guitar. Very talented.
Before I found the time to realise that several iconic songs have not yet been played the band gives us that classic anthem “We Are the Champions” and “Radio Gaga” – the latter came with an audience participation ‘master-class’ from Freddie to close the show. As the band left the stage with massive applause the lights went down.
However, I think everyone in the arena knew that the show must go on – for a little longer at least. Within minutes, Killer Queen were back to give an epic encore. “The Show Must Go On” flowed right into that ultimate Queen classic “Bohemian Rhapsody”. Finally, we get “We Will Rock You” and a reprisal of “We Are the Champions” together with a mass mobile-torch-light vigil. Last but by certainly no means least, the audience in Cardiff were given an amazing visual surprise of Freddie in full Royal regalia, holding-up his iconic crown to the raving crowd.
To summarise, this was a great tribute concert. Killer Queen are globally recognised as probably the best Queen tribute there is. Generally, you do get Queen and all the trimmings with this band. Of course, you’re never going to get perfection. Musically, you would need to see Queen with Adam Lambert in concert for something close to the real thing. But honestly, I certainly recommend Killer Queen with Patrick Myers for a great, entertaining night out. You will most definitely be singing those hits on your way home.