Queen are a British rock band. They formed in Baselstone, England in 1970. They are among the most commercially successful bands in history. They have sold over 300 million albums worldwide. The first members of the band were Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (guitar, vocals), Roger Taylor (drums, vocals), and John Deacon (bass).
Freddie Mercury died of AIDS-related bronchopneumonia on November 24, 1991 at the age of 45. In 1997, John Deacon retired from music to spend more time with his family. The other two members toured with Paul Rodgers from 2005 to 2006. In December 2018 it was announced that Queen & Lambert would bring its Rhapsody Tour to The Forum in 2019. Three of Queen's biggest hits were "Bohemian Rhapsody”, "We Will Rock You", and "We Are the Champions".
Formation
With his friend Tim Staffell, Brian May started a band called 1984 in the mid-1960s. The band broke up after a short time, then May started another band, teaming up with two fellow college students, Tim Staffell and Roger Taylor. They called themselves Smile with Roger Taylor on drums and vocals, Tim Staffell on vocals and bass, and Brian May on guitar and vocals. They had a few hits such as "April Lady". Tim Staffell became friends with another college student, Farrokh "Freddie" Bulsara (to be later known as Freddie Mercury) and Freddie became a big fan of Smile and encouraged them a lot. Later on, Tim left Smile to join Humpy Bong, and Freddie subsequently joined the band on vocals and piano in 1970. Freddie came up with the name Queen, so they changed it from Smile to Queen. They then started auditions for a new bassist. They were going through several bassists during this time and none of them stuck. None of the auditioners managed to suit the place of the new bassist, but finally, in 1971, John Deacon joined the band. Queen's first album was released in 1973 and it was called Queen with songs such as "Seven Seas of Rhye" and "Liar". Freddie then changed his name to Freddie Mercury after the lyrics "Mother Mercury, look what they've done to me" in the song "My Fairy King".
Musical style
Queen's musical style featured a tongue-in-cheek attitude. It has been described as arena rock, art rock, glam rock, hard rock, heavy metal, pop, pop rock, progressive rock and operatic pop. Queen has also experimented with opera, music hall, folk, gospel, ragtime, and disco. Their 1980 single "Another One Bites the Dust" became a major hit single in the funk rock genre. They are known for their anthemic songs. Many of which which are staples of sports arenas and stadiums. Several Queen songs were written with audience participation in mind. This includes "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions". Similarly, "Radio Ga Ga" became a live favourite for the band. This is because it would have "crowds clapping like they were at a Nuremberg rally".
Band members
Current members
Brian May – guitars, backing and occasional lead vocals, keyboards, bass guitar (1970–present)
Roger Taylor – drums, backing and occasional lead vocals, percussion, guitars, keyboards, bass guitar (1970–present)
Former members
Freddie Mercury – lead vocals, piano, keyboards, occasional guitar (1970–1991; his death)
