Queen drummer Roger Taylor wasn’t too pleased with one decision Freddie Mercury made on behalf of the band.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Taylor says, “Fred came up with a wonderful solution. He said, ‘Look, everything is under the heading Queen, so we split it equally.’ …
“Freddie and Brian [May] were the main writers at first, and then John [Deacon] and myself sort of took over in the ‘80s, which actually didn’t go that well for me, because I was writing most of the hits by then. But I can’t complain.”
With all due respect to Taylor, he only wrote two songs in the ’80s that got any recognition — “Radio Ga Ga” in 1984 and “A Kind of Magic” in ’86; and one in the ’90s — “These Are the Days of Our Lives” in 1991. He also co-wrote “One Vision” with the rest of the band in 1986.
John Deacon‘s two big contributions in the ’80s were “Another One Bites the Dust” and “I Want to Break Free.”
Compare this to the songs that Mercury and May wrote in the ’70s, as well as Deacon, and Taylor got the better end of the deal…
- “Keep Yourself Alive” (May)
- “Killer Queen” (Mercury)
- “Bohemian Rhapsody” (Mercury)
- You’re My Best Friend” (Deacon)
- “Tie Your Mother Down” (May)
- “Somebody to Love” (Mercury)
- “We Will Rock You” (May)
- “We Are the Champions” (Mercury)
- “Fat Bottomed Girls” (May)
- “Bicycle Race” (Mercury)
- “Don’t Stop Me Now” (Mercury)
In the same interview with The Telegraph, Taylor says he wasn’t to sure Mercury could cut it as a singer.
“He was so extreme, one was tempted to laugh at first, because he hadn’t developed his voice – he didn’t have the control he had later.
“But he had this thrusting energy and zeal for everything. And, really, a massive array of hidden talents. We were big pals. We had a stall in Kensington Market, and he was so delightful, just great to be around, with a tremendous lust for life. He sort of invented himself.”
It’s a good thing Taylor didn’t laugh or question Mercury’s business sense.
REUTERS PHOTO
