Queen: as It Began: The Authorized Biography - Hardcover

Gunn, Jacky; Jenkins, Jim

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0283060522 ISBN 13: 9780283060526

Publisher: Pan Macmillan, 1992

Synopsis

The tragic death of Freddie Mercury heralded the end of one of the most important and influential rock bands of all time. Queen were undisputed rock royalty, the group that sprang from the glam rock era of the early 1970s to outlast all their glittering contemporaries. In the process they rewrote all the rules in the music business, from the six-minute mini-opera Bohemian Rhapsody to playing stadiums across South America. This book, based on exclusive interviews with band members, their families and friends, is the chronicle of Queen's history. Frank and fearless, it is packed with personal and revelatory details and is illustrated with photographs never before published. It covers everything from the humble beginnings when Brian May made his own guitar, to the heady days of international fame and the final sad months when Freddie Mercury knew he was fighting a battle against AIDS that he could not win.

About this title

From Publishers Weekly:

The history of such a colorful, successful rock band as the British supergroup Queen ("Bohemian Rhapsody") is a story worth reading--but not as written by these amateur authors, the manager of the Queen Fan Club and the "archetypal 'superfan,' " respectively. Beginning with the birth of each band member, the book takes readers on a 45-year trek that ends with the death of lead singer Freddie Mercury in 1991. Unfortunately, the authors include everything , burying fascinating anecdotes (a tea party with Groucho Marx in 1977; the 1978 filming of 65 naked women on bicycles in Wimbledon Stadium to promote "Fat Bottomed Girls" and "Bicycle Race") under endless details. Few readers will want to know the musicians' high school grades or where the band changed planes on the way to a concert. On the other hand, they will want to learn more about the enigmatic Mercury, whose flamboyant camp act transformed four heavy metal musicians into skilled performance artists with worldwide popularity. Given the authors credentials, it isn't suprising that there is a certain bias--"the only thing the press concentrated on when writing up news of the opening of the world's biggest ever rock festival, was the 'near riot' . . ." The book does contain an impressive 35-page discography/videography, useful for music collectors--in 1991, Queen became the second most collectible band after the Beatles. Photos.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist:

There are two kinds of showbiz bio: the sleazy tell-all and the breathless tribute. This Queen chronicle is definitely of the second type. If you're looking to find out how Freddie Mercury contracted HIV, it's not for you. If you care about the band's formation and early appearances or the arduous process of obtaining a recording contract, though, it's a fine resource. Devout fans Gunn and Jenkins became privy to the group's inner workings, and although their book was not commissioned by Queen, the band gave them plenty of cooperation. But any criticism in itfor instance, when Gunn and Jenkins compare Queen's extremely familiar Bohemian Rhapsody to the ubiquitous Led Zeppelin warhorse, Stairway to Heavenis unintentional. So it's hardly surprising that Gunn and Jenkins also pay scant attention to the scary underside of the rock music business or to the sexual innuendos of the band's presentation. Perhaps the sleazy side of Queen will emerge in the next book on the band. Mike Tribby

About this edition

• Publisher: Pan Macmillan
• Publication date: 1992
• ISBN 10: 0283060522
• ISBN 13: 9780283060526
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 250