Extreme

Extreme is an American rock band, headed by frontmen Gary Cherone and Nuno Bettencourt, that reached the height of their popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Among some of Extreme's musical influences are Queen and Van Halen. (singer Gary Cherone joined Queen onstage at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert in 1992 and joined Van Halen in 1996); The band have described their music as 'Funky Metal'.
They have released five studio albums, two EPs (in Japan) and two compilation albums since their formation. The band was one of the most successful rock acts of the early 1990s, selling over 10 million albums worldwide. Extreme achieved their greatest success with their 1990 album Pornograffitti, which peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200, and was certified gold in May 1991 and 2×platinum in October 1992. That album featured the acoustic ballad single "More Than Words", which reached #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 in the United States.
Band Biography

Early years (1985-1989)
Extreme was formed in Malden, Massachusetts, in 1985. Vocalist Gary Cherone and drummer Paul Geary were in a band called The Dream ("Extreme" is a derivation of Cherone and Geary's former band "The Dream", meaning "Ex-Dream"). Guitarist Nuno Bettencourt was in a band called Sinful, and bassist Pat Badger was playing with a Berkeley-based outfit called In The Pink. Following an altercation between the rival groups over communal dressing rooms, the four decided to form a new band together.
Cherone and Bettencourt began writing songs together and the band played numerous shows in the Boston area. They gradually developed a strong local following, and were named "Outstanding Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Act" at the Boston Music Awards in 1986 and 1987.

The band had accumulated several original songs by the time A&R director Bryan Huttenhower signed them to A&M Records in 1988. The band then recorded their self-titled debut album which was issued in 1989. The first single was "Kid Ego," a song that Cherone would later admit made him cringe. The final track on the album, "Play With Me," was used as the "mall chase" song in the film Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.
Popular success (1990-1993)
Sales of Extreme's first record were sufficient to support a second release. Michael Wagener, who had previously worked with Dokken and White Lion, was hired to produce the bands Extreme II: Pornograffitti album in 1990.
The record, which showcased Bettencourt's guitar-playing, was a mixture of funk, pop and Glam metal sounds. "Decadence Dance" and "Get the Funk Out" were released as singles. "Get The Funk Out" reached number 19 in the UK charts in June 1991. Neither single was successful in the United States, however, and the album had fallen off the charts when A&M sent the third single to a number of radio stations in Arizona.
The acoustic ballad "More Than Words" entered the Hot 100 on March 23, 1991, at Number 81. It later became a huge smash, hitting Number 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 in the United States. The subsequent single, "Hole Hearted," another acoustic track, was also successful, rising to Number 4 on the same popular music chart.
The band began recording their third album in 1992. Their appearance at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert in April 1992 interrupted the recording sessions, but it gave the band considerable exposure beyond the heavy metal fraternity. III Sides to Every Story was released on September 22, 1992. The first single from the album, "Rest in Peace", had an accompanying video clip inspired by a film short by the National Film Board of Canada called Neighbours. The band was sued for plagiarism, but they quickly settled out of court, later releasing a new version of the clip. The album contained noticeable Christian themes, presumably put there by Cherone, who noted in interviews being interested in evangelical preachers[citation needed]. The album was generally favored by music critics and some fans, but it failed to sell as well as Pornograffitti.
Mangini era and break-up (1994-1996)
Prior to the band's appearance at Donington's Monsters of Rock festival in the summer of 1994, Mike Mangini (ex-Annihilator) replaced Paul Geary on drums, who left the band to pursue a career on the business side of the music industry, managing successful acts such as Godsmack.
The first record to feature Mangini, Waiting for the Punchline, was released on February 7, 1995. The singles "Hip Today," "Unconditionally," and "Cynical" were released, but the album sold less than III Sides to Every Story and Extreme disbanded in 1996, on amicable terms.
Post-breakup (1997-2003)
In 1996, Gary Cherone joined Van Halen for the recording of their album Van Halen III, issued in 1998. Although Eddie Van Halen was initially drawn to Cherone as a lyricist, Cherone's socially aware lyrical style did not translate well to Van Halen's "sex, drugs, and rock n' roll" core fan base, and led to his departure from the band in 1999. He later formed Tribe of Judah which released an album called Exit Elvis in 2002.
In 2005, Cherone released a four song sampler CD, entitled Need I Say More.
Nuno Bettencourt went on to release a solo album titled Schizophonic in 1996. In 1998 he formed a group called Mourning Widows who released a self-titled album that year and a follow-up album, Furnished Souls For Rent, in 2000. Following the breakup of that band, he released another solo album under the project name of Population 1 in 2002. Acquiring new members, he decided to keep the name Population 1 and released a five-song E.P. entitled "Sessions from Room 4" in 2004. They then changed the band's name to Dramagods and created a follow-up CD entitled Love in 2005.
A 13-track Extreme "best-of" collection, The Best of Extreme - An Accidental Collocation of Atoms?, was released in 1998. A re-packaged collection with a different tracklisting was also released in 2002 simply titled Extreme - The Collection.
Reunion(s) (2004–present)
Extreme reformed for a short tour in 2004 playing in Azores (August), in their hometown of Boston at the WAAF anniversary (Sept.19) as well as a few concerts in Japan (January 2005). After a hiatus during 2005, the band returned in 2006 with the "classic" Pornograffitti line-up to do a small, three-show reunion tour through New England.
On November 26, 2007, the band announced plans for a world tour in the summer of 2008 with King's X as well as a release date for their new album, Saudades de Rock, produced by Bettencourt. Kevin Figueiredo, who played with Bettencourt in DramaGods and Satellite Party, took over drum duties for the band. Original drummer Paul Geary is still involved with the band, albeit in a management position. Singles from the album have been available on MySpace including "Star". The album was released on July 28, 2008 in France, August 4, 2008 in Europe, and August 12, 2008 in the USA.
Band members

Current members
Gary Cherone - lead vocals (1985-1996, 2004, 2006, 2007-present)
Nuno Bettencourt - lead guitar, harmony vocals, backing vocals (1985-1996, 2004, 2006, 2007-present)
Pat Badger - bass, backing vocals (1986-1996, 2006, 2007-present)
Kevin Figueiredo - drums, percussion (2007-present)
Former members
Paul Geary - drums, percussion (1985-1994, 2004, 2006)
Mike Mangini - drums, percussion (1994-1996)
Paul Mangone - bass, backing vocals (1985-1986)
Peter Hunt - Lead guitar, backing vocals (1986)
Hal Lebeaux - rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1985)
Carl Restivo - bass, backing vocals (2004)
Laurent Duval - bass, backing vocals (2005)
Line-ups
(1985)
Gary Cherone - lead vocals
Peter Hunt - lead guitar, backing vocals
Hal Lebeaux - rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Paul Mangone - bass, backing vocals
Paul Geary - drums, percussion
(1985-1986)
Gary Cherone - lead vocals
Nuno Bettencourt - lead guitar, backing vocals
Paul Mangone - bass, backing vocals
Paul Geary - drums, percussion
(1986-1994)
Gary Cherone - lead vocals
Nuno Bettencourt - lead guitar, backing vocals
Pat Badger - bass, backing vocals
Paul Geary - drums, percussion
(1994-1996)
Gary Cherone - lead vocals
Nuno Bettencourt - lead guitar, backing vocals
Pat Badger - bass, backing vocals
Michael Mangini - drums, percussion
(1996-2004)
(Extreme disbanded)

(2004)
Gary Cherone - lead vocals
Nuno Bettencourt - lead guitar, backing vocals
Carl Restivo - bass, backing vocals
Paul Geary - drums, percussion
(2005)
Gary Cherone - lead vocals
Nuno Bettencourt - lead guitar, backing vocals
Laurent Duval - bass, backing vocals
Paul Geary - drums, percussion
(2006)
Gary Cherone - lead vocals
Nuno Bettencourt - lead guitar, backing vocals
Pat Badger - bass, backing vocals
Paul Geary - drums, percussion
(2006-2007)
(Extreme on hiatus)

(2007-present)
Gary Cherone - lead vocals
Nuno Bettencourt - lead guitar, backing vocals
Pat Badger - bass, backing vocals
Kevin Figueiredo - drums, percussion

Background information
Origin :Malden, Massachusetts
Genre(s) :Funk metal, Blues-rock, Heavy metal
Years active :1985–1996,2004,2006,2007–present
Label(s) :A&M
Associated acts :Van Halen, DramaGods, Tribe of Judah, Mourning Widows, Satellite Party, HurtSmile, Super TransAtlantic, Twisted Sister
Members
Gary Cherone
Nuno Bettencourt
Pat Badger
Kevin Figueiredo
Former members
Paul Geary
Mike Mangini
Paul Mangone
Peter Hunt
Hal Lebeaux
Carl Restivo
Laurent Duval

»»  Read More

Metallica

Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1981. Founded when drummer Lars Ulrich posted an advertisement in a local newspaper, Metallica's line-up has primarily consisted of Ulrich, rhythm guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, and lead guitarist Kirk Hammett, while going through a number of bassists. Currently, the spot is held by Robert Trujillo.


Metallica's early releases included fast tempos, instrumentals, and aggressive musicianship that placed them as one of the "big four" of the thrash metal subgenre alongside Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax. The band earned a growing fan base in the underground music community and critical acclaim, with the 1986 release Master of Puppets described as one of the most influential and "heavy" thrash metal albums. The band achieved substantial commercial success with Metallica (1991), which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. With this release the band expanded its musical direction resulting in an album that appealed to a more mainstream audience.

In 2000, Metallica was among several artists who filed a lawsuit against Napster for sharing the band's copyright-protected material for free without the band members' consent. A settlement was reached, and Napster became a pay-to-use service. Despite reaching number one on the Billboard 200, the release of St. Anger alienated many fans with the exclusion of guitar solos and the "steel-sounding" snare drum. A film titled Some Kind of Monster documented the recording process of St. Anger.

Metallica has released nine studio albums, two live albums, two EPs, twenty-four music videos, and forty-five singles. The band has won nine Grammy Awards, and has had five consecutive albums debut at number one on the Billboard 200, making Metallica the only band ever to do so. The band's 1991 album, Metallica, has sold over 15 million copies in the United States, and 22 million copies worldwide, which makes it the 25th-highest-selling album in the country. The band has sold an estimated 100 million records worldwide as of the release of their latest album, Death Magnetic. As of September 2008, Metallica is the fourth highest-selling music artist since the SoundScan era began tracking sales on May 25, 1991, selling a total of 51,136,000 albums in the United States alone.
History

Early days (1981–1983)

Metallica was formed in Los Angeles, California, in early 1981 when drummer Lars Ulrich placed an advertisement in a Los Angeles newspaper—The Recycler—which read "Drummer looking for other metal musicians to jam with Tygers of Pan Tang, Diamond Head and Iron Maiden."[6] Guitarists James Hetfield and Hugh Tanner of Leather Charm answered the advertisement. Although he had not formed a band, Ulrich asked Metal Blade Records founder Brian Slagel if he could record a song for the label's upcoming compilation Metal Massacre. Slagel accepted, and Ulrich recruited Hetfield to sing and play rhythm guitar.

Ulrich talked to his friend Ron Quintana, who was brainstorming names for a fanzine. Quintana had proposed the names Metal Mania and Metallica. Ulrich used Metallica for the name of his band. A second advertisement was placed in The Recycler for a position as lead guitarist. Dave Mustaine answered, and, after seeing his expensive guitar equipment, Ulrich and Hetfield recruited him. In early 1982, Metallica recorded its first original song "Hit the Lights" for the Metal Massacre I compilation. Hetfield played bass on the song and Lloyd Grant was credited with a guitar solo. Released on June 14, 1982, early pressings of Metal Massacre I listed the band incorrectly as "Mettallica". Although angered by the error, Metallica managed to create enough "buzz" with the song and the band played its first live show on March 14, 1982, at Radio City in Anaheim, California with newly recruited bassist Ron McGovney. Metallica recorded its first demo, Power Metal, a name inspired by Quintana's early business cards in early 1982. In the fall of 1982, Ulrich and Hetfield attended a show at the nightclub Whisky a Go Go which featured bassist Cliff Burton in a band called Trauma. The two were "blown away" by Burton's use of a wah-wah pedal and asked him to join Metallica. Hetfield and Mustaine wanted McGovney out as they thought that he "didn't contribute anything, he just followed."[8] Although Burton initially declined the offer, by the end of the year he accepted on the condition the band move to San Francisco. Metallica's first live performance with Burton was at the nightclub The Stone in March 1983, and the first recording to feature Burton was the 1983 Megaforce demo.

Metallica was ready to record its debut album, but when Metal Blade was unable to cover the additional cost, the band began looking for other options. Concert promoter Johnny "Z" Zazula, who had heard the 1982 No Life 'til Leather demo, offered to broker a record deal with Metallica and New York City-based record labels. After receiving no interest from various record labels, Zazula borrowed the money to cover the record's recording budget and signed Metallica to his own label, Megaforce Records. Band members decided to kick Mustaine out of the band due to drug and alcohol abuse, and violent behavior. Exodus guitarist Kirk Hammett flew in to replace Mustaine the same afternoon. Metallica's first show with Hammett was on April 16, 1983, at the nightclub The Showplace in Dover, New Jersey.

Mustaine, who went on to found Megadeth, has expressed his dislike for Hammett in interviews. He said Hammett "stole my job." Mustaine was "pissed off" because he believes Hammett became popular by playing the guitar leads that Mustaine wrote.In a 1985 interview with Metal Forces, Mustaine slammed Hammett saying, "it's real funny how Kirk Hammett ripped off every lead break I'd played on that No Life 'til Leather tape and got voted No. 1 guitarist in your magazine." On Megadeth's 1985 debut album Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!, Mustaine included the song "Mechanix", which Metallica renamed as "The Four Horsemen" on Kill 'Em All. Mustaine said he did this to "straighten Metallica up", as Metallica referred to Mustaine as a drunk and said he could not play guitar.

Kill 'Em All and Ride the Lightning (1983–1984)

In 1983, Metallica traveled to Rochester, New York to record its first album, Metal up Your Ass, with production duties handled by Paul Curcio. Due to conflicts with the band's record label and the distributors' refusal to release an album with that name, it was renamed Kill 'Em All. Released on Megaforce Records in the United States and Music for Nations in Europe, the album peaked on the Billboard 200 at number 120, and although the album was not initially a financial success, it earned Metallica a growing fan base in the underground metal scene. The band embarked on the Kill 'Em All For One tour with Raven to support the release. In February 1984, Metallica supported Venom on the Seven Dates of Hell tour, where they performed in front of 7,000 people at the Aardschok Festival in Zwolle, Netherlands.

Metallica recorded its second studio album, Ride the Lightning, at Sweet Silence Studios in Copenhagen, Denmark. Released in August 1984, the album peaked at number 100 on the Billboard 200. A French printing press mistakenly printed green covers for the album, which are now considered collectors' items. Other songs on the album include "For Whom the Bell Tolls", "Fade to Black", "Creeping Death" (which tells the biblical story of the Hebrews' exodus from slavery in Egypt, focusing on the various plagues that were visited on the Egyptians), and the instrumental "The Call of Ktulu". Mustaine received a writing credit for "Ride the Lightning" and "The Call of Ktulu".

Master of Puppets (1984–1986)
Elektra Records A&R director Michael Alago, and co-founder of Q-Prime Management Cliff Burnstein, attended a September 1984 Metallica concert. Impressed with what they saw, they signed Metallica to Elektra Records and made the band a client of Q-Prime Management.[17] Metallica's burgeoning success was such that the band's British label Music for Nations issued a limited edition Creeping Death EP, which sold 40,000 copies as an import in the U.S. Two of the three songs on the record (cover versions of Diamond Head's "Am I Evil?", and Blitzkrieg's "Blitzkrieg") appeared on the 1989 Elektra reissue of Kill 'Em All.[18] Metallica embarked on its first major European tour with Tank to an average crowd of 1,300. Returning to the U.S. marked a tour co-headlining with W.A.S.P. and Armored Saint supporting. Metallica played its largest show at the Monsters of Rock festival on August 17, 1985, with Bon Jovi and Ratt at Donington Park in England, playing in front of 70,000 people. A show in Oakland, California, at the Day on the Green festival saw the band play in front of a crowd of 60,000.

Metallica's third studio album, Master of Puppets was recorded at Sweet Silence Studios and was released in March 1986. The album peaked at number 29 on the Billboard 200, and spent 72 weeks on the chart. The album was the band's first to be certified gold on November 4, 1986, and was certified six times platinum in 2003. Steve Huey of Allmusic considered the album "the band's greatest achievement". Following the release of the album, Metallica supported Ozzy Osbourne for a United States tour. Hetfield broke his wrist skateboarding down a hill and continued the tour performing vocals, with guitar technician John Marshall playing rhythm guitar.

Burton's death and Garage Days Re-Revisited (1986–1987)
On September 27, 1986, during the European leg of Metallica's Damage Inc. tour, members drew cards to see which bunk of the tour bus they would sleep in. Burton won and chose to sleep in Hammett's bunk. Around dawn near Dörarp, Sweden, the bus driver lost control and skidded, which caused the bus to flip several times. Ulrich, Hammett, and Hetfield sustained no serious injuries; however, bassist Burton was pinned under the bus and was killed. Hetfield recalls, "I saw the bus lying right on him. I saw his legs sticking out. I freaked. The bus driver, I recall, was trying to yank the blanket out from under him to use for other people. I just went, 'Don't fucking do that!' I already wanted to kill the guy." Burton's death left Metallica's future in doubt. The three remaining members decided that Burton would want them to carry on, and with the Burton family's blessings, the band sought a replacement.

Roughly 40 people tried out for auditions including Hammett's childhood friend Les Claypool of Primus, Troy Gregory of Prong, and Jason Newsted, formerly of Flotsam and Jetsam. Newsted learned Metallica's entire setlist, and after the audition Metallica invited him to Tommy's Joynt in San Francisco. Hetfield, Ulrich, and Hammett decided that Newsted was the one to replace Burton, and Newsted's first live performance with Metallica was at the Country Club in Reseda, California. The members took it on themselves to "initiate" Newsted by tricking him into eating a ball of wasabi.

In March 1987, Hetfield broke his wrist a second time skateboarding. Guitar technician Marshall returned playing rhythm guitar, but the injury forced the band to cancel a Saturday Night Live appearance. Metallica finished its tour in the early months of 1987, and in August 1987 an all-covers EP titled The $5.98 E.P.: Garage Days Re-Revisited was released. The EP was recorded in an effort to utilize the band's newly constructed recording studio, test out the talents of Newsted, and to relieve grief and stress following the death of Burton. A video titled Cliff 'Em All was released in 1987 commemorating Burton's three years in Metallica. Footage included bass solos, home videos, and pictures.

…And Justice for All (1988–1990)

…And Justice for All, the group's first studio album since Burton's death, was released in 1988. The album was a commercial success, peaking at number six on the Billboard 200, the band's first album to enter the top 10.The album was certified platinum nine weeks after its release. Newsted's bass was purposely turned down on the album as a part of the continuous "hazing" he received, and his musical ideas were ignored (However, he did receive a writing credit on track one, "Blackened"). There were complaints with the production; namely, Steve Huey of Allmusic noted Ulrich's drums were clicking more than thudding, and the guitars "buzz thinly". The Damaged Justice tour followed to promote the album.

In 1989, Metallica received its first Grammy Award nomination for …And Justice for All, in the new Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrument category. Metallica was the favorite to win; however, the award was given to Jethro Tull for the album Crest of a Knave.[28] The result generated controversy among fans and the press, as Metallica was standing off-stage waiting to receive the award after performing the song "One". Jethro Tull had been advised by its manager not to attend the ceremony as he was expecting Metallica to win.[28] The award was named in Entertainment Weekly's "Grammy's 10 Biggest Upsets".[29] Three years later, Ulrich referred to the award when accepting a Grammy for "Enter Sandman" stating "We gotta thank Jethro Tull for not putting out an album this year."[30]

Following the release of …And Justice for All, Metallica released its debut music video for the song "One". The band performed the song in an abandoned warehouse, and footage was remixed with the film, Johnny Got His Gun. Rather than organize an ongoing licensing deal, Metallica purchased the rights to the film. The remixed video was submitted to MTV, with the alternate performance-only version held back in the event that MTV banned the remix version. MTV accepted the remix version, and the video was viewers' first exposure to Metallica. It was voted number 38 in 1999 when MTV aired its "Top 100 Videos of All Time" countdown, and was featured in the network's 25th Anniversary edition of ADD Video, which showcased the most popular videos on MTV in the last 25 years.

Metallica (1990–1993)

In October 1990, Metallica entered One on One studio in North Hollywood to record its next album. Bob Rock, who had worked with the bands The Cult, Bon Jovi, and Mötley Crüe, was hired as producer. Metallica (also known as "The Black Album") was remixed three times, cost $1 million, and ended three marriages. Although the release was stalled until 1991, Metallica debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with shipments exceeding 650,000 units in its first week. The album was responsible for bringing Metallica to the attention of the mainstream and has been certified 15 times platinum in the United States, which makes it the 25th highest-selling album in the country.[35] The making of Metallica and the following tour was documented in A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica. Dubbed the Wherever We May Roam Tour, it lasted 14 months and included dates in the United States, Japan, and England.[33]

On August 8, 1992, during the co-headlining GNR-Metallica Stadium Tour with Guns N' Roses, Hetfield suffered second and third degree burns to his arms, face, hands, and legs. There was confusion with the new pyrotechnics setup, which resulted with Hetfield walking into a 12-foot (3.7 m) flame during "Fade to Black". Newsted recalls Hetfield's skin was "bubbling like on The Toxic Avenger".[36] Guitar technician John Marshall, who had previously filled in on rhythm guitar and was now playing in Metal Church, replaced Hetfield for the remainder of the tour as Hetfield was unable to play guitar, although he was able to sing. The band's first box set was released in November 1993 called Live Shit: Binge & Purge. The collection contained three live CDs, three home videos, and a book filled with riders and letters.[36]

Load, ReLoad, Garage Inc., and S&M (1994–1999)

After almost three years of touring to support Metallica, including a headlining performance at Woodstock '94, Metallica returned to the studio to write and record its sixth studio album. The band took a break in the summer of 1995 and played three outdoor shows which included headlining Donington Park in the United Kingdom, supported by Slayer, Skid Row, Slash's Snakepit, Therapy?, and Corrosion of Conformity. The short tour was titled Escape From The Studio '95. The band spent roughly one year writing and recording new songs, resulting in the release of Load in 1996, which entered the Billboard 200 and ARIA Charts at number one, marking the band's second number one.[14] The cover of Load was created by Andres Serrano, and was called Blood and Semen III. Serrano pressed a mixture of his own semen and bovine blood between sheets of plexiglass. The release marked a change in musical direction for the band and a new look with band members receiving haircuts. Metallica headlined the alternative rock festival Lollapalooza in the summer of 1996.

During early production of the album, the band had produced enough material for a double album. It was decided that half of the songs were to be released, and the band would continue to work on the remaining songs and release them the following year. This resulted in the follow-up album, ReLoad. The cover was created by Serrano, this time using a mixture of blood and urine. ReLoad peaked at number one on the Billboard 200, and number two on the Top Canadian Album chart. Hetfield noted in the 2004 documentary film Some Kind of Monster that the songs on these albums were initially thought by the band to be of average quality, and were "polished and reworked" until judged to be releasable. To promote ReLoad, Metallica performed on NBC's Saturday Night Live in December 1997, performing "Fuel" and "The Memory Remains" with Marianne Faithfull.

In 1998, Metallica compiled a double album of cover songs titled Garage Inc.. The first disc contained newly recorded covers by bands such as Diamond Head, Killing Joke, The Misfits, Thin Lizzy, Mercyful Fate, and Black Sabbath. The second disc featured the original The $5.98 E.P.: Garage Days Re-Revisited, which had become a scarce collectors' item. The album entered the Billboard 200 at number two.

On April 21 and April 22, 1999, Metallica recorded two performances with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra conducted by Michael Kamen. Kamen, who had previously worked with producer Rock on "Nothing Else Matters", approached the band in 1991 with the idea of pairing Metallica's music with a symphony orchestra. Kamen and his staff of over 100 composed additional orchestral material for Metallica songs. Metallica wrote two new Kamen-scored songs for the event, "No Leaf Clover" and "-Human". The audio recording and concert footage were released in 1999 as the album and concert film S&M. It entered the Billboard 200 at number two, and the Australian ARIA charts and Top Internet Albums chart at number one.

Napster controversy (2000–2001)

In 2000, Metallica discovered that a demo of its song "I Disappear", which was supposed to be released in combination with the Mission: Impossible II soundtrack, was receiving radio airplay. Tracing the source of the leak, the band found the file on the Napster peer-to-peer file-sharing network, and also found that the band's entire catalogue was freely available. Legal action was initiated against Napster with Metallica filing a lawsuit at the U.S. District Court, Central District of California, alleging that Napster violated three areas of the law: copyright infringement, unlawful use of digital audio interface device, and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.
Though the lawsuit named three universities for copyright infringement, the University of Southern California, Yale University, and Indiana University, no individuals were named. Yale and Indiana complied and blocked the service from its campuses, and Metallica withdrew the universities' inclusion in the lawsuit.[44] Southern California, however, had a meeting with students to figure out what was going to happen with Napster. School administrators wanted it banned as it used 40% of the bandwidth, which was not for educational purposes.[45]

Metallica hired online consulting firm NetPD to monitor the Napster service for a weekend. A list of 335,435 Napster users who were believed to be sharing Metallica's music was compiled, and the 60,000 page document was delivered to Napster's office as Metallica requested the users be banned from the service.[46] The users were banned, and rap artist Dr. Dre joined the lawsuit against Napster, which resulted in an additional 230,142 Napster users banned.[47]

Ulrich provided a statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding copyright infringement on July 11, 2000.[42] Federal Judge Marilyn Hall Patel ordered the site place a filter on the program in 72 hours or be shut down.[48] A settlement was reached between Metallica and Napster when German media conglomerate Bertelsmann AG BMG showed interest to purchase the rights to Napster for $94 million. Under the terms of settlement, Napster agreed to block users who shared music by artists who do not want their music shared. However, on June 3, 2002 Napster filed for Chapter 11 protection under U.S. bankruptcy laws. On September 3, 2002, an American bankruptcy judge blocked the sale to Bertelsmann and forced Napster to liquidate its assets according to Chapter 7 of the U.S. bankruptcy laws.

At the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards, Ulrich appeared in a skit with host Marlon Wayans that blasted the idea of using Napster to share music. Marlon played a college student sitting in his dorm room listening to Metallica's "I Disappear". Ulrich walked in and asked for an explanation. On receiving Wayans' excuse that using Napster was just "sharing", Lars retorted that Marlon's idea of sharing was "borrowing things that were not yours without asking." He called in the Metallica road crew, who proceeded to confiscate all of Wayans' belongings, leaving him almost nude in an empty room. Napster creator Shawn Fanning responded later in the ceremony by presenting an award wearing a Metallica shirt, saying, "I borrowed this shirt from a friend. Maybe, if I like it, I'll buy one of my own."

Newsted's departure and St. Anger (2001–2005)

As plans were being made to enter the recording studio, Newsted left the band on January 17, 2001. His statement revealed his departure was based on "private and personal reasons, and the physical damage I have done to myself over the years while playing the music that I love." During a Playboy interview with Metallica, Newsted revealed intentions he wanted to release an album with his side project, Echobrain. Hetfield was against the idea and said, "When someone does a side project, it takes away from the strength of Metallica" and a side project is "like cheating on your wife in a way". Newsted countered his statement by saying Hetfield recorded vocals for a song in the South Park movie, and appears on two Corrosion of Conformity albums. Hetfield replied, "My name isn't on those records. And I'm not out trying to sell them", and pondered questions such as, "Where would it end? Does he start touring with it? Does he sell shirts? Is it his band?
In April 2001, filmmakers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky began following Metallica to document the recording process of the next studio album. Over two years, more than 1,000 hours of footage was recorded. On July 19, 2001, before preparations to enter the recording studio, Hetfield entered rehab due to "alcoholism and other addictions". All recording plans were put on hiatus and the band's future was in doubt.[53] However, when Hetfield returned on December 4, 2001, the band returned to the recording studio and Hetfield was required to work four hours a day, noon to 4 PM, and spend the rest of his time with his family. The footage recorded by Berlinger and Sinofsky was compiled into the documentary, Some Kind of Monster, which premiered at the Sundance film festival. In the documentary, Newsted described his former bandmates' decision to hire a therapist to help solve their problems which they could have solved on their own as "really fucking lame and weak".[39]

Metallica held auditions for Newsted's permanent replacement in early 2003, after St Anger 's completion, for which Bob Rock recorded bass. Bassists that auditioned included Pepper Keenan, Jeordie White, Scott Reeder, Eric Avery, Danny Lohner, and Chris Wyse. Following three months of auditions, Robert Trujillo, formerly of Suicidal Tendencies and Ozzy Osbourne's band, was chosen as the new bassist.[39] As Metallica moved on, Newsted joined Canadian thrash metal band Voivod in 2002, and was Trujillo's replacement in Osbourne's band during the 2003 Ozzfest tour, which included Voivod as part of the touring bill.[54]

At the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards, Metallica played a medley of instrumental parts from "Are You Gonna Go My Way" by Lenny Kravitz, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana, "Seven Nation Army" by The White Stripes, and "Beat It" by Michael Jackson. They followed by performing "Frantic", the first single off St. Anger

In June 2003, Metallica's eighth studio album, St. Anger, debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, and drew mixed reaction from critics.[55] Ulrich's "steely" sounding snare drum, and the absence of guitar solos received particular criticism.[55] Kevin Forest Moreau of Shakingthrough.net commented that "the guitars stumble in a monotone of mid-level, processed rattle; the drums don't propel as much as struggle to disguise an all-too-turgid pace; and the rage is both unfocused and leavened with too much narcissistic navel-gazing",[56] and Brent DiCrescenzo of Pitchfork Media described it as "an utter mess".[57] However, Blender magazine called it the "grimiest and grimmest of the band's Bob Rock productions", and New York Magazine called it "utterly raw and rocking".[55] The title track, "St. Anger", won the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 2004, and was used as the official theme song for WWE's SummerSlam 2003.[58]

Before the band's set at the 2004 Download Festival in England, Ulrich was rushed to hospital with a mysterious illness, and was unable to perform. Hetfield searched for volunteers at the last minute to replace Ulrich. Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo, and Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison volunteered. Lombardo performed the songs "Battery" and "The Four Horsemen", Ulrich's drum technician Flemming Larsen performed "Fade to Black", with Jordison performing the remainder of the set. Having toured for two years in support of St. Anger on the Summer Sanitarium Tour 2003 and the Madly in Anger with the World tour, with multi-platinum rockers Godsmack in support, Metallica took a break from performing and spent most of 2005 with friends and family. However, for two shows on November 13, 2005, and November 15, 2005, Metallica opened for The Rolling Stones at the AT&T Park in San Francisco.

Death Magnetic (2006 onward)
In December 2006, Metallica released a DVD containing all the music videos from 1989 to 2004. The DVD, titled The Videos 1989–2004, sold 28,000 copies in its first week, and entered the Billboard Top Videos chart at number three. Metallica recorded a cover of Ennio Morricone's "The Ecstasy of Gold" for a tribute album titled We All Love Ennio Morricone, released in February 2007. The cover received a Grammy nomination at the 50th Grammy Awards for the category "Best Rock Instrumental Performance". A recording of "The Ecstasy of Gold" has been played as the introduction for Metallica performances since the 1980s. However, this new version features the band itself performing the piece, giving a new guitar-based interpretation to the music.

In 2006, Metallica announced on its official website that after 15 years, long-time producer Bob Rock was stepping down and would not be producing Metallica's next studio album. Metallica chose to work with producer Rick Rubin, who has produced albums for the bands Danzig, Slayer, Slipknot and System of a Down.[64] Metallica set the release date for the album Death Magnetic as September 12, 2008, and they filmed a music video for the first single "The Day That Never Comes".

On September 2, 2008, a French record store began selling copies of Death Magnetic nearly two weeks ahead of its scheduled worldwide release date, which resulted in the album being made available on peer-to-peer clients. This prompted the band's United Kingdom distributor, Vertigo Records, to officially release the album two days ahead of schedule, on September 10, 2008. It is currently unconfirmed whether Metallica or Warner Bros. will be taking any action against the retailer, though drummer Lars Ulrich has made such responses to the leak as, "…We're ten days from release. I mean, from here, we're golden. If this thing leaks all over the world today or tomorrow, happy days. Happy days. Trust me," and, "By 2008 standards, that's a victory. If you'd told me six months ago that our record wouldn't leak until 10 days out, I would have signed up for that."

Death Magnetic debuted at number one in several countries to make it top the Australian, Canadian, Mexican[citation needed] and European album chart. Selling 490,000 units in the United States to debut at number one, Metallica became the first band to have five consecutive studio albums debut at number one in the history of the Billboard 200. After a week of its release, Death Magnetic remained at number one on the Billboard 200, the European album chart, and became the fastest selling album in Australia for 2008.
Death Magnetic stayed at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart for three consecutive weeks. Metallica became the only artist, aside from Jack Johnson with the release of the album Sleep Through the Static, to remain on the Billboard 200 for three consecutive weeks at number one in 2008. Death Magnetic had also remained at number one on Billboard's Hard Rock, Modern Rock/Alternative and Rock album charts for five consecutive weeks. Internationally, the album peaked at number one in 32 countries including the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.

Death Magnetic is a return by Metallica to their mid-eighties heavy/thrash metal roots. It is more similar to Master of Puppets and ...And Justice for All rather than their more recent albums.

Since this album's success, MTV Europe nominated Metallica in two categories (Rock Out and Headliner) of their Music Awards edition and also MTV Latin America invited them to perform in their Music Awards edition. Metallica performed "The Day That Never Comes." On October 21, 2008, Metallica started their World Magnetic Tour.

In November 2008, Metallica came to the end of their record deal with Warner Bros., and the band is now considering their options for the future and, according to Ulrich, one of their options is to release their next album through the internet. Recently, James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett were added to "Chop Shop's" list of "Top 100 Most Complete Guitar Players of All Time" at number fourteen and twenty-six, respectively.

On January 14, 2009, it was announced that Metallica would be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 4, 2009., and that former bassist Jason Newsted (who left the band in 2001), would perform with the band at the ceremony.Initially, it was announced that the matter had been discussed, and that current bassist Robert Trujillo had agreed not to play, as he "wanted to see the Black Album band".However, during the band's set of "Master of Puppets" and "Enter Sandman", both Trujillo and Newsted were on stage.

On May 27, 2009, it was announced on Metallica's website that a new live DVD will be filmed at the Mexico City, Mexico and Nimes, France shows.

Style and lyrical themes
Influenced by early heavy metal and hard rock bands such as Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, and Led Zeppelin and New Wave of British Heavy Metal bands such as Venom, Motörhead, Diamond Head, Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden, early Metallica releases contained fast tempos, harmonized leads, and nine-minute instrumentals. Steve Huey of Allmusic said that Ride the Lightning featured "extended, progressive epics; tight, concise groove-rockers". Huey felt Metallica expanded its compositional technique and range of expression to take on a more aggressive approach in following releases, and lyrics dealt with more personal and socially conscious issues.Lyrical themes explored on Master of Puppets included religious and military leaders, rage, insanity, monsters, and drugs.

In 1991, with new producer Bob Rock, Huey felt Metallica simplified and streamlined its music for a more commercial approach to appeal to the mainstream audience. The band abandoned its aggressive, fast tempos to expand its music and expressive range, said Robert Palmer of Rolling Stone. The change in direction proved commercially successful as Metallica was the band's first album to peak at number one on the Billboard 200. Metallica noticed changes to the rock scene created by the grunge movement of the early 1990s. In what has been described as "an almost alternative [rock]" approach, the band focused on non-metal influences and changed musical direction. Moving away from lyrical themes dealing with drugs and monsters, Metallica's new lyrical approach focused on anger, loss, and retribution. Some fans and critics were not pleased with this change, which included haircuts, the cover of Load, and headlining the alternative rock concert Lollapalooza. David Fricke of Rolling Stone described the move as "goodbye to the moldy stricture and dead-end Puritanism of no-frills thrash" and called Load the heaviest record of 1996. With the release of ReLoad in 1997, the band displayed more blues and early hard rock influences, incorporating more rhythm and harmony in song structures.

St. Anger marked the biggest musical change of the band's career. Bored with guitar solos, Ulrich chose to omit them from the album, leaving a "raw and unpolished sound".[55] The band used drop C tuning, and Ulrich's snare drum received particular criticism. New York Magazine's Ethan Brown noted it "reverberates with a thwong". Lyrics on the album dealt with Hetfield's stint in rehab, including references to the devil, anti-drug themes, claustrophobia, impending doom, and religious hypocrisy. At the advice of producer Rick Rubin, for their ninth studio album, Death Magnetic, the band returned to E tuning and guitar solos, and adapted Middle Eastern influences.

Legacy and influence

Metallica has become one of the most influential heavy metal bands, and is credited as one of the "big four" of thrash metal, along with Slayer, Anthrax, and Megadeth. The band has sold more than 90 million records worldwide, including 57 million in the United States, which makes Metallica the most commercially successful thrash metal band. The writers of The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll felt Metallica gave heavy metal "a much-needed charge". Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Greg Prato of Allmusic said Metallica, "expanded the limits of thrash, using speed and volume not for their own sake, but to enhance their intricately structured compositions", calling the band "easily the best, most influential heavy metal band of the '80s, responsible for bringing the music back to Earth."

Jonathan Davis of Korn respects Metallica as his favorite band and comments, "I love that they've done things their own way and they've persevered over the years and they're still relevant to this day. I think they're one of the greatest bands ever." Godsmack drummer Shannon Larkin said Metallica has been the biggest influence on the band stating, "they really changed my life when I was 16 years old - I’d never heard anything that heavy." Vocalist and guitarist Robb Flynn of Machine Head said that when creating the band's 2007 album, The Blackening, "What we mean is an album that has the power, influence and epic grandeur of that album [Master of Puppets] – and the staying power - a timeless record like that". Trivium guitarists Corey Beaulieu and Matt Heafy said that when they heard Metallica they wanted to start playing guitar. M Shadows of Avenged Sevenfold stated touring with Metallica was the band's career highlight, and said "Selling tons of records and playing huge shows will never compare to meeting your idols [Metallica]." God Forbid guitarists Doc and Dallas Coyle grew up with Metallica as an inspiration, and the band's bassist John Outcalt admires Burton as a "rocker". Ill Niño drummer Dave Chavarri finds early Metallica releases as "heavy, raw, rebellious. It said, 'fuck you'", and Adema drummer Kris Kohls says the band is influenced by Metallica.

Kerrang! released a tribute album with the April 8, 2006, edition of the magazine, titled Master of Puppets: Remastered, which celebrated the 20-year anniversary of Master of Puppets. The album featured cover versions of Metallica songs by the bands Machine Head, Bullet for My Valentine, Chimaira, Mastodon, Mendeed, and Trivium, all who are influenced by Metallica. Over 15 Metallica tribute albums have been released. On September 10, 2006, Metallica guest starred on The Simpsons' eighteenth season premiere "The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer", and Hammett's and Hetfield's voices were used in three episodes of the animated television series Metalocalypse.

Finnish cello metal band Apocalyptica released a tribute album, Plays Metallica by Four Cellos, which featured eight Metallica songs recorded with cellos. A parody band named Beatallica plays music using a combination of The Beatles and Metallica songs. Beatallica faced legal troubles when the Sony Corporation, who own The Beatles' catalogue, ordered a cease-and-desist claiming "substantial and irreparable injury"—ordering the group to pay damages. A fan of Beatallica, Ulrich asked Metallica lawyer Peter Paterno to help settle the legal case.

Metallica was ranked by MTV as the third "Greatest Heavy Metal Band in History", was listed fifth on VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock, and was number one on VH1's 20 Greatest Metal Bands list. Master of Puppets was ranked number 167 on Rolling Stone's "500 Great Albums of all time", and Metallica was number 252. Master of Puppets was named in Q Magazine's "50 Heaviest Albums Of All Time", ranked number one on IGN's "Top 25 Metal Albums", and number one on the Metal-rules.com "Top 100 Heavy Metal Albums" list. The song "Enter Sandman" was ranked number 399 on Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

On March 7, 1999, Metallica was inducted into the San Francisco Walk of Fame. The mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown, proclaimed the day "Official Metallica Day".Metallica was awarded the MTV Icon award in 2003, and a concert was held paying tribute to the band with artists performing Metallica songs. Performances included Sum 41 with a medley of "For Whom the Bell Tolls", "Enter Sandman", and "Master of Puppets". Staind covered "Nothing Else Matters", Avril Lavigne played "Fuel", hip-hop artist Snoop Dogg performed "Sad But True", Korn played "One", and Limp Bizkit performed a rendition of "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)".

The popular Guitar Hero series added many of Metallica's songs into their games. The first instance was Guitar Hero III when One was a track in the game. In the sequel, Guitar Hero: World Tour, the song "Trapped Under Ice" was used. Eventually in 2009, Metallica collaborated to make Guitar Hero: Metallica, in which several of Metallica's songs were included. Harmonix's Rock Band series included Enter Sandman, and later in the sequel game, Rock Band 2, Metallica's song "Battery" was used.

Awards
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Metallica

Grammy Awards:

* 1990: Best Metal Performance – "One"
* 1991: Best Metal Performance – "Stone Cold Crazy"
* 1992: Best Metal Performance – Metallica
* 1999: Best Metal Performance – "Better than You"
* 2000: Best Hard Rock Performance – "Whiskey in the Jar"
* 2001: Best Rock Instrumental Performance – "The Call of Ktulu" with Michael Kamen and the San Francisco Symphony
* 2004: Best Metal Performance – "St. Anger"
* 2009: Best Metal Performance – "My Apocalypse"
* 2009: Best Recording Package - Death Magnetic

MTV Video Music Awards:

* 1992: Best Metal Video – "Enter Sandman"
* 1996: Best Metal Video – "Until It Sleeps"

American Music Awards:

* 1996: Favorite Artist: Heavy Metal/Hard Rock: Metallica – Load
* 1996: Favorite Metal/Hard Rock Song – "Until It Sleeps"

Billboard Music Awards:

* 1997: Billboard Rock and Roll Artist of the Year – Metallica (RIAA Diamond Award)
* 1999: Catalogue Artist of the Year – Metallica
* 1999: Catalogue Album of the Year – Metallica

Kerrang! Awards:

* 2003: Hall of Fame – Metallica

Band members
Main article: List of Metallica band members

Current

* James Hetfield – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (1981–present)
* Kirk Hammett – lead guitar, backing vocals (1983–present)
* Robert Trujillo – bass guitar, backing vocals (2003–present)
* Lars Ulrich – drums, percussion (1981–present)

Former

* Ron McGovney – bass guitar, backing vocals (1981–1982)
* Dave Mustaine – lead guitar, backing vocals (1981–1983)
* Cliff Burton – bass guitar, backing vocals (1982–1986)
* Jason Newsted – bass guitar, backing vocals (1986–2001)

Session

* Lloyd Grant - lead guitar ("Hit the Lights", 1981)
o Only on the first pressing of the original Metal Massacre compilation. On the subsequent pressings, a different version of the song with Dave Mustaine playing the lead part is used.
* Bob Rock - bass guitar (St. Anger, 2003)

Discography
Main article: Metallica discography

Studio albums
Year Title
1983 Kill 'Em All
1984 Ride the Lightning
1986 Master of Puppets
1988 ...And Justice for All
1991 Metallica
1996 Load
1997 ReLoad
2003 St. Anger
2008 Death Magnetic

Background information
Origin :Los Angeles, California, United States
Genre(s) :Heavy metal, thrash metal, hard rock, speed metal
Years active :since 1981
Label(s) :Warner Bros., Elektra, Vertigo, Megaforce, Sony (Japan)
Associated acts Megadeth, Echobrain, Spastik Children, Leather Charm, Exodus
Website :www.metallica.com
Members
James Hetfield
Lars Ulrich
Kirk Hammett
Robert Trujillo
Former members
Ron McGovney
Dave Mustaine
Cliff Burton
Jason Newsted

»»  Read More

Queen

Queen were an English rock band formed in 1970 in London by guitarist Brian May, lead vocalist Freddie Mercury and drummer Roger Taylor, with bassist John Deacon completing the lineup the following year. However, Philip "Spike" Edney, on keys, bass, guitar, trombone and backing vocals, has worked with the band to such an extent that he has been referred to as "the fifth member of Queen"[citation needed].

The band were noted for their musical diversity, multi-layered arrangements, vocal harmonies, and incorporation of audience participation into their live performances.[2] Their 1985 Live Aid performance was voted the best live rock performance of all time in an industry poll.

Queen enjoyed success in the UK in the early 1970s with the albums Queen and Queen II[citation needed], but it was with the release of Sheer Heart Attack in 1974 and A Night at the Opera the following year that the band gained international success[citation needed]. They have released fifteen studio albums, five live albums, and numerous compilation albums. Eighteen of these have reached number one on charts around the world[citation needed].

Following Mercury's death in 1991 and Deacon's retirement in 1997, May and Taylor have performed infrequently under the Queen name. Since 2004 they have been collaborating with Paul Rodgers, under the moniker Queen + Paul Rodgers.

History

Early days (1968–1973)
“ I thought up the name Queen. It's just a name, but it's very regal obviously, and it sounds splendid, It's a strong name, very universal and immediate. It had a lot of visual potential and was open to all sorts of interpretations. I was certainly aware of gay connotations, but that was just one facet of it. ”

—Freddie Mercury

In 1969, guitarist Brian May, a student at London's Imperial College, and bassist Tim Staffell decided to form a group. May placed an advertisement on the college notice board for a "Mitch Mitchell/Ginger Baker type" drummer; Roger Taylor, a young dental student, auditioned and got the job. They called the group Smile.

Smile signed to Mercury Records in 1969, and had their first session in a recording studio in Trident Studios that year. Tim Staffell was attending Ealing Art College with Farrokh Bulsara, later known as Freddie Mercury, and introduced him to the band. Bulsara soon became a keen fan. Staffell left in 1970 to join another band, Humpy Bong;[5] the remaining Smile members, encouraged by Bulsara, changed their name to "Queen" and continued working together, prior to Bulsara himself joining as vocalist.[5] The band had a number of bass players during this period who did not fit with the band's chemistry. It was not until February 1971 that they settled on John Deacon and began to rehearse for the first album.

In 1973, after a series of delays, Queen released their first album, a self-titled project influenced by the heavy metal and progressive rock of the day. The album was received well by critics; Gordon Fletcher of Rolling Stone said "their debut album is superb,"[7] and Chicago's Daily Herald called it an "above average debut".[8] However, it drew little mainstream attention and the lead single "Keep Yourself Alive," a Brian May composition, sold poorly. Greg Prato of Allmusic called it "one of the most underrated hard rock debuts of all time."

The album Queen II was released in 1974. The album reached number five on the British album charts,[10] while the Freddie Mercury-written lead single "Seven Seas of Rhye," reached number ten in the UK, giving the band their first hit. The album is their heaviest and darkest release, featuring long complex instrumental passages, fantasy-themed lyrics and musical virtuosity. The band toured as support to Mott the Hoople in the UK & United States during this period, and they began to gain notice for their energetic and engaging stage shows. However, album sales in the US were, like those of its predecessor, low.

Breakthrough era (1974–1979)




Because of medical complications, May was absent when the band started work on their third album, Sheer Heart Attack, released in 1974. The album reached number two in the United Kingdom,[12] sold well throughout Europe, and went gold in the United States.[13] It gave the band their first real taste of commercial success. The album experimented with a variety of musical genres, including British Music Hall ("Killer Queen"), heavy metal ("Flick of the Wrist", "Brighton Rock", "Tenement Funster", "Now I'm Here", and "Stone Cold Crazy" – a song which Metallica later covered, earning them a Grammy Award), ballads ("Lily Of The Valley" and "Dear Friends"), ragtime ("Bring Back That Leroy Brown") and Caribbean ("Misfire"). At this point Queen started to move away from the progressive tendencies of their first two releases into a more radio-friendly, song-oriented style. Sheer Heart Attack introduced new sound and melody patterns that would be refined on their next album A Night at the Opera.

The single "Killer Queen" reached number two on the British charts, and became their first U.S. hit, reaching number twelve in the Billboard American Top 40. It combines camp, vaudeville, British music hall with May’s guitar virtuosity. The album’s second single, "Now I’m Here", a more traditional hard rock composition, was a number eleven hit in Britain.

In 1975, the band left for a world tour with each member in Zandra Rhodes-created costumes and banks of lights and effects. They toured the US, headlining for the first time, and played in Canada for the first time in April. At the same time, the band's manager Jim Beach successfully negotiated the band out of their Trident contract. Of the options they considered, was an offer from Led Zeppelin’s manager, Peter Grant. Grant wanted them to sign with Led Zeppelin’s own production company, Swan Song Records. The band found the contract unacceptable and instead, contacted Elton John’s manager, John Reid, who accepted the position. In April 1975 the band toured Japan for the first time.

Later that year the band recorded and released A Night at the Opera. At the time, it was the most expensive album ever produced. Like its predecessor, the album features diverse musical styles and experimentation with stereo sound. In "The Prophet's Song", an eight-minute epic, the middle section is a canon, with simple phrases layered to create a full-choral sound. The album was very successful in Britain, and went triple platinum in the United States.[13]. It is considered their magnum opus; in 2003, it was ranked number 230 on Rolling Stone Magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

The album also featured the hit single "Bohemian Rhapsody", which was number one in the United Kingdom for nine weeks,[10] and is Britain’s third-best-selling single of all time; it also reached number nine in the United States (a 1992 re-release reached number two).[14] Bohemian Rhapsody has been voted, several times, the greatest song of all time.[18][19] The band decided to make a video to go with the single; the result is generally considered to have been the first "true" music video ever produced.[citation needed] Although other bands (including The Beatles) had made short promotional films or videos of songs prior to this, generally those were made for specific showings or programs (such as the Beatles' videos for "Hey Jude" and "Revolution", which were specifically made to be aired on the Smothers Brothers' television show. "Bohemian Rhapsody" was the first musical video offered free of charge, to any program, network or station which would air it.[citation needed] The second single from the album, "You're My Best Friend", peaked at sixteen in the United States and went on to become a worldwide Top Ten hit.


By 1976, Queen were back in the studio, where they recorded A Day at the Races, what may be mistaken simply as a companion album to A Night at the Opera.[20] It again borrowed the name of a Marx Brothers' movie, and its cover was similar to that of A Night at the Opera, a variation on the same Queen Crest. Musically, the album was by both fans’ and critics’ standards a strong effort, and reached number one on the British charts.[10] The major hit on the album was "Somebody to Love", a gospel-inspired song in which Mercury, May, and Taylor multi-tracked their voices to make a 100-voice gospel choir. The song went to number two in the United Kingdom,[10] and number thirteen on the U.S. singles chart.[14]. The album also featured one of the band's heaviest songs, Brian May’s "Tie Your Mother Down", which became a staple of their live shows.

Also in 1976, Queen played one of their most famous gigs, a 1976 free concert in Hyde Park, London. It set an attendance record, with 150,000 people confirmed in the audience.

News of the World was released a year later. It contained many songs tailor-made for live performance, including "We Will Rock You" and the rock ballad "We Are the Champions", both of which reached number four in the United States and became enduring international sports anthems.[14] Roger Taylor released his first solo effort in 1977 in the form of a single: the A-side was a cover of a song by The Parliaments "I Wanna Testify", and the B-side was a song by Taylor called "Turn On The TV".

In 1978 the band released Jazz, including the hit singles "Fat Bottomed Girls" and "Bicycle Race" which were also released as a double-A-side single. The word "jazz" was not used in a strict sense, and the album was noted by critics for its collection of different styles, jazz not being one of them.[23] Rolling Stone Magazine criticised it for being "dull", saying "Queen hasn’t the imagination to play jazz – Queen hasn't the imagination, for that matter, to play rock & roll."[23] Important tracks of the album include "Dead on Time", "Don't Stop Me Now", "Let Me Entertain You", and "Mustapha", in which Arabesque music is combined with heavy rock guitar.

The band’s first live album, Live Killers, was released in 1979; it went platinum twice in the United States.They also released the very successful single "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", a rockabilly song done in the style of Elvis Presley. The song made the top 10 in many countries, and was the band’s first number one single in the United States.




New sound and synthesisers (1980–1984)





Queen began the 1980s with The Game. It featured the singles "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" and "Another One Bites the Dust", both of which reached number one in the United States.[14] The album stayed number one for four weeks in the United States,[25] and sold over four million copies.[13] It was also the only album to ever top the Billboard rock, dance, and R&B charts simultaneously. The album also marked the first appearance of a synthesiser on a Queen album. Heretofore, their albums featured a distinctive "No Synthesisers were used on this Album" sleevenote. The note is widely assumed to reflect an anti-synth, pro-"hard"-rock stance by the band,[26] but was later revealed by producer Roy Thomas Baker to be an attempt to clarify that those albums' multi-layered solos were created with guitars, not synths, as record company executives kept assuming at the time.

1980 also saw the release of the soundtrack Queen had recorded for Flash Gordon.

In 1981, Queen became the first major rock band to play in Latin American stadiums. Queen played to a total audience of 479,000 people on their South American tour, including five shows in Argentina and two in Brazil where they played to an audience of more than 130,000 people in the first night and more than 120,000 people the following night at São Paulo (Morumbi Stadium). In October of the same year, Queen performed for more than 150,000 fans on October 9 at Monterrey (Estadio Universitario) and 17 and 18 at Puebla (Estadio Zaragoza), Mexico.

Also in 1981, Queen worked with David Bowie on the single "Under Pressure". The first-time collaboration with another artist was spontaneous, as Bowie happened to drop by the studio while Queen were recording.[28] The band were immediately pleased with the results, but Bowie did not play the song live for several years.[citation needed] Upon its release, the song was extremely successful, reaching number one in Britain. The bass line was later used for Vanilla Ice's 1990 hit "Ice Ice Baby", prompting the threat of a lawsuit over the use of the sample. The lawsuit did not make it to court and was settled for an undisclosed amount.

Later that year, Queen released their first compilation album, entitled Greatest Hits, which showcased the group's highlights from 1974-1981. It was highly successful, and as of 2007, it is the United Kingdom's best selling album.aylor became the first member of the band to release his own solo album in 1981, entitled Fun In Space.

In 1982 the band released the funk album Hot Space. The band stopped touring North America after their Hot Space Tour, as their success there had waned, although they would perform on American television for the only time during the eighth season premiere of Saturday Night Live. Queen left Elektra Records, their label in the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, and signed onto EMI/Capitol Records.

After working steadily for over ten years, Queen decided that they would not perform any live shows in 1983. During this time, they recorded a new album, and several members of the band explored side projects and solo work. May released a mini-album entitled Star Fleet Project, on which he collaborated with Eddie Van Halen. A computer musician composer in Canada, Kevin Chamberlain, helped with vocals and background music for Mercury's solo project[citation needed], which was later cancelled due to creative differences.

In 1984, Queen released the album The Works, which included the successful singles "Radio Ga Ga" and "I Want to Break Free". Despite these hit singles, the album failed to do well in the United States. "Radio Ga Ga" was the band's last original American Top Forty hit until 1989's "I Want It All".

Queen embarked that year on a set of dates during their The Works Tour in Bophuthatswana, South Africa at the arena at Sun City.[31] Upon returning to England, they were the subject of outrage, having played there during the height of apartheid and in violation of worldwide divestment efforts. The band responded to the critics by stating that they were playing music for fans in that country, and they also stressed that the concerts were played before integrated audiences.

Live Aid and later years (1985–1989)

On 12 January 1985, the band headlined two nights of the first Rock in Rio festival at Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). They were the main act on the January 11 and 18 lineups. On each night, they played in front of over 180,000 people. A selection of highlights of both performances was released on VHS on May with the title Queen Live in Rio.

In April, Mercury released his first solo album, Mr. Bad Guy.

At Live Aid, held at Wembley on 13 July 1985, Queen performed some of their greatest hits in what has been considered their best performance to date.[32] The band, now revitalised by the response to Live Aid and the ensuing increase in record sales, ended 1985 by releasing the single "One Vision". The song was used in the film Iron Eagle. Also, a limited-edition boxed set containing all Queen albums to date was released under the title of "The Complete Works". The package included previously unreleased material, most notably Queen's non-album single of Christmas 1984, titled Thank God it's Christmas.

In early 1986, Queen recorded the album A Kind of Magic, containing several songs written for the Russell Mulcahy film Highlander. The album was very successful, producing a string of hits including the title track "A Kind of Magic", which contains the key lyrics 'There can be only one', a reference to the movie's plot; "Friends Will Be Friends", "Who Wants to Live Forever" and "Princes of the Universe".

Later that year, Queen went on a sold-out tour (the band's largest) in support of A Kind of Magic. The Magic Tour's highlight was at Wembley Stadium in London and resulted in the live double album, Queen Live At Wembley Stadium, released on CD and as a live concert film. They could not book Wembley for a third night because it was already booked, but they did play at Knebworth Park. The show sold out within two hours and over 120,000 fans packed the park for what proved to be Queen's final live performance with Mercury.[33] More than 1 million people saw Queen on the tour – 400,000 in the United Kingdom alone, a record at the time.[31]

After working on various solo projects during 1988 (including Mercury's collaboration with Montserrat Caballé, Barcelona) the band released The Miracle in 1989. The album continued the direction of A Kind of Magic, using a pop-rock sound mixed with a few heavy numbers. It spawned the European hits "I Want It All", "Breakthru", "The Invisible Man", "Scandal", and "The Miracle".

The Miracle also began a change in direction of Queen's songwriting philosophy. Since the band's beginning, nearly all songs had been written by and credited to a single member, with other members adding minimally. With The Miracle, however, the band's songwriting became more collaborative, and they vowed to credit the final product only to Queen as a group.[34]

The final albums and Mercury's death (1990–1997)
“ There was all that time when we knew Freddie was on the way out, we kept our heads down. ”

—Brian May

After fans and the tabloid press noted Mercury's gaunt appearance in public during 1988[citation needed], rumours began to spread that Mercury was suffering from AIDS. For reasons still not confirmed, Mercury flatly denied them at the time, insisting he was merely "exhausted" and too busy to provide interviews.[35] However, the band decided to continue making albums free of internal conflict and differences, starting with The Miracle and continuing with Innuendo, which was recorded during 1990 but not released until the beginning of 1991 as Mercury's health was a major factor in the delay[citation needed].

Despite his deteriorating health, Mercury continued to contribute. The band released their second greatest hits compilation, Greatest Hits II, in October 1991.

On 23 November 1991, in a prepared statement made on his deathbed, Mercury confirmed that he had AIDS. Within twelve hours of that statement, he died of bronchial pneumonia, which was brought on by AIDS. His funeral service was private, held in accordance with the Zoroastrian religious faith of his family.

"Bohemian Rhapsody" was re-released as a single shortly after Mercury's death, with "These Are the Days of Our Lives" as the double A-side. The single went to number 1 for the second time in the UK. Initial proceeds from the single – approximately £1,000,000 – were donated to the Terrence Higgins Trust.[36]

Queen's popularity increased once again in the United States after "Bohemian Rhapsody" was featured in the comedy film Wayne's World, helping the song reach number two for five weeks in the United States charts in 1992. The song was made into a Wayne's World music video, with which the band and management were delighted.[citation needed]

On 20 April 1992, the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert was held at London's Wembley Stadium. Performers included Def Leppard, Lisa Stansfield, Elton John, David Bowie, Robert Plant, Tony Iommi, Annie Lennox, Guns N' Roses, Extreme, Roger Daltrey, George Michael, Ian Hunter, Mick Ronson, Zucchero, Metallica, Liza Minnelli, Elizabeth Taylor and Spinal Tap, along with the three remaining members of Queen, performed many of Queen's major hits. It was a successful concert that was televised to over 1 billion viewers worldwide.[31] The concert is listed in The Guinness Book of Records as "The largest rock star benefit concert."[37] It raised over £20,000,000 for AIDS charities.[36]

The band also terminated their Capitol Records contract and signed a deal with Hollywood Records as their new U.S label.
Queen never actually disbanded, although their last album of original material, titled Made in Heaven, was released in 1995, four years after Mercury's death. It was constructed from Mercury's final recording sessions in 1991, plus material left over from their previous studio albums. In addition, re-worked material from Mercury's solo album Mr. Bad Guy and a track originally featured on the first album of Taylor's side-project The Cross were included. May and Taylor have often been involved in projects related to raising money for AIDS research. John Deacon's last involvement with the band was in 1997, when the band recorded the track "No-One but You (Only the Good Die Young)". It was the last song recorded by Queen, and it was released as a bonus track on the Queen Rocks compilation album later that year. Due to demand from Queen fans, the song was later released as a single reaching #13 in the UK chart.

"Queen + ..." projects (1998-2003)




Several Queen + projects were developed in the following years, a few of them mere remixes with no artistic involvement from the band. In 1999, a Greatest Hits III album was released. This album featured, among others, "Queen + Wyclef Jean" on a rap version of "Another One Bites the Dust"; a live version of "Somebody to Love" by George Michael; and a live version of "The Show Must Go On", performed live in 1997 with Elton John.

Brian May and Roger Taylor performed together as Queen on several occasions (award ceremonies, charity concerts, and the like), sharing vocals with various guest singers. They also recorded several covers of Queen's hits with guest vocalists, including "We Will Rock You" (with Five and later, Britney Spears, Beyonce, John Farnham and P!nk) and "We Are the Champions" (with Robbie Williams).

In 2003, four new songs were recorded by Queen for Nelson Mandela's 46664 campaign against AIDS. The studio versions of Invincible Hope (Queen + Nelson Mandela, feat. Treana Morris), 46664 - The Call, and Amandla (Anastacia, Dave Stewart and Queen) have not yet been released on album.

Also, in 2002, Brian May and Roger Taylor collaborated with Ben Elton to make a musical based on their greatest hits, called We Will Rock You. It will run until November 2009 in the Dominion Theatre, London and spawned many overseas versions.

Queen + Paul Rodgers (2004-Present)


Main article: Queen + Paul Rodgers
2005 Queen + Paul Rodgers Tour




At the end of 2004, May and Taylor announced that they would reunite and return to touring in 2005, with Paul Rodgers (founder and former lead singer of Free and Bad Company). Brian May's website also stated that Rodgers would be 'featured with' Queen as Queen + Paul Rodgers, not replacing the late Freddie Mercury. The retired John Deacon would not be participating;[4] Danny Miranda of Blue Öyster Cult replaced him on bass. Other members of the tour included keyboardist Spike Edney, who played guitar and keyboards in Queen live shows since 1984, and additional guitarist Jamie Moses, who began working with May on solo efforts in the early 1990s.

A live double CD album, Return of the Champions, was released on 19 September 2005. It was recorded in May 2005 during the Queen + Paul Rodgers tour at the Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England. A DVD from the concert was also released.

In March 2006, Queen + Paul Rodgers set out to tour the United States and Canada. During this tour, the group debuted their first new song, a collaboration called "Take Love". A second live DVD, Super Live in Japan, was released in 2006; the show was filmed at Saitama Super Arena on 27 October 2006.

On 15 August 2006, Brian May confirmed through his website and fan club that Queen + Paul Rodgers would begin producing their first studio album beginning in October, to be recorded at a "secret location".[38] The album, titled The Cosmos Rocks, was released in the European Union on 12 September 2008 and in the United States on 28 October 2008. Following this, the group embarked on the Rock The Cosmos Tour,[39] opening on 12 September with an AIDS-benefit concert to an audience of over 350,000 people in Kharkiv, Ukraine.[40][41]

In the digital realm

In conjunction with Electronic Arts, Queen released the computer game Queen: The Eye in 1998, to commercial and critical failure. The music itself — tracks from Queen's vast catalogue, in many cases remixed into new instrumental versions — was by and large well received, but the game experience was hampered by poor game play. Adding to the problem was an extremely long development time, resulting in graphic elements that already seemed outdated by the time of release.

In March 2009, Sony Computer Entertainment released a Queen branded version of the company's karaoke franchise, SingStar. The game, which is available on Playstation 2 and Playstation 3, is titled SingStar Queen and has 25 songs on the PS3 and 20 on the PS2.

Under the supervision of May and Taylor, numerous restoration projects have been underway involving Queen's lengthy audio and video catalogue. DVD releases of their 1986 Wembley concert (titled Live At Wembley Stadium) and 1982 Milton Keynes concert (Queen on Fire - Live at the Bowl), and two Greatest Video Hits (Volumes 1 and 2, spanning the 1970s and 1980s) have seen the band's music remixed into 5.1 and DTS surround sound. So far, only two of the band's albums, A Night at the Opera and The Game, have been fully remixed into high-resolution multichannel surround on DVD-Audio. A Night at the Opera was re-released with some revised 5.1 mixes and accompanying videos in 2005 for the 30th anniversary of the album's original release (CD+DVD-Video set). In 2007, a BluRay edition of Queen's previously released concerts Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid was released together marking their first project in 1080p HD.

In film and television

Queen contributed music directly to the movies Flash Gordon (1980, directed by Mike Hodges) and Highlander (the original 1986 film, directed by Russell Mulcahy). The theme song, "Princes of the Universe", was also used in the Highlander TV series (1992–1998). "One Year of Love" can be heard in "Highlander 2".

In the United States, "Bohemian Rhapsody" was re-released as a single in 1992 after appearing in Wayne's World. The single subsequently reached number two on the US Billboard chart (with "The Show Must Go On" as the first track on the single) and helped rekindle the band's popularity in North America.

Several films have featured their songs performed by other artists. A version of Somebody to Love was done by Anne Hathaway in the 2004 film Ella Enchanted. In 2006, Brittany Murphy also recorded a cover of the same song for the 2006 movie Happy Feet. In 2001, a version of "The Show Must Go On" was performed by Jim Broadbent and Nicole Kidman in the movie musical Moulin Rouge!. The closing credits of A Knight's Tale released in 2001 has a version of "We Are the Champions" performed by Robbie Williams and Queen; the introduction to the same movie features We Will Rock You played by the medieval audience. In 1992, the film "Gladiator" featured snippets of "We Will Rock You" performed by Warrant whereas their full version was released as a single.

Many films have featured their songs or sections of their songs. These include:

* Flash Gordon
* FM
* Highlander
* Iron Eagle
* I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry
* Kicking & Screaming
* Moulin Rouge!
* National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon
* The Break-up
* Small Soldiers

* Son in Law
* Encino Man
* Stepmom
* High Fidelity
* Super Size Me
* The Girl Next Door
* Mr. Wrong
* Revenge of the Nerds
* 10th Kingdom
* Wayne's World



* D2: The Mighty Ducks
* Shaun of the Dead
* How High
* Happy Feet
* Chicken Little
* Cheaper By The Dozen 2
* Grosse Pointe Blank
* Blackball
* Blades of Glory
* A Knight's Tale
* Mickey Blue Eyes
* Super Mario Bros.
* Ella Enchanted
* The Pacifier
* Late Last Night
* Peter's Friends
* The Heartbreak Kid
* Imax The Alps
* Zoom
* What Happens in Vegas
* Failure to Launch
* Step Brothers
* Observe and Report



Keeping in the tradition (since Season Five) of naming each season's episodes after songs from a famous 1970s era rock band (Led Zeppelin for the fifth season, The Who for the sixth and The Rolling Stones for the seventh), the eighth and final season of That '70s Show consisted of episodes named after Queen songs. "Bohemian Rhapsody" served as the season premiere.[42]

On 11 April 2006 Queen appeared on the American singing contest television show American Idol. Each contestant was required to sing a Queen song during that week of the competition. Songs which appeared on the show included "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Fat Bottomed Girls", "The Show Must Go On", "Who Wants to Live Forever", and "Innuendo". Brian May later criticised the show for editing specific scenes,[43] one which made the group's time with contestant Ace Young look negative, despite it being the opposite.

Al Murray's Happy Hour has a Queen theme, as it uses "Don't Stop Me Now" for the introduction and features guest performers along with host Al Murray singing different Queen songs each episode. The remainder of Queen did appear at the end of a series of the show.

"I Was Born to Love You" was used as the theme song of the Japanese drama Pride on Fuji Television in 2004, starring Takuya Kimura and Yūko Takeuchi. The show's soundtrack also contained other songs by Queen, including "We Will Rock You, "We Are the Champions" and "Bohemian Rhapsody".

The band made tentative plans to provide material for use in "The Hotel New Hampshire" but this project was abandoned. However, "Keep Passing The Open Windows" (which is an important catch-phrase line in the movie) did survive.

In musical theatre

In 2002, a musical or "rock theatrical" based on the songs of Queen, titled We Will Rock You, opened at the Dominion Theatre on London's West End. The musical was written by British comedian and author Ben Elton in collaboration with Brian May and Roger Taylor, and produced by Robert De Niro. It has since been staged in Madrid and Barcelona, Spain; Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, and Brisbane, Australia; Cologne, Germany; Vienna, Austria; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; South Africa, Las Vegas United States; Zurich, Switzerland; Tokyo, Japan; Seoul, South Korea; Moscow, Russia; Varberg, Sweden; Auckland, New Zealand; Toronto, Canada; Hong Kong and Singapore.

The original London production was scheduled to close on Saturday, 7 October 2006 at the Dominion Theatre, but due to public demand, the show has now been extended indefinitely. We Will Rock You has become the longest running musical ever to run at this prime London theatre, overtaking the previous record holder, the Grease musical.[44]

The launch of the musical coincided with Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee. As part of the Jubilee celebrations Brian May performed a guitar solo of "God Save the Queen",[45] as featured on Queen's A Night at the Opera, from the roof of Buckingham Palace. The recording of this performance was used as video for the same song on the 30th Anniversary DVD edition of A Night at the Opera.

Sean Bovim created "Queen at the Ballet", a tribute to Freddie Mercury, which uses Queen's music as a soundtrack for the show’s dancers, who interpret the stories behind tracks such as "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Radio Ga Ga" and "Killer Queen."

Brian May has confirmed that they are considering writing a sequel to the musical.

In 2009 the musical is going on tour around the UK, the production can be seen at: Manchester Palace Theatre, Sunderland Empire, Birmingham Hippodrome, Bristol Hippohouse, Edinburgh Playhouse.

Sound and style

Queen composed music that drew inspiration from many different genres of music, often with a tongue-in-cheek attitude. Among the genres they have been associated with are: dance/disco,[46] glam rock,[47] hard rock,[47] heavy metal,[47] pop rock,[47] progressive rock[47] and psychedelic rock.[48] Queen also wrote songs that were inspired by genres that are not typically associated with rock, such as country, ragtime, opera, gospel, vaudeville and folk.

Sonic experimentation figured heavily in Queen's songs. A distinctive characteristic of Queen's music are the vocal harmonies which are usually composed of the voices of May, Mercury and Taylor best heard on the studio albums A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races. Some of the ground work for the development of this sound can be attributed to their former producer Roy Thomas Baker as well as their engineer Mike Stone. Besides vocal harmonies, Queen were also known for multi-tracking voices to imitate the sound of a large choir through overdubs. According to Brian May, there are over 180 vocal overdubs in "Bohemian Rhapsody".[49] Many Queen songs were also written with audience participation in mind, such as "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions".[50]

Influence on other musicians

More recently Queen have been recognised as having made significant contributions to such genres as arena rock,[citation needed] hard rock,[51] heavy metal,[52] pop rock and progressive rock,[citation needed] amongst others. Hence the band has been cited as an influence by many other musicians. Moreover, like their music, the collection of bands and artists that have claimed to be influenced by Queen is diverse and spans different generations, countries and genres.

Some of the musicians that have cited the band as an influence include: Anthrax[53], Ben Folds Five[54], Blind Guardian[55], Kurt Cobain[56], Def Leppard[57], Extreme[58], The Killers[59], Foo Fighters, Green Day[60], Guns N' Roses[61], Helloween[62], Iron Maiden[63], Judas Priest,[63]Kansas[64], Manic Street Preachers[65], Marianas Trench[66], Marilyn Manson, Metallica[67], My Chemical Romance (Flash and Under Pressure covers), Mika[68], Muse[69], Radiohead[70], The Smashing Pumpkins[71][72], Styx[73], Lady Gaga[74].

Queen have also been cited as a major influence on the "neo-classical metal" genre by Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen.[75] Metallica recorded a cover version of "Stone Cold Crazy", which first appeared on the "Rubaiyat — Electra's 40th Anniversary" album in 1990, and won the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 1991. In the early '70s, Queen helped spur the heavy metal genre's evolution by discarding much of its blues influence;[52][63]the New Wave of British Heavy Metal followed in a similar vein, fusing the music with a punk rock sensibility and an increasing emphasis on speed.

Hit Singles
This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards.

Over the course of their career, Queen have been regarded[who?] as a consistent hit maker. Many of their songs reached either #1, or high positions in charts around the world. Queen have released three Greatest Hits Compilations though due to the definition of a hit[clarification needed], there should have been more singles in their Greatest Hits catalogs as some songs reached the top 40# or 30# in countries and have made the UK Top 75 or US Top 100. The following singles reached the UK Top 75 or the US Top 100.
Historical success

As of 2005, according to The Guinness Book of World Records, Queen albums have spent a total of 1,322 weeks or twenty-seven years on the United Kingdom album charts; more time than any other musical act including The Beatles and Elvis Presley.[76] Also in 2005, with the release of their live album with Paul Rodgers, Queen moved into third place on the list of acts with the most aggregate time spent on the British record charts.[77]

In 2006, the Greatest Hits album was found to be the United Kingdom's all-time best selling album, with sales upwards of 5,407,587 copies, over 604,295 more copies than its nearest competitor, The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Their Greatest Hits II album came in seventh with sales upwards of 3,631,321 copies.[78]

One of rock's most successful, influential and popular acts, the band has released a total of eighteen number one albums, eighteen number one singles, and ten number one DVDs worldwide making them one of the world's best-selling music artists. Their total record sales have been estimated at over 300 million worldwide[79] including 32.5 million in the United States[80] alone as of 2004. The band is also the only group in which every member has composed more than one chart-topping single.[81] Also, on January 2007, it was announced that Queen's Greatest Hits I & II was the most downloaded album on iTunes in the US.

Queen is also one of the most bootlegged bands ever, according to Nick Weymouth, who manages the band's online presence at www.queenonline.com.[82] A 2001 survey revealed the existence of 12,225 websites dedicated to Queen bootlegs, the highest number for any band.[83] Bootleg recordings have contributed to the band's popularity in certain countries where Western music is censored, such as Iran.[84] In a project called Queen: The Top 100 Bootlegs, many of these have been made officially available to download for a nominal fee from Queen's website, with profits going to the Mercury Phoenix Trust.[82]

Accolades

Inductions

* 2001 - The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.[85]
* 2002 - The band was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.[86]
* 2003 - The band became the first and remain the only band, rather than individual, to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.[81]
* 2004 - The band was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame.[87]
* 2004 - "Bohemian Rhapsody" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[88]
* 2004 - The band was inducted into the RockWalk of Fame (at Guitar Center on Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard)[89]
* 2006 - The band was the first inducted into the VH1 Rock Honors.[90]
* 2009 - "We Will Rock You" and "We Are The Champions" are inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[88]

Awards

* 1974
o Sounds: 3rd Best New British Band, 9th Best International Band
o Disc: 10th Brightest Hope
o NME: 2nd Most Promising New Name

* 1975
o Melody Maker: 'Band of the Year'[91]
o Record Mirror: 2nd Best British Newcomer, 2nd Best Single ("Killer Queen"), 9th International Group
o NME: 8th Best British Group, 7th Best Stage Band, 4th Most Promising Group In The World, 3rd Most Promising New Name, 17th Best World Group
o Disc: Top Live Band, Top International Group, Top British Group, Top Single ("Killer Queen"), 3rd Best Album (Sheer Heart Attack), 5th Best Album (Queen II)
o Ivor Novello Award to Mercury for "Killer Queen"[92]
o Golden Lion Award (Belgium) to Mercury for "Killer Queen"
o Carl Allen Award for contribution to the Ballroom Dancing Industry

* 1976
o NME: 1st British Stage Band, 2nd Group, 5th World Group, 3rd World Stage Band, Mercury: 7th World Singer, May: 3rd Top Guitarist, 1st British Single ("Bohemian Rhapsody"), 2nd Album ("A Night at the Opera")
o Record Mirror / Disc: 1st Best British Group, 1st World Group, No. 1 Single ("Bohemian Rhapsody"), No. 6 Album ("A Night at the Opera"), Mercury: 5th British Singer, 6th World Singer, 4th British Songwriter, 5th World Songwriter, May: 4th British Musician, 4th World Musician
o Sound: Best Band, Best Album (A Night at the Opera), Best Single ("Bohemian Rhapsody")[93]
o Ivor Novello Award to Mercury for "Bohemian Rhapsody"[92]

* 1977
o The BRIT Awards: Best British Single of the Last 25 Years ("Bohemian Rhapsody")[94]
o Europe One Radio: Most Potential Rock Band
o Daily Mail: Best Group

* 1979
o Music Life, Japan: Top Group, Top Album (Jazz), Top Single, Top Singer, Top Guitarist, Top Drummer, Top Bass Player

* 1980
o Juno Awards, Canada: Best Group, Best International Single ("Another One Bites the Dust"), Best International Album (The Game)
o Record World USA: Top Male Group, Top Producer, Top Disco Crossover (All awarded for "Another One Bites the Dust")
o Dick Clark Awards USA: Best Band
o Circus Magazine USA: 2nd Best Group, 1st Live Show, No. 1 Album (The Game), No. 1 Single ("Another One Bites the Dust"), No.3 Single ("Crazy Little Thing Called Love"), Mercury: 2nd Male Vocalist, 3rd Best Songwriter, 3rd Best Keyboard Player; 3rd Best Guitarist, 3rd Best Bassist, 3rd Best Drummer

* 1981
o American Music Awards: 'Favorite Pop/Rock Single' ("Another One Bites the Dust")[91]
o Music Life, Japan: Best Group, Best Vocalist, Best Bass Player, 2nd Best Guitarist, 2nd Drummer
o NARM Award USA: Biggest Selling Single of 1980 ("Another One Bites the Dust")

* 1984
o Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Silver Clef Award: Outstanding Contribution to British Music
o UK Video Awards: Highly Commended in Best Compilation Category for The Works EP. Best Video award for "Radio Ga Ga"

* 1986
o Daily Mirror Reader's Poll: Top British Group, Top Male Vocalist, 5th Best Album (A Kind of Magic)
o Daily Express: Best Album Cover Award (A Kind of Magic)
o British Video Awards: Top Music Video Award (Live In Rio)

* 1987
o Sun: Best Male Vocalist for Mercury
o Capital Radio London: Best Group
o Ivor Novello Award: for Outstanding Contribution to British Music
o British Video Awards: Best Video, Music category for "Live In Budapest"

* 1988
o Golden Rose Festival, Montreux: International Music Media Conference: Best Long Form Video worldwide (The Magic Years)
o Festerio, Rio De Janiero: Best video documentary (The Magic Years)

* 1989
o Independent Television Awards: Best Band of the Eighties
o US Film & Video Festival: Silver Screen Award (The Magic Years)
o Diamond Awards, Antwerp: Best Special Effects Award ("The Invisible Man")

* 1990
o The BRIT Awards: Outstanding Contribution to Music[92]

* 1991
o American Film & Video Festival, Chicago: Innuendo won 1st Prize, I'm Going Slightly Mad won 3rd Prize for Creative Excellence in the Art Culture and Performing Arts category
o Monitor Awards (International Teleproduction Society), New York City: Best Achievement in Music Video ("Innuendo")

* 1992
o The BRIT Awards: Mercury received a posthumous Outstanding Contribution To Music Award, Best Single Award ("These Are the Days of Our Lives";).[95]
o Ivor Novello Award: Best Single ("These Are the Days of Our Lives"), May received a Best TV Commercial Music Award ("Driven By You")
o Golden Giraffe Award: Greatest Hits II (Award given by the Association of Hungarian Record Producers)
o MTV Awards: Best Video From A Movie (Wayne's World)
o US Film & Video Festival, Chicago: Gold Camera Awards (The Freddie Mercury Tribute), (Greatest Flix II), ("The Show Must Go On") ("These Are the Days of Our Lives")

* 1993
o Ivor Novello Award: to Mercury ("Living on My Own") (posthumous)
o American Society Of Composers, Authors & Publishers: Mercury posthumously awarded for "Bohemian Rhapsody" as the Most Played Record in the U.S. of 1993
o Monitor Awards, Hollywood: "Red Couch" Awards (Greatest Flix II and "I'm Going Slightly Mad")

* 1997
o Ivor Novello Award: Best Song Lyrically & Musically ("Too Much Love Will Kill You")

* 2001
o Golden Rose Film Festival, Montreux: Prix de la Presse (The Freddie Mercury Untold Story)

* 2002
o New York Film Festival: Gold World Medal for the Best Television and Entertainment Program (Variety Special Section), Gold World Medal for the Best Home Video (Music Video Section) for The Freddie Mercury Untold Story
o Capital FM Awards: Outstanding Contribution to Music
o Guinness World Records: UK’s best single of the past 50 years ("Bohemian Rhapsody")
o Annual DVD Awards: Best DVD-Audio/Non Video (A Night at the Opera)
o Surround Music Awards: "Most Adventurous Mix" and "Listener's Choice" (A Night at the Opera)

* 2003
o Annual DVD Awards: Best DVD-Audio (The Game)
o DVD Awards At The Universal Sheraton: DVD-Audio Of The Year (The Game)
o Capital Legends Awards: Legendary Group
o European Music DVD-Award: Best Live DVD (Live At Wembley Stadium)
o Surround Music Award: "Best Mix: Non-Orchestral" (The Game)

* 2008
o New York City radio station Q104.3 FM WAXQ names Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" number 13 in their 2008 Top 1,043 Songs Of All Time listener-generated countdown.

Polls
Sister project Wikinews has related news: Queen voted Britain's greatest band

* 1999 - The band was voted the 2nd greatest band in music history.[96]
* 2005 - The band's performance at Live Aid is voted two times by a large selection of musicians and critics to be the greatest live show of all time.[32]
* 2007 - The band was voted the 'Best British Band Of All Time.'[97]
* 2008 - The band was voted the best rock band ever on the Internet site www.votenumber1.com. Millions of fans from over 40 countries voted.
* 2008 - The band enters the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Logo

The Queen logo, also known as the Queen Crest, was designed by Mercury (who earned a diploma in Illustration and Graphic Design from Ealing Art College in London) shortly before the release of their first album. The logo features the zodiac signs of all four members: two lions for Leo (Deacon and Taylor), a crab for Cancer (May), and two fairies for Virgo (Mercury).[95] The lions are embracing a stylised letter Q, the crab is resting atop the Q with flames rising directly above it, and the fairies are each sheltering below a lion. There is also a crown inside the Q and the whole logo is over-shadowed by an enormous phoenix. The whole symbol bears a passing resemblance to the Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, particularly with the lion supporters. The original logo, as found on the reverse-side of the first album cover, was a simple line drawing but more intricate colour versions were used on later album covers.

British Number Ones

Bohemian Rhapsody- 1975- 9 Weeks

Under Pressure- 1981- 2 Weeks

Innuendo- 1991- 1 Week

These Are The Days Of Our Lives/Bohemian Rhapsody- 5 Weeks



Background information

Origin London, :England
Genre(s) :Rock
Years active :1971–1997 [1]
Label(s) :EMI, Elektra, Capitol, Parlophone, Hollywood
Associated acts :Queen + Paul Rodgers, Smile, The Cross
Website :queenonline.com

»»  Read More