142-527: Robert Alan Krasnow (July 20, 1934 – December 11, 2016) was an American record label executive and entrepreneur who had a long and successful career in the music industry . He founded Blue Thumb Records , later became chairman of Elektra Records , and was a co-founder of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . Robert Krasnow was born in Rochester, New York, to Ben Krasnow, a commercial artist (sign painter), and to
284-740: A "mesmerising performance". Highlights from both nights were released on VHS as Queen: Live in Rio , which was broadcast on MTV in the US. In April and May 1985, Queen completed the Works Tour with sold-out shows in Australia and Japan. Queen were absolutely the best band of the day ... they just went and smashed one hit after another ... it was the perfect stage for Freddie: the whole world. — Bob Geldof , on Queen's performance at Live Aid . At Live Aid , held at Wembley on 13 July 1985, in front of
426-551: A "record group" which is, in turn, controlled by a music group. The constituent companies in a music group or record group are sometimes marketed as being "divisions" of the group. From 1929 to 1998, there were six major record labels, known as the Big Six: PolyGram was merged into Universal Music Group (UMG) in 1999, leaving the remaining record labels to be known as the Big Five. In 2004, Sony and BMG agreed to
568-405: A 50% profit-share agreement, aka 50–50 deal, not uncommon. In addition, independent labels are often artist-owned (although not always), with a stated intent often being to control the quality of the artist's output. Independent labels usually do not enjoy the resources available to the "big three" and as such will often lag behind them in market shares. However, frequently independent artists manage
710-675: A Queen concert in Los Angeles, Michael Jackson suggested to Mercury backstage that "Another One Bites the Dust" be released as a single, and in October 1980 it spent three weeks at number one. The album topped the Billboard 200 for five weeks, and sold over four million copies in the US. It was also the first appearance of a synthesiser on a Queen album. Heretofore, their albums featured a distinctive "No Synthesisers!" sleeve note. The note
852-562: A US Senate committee, that the Byrds never received any of the royalties they had been promised for their biggest hits, " Mr. Tambourine Man " and " Turn! Turn!, Turn! ". A contract either provides for the artist to deliver completed recordings to the label, or for the label to undertake the recording with the artist. For artists without a recording history, the label is often involved in selecting producers, recording studios , additional musicians, and songs to be recorded, and may supervise
994-479: A bigger company. If this is the case it can sometimes give the artist greater freedom than if they were signed directly to the big label. There are many examples of this kind of label, such as Nothing Records , owned by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails ; and Morning Records, owned by the Cooper Temple Clause , who were releasing EPs for years before the company was bought by RCA . If an artist and
1136-603: A brazenly gay rock & roll hero—and they wanted him to shed it." The group finished the year with a Japanese tour. After the Hot Space Tour concluded with a concert at Seibu Lions Stadium in Tokorozawa , Japan in November 1982, Queen decided they would take a significant amount of time off. May later said at that point, "we hated each other for a while". The band reconvened nine months later to begin recording
1278-573: A century. Estimates of their record sales range from 250 million to 300 million, making them one of the world's best-selling music artists . In 1990, Queen received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music . They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, and with each member having composed hit singles, all four were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003. In 2005, they received
1420-408: A conventional cash advance to sign the artist, who would receive a royalty for sales after expenses were recouped. With the release of the artist's first album, however, the label has an option to pay an additional $ 200,000 in exchange for 30 percent of the net income from all touring, merchandise, endorsements, and fan-club fees. Atlantic would also have the right to approve the act's tour schedule, and
1562-600: A deal with a proper label. In 2002, ArtistShare was founded as the Internet's first record label where the releases were directly funded by the artist's fans. Queen (band) Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1970 by Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (guitar, vocals), and Roger Taylor (drums, vocals), later joined by John Deacon (bass). Their earliest works were influenced by progressive rock , hard rock and heavy metal , but
SECTION 10
#17327732261971704-529: A fundraising event in Truro on 27 June 1970. Bulsara suggested the group should be renamed to "Queen". The others were uncertain at first, but he said, "it's wonderful, dear, people will love it". At the same time, he decided to change his surname to Mercury, inspired by the line "Mother Mercury, look what they've done to me" in the song " My Fairy King ". The group played their first London gig on 18 July. The early set consisted of material that later appeared on
1846-480: A gig at Bedford College , London where only six people turned up. After a few more shows, they stopped live performances for eight months to work on the album with Anthony and Baker. During the sessions at Trident, they saw David Bowie with the Spiders from Mars live and realised they needed to make an impact with the album, otherwise they would be left behind. Co-producers Anthony and Baker initially clashed with
1988-580: A government report on payola ), the cross-dressing video for "I Want to Break Free", a spoof of the British soap opera Coronation Street , proved controversial and was banned by MTV . The concept of the video came from Roger Taylor via a suggestion from his girlfriend. He told Q magazine: "We had done some really serious, epic videos in the past, and we just thought we'd have some fun. We wanted people to know that we didn't take ourselves too seriously, that we could still laugh at ourselves." Director of
2130-477: A group to test out the equipment and recording rooms. He tried asking the Kinks but couldn't get hold of them. Therefore, he told Queen they could record some demos in exchange for the studio's acoustic tests. They recorded five of their own songs, " Liar ", " Keep Yourself Alive ", " Great King Rat ", " The Night Comes Down " and " Jesus ". During the recording, producers John Anthony and Roy Thomas Baker visited
2272-499: A harp and overdubbed vocal harmonies. He knew exactly what he was doing. It was Freddie's baby. We just helped him bring it to life. We realized we'd look odd trying to mime such a hugely complex thing on TV. It had to be presented in some other way. —Brian May on Mercury writing " Bohemian Rhapsody " and the groundbreaking music video. The best-known song on the album, " Bohemian Rhapsody ", originated from pieces of music that Mercury had written at Ealing College. Mercury played
2414-621: A joint venture and merged their recorded music division to create the Sony BMG label (which would be renamed Sony Music Entertainment after a 2008 merger); BMG kept its music publishing division separate from Sony BMG and later sold BMG Music Publishing to UMG. In 2007, the remaining record labels—then known as the Big Four—controlled about 70% of the world music market , and about 80% of the United States music market. In 2012,
2556-676: A joint venture with the MCA Music Entertainment Group . In private life, Krasnow has been a member of board of directors of New York City Center (theater for independent choreography); a member of the board of directors and president's council of the Brooklyn Academy of Music ; co-president of the French Music Office; national committee member of the March of Dimes ; executive vice-president of
2698-694: A keen fan of Smile. He asked if he could join the group as lead singer , but May felt Staffell would not give up that role. He also ran a stall in Kensington Market with Taylor. In 1970, Staffell quit Smile, feeling his interests in soul and R&B clashed with the group's hard rock sound and being fed up with the lack of success. He formed the group Humpy Bong with former Bee Gees drummer Colin Petersen . The remaining members accepted Bulsara as lead singer, and recruited Taylor's friend Mike Grose as bassist. The four played their first gig at
2840-476: A label want to work together, whether an artist has contacted a label directly, usually by sending their team a demo, or the Artists & Repertoire team of the label has scouted the artist and reached out directly, they will usually enter in to a contractual relationship. A label typically enters into an exclusive recording contract with an artist to market the artist's recordings in return for royalties on
2982-462: A large international media group , or somewhere in between. The Association of Independent Music (AIM) defines a 'major' as "a multinational company which (together with the companies in its group) has more than 5% of the world market(s) for the sale of records or music videos." As of 2012 , there are only three labels that can be referred to as "major labels": Universal Music Group , Sony Music , and Warner Music Group . In 2014, AIM estimated that
SECTION 20
#17327732261973124-458: A mandatory tool in the marketing of music". Radio broadcaster Tommy Vance states, "It became the first record to be pushed into the forefront by virtue of a video. Queen were certainly the first band to create a 'concept' video. The video captured the musical imagery perfectly. You cannot hear that music without seeing the visuals in your mind's eye." A Night at the Opera was very successful in
3266-498: A million Argentinians and Brazilians, starved of appearances of top British or American bands at their peak, gave Queen a heroic welcome which changed the course of pop history in this uncharted territory of the world rock map. The ecstatic young people saw eight Queen concerts at giant stadia, while many more millions saw the shows on TV and heard the radio broadcasts live. The tour included five shows in Argentina, one of which drew
3408-564: A music video directed by Bruce Gowers , who had already shot several of Queen's live concerts. The group wanted a video so they could avoid appearing on the BBC's Top of the Pops , which would clash with tour dates, and it would have looked strange miming to such a complex song. Filmed at Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire, the video cost £3,500, five times the typical promotional budget, and
3550-649: A new album at the Record Plant Studios , Los Angeles and Musicland Studios , Munich. Several members of the band also explored side projects and solo work. Taylor released his second solo album, Strange Frontier . May released the mini-album Star Fleet Project , collaborating with Eddie Van Halen . Queen left Elektra Records , their label in the US, Canada, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, and signed onto EMI / Capitol Records . In February 1984, Queen released their eleventh studio album, The Works . Hit singles included " Radio Ga Ga ", which makes
3692-579: A nostalgic defence of the radio format, " Hammer to Fall " and " I Want to Break Free ". Rolling Stone hailed the album as "the Led Zeppelin II of the eighties." In the UK The Works went triple platinum and remained in the albums chart for two years. The album failed to do well in the US, where, in addition to issues with their new record label Capitol Records (who had recently severed ties with their independent promotions teams due to
3834-633: A philanthropic gesture but were fined by the British Musicians' Union and placed on the United Nations' blacklisted artists. In 2021, Taylor voiced his regret for the decision to perform at Sun City, saying that "we went with the best intentions, but I still think it was kind of a mistake." In January 1985, Queen headlined two nights of the first Rock in Rio festival at Rio de Janeiro , Brazil, and played in front of over 300,000 people each night. The Boston Globe described it as
3976-531: A record contract. In order to attract record company interest, Trident booked a "showcase" gig on 6 November at The Pheasantry , followed by a show at the Marquee Club on 20 December. Queen promoted the unreleased album in February 1973 on BBC Radio 1 , still unsigned. The following month, Trident managed to strike a deal with EMI Records . "Keep Yourself Alive" was released as a single on 6 July, with
4118-605: A return by recording for a much smaller production cost of a typical big label release. Sometimes they are able to recoup their initial advance even with much lower sales numbers. On occasion, established artists, once their record contract has finished, move to an independent label. This often gives the combined advantage of name recognition and more control over one's music along with a larger portion of royalty profits. Artists such as Dolly Parton , Aimee Mann , Prince , Public Enemy , among others, have done this. Historically, companies started in this manner have been re-absorbed into
4260-621: A role he held until 1983 when he was elevated to chairman and CEO of Elektra / Asylum / Nonesuch Records (later known as Elektra Entertainment). While with Warner and Elektra starting 1984, he signed Chaka Khan , George Benson , Funkadelic , Bootsy Collins , Kraftwerk , Anita Baker , Teddy Pendergrass , Womack & Womack , Public Image Ltd and The Cure to those labels. Krasnow also became known for shelving projects such as Dee Snider 's post- Twisted Sister outfit, Desperado, as detailed in Snider's 2012 autobiography, Shut Up and Give Me
4402-399: A run-through of the track on piano in his flat to Baker, stopping suddenly to announce, "This is where the opera section comes in". When the rest of the band started recording the song they were unsure as to how it would be pieced together. After recording the backing track, Baker left a 30-second section of tape to add the operatic vocals. Reportedly, 180 overdubs were used, to the extent that
Bob Krasnow - Misplaced Pages Continue
4544-540: A string of hits including " A Kind of Magic ", " Friends Will Be Friends ", " Princes of the Universe " and " Who Wants to Live Forever "; the latter featuring an orchestra conducted by Michael Kamen . The album was less successful in North America, reaching 46 in the US, and was described by biographer Mark Blake as "a so-so album" and "a somewhat uneven listening experience". In 2007, Classic Rock ranked it
4686-507: Is cited as the album's highlight, and in 2008 Rolling Stone ranked it 31st in the "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time", describing it as "an entire album's worth of riffs crammed into a single song". The album was certified gold in the UK and the US. The group began to record their second album, Queen II in August 1973. Now able to use regular studio time, they decided to make full use of
4828-454: Is often marketed as a "unit" or "division" of the parent label, though in most cases, they operate as pseudonym for it and do not exist as a distinct business operation or separate business structure (although trademarks are sometimes registered). A record label may give a musical act an imprint as part of their branding, while other imprints serve to house other activities, such as side ventures of that label. Music collectors often use
4970-684: Is owned by Sony Group Corporation ). Record labels and music publishers that are not under the control of the big three are generally considered to be independent ( indie ), even if they are large corporations with complex structures. The term indie label is sometimes used to refer to only those independent labels that adhere to independent criteria of corporate structure and size, and some consider an indie label to be almost any label that releases non-mainstream music, regardless of its corporate structure. Independent labels are often considered more artist-friendly. Though they may have less sales power, indie labels typically offer larger artist royalty with
5112-409: Is widely assumed to reflect an anti-synth, pro-"hard"-rock stance by the band, 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. In September 1980, Queen performed three sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden. In 1980, Queen also released
5254-573: The Billboard Hot 100 . The song was partly recorded at Rockfield Studios in Wales. With Mercury playing the grand piano, it combines camp, vaudeville , and British music hall with May's guitar. "Now I'm Here" was released as the second single, reached number eleven. In 2006, Classic Rock ranked Sheer Heart Attack number 28 in "The 100 Greatest British Rock Albums Ever", and in 2007, Mojo ranked it No.88 in "The 100 Records That Changed
5396-801: The Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 1992. Record label [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos , or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture , distribution , marketing, promotion, and enforcement of copyright for sound recordings and music videos, while also conducting talent scouting and development of new artists , artist financing and maintaining contracts with recording artists and their managers. The term "record label" derives from
5538-707: The Iron Curtain when they performed to a crowd of 80,000 at the Népstadion in Budapest (released in the concert film Hungarian Rhapsody: Queen Live in Budapest ), in what was one of the biggest rock concerts ever held in Eastern Europe. More than one million people saw Queen on the tour—400,000 in the UK alone, a record at the time. The Magic Tour's highlight was at Wembley Stadium and resulted in
5680-673: The Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Song Collection from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers, and Authors , and in 2018 were presented the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award . The founding members of Queen met in west London during the late 1960s. Guitarist Brian May had built his own guitar with his father in 1963, and formed the group 1984 (named after Orwell's novel ) the following year with singer Tim Staffell . May left
5822-672: The King Records branch office in San Francisco from 1958 to 1964 before moving to Warner Bros Records ' R&B label Loma Records , which he headed from 1964 to 1966. During this time he managed and produced records for Ike & Tina Turner . Krasnow became vice president of Kama Sutra Records in Los Angeles in 1966, where he founded the Buddah Records subsidiary label. He discovered, signed and then produced
Bob Krasnow - Misplaced Pages Continue
5964-685: The Madison Square Garden Gold Ticket Award for passing more than 100,000 unit ticket sales at the venue. In 1978, Queen released Jazz , which reached number two in the UK and number six on the Billboard 200 in the US. The album included the hit singles " Fat Bottomed Girls " and " Bicycle Race " on a double-sided record. Critical reviews of the album in the years since its release have been more favourable than initial reviews. Another notable track from Jazz , " Don't Stop Me Now ", provides another example of
6106-740: The Milton Keynes Bowl and Elland Road , Leeds instead. The Milton Keynes concert was filmed by Tyne Tees Television and later released on DVD. On 14 and 15 September 1982, the band performed their last two gigs in the US with Mercury on lead vocals, playing at The Forum in Inglewood, California. Fisher was replaced as touring keyboardist by Fred Mandel for the North American shows. The band stopped touring North America after their Hot Space Tour, as their success there had waned, although they performed on American television for
6248-659: The Paul Taylor Dance Company ; and a member of board of directors of the Wadleigh School and a co-founder of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . Krasnow died on December 11, 2016, in Wellington, Florida , of organ cancer. Krasnow's honors include being named the T.J. Martell Foundation Cancer Research Man of the Year in 1984 and 1989; Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy honoree in 1989; and recipient of
6390-548: The Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II , and at the cost of £50,000 the band used a lighting rig in the shape of a crown for the first time. The band's sixth studio album News of the World was released in 1977, which has gone four times platinum in the US, and twice in the UK. The album contained many songs tailor-made for live performance, including two of rock's most recognisable anthems, " We Will Rock You " and
6532-535: The Sunbury Pop Festival in Australia. They arrived late, and were jeered and taunted by the audience who expected to see home grown acts. Before leaving, Mercury announced, "when we come back to Australia, Queen will be the biggest band in the world!" Queen II was released in March, and features Mick Rock 's iconic Dietrich -inspired image of the band on the cover. This image would later be used as
6674-463: The free software and open source movements and the success of Linux . In the mid-2000s, some music publishing companies began undertaking the work traditionally done by labels. The publisher Sony/ATV Music, for example, leveraged its connections within the Sony family to produce, record, distribute, and promote Elliott Yamin 's debut album under a dormant Sony-owned imprint , rather than waiting for
6816-510: The "parent" of any sublabels. Vanity labels are labels that bear an imprint that gives the impression of an artist's ownership or control, but in fact represent a standard artist/label relationship. In such an arrangement, the artist will control nothing more than the usage of the name on the label, but may enjoy a greater say in the packaging of their work. An example of such a label is the Neutron label owned by ABC while at Phonogram Inc. in
6958-578: The 28th greatest soundtrack album of all time. In mid-1986, Queen went on the Magic Tour , their final tour with Mercury. They once again hired Spike Edney. Queen began the tour at the Råsunda Stadium in Stockholm, Sweden, and later performed a concert at Slane Castle , Ireland, in front of an audience of 95,000, which broke the venue's attendance record. The band also played behind
7100-463: The Atlantic. The album experimented with a variety of musical genres, including British music hall , heavy metal , ballads, ragtime, and Caribbean . May's " Now I'm Here " documented the group's curtailed American tour, and "Brighton Rock" served as a vehicle for his regular on-stage solo guitar spot. Deacon wrote his first song for the group, "Misfire", while the live favourite " Stone Cold Crazy "
7242-549: The Hammersmith Odeon which was broadcast live on the BBC show The Old Grey Whistle Test , with the audio being later broadcast on BBC Radio 1. It became one of the band's most popular bootleg recordings for decades before being officially released in 2015. By 1976, Queen were back in the studio recording A Day at the Races , which is often regarded as a sequel album to A Night at the Opera . It again borrowed
SECTION 50
#17327732261977384-521: The Mic . During this period Krasnow let Queen buy back their rights to their catalogue as he was not a fan of their music. The deal was conducted with the band's manager John Reid , paying $ 1 million ($ 2.93 million in 2023 dollars) to have it, they had a backdoor deal already set for $ 10 million ($ 29.3 million in 2023 dollars) with Hollywood Records profiting for $ 9 million ($ 26.4 million in 2023 dollars) instantly. This incident went on to sour
7526-460: The Munich sessions, Mercury spent time with Mack and his family, becoming godfather to Mack's first child. Q magazine would list Hot Space as one of the top fifteen albums where great rock acts lost the plot. Though the album confused some fans with the change of musical direction, it still reached number 4 in the UK. Queen toured to promote Hot Space , but found some audience unreceptive to
7668-499: The Races was by both fans' and critics' standards a strong effort, reaching number one in the UK and Japan, and number five in the US. Queen played a landmark gig on 18 September 1976, a free concert in Hyde Park , London, organised by the entrepreneur Richard Branson . It set an attendance record at the park, with 150,000 people confirmed in the audience. Queen were late arriving onstage and ran out of time to play an encore;
7810-477: The UK charts. In October, Queen released their first compilation album, titled Greatest Hits , which showcased the group's highlights from 1974 to 1981. The best-selling album in UK chart history, it is the only album to sell over seven million copies in the UK. As of July 2022, it has spent over 1000 weeks in the UK Album Chart . According to The Telegraph , approximately one in three families in
7952-516: The UK own a copy. The album is certified nine times platinum in the US. As of August 2024, it has spent over 600 weeks on the US Billboard 200 . Greatest Hits has sold over 25 million copies worldwide. We moved out to Munich to isolate ourselves from normal life so we could focus on the music. We all ended up in a place that was rather unhealthy. A difficult period. We weren't getting along together. We all had different agendas. It
8094-508: The UK, and went triple platinum in the United States. The British public voted it the 13th-greatest album of all time in a 2004 Channel 4 poll. It has also ranked highly in international polls; in a worldwide Guinness poll, it was voted the 19th-greatest of all time, while an ABC poll saw the Australian public vote it the 28th-greatest of all time. A Night at the Opera has frequently appeared in "greatest albums" lists reflecting
8236-456: The UK. At one point artist Lizzie Tear (under contract with ABC themselves) appeared on the imprint, but it was devoted almost entirely to ABC's offerings and is still used for their re-releases (though Phonogram owns the masters of all the work issued on the label). However, not all labels dedicated to particular artists are completely superficial in origin. Many artists, early in their careers, create their own labels which are later bought out by
8378-534: The UK. It also reached number nine in the US (a 1992 re-release reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for five weeks). It is the only single ever to sell a million copies on two separate occasions, and became the Christmas number one twice in the UK, the only single ever to do so. It has also been voted the greatest song of all time in three different polls. "Bohemian Rhapsody" was promoted with
8520-593: The US by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Their performance at the 1985 Live Aid concert is ranked among the greatest in rock history by various publications. In August 1986, Mercury gave his last performance with Queen at Knebworth , England. Though he kept his condition private, Mercury was diagnosed with AIDS in 1987. The band released two more albums, The Miracle in 1989 and Innuendo in 1991. On 23 November 1991, Mercury publicly revealed that he had AIDS, and
8662-546: The United States would typically bear a 4th & B'way logo and would state in the fine print, "4th & B'way™, an Island Records, Inc. company". Collectors discussing labels as brands would say that 4th & B'way is a sublabel or imprint of just "Island" or "Island Records". Similarly, collectors who choose to treat corporations and trademarks as equivalent might say 4th & B'way is an imprint and/or sublabel of both Island Records, Ltd. and that company's sublabel, Island Records, Inc. However, such definitions are complicated by
SECTION 60
#17327732261978804-485: The World contained " We Will Rock You " and " We Are the Champions ", which have become anthems at sporting events. By the early 1980s, Queen were one of the biggest stadium rock bands in the world. " Another One Bites the Dust " from The Game (1980) became their best-selling single, while their 1981 compilation album Greatest Hits is the best-selling album in the UK and is certified nine times platinum in
8946-565: The World". It is also the second of three Queen albums to feature in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . In January 1975, Queen left for a world tour with an upgraded light show. They toured the US as headliners, and played in Canada for the first time. Several dates were cancelled after Mercury contracted laryngitis . The band then toured Japan from mid-April to the beginning of May. They were greeted by thousands of screaming fans, and played eight times in seven cities. Despite
9088-507: The album Queen appearing a week later. The front cover showed a shot of Mercury live on stage taken by Taylor's friend Douglass Puddifoot. Deacon was credited as "Deacon John" while Taylor used his full name, Roger Meddows-Taylor. The album was received well by critics; Gordon Fletcher of Rolling Stone called it "superb", and Chicago's Daily Herald called it an "above-average debut". However, it drew little mainstream attention, and "Keep Yourself Alive" sold poorly. Retrospectively, it
9230-529: The album also included the song " The March of the Black Queen ", a six-minute epic which lacks a chorus. Critical reaction was mixed; the Winnipeg Free Press , while praising the band's debut album, described Queen II as an "over-produced monstrosity". AllMusic has described the album as a favourite among the band's hardcore fans, and it is the first of three Queen albums to feature in
9372-407: The album will sell better if the artist complies with the label's desired requests or changes. At times, the record label's decisions are prudent ones from a commercial perspective, but these decisions may frustrate artists who feel that their art is being diminished or misrepresented by such actions. In other instances, record labels have shelved artists' albums with no intention of any promotion for
9514-411: The artist from their contract, leaving the artist in a state of limbo. Artists who have had disputes with their labels over ownership and control of their music have included Taylor Swift , Tinashe , Megan Thee Stallion , Kelly Clarkson , Thirty Seconds to Mars , Clipse , Ciara , JoJo , Michelle Branch , Kesha , Kanye West , Lupe Fiasco , Paul McCartney , and Johnny Cash . In
9656-415: The artist in question. Reasons for shelving can include the label deciding to focus its resources on other artists on its roster, or the label undergoing a restructure where the person that signed the artist and supports the artist's vision is no longer present to advocate for the artist. In extreme cases, record labels can prevent the release of an artist's music for years, while also declining to release
9798-425: The artist is established and has a loyal fan base. For that reason, labels now have to be more relaxed with the development of artists because longevity is the key to these types of pact. Several artists such as Paramore , Maino , and even Madonna have signed such types of deals. A look at an actual 360 deal offered by Atlantic Records to an artist shows a variation of the structure. Atlantic's document offers
9940-484: The artists may be downloaded free of charge or for a fee that is paid via PayPal or other online payment system. Some of these labels also offer hard copy CDs in addition to direct download. Digital Labels are the latest version of a 'net' label. Whereas 'net' labels were started as a free site, digital labels represent more competition for the major record labels. The new century brought the phenomenon of open-source or open-content record labels. These are inspired by
10082-412: The backing vocals. 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 create a gospel choir. The song went to number two in the UK, and number thirteen in the US. The album also featured one of the band's heaviest songs, May's " Tie Your Mother Down ", which became a staple of their live shows. Musically, A Day at
10224-408: The band (May in particular) on the direction of the album, bringing the band's inexperience in the studio to bear. The band's fighting centered around their efforts to integrate technical perfection with the reality of live performances, leading to what Baker referred to as "kitchen sink overproduction". The resulting album was a mix of heavy metal and progressive rock . The group were unhappy with
10366-458: The band a management deal under Neptune Productions, a subsidiary of Trident, to manage the band and enable them to use their facilities, while the management searched for a deal. This suited both parties, as Trident were expanding into management, and under the deal, Queen were able to make use of the hi-tech recording facilities used by signed musicians. Taylor later described these early off-peak studio hours as "gold dust". Queen began 1972 with
10508-434: The band gradually ventured into more conventional and radio-friendly works by incorporating further styles, such as arena rock and pop rock . Before forming Queen, May and Taylor had played together in the band Smile . Mercury was a fan of Smile and encouraged them to experiment with more elaborate stage and recording techniques. He joined in 1970 and suggested the name "Queen". Deacon was recruited in February 1971, before
10650-453: The band negotiated themselves out of their contract and searched for new management. One of the options they considered was an offer from Led Zeppelin 's manager, Peter Grant , who wanted them to sign with Led Zeppelin's own production company, Swan Song Records . The band were concerned about being a lower priority than Zeppelin and Bad Company (also signed to Swan Song) and instead contacted Elton John 's manager, John Reid , who accepted
10792-467: The band released their self-titled debut album in 1973. Queen first charted in the UK with their second album, Queen II , in 1974. Sheer Heart Attack later that year and A Night at the Opera in 1975 brought them international success. The latter featured " Bohemian Rhapsody ", which topped the UK singles chart for nine weeks and helped popularise the music video format. The band's 1977 album News of
10934-615: The band were greeted with scenes of fan-fever, and the promoter of their first shows at the Vélez Sarsfield Stadium in Buenos Aires was moved to say: "For music in Argentina, this has been a case of before the war and after the war. Queen have liberated this country, musically speaking." The group's second show at Vélez Sarsfield was broadcast on national television and watched by over 30 million. Backstage, they were introduced to footballer Diego Maradona . Topping
11076-457: The band's exuberant vocal harmonies. In 1978, Queen toured the US and Canada, and spent much of 1979 touring in Europe and Japan. They released their first live album, Live Killers , in 1979; it went platinum twice in the US. Queen also released the very successful single " Crazy Little Thing Called Love ", a rockabilly inspired song done in the style of Elvis Presley . The song made
11218-545: The band's history. While Mercury and Deacon enjoyed the new soul and funk influences, Taylor and May were less favourable, and were critical of the influence Mercury's personal manager Paul Prenter had on him. According to Mack , Queen's producer, Prenter loathed rock music and was in Mercury's ear throughout the Hot Space sessions. May was also scathing of Prenter—Mercury's manager from 1977 to 1984—for being dismissive of
11360-422: The band. The two were taken with "Keep Yourself Alive" and began promoting the band to several record companies. Promoter Ken Testi managed to attract the interest of Charisma Records , who offered Queen an advance of around £25,000, but the group turned them down as they realised the label would promote Genesis as a priority. Testi then entered discussions with Trident Studios ' Norman Sheffield , who offered
11502-547: The basis for "Bohemian Rhapsody" music video production. The album reached number five on the British album chart and became the first Queen album to chart in the UK. The Mercury-written lead single " Seven Seas of Rhye " reached number 10 in the UK, giving the band their first hit. The album featured a 'layered' sound which would become their signature, and features long complex instrumental passages, fantasy-themed lyrics, and instrumental virtuosity. Aside from its only single,
11644-506: The biggest-ever TV audience of an estimated 400 million, Queen performed some of their greatest hits. Many of the sold-out stadium audience of 72,000 people clapped, sang, and swayed in unison. The show's organisers, Bob Geldof and Midge Ure ; other musicians such as Elton John and Cliff Richard ; and journalists writing for the BBC , CNN , Rolling Stone , MTV , The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph , among others, described Queen as
11786-531: The book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . The group ended their early 1974 UK tour with a show at the Rainbow Theatre on 31 March. Mercury chose to a wear a Zandra Rhodes -designed tunic for the gig, changing into a slashed black top midway through the show. In May 1974, a month into the band's first US tour opening for Mott the Hoople, May collapsed and was diagnosed with hepatitis, forcing
11928-538: The book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . The second single from the album was Deacon's " You're My Best Friend ", which peaked at number sixteen on the US Billboard Hot 100, and went on to become a worldwide top-ten hit. The band's A Night at the Opera Tour began in November 1975, and covered Europe, the United States, Japan, and Australia. On 24 December, Queen played a special concert at
12070-421: The cancellation of their remaining dates. While recuperating, May was initially absent when the band started work on their third album, but he returned midway through the recording process. Released in 1974, Sheer Heart Attack reached number two in the UK, sold well throughout Europe, and went gold in the US. It gave the band their first real experience of international success, and was a hit on both sides of
12212-576: The charts in Brazil and Argentina, the ballad " Love of My Life " stole the show in South American concerts. Mercury would stop singing and would then conduct the audience as they took over, with Lesley-Ann Jones writing "the fans knew the song by heart. Their English was word-perfect." Later that year Queen performed for more than 150,000 on 9 October at Monterrey ( Estadio Universitario ) and 17 and 18 at Puebla ( Estadio Zaragoza ), Mexico. Though
12354-650: The circular label in the center of a vinyl record which prominently displays the manufacturer's name, along with other information. Within the mainstream music industry , recording artists have traditionally been reliant upon record labels to broaden their consumer base, market their albums, and promote their singles on streaming services, radio, and television. Record labels also provide publicists , who assist performers in gaining positive media coverage, and arrange for their merchandise to be available via stores and other media outlets. Record labels may be small, localized and " independent " ("indie"), or they may be part of
12496-403: The company. Some independent labels become successful enough that major record companies negotiate contracts to either distribute music for the label or in some cases, purchase the label completely, to the point where it functions as an imprint or sublabel. A label used as a trademark or brand and not a company is called an imprint , a term used for a similar concept in publishing . An imprint
12638-408: The concert is recorded in the live album, Queen Rock Montreal . Queen worked with David Bowie on the 1981 single " Under Pressure ". The first-time collaboration with another artist was spontaneous, as Bowie happened to drop by the studio while Queen were recording. Mercury and Bowie recorded their vocals on the track separately to each other, each coming up with individual ideas. The song topped
12780-481: The concerts, Classic Rock magazine states, "They were under the spotlight from all quarters, as the entire music industry waited to see if their ambitious plans would bear fruit". Tom Pinnock in the March 1981 issue of Melody Maker wrote, Queen chalked up a major international "first" by becoming the band to do for popular music in South America what The Beatles did for North America 17 years ago. Half
12922-400: The corporate mergers that occurred in 1989 (when Island was sold to PolyGram) and 1998 (when PolyGram merged with Universal). PolyGram held sublabels including Mercury, Island and Motown. Island remained registered as corporations in both the United States and UK , but control of its brands changed hands multiple times as new companies were formed, diminishing the corporation's distinction as
13064-599: The debut album Safe As Milk by Captain Beefheart . In 1968 Krasnow left the Kama Sutra/Buddah labels and founded Blue Thumb Records in Beverly Hills, California with producers Don Graham and Tommy LiPuma . The first release on this label was the second Captain Beefheart album Strictly Personal . Krasnow's use of phasing effects on this album is controversial. Beefheart subsequently condemned
13206-416: The early days of the recording industry, recording labels were absolutely necessary for the success of any artist. The first goal of any new artist or band was to get signed to a contract as soon as possible. In the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, many artists were so desperate to sign a contract with a record company that they sometimes ended up signing agreements in which they sold the rights to their recordings to
13348-512: The end of their contract with EMI when their album In Rainbows was released as a " pay what you want " sales model as an online download, but they also returned to a label for a conventional release. Research shows that record labels still control most access to distribution. Computers and internet technology led to an increase in file sharing and direct-to-fan digital distribution, causing music sales to plummet in recent years. Labels and organizations have had to change their strategies and
13490-522: The facilities available. May created a multi-layer guitar introduction "Procession", while Mercury wrote "The Fairy Feller's Master Stroke" based on the painting of the same name by Richard Dadd . The group spent the remainder of the year touring the UK, supporting Mott The Hoople , and began to attract an audience. The tour ended with two shows at the Hammersmith Odeon on 14 December, playing to 7,000 people. In January 1974, Queen played
13632-634: The first two albums, along with various rock and roll covers, such as Cliff Richard and the Shadows ' " Please Don't Tease ". They attracted the attention of producer John Anthony , who was interested in the group's sound but thought they had the wrong bass player. After three live gigs, Mike Grose decided not to continue with the band and was replaced by Barry Mitchell (ex Crushed Butler ). Mitchell played thirteen gigs with Queen between August 1970 and January 1971. In turn, Mitchell left in January 1971 and
13774-435: The former Gertrude Goldstein from Hamilton, Ontario , Canada, both of Russian Jewish parentage. Krasnow's early career included working as a promotions man for James Brown and sales representative for Decca Records . In the early 1960s, Krasnow founded MK Records, which released the novelty record "Report To The Nation," a parody of the 1960 presidential campaign between John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon . He ran
13916-538: The gigs were successful, they were marred by a lack of planning and suitable facilities, with audiences throwing projectiles on stage. Mercury finished the final gig saying, "Adios, amigos, you motherfuckers!" On 24 and 25 November, Queen played two nights at the Montreal Forum , Quebec, Canada. One of Mercury's most notable performances of The Game 's final track, " Save Me ", took place in Montreal, and
14058-494: The group in early 1968 to focus on his degree in Physics and Infrared Astronomy at Imperial College and find a group that could write original material. He formed the group Smile with Staffell (now playing bass) and keyboardist Chris Smith. To complete the line-up, May placed an advertisement on a college notice board for a " Mitch Mitchell / Ginger Baker type" drummer; Roger Taylor , a young dental student, auditioned and got
14200-429: The highlight. Interviewed backstage, Roger Waters stated: "Everybody's been buzzing about Queen that I've run into. They had everybody completely spellbound." An industry poll in 2005 ranked it the greatest rock performance of all time. Mercury's powerful, sustained note—"Aaaaaay-o"—during the call-and-response a cappella segment came to be known as "The Note Heard Round the World". The band were revitalised by
14342-418: The importance of radio stations and their vital connection between the artist and the community, and for denying them access to Mercury. May states, "this guy, in the course of one tour, told every record station to fuck off". Queen roadie Peter Hince wrote "None of the band cared for him [Prenter], apart from Freddie", with Hince regarding Mercury's favouring of Prenter as an act of "misguided loyalty". During
14484-577: The job. Smith left the group in early 1969, immediately before a gig at the Royal Albert Hall with Free and the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band . While attending Ealing Art College in west London, Staffell became friends with fellow student Farrokh "Freddie" Bulsara , who was from Zanzibar and of Indian Parsi descent. Bulsara had studied fashion design for a year before switching to graphic art and design, and soon became
14626-649: The largest single concert crowd in Argentine history with an audience of 300,000 in Buenos Aires and two concerts at the Morumbi Stadium in São Paulo, Brazil, where they played to more than 131,000 people in the first night (then the largest paying audience for a single band anywhere in the world) and more than 120,000 people the following night. A region then largely ruled by military dictatorships,
14768-491: The live double album Queen at Wembley , released on CD and as a live concert VHS/DVD, which has gone five times platinum in the US and four times platinum in the UK. The demand for tickets saw extra dates added to the tour, with concert promoter Harvey Goldsmith stating "they seem to have an endless market." Queen could not book Wembley for a third night, but played at Knebworth Park in Hertfordshire on 9 August. The show sold out within two hours and over 120,000 fans packed
14910-734: The major divisions of EMI were sold off separately by owner Citigroup : most of EMI's recorded music division was absorbed into UMG; EMI Music Publishing was absorbed into Sony/ATV Music Publishing; finally, EMI's Parlophone and Virgin Classics labels were absorbed into Warner Music Group (WMG) in July 2013. This left the so-called Big Three labels. In 2020 and 2021, both WMG and UMG had their IPO with WMG starting trading at Nasdaq and UMG starting trading at Euronext Amsterdam and leaving only Sony Music as wholly-owned subsidiary of an international conglomerate ( Sony Entertainment which in turn
15052-433: The major labels (two examples are American singer Frank Sinatra 's Reprise Records , which has been owned by Warner Music Group for some time now, and musician Herb Alpert 's A&M Records , now owned by Universal Music Group). Similarly, Madonna 's Maverick Records (started by Madonna with her manager and another partner) was to come under control of Warner Music when Madonna divested herself of controlling shares in
15194-537: The majors had a collective global market share of some 65–70%. Record labels are often under the control of a corporate umbrella organization called a "music group ". A music group is usually affiliated to an international conglomerate " holding company ", which often has non-music divisions as well. A music group controls and consists of music-publishing companies, record (sound recording) manufacturers, record distributors, and record labels. Record companies (manufacturers, distributors, and labels) may also constitute
15336-530: 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 logo. The most recognisable of the Marx Brothers, Groucho Marx , invited Queen to visit him in his Los Angeles home in March 1977; there the band thanked him in person, and performed " '39 " a cappella . Baker did not return to produce the album; instead the band self-produced with assistance from Mike Stone, who performed several of
15478-508: The new material. At a gig in Frankfurt , Mercury told some people heckling the new material, "If you don't want to listen to it, go home!" Former Mott The Hoople keyboardist Morgan Fisher joined as an additional touring member. Shows were planned at Arsenal Stadium and Old Trafford , but these were cancelled as Pope John Paul II was touring Britain, leading to a lack of available outdoor facilities such as toilets. The gigs were moved to
15620-461: The next day died of bronchopneumonia , a complication of AIDS. One more album was released featuring Mercury's vocals, 1995's Made in Heaven . Deacon retired in 1997, while May and Taylor continued to make sporadic appearances together. Since 2004, they have toured as "Queen +", with vocalists Paul Rodgers and Adam Lambert . Queen have been a global presence in popular culture for more than half
15762-499: The only time during the eighth-season premiere of Saturday Night Live on 25 September of the same year; it became the final public performance of the band in North America before the death of their frontman. Their fall in popularity in the US has been partially attributed to a homophobia : Mikal Gilmore for Rolling Stone writes, "At some shows on the band's 1980 American tour, fans tossed disposable razor blades onstage: They didn't like this identity of Mercury—what they perceived as
15904-521: The opening night at the Concert for the People of Kampuchea in London, having accepted a request by the event's organiser, Paul McCartney . The concert was the last date of their Crazy Tour of London. Queen began their 1980s career 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 US. After attending
16046-408: The opening song " Death on Two Legs ", a savage dig at perceived wrongdoers (and later dedicated to Trident in concert) and the camp vaudeville "Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon" and "Seaside Rendezvous". May's " The Prophet's Song " was an eight-minute epic; the middle section is a canon , with simple phrases layered to create a full-choral sound. The Mercury penned ballad, " Love of My Life ", featured
16188-414: The opinions of critics. Among other accolades, it was ranked number 16 in Q magazine's "The 50 Best British Albums Ever" in 2004, a poll done in collaboration with British music and entertainment retailer HMV . It was also placed at number 230 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of " The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time " in 2003. A Night at the Opera is the third and final Queen album to be featured in
16330-427: The original tape wore thin. EMI initially refused to release the single, thinking it too long, and demanded a radio edit which Queen refused. Mercury's close friend and advisor, Capital London radio DJ Kenny Everett , played a pivotal role in giving the single exposure. He was given a promotional copy on the condition he didn't play it, but ended up doing so fourteen times over a single weekend. Capital's switchboard
16472-507: The output of recording sessions. For established artists, a label is usually less involved in the recording process. The relationship between record labels and artists can be a difficult one. Many artists have had conflicts with their labels over the type of sound or songs they want to make, which can result in the artist's artwork or titles being changed before release. Other artists have had their music prevented from release, or shelved. Record labels generally do this because they believe that
16614-498: The park for what was Queen's final performance with Mercury. At the end of the concert the band appeared on stage for the final time to an encore of "God Save the Queen", with Mercury, in his crown and gown, bidding the crowd "goodnight and sweet dreams". Roadie Peter Hince states, "At Knebworth, I somehow felt it was going to be the last for all of us", while Brian May recalled Mercury saying "I'm not going to be doing this forever. This
16756-446: The police informed Mercury that he would be arrested if he attempted to go on stage again. May enjoyed the gig particularly, as he had been to see previous concerts at the park, such as the first one organised by Blackhill Enterprises in 1968, featuring Pink Floyd . On 1 December 1976, Queen were the intended guests on London's early evening Today programme, but they pulled out at the last-minute, which saw their late replacement on
16898-479: The position. Reid's first instruction to the band was "I'll take care of the business; you make the best record you can". Queen started work on their fourth album A Night at the Opera , taking its name from the popular Marx Brothers movie. At the time, it was the most expensive album ever produced, costing £40,000 and using three different studios. Like its predecessor, the album features diverse musical styles and experimentation with stereo sound. Mercury wrote
17040-743: The production, which he said was done without his knowledge or approval, though it is claimed by other band members that he initially agreed to it. Among the other acts Krasnow brought to Blue Thumb were Phil Upchurch , Ben Sidran , Gerry Rafferty , Last Poets , The Credibility Gap , The Crusaders , Hugh Masekela , Southwind, Ike & Tina Turner, the Pointer Sisters , Dave Mason , Dan Hicks and His Hot Licks , Marc Bolan & T.Rex, Arthur Lee , Clifton Chenier , Love , Gábor Szabó , Mark-Almond , and John Mayall . Krasnow served as president of Blue Thumb until 1974, when he became vice president/talent acquisition for Warner Bros. Records ,
17182-527: The re-recording of "The Night Comes Down", so the finished album uses the De Lane Lea demo. Another track, " Mad the Swine " was dropped from the running order after the band and Baker could not agree on a mix. Mike Stone created the final mix for "Keep Yourself Alive", and he went on to work on several other Queen albums. By January 1972, the band finished recording their debut album, but had yet to secure
17324-548: The record label in perpetuity. Entertainment lawyers are usually employed by artists to discuss contract terms. Due to advancing technology such as the Internet , the role of labels is rapidly changing, as artists are able to freely distribute their own material through online radio , peer-to-peer file sharing such as BitTorrent , and other services, at little to no cost, but with correspondingly low financial returns. Established artists, such as Nine Inch Nails , whose career
17466-478: The relationship between him and Elektra's founder Jac Holzman . Krasnow abruptly resigned from his position at Elektra in July 1994, the result of a bitter internal struggle within the Warner Music group during 1994-95 that also led to the departure of long-serving and highly respected Warner Bros. Records executives Mo Ostin and Lenny Waronker . Following his resignation he established Krasnow Entertainment,
17608-408: The response to Live Aid—a "shot in the arm" Roger Taylor called it—and the ensuing increase in record sales. In 1986 Mercury commented: "From our perspective, the fact that Live Aid happened when it did was really lucky. It came out of nowhere to save us. For sure that was a turning point. Maybe you could say that in the history of Queen, it was a really special moment." Queen ended 1985 by releasing
17750-609: The rock ballad " We Are the Champions ", both of which became enduring international sports anthems , and the latter reached number four in the US. Queen commenced the News of the World Tour in November 1977, and Robert Hilburn of the Los Angeles Times called this concert tour the band's "most spectacularly staged and finely honed show". During the tour they sold out another two shows at MSG, and in 1978 they received
17892-418: The salaries of certain tour and merchandise sales employees hired by the artist. In addition, the label also offers the artist a 30 percent cut of the label's album profits—if any—which represents an improvement from the typical industry royalty of 15 percent. With the Internet now being the dominant source for obtaining music, netlabels have emerged. Depending on the ideals of the net label, music files from
18034-419: The selling price of the recordings. Contracts may extend over short or long durations, and may or may not refer to specific recordings. Established, successful artists tend to be able to renegotiate their contracts to get terms more favorable to them, but Prince 's much-publicized 1994–1996 feud with Warner Bros. Records provides a strong counterexample, as does Roger McGuinn 's claim, made in July 2000 before
18176-654: The show, EMI labelmate the Sex Pistols , give their infamous expletive-strewn interview with Bill Grundy . During the A Day at the Races Tour in 1977, Queen performed sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden , New York, in February, supported by Thin Lizzy , and Mercury and Taylor socialised with that group's leader Phil Lynott . They ended the tour with two concerts at Earls Court , London, in June, which commemorated
18318-452: The single " One Vision " and a limited-edition boxed set of Queen albums, The Complete Works . The package included the 1984 Christmas single " Thank God It's Christmas " and previously unreleased material. In early 1986, Queen recorded the album A Kind of Magic , containing several reworkings of songs written for the fantasy action film Highlander . The album was successful in the UK, West Germany and several other countries, producing
18460-469: The soundtrack they had recorded for Flash Gordon . At the 1981 American Music Awards in January, "Another One Bites the Dust" won the award for Favorite Pop/Rock Single, and Queen were nominated for Favorite Pop/Rock Band, Duo, or Group. In February 1981, Queen travelled to South America as part of The Game Tour , and became the first rock band to play stadiums in Latin America. On playing
18602-472: The subject of outrage, having played in South Africa during the height of apartheid and in violation of worldwide divestment efforts and a United Nations cultural boycott. The band responded to the critics by stating that they were playing music for fans in South Africa, and they also stressed that the concerts were played before integrated audiences. Queen donated to a school for the deaf and blind as
18744-430: The success, Queen were still tied to the original Trident deal and wages. They were all living in relative poverty in bedsits, while Deacon was refused money for a deposit on a house. EMI contacted lawyer Jim Beach , who tried to find a way of extracting them from their contract. Trident complained that they had invested £200,000 in Queen and wanted their money back first. In August, after an acrimonious split with Trident,
18886-400: The term sublabel to refer to either an imprint or a subordinate label company (such as those within a group). For example, in the 1980s and 1990s, 4th & B'way Records (pronounced as "Broadway") was a trademarked brand owned by Island Records Ltd. in the UK and by a subordinate branch, Island Records, Inc., in the United States. The center label on a 4th & Broadway record marketed in
19028-513: The top 10 in many countries, topped the Australian ARIA Charts for seven consecutive weeks, and was the band's first number one single in the United States where it topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks. Having written the song on guitar and played rhythm on the record, Mercury played rhythm guitar while performing the song live, which was the first time he ever played guitar in concert. On 26 December 1979, Queen played
19170-526: The video David Mallet said Mercury was reluctant to do it, commenting "it was a hell of a job to get him out of the dressing room". That year, Queen began The Works Tour , the first tour to feature keyboardist Spike Edney as an extra live musician. The tour featured nine sold-out dates in October in Bophuthatswana , South Africa, at the arena in Sun City . Upon returning to England, they were
19312-433: The way they work with artists. New types of deals called "multiple rights" or "360" deals are being made with artists, where labels are given rights and percentages to artist's touring, merchandising, and endorsements . In exchange for these rights, labels usually give higher advance payments to artists, have more patience with artist development, and pay higher percentages of CD sales. These 360 deals are most effective when
19454-459: Was a difficult time for me, personally – some dark moments. — May on the recording of Hot Space during a difficult period for the band. In 1982, the band released the album Hot Space , a departure from their trademark seventies sound, this time being a mixture of pop rock , dance, disco, funk , and R&B . Most of the album was recorded in Munich during the most turbulent period in
19596-554: Was credited to the whole band. Mercury wrote the closing number, "In the Lap of the Gods", with the intention that the audience could sing along to the chorus when played live. This would be repeated later on, more successfully, in songs such as "We Are the Champions. The single " Killer Queen " was written by Mercury about a high-class prostitute. It reached number two on the British charts, and became their first US hit, reaching number 12 on
19738-455: Was developed with major label backing, announced an end to their major label contracts, citing that the uncooperative nature of the recording industry with these new trends is hurting musicians, fans and the industry as a whole. However, Nine Inch Nails later returned to working with a major label, admitting that they needed the international marketing and promotional reach that a major label can provide. Radiohead also cited similar motives with
19880-493: Was overwhelmed with callers inquiring when the song would be released. With EMI forced to release "Bohemian Rhapsody" due to public demand, the single reached number one in the UK for nine weeks. It is the third-best-selling single of all time in the UK, surpassed only by Band Aid 's " Do They Know It's Christmas? " and Elton John 's " Candle in the Wind 1997 ", and is the best-selling commercial single (i.e. not for charity) in
20022-629: Was replaced by Doug Bogie for two live gigs. In February 1971, John Deacon joined Queen. In addition to being an experienced bassist, his quiet demeanour complemented the band, and he was skilled in electronics. On 2 July, Queen played their first show with the classic line-up of Mercury, May, Taylor and Deacon at a Surrey college outside London. May called Terry Yeadon, an engineer at Pye Studios where Smile had recorded, to see if he knew anywhere where Queen could go. Yeadon had since moved to De Lane Lea Studios ' new premises in Wembley , and they needed
20164-530: Was shot in three hours. The operatic section featured a reprise of the Queen II cover, with the band member's heads animated. On the impact of the "Bohemian Rhapsody" promotional video, Rolling Stone states: "Its influence cannot be overstated, practically inventing the music video seven years before MTV went on the air." Ranking it number 31 on their list of the 50 key events in rock music history, The Guardian stated it "ensured videos would henceforth be
#196803