Greatest Hits Vol.1 - Queen > Reviews > Essential

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Groundbreaking
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money

Advantages:	Brilliant
Disadvantages:	Fat bottoms are not nice

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

No band ever has or ever will come close to matching the beatles for sheer musical perfection but one that nearly did was Queen. In terms of Greatest Hits this is one of the best ever and confirms that while they didnt make any outstanding albums they were a great singles band. Individually they are almost second to none. Now lets look at the evidence: there is Brian May, one of the most gifted guitarists of all time. His wonderfully individual style stands out on all records. Freddie Mercury needs no introduction and is the consumate showman. John Deacon is an effective bass player but also a songwriter of high ability and Roger Taylor is a good drummer who completes the rhythm section.
Now to take the album song by song;

1. BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY. I dont to say anything about this epic song which starts the album as it means to go on.

2.ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST. This song has become an anthem at sporting events and it is not hard to see why. John Deacons bass is now one of the most recognisable riffs of all time. Brian Mays contribution gives the album a disco flavour. The only downside is a strange part in the middle but still top class.

3.KILLER QUEEN. This is an underrated queen song. It has a good melody and has all the Queen benchmarks. It has a varied bassline but isnt so varied that it is boring.

4.FAT BOTTOMED GIRLS. Penned by Brian May I think this is the only weak link in an otherwise flawless album.

5.BICYCLE RACE. It is a much maligned track but only because of the silliness of the lyrics and the bell part in the middle. However this song this easily earns its place and it sums up everything that is Queen.

6.YOURE MY BEST FRIEND. Great great song. It is written by John Deacon and features one of Mercurys best vocal performances. It is a tremendously hummable tune and features good guitar work yet again.

7.DONT STOP ME NOW. This is probably my fave from the album. It is a thumping tune which really gets me motivated. Queen are really firing on all cylinders and May is on top form with Mercury giving it his all. Deacon being his virtuoso self and Taylor proving he is a very underrated drummer.

8.SAVE ME. This is a ballad which tugs at the heart strings. It hasnt aged at all and is a timeless classic-a bit like the album really.

9.CRAZY LITTLE THING CALLED LOVE. Written by Mercury he does an Elvis impression on a song recently used in a GAP advert. This song is complemented well by a well made promotional video which involves much strutting and straddling of motorbikes.

10.SOMEBODY TO LOVE. Brilliant this is maybe my favourite song of all. There are lush melodies with complicated backing vocals which proved that Queen arent just a rock band. This is THE best Mercury vocal performance and he sounds like a man who is desperate for someone to love. When this guy sings you believe him.

11.NOW IM HERE. A nice contrast after the last song it is Queen back to their rock roots. May is virtuoso and the rest of Queen arent bad either but this song lacks something so I dont like it that much and it is the only one that will have reaching for the skip button.

12.GOOD OLD FASHIONED LOVER BOY. This song seems to me to have a 1920s theme and is also seemingly very English. There are nice backing vocals making this is just a fairly average, fairly good song.

13.PLAY THE GAME. It reminds me a lot of Save Me but like Bites The Dust has a silly bit in the middle which stops is from achievin classic status.

14.FLASH. This song needs no introduction and you have almost certainly heard it whether you have seen the film or not. Its certainly kitsch but has a wit that is present in all their songs.

I dont need to say anything about the last 3 songs-7 seas of rhye, we will rock you and we are the champions- as they are all now rock standards.