When I was a kid my cousin was an early source of rock music for me. Among the many albums that he gave me were the first two Queen albums and I played them until I almost wore them out.
Queen's music was different. It was grand, operatic and experimental and like they proudly proclaimed on their liner notes (remember them?) no synthesizers were used to create the musical effects. No other guitar sounded quite like the home made one that Brian May used on everyone of their albums and concerts.
Also how could anyone deny that lead singer Freddy Mercury had the greatest voice of the rock era - can't beat his eight octave range.
At the beginning of the video age they produced one of the first long form videos for their magnum opus - Bohemian Rhapsody. I knew then that music would be changing and that these kind of 'mini music movies' would be part of the future. I can't imagine what the 1980s would have been without the influence that music videos had on the decade.
Freddy Mercury was one of the first famous people that I knew about to have the AIDS virus and I was proud to say at the time that it never mattered to me that he was gay. I was more worried that his great voice would be silenced before it's time and it was.
I am glad I have the records, cassette tapes and CDs so that for me, Queen's music lives on forever.
