9. The March Of The Black Queen (Queen - Live In Sheffield: 11/5/1974)

For the start of my comeback and farewell tour, I will be restarting my uploads with the European leg of the Sheer Heart Attack Tour. This copy of Sheffield surpasses older copies as the general sound quality is higher and without unnecessary hiss reduction plaguing the recording. Big thanks to “Ed” for unearthing the proper recording! With this improved copy of the show and being nearly complete, this show can be properly listened to and enjoyed! This is a roller coaster of a show as technical/sound problems are prevalent (constant feedback being a very audible offender) and it leads to a ton of off moments throughout the recording. While there is some truly brilliant playing heard at this show (especially from Brian), it is counterbalanced by musical flubs, unclean playing in spots, and many intonation issues from Freddie’s side of things. While Freddie is generally in good form, he forces his voice pretty hard throughout the show with random vocal issues appearing and wobbly intonation being heard on the recording. Now… time to go through this show… “Now I’m Here” isn’t the strongest start to the show as Freddie’s intonation is off in several places along with Brian flubbing a few chords early on. Thankfully, things do pick up during the instrumental section. “Ogre Battle” features Freddie going for all of the key notes during the chorus sections and sings passionately throughout the performance. However, his voice strains in places and even gives out a couple of times under the pressure (no pun intended). “Father To Son” has the band not starting the song completely in sync, but things get back on track with Freddie’s vocal performance sounding strong and Brian’s guitar work being fantastic. “White Queen” features some brilliant musicianship during the instrumental section and while a few sections of the performance aren’t completely clean musically, the strong vocal performance and instrumental interplay make up for the shortcomings. “Flick Of The Wrist” has Freddie pushing his voice hard for a more aggressive take on the lyrics and some sections have questionable intonation. The vocal harmonies are also not completely clean during the chorus sections but Brian’s guitar work stands out and his solo is fantastic. “In The Lap Of The Gods” showcases Freddie’s nice soft tone early on and his vocal delivery is very nice. In contrast, Roger struggles with the high falsetto notes and Brian uncharacteristically drops the ball during his solo section. “Killer Queen” has Freddie singing with some sour intonation and doing odd drop phrasing. While he goes for “recommended at the price” using the original melody, the attempt is rough with the A4 not being hit on top. “The March Of The Black Queen” has some spirited Roger fills and Freddie giving a mostly strong (if a bit forced) vocal performance. Concluding this section, “Bring Back That Leroy Brown” highlights the sound issues that are going on at this show as the ending is full of feedback, but the band plow through the performance with vigor. “Son And Daughter” is one of the highlights of the night as the musicianship is first class with Brian and Roger displaying strong prowess on their respective instruments. Brian in particular plays wonderfully throughout and his solo work is full of passion. Apart from a bum chord before the reprise section, this performance highlights why Queen’s rhythm section were so acclaimed during the 1970s performances. “Keep Yourself Alive” is full of spicy guitar playing and Freddie does a decent vocal performance although his upper register sounds rough during the more demanding sections. “Seven Seas Of Rhye” is full of fantastic and lively drumming from Roger as he tears through the song and Brian’s playing sounds excellent with aggressively played licks being put on display. Freddie gives the song a good effort, but his forceful belting takes a toll on his voice as he has trouble in spots. “Stone Cold Crazy” has some sloppy playing being heard from John and Brian (although his first solo sounds marvelous). “Liar” is amazing on a musical level as Brian is the MVP of the performance with great licks, and he sounds extremely focused as he plays one of his best solos heard on the song. John’s bass playing also comes through nicely with his solo sounding exquisite. “In The Lap Of The Gods…Revisited” has Freddie flubbing the words and singing random phrasing during the choruses along with vocal strain being audible and Brian’s playing not being completely clean in places. “Big Spender” is a nice performance from everybody involved with Brian’s playing sounding a bit more gritty than usual. “Modern Times Rock ’N’ Roll” features strong playing from the rhythm section as the musical chemistry is excellent and while Freddie has trouble in spots (especially early on), he still gives a good effort. Lastly, “Jailhouse Rock” is an energetic end to the show with Brian’s solo sounding amazing and Freddie singing enthusiastically. ENJOY!!!