Queen
A Kind of Magic

THE REVIEW

"The Works" brings the Queen back to the peak of appreciation from their large audience, acclaimed both for the visibility provided by the elaborate videos shot to support the singles, predictably opening the doors of the charts not only in the new and old continent, but also with the world tour that takes them to perform even in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Africa. Surely, the events that no fan of the queen will forget include their participation in the closing of Rock in Rio (January 1985) in front of more than 250,000 attendees (an unprecedented event for a single musical event!) and that media event - estimated to have been watched on television by about two and a half billion people - that characterized the history of '80s rock the most, called Live Aid (July 1985).

In October 1985, the Queen began to give shape to the successor of "The Works", alternating recording sessions between Musicland Studios (Monaco) and Townhouse Studios (London). It was during these sessions in Germany that the band received an irresistible proposal (but also a chance for revenge in the world of film...) to create songs for the first film by Russell Mulcahy ("Highlander" - The Last Immortal - with Sean Connery and Christophe Lambert), known up to that point as a brilliant director of clips for The Stranglers and Elton John and even more for the successful "Rio" and "The Wild Boys" by Duran Duran.

During the ongoing work on the new album, the band did not experience any overload of activity, even managing to draw further vital energy from their commitments, perfectly combining creation with a persistent desire for artistic growth, as present as at the beginning of their career. The proof of this is the adrenaline-filled "One Vision" (already released as a single and included in the contemporary soundtrack of the feature film "Iron Eagle"): keyboards and roaring guitar to welcome and rally all the distinctive traits, from the classic to the most modern, synthesizing the entire career of Mercury & Co.. The title-track elegantly recalls the work from two years prior, putting forth that engine of fresh creativity named Roger Taylor capable of producing success after success like never before. A great demonstration of heterogeneity of styles emerges with the exquisitely moving "One Year of Love" which will also find space on the &em>Highlander soundtrack, and the soul song "Pain is so Close to Pleasure" where high notes more familiar to Barry Gibb or Mick Jagger are expressed in an undeniably Motown-inspired atmosphere. The engaging "Friends Will Be Friends" follows perfectly to entertain those who - and not only them - have been swaying for years with a lighter in hand to the notes of "We Are the Champions" leaving to the incandescent "Gimme the Prize (Kurgan's Theme)" with an initial Van Halen-esque citation, raising the voltage again, and then with the pounding "Don't Lose Your Head", confirming the writing prowess of a drummer decidedly above the ordinary. With "Who Wants to Live Forever" it is the figure of Brian May (who also sings the introduction) that stands out as a complete artist in all his expressions, conceiving an epic track in the verse and with an irresistible crescendo, giving life to a magnificent chorus elevated by the orchestrations that make it one of the gems of Mulcahy's film OST. In perfect alignment with what has been heard so far is "Princes of the Universe": a bolt from the blue that, untangling between melodic vitality and rhythmic firmness, grants the alternating time changes the right musical battlefield for the duel that in the spectacular video shot for the track, sees Christophe Lambert and Freddie Mercury face off with the iconic half-mast microphone.

We are in the presence of a fresh album that makes its way effortlessly into the listener's ears, leaving no doubt about the awareness of four musicians as yet (more) of a band than they had been in the past, so well-rehearsed that they live off mutual affinities, unity of spirit and intent; a band capable of making its statement in a little over forty minutes of music with an irresistible appeal, still able to convince the long-time fans of the satisfaction found for seasoned artists to always look forward without resting on their laurels, discouraging anyone who might have predicted an imminent abdication for the queen from a throne that is more stable than ever.