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Post by PowWow on Oct 25, 2015 10:25:44 GMT
Today I give to you my wonderful buddies one of my albums that's been loved by me ever since I bought it 4 years ago:
Band: Queen
Album Title: The Miracle
Release Date: 22 May 1989
Track Listing:
1. Party 2. Khashoggi's Ship 3. The Miracle 4. I Want It All (Not really the extended version as the video title suggests, it's actually just the album version) 5. The Invisible Man 6. Breakthru (Y'know, the one with the train) 7. Rain Must Fall 8. Scandal 9. My Baby Does Me 10. Was It All Worth It
B-Sides and Extras from the 2011 Bonus EP: 1. I Want It All (Single version) 2. The Invisible Man (Demo version with guide vocal, August 1988) 3. Hang On In There (Original CD bonus track and B-Side to the 'I Want It All' single) 4. Hijack My Heart (B-Side to the 'The Invisible Man' single) 5. Stealin' (B-Side to the 'Breakthru' single) 6. Chinese Torture (Original CD bonus track). 7. The Invisible Man (12" Version) (also an original CD bonus track, aren't CD player owners lucky?)
Interesting (sort of) Facts!
- This is Queen's 13th studio album in total.
- Their first of three albums to collaborate with producer David Richards.
- The original album title was going to be called "The Invisible Men".
- The mighty keyboard/digital workstation Korg M1 makes its debut.
- All the tracks here are credited to Queen, so no individual credits (though you could still tell who wrote the particular songs regardless).
Happy listening! - PowWow
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Post by queenofthehours on Oct 25, 2015 14:15:29 GMT
Yey! More Queen. I enjoyed Brax's Queen choice a few weeks ago and can't wait to explore Freddie and the boys more.
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Post by PowWow on Oct 25, 2015 15:12:33 GMT
You can never have enough Queen as I've said before I'm not the biggest fan in the world but their 80's stuff I find quite interesting especially 'Hot Space' where they go completely bonkers with funk and r'n'b.
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Post by jrmugz on Oct 25, 2015 16:47:08 GMT
Looking forward to checking it out, PowWow!
Jim
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Post by Chippa on Oct 26, 2015 20:35:19 GMT
I reviewed some of these tracks for the Queen Greatest Hits album a few weeks ago, but hey, more Queen is always good.
Party - Yeah, this sounds like a perfect party song. Very Queen-like vocal stacks, which is always great.
Khashoggi's Ship - This almost has an 80's hair metal-like sound, to it. Or maybe all of those hair metal bands were just copying Queen.
The Miracle - I kinda hated this song the first time I heard it, but it's grown on me over the years. Cool raindrop effects with the keyboards. The lyrics are a bit simplistic, but hey there's nothing wrong with being hopeful and positive.
I Want It All - A great, tongue-in-cheek anthem about greed. Love the metallic guitars, and Freddy's snarling vocals. The bridge, sung by Brian May, is excellent, too. Epic song.
The Invisible Man - A real treat to listen to on some good headphones. Voices and instruments bounce around everywhere. The roll call of each band member is a very cool touch. Another stellar guitar solo from Brian May. Very catchy stuff.
Breakthru - Gospel-ish opening choir, followed by an onslaught of synths. Definitely a good driving song, although you'd probably go over the speed limit. Not all that interesting, melodically, but it's a memorable song.
Rain Must Fall - Kind of a salsa-flavored thing going on. Very lighthearted and cool. Almost reminds me of a Culture Club song.
Scandal - Impressive vocals from Mercury, especially given what he was going through at the time. Good commentary on the nature of the tabloid press scumbags.
My Baby Does Me - Sweet bass/guitar combo to kick it off. Has a slight Alan Parsons "Wouldn't Wanna Be Like You" vibe going on.
Was It All Worth It - Goes back to the classic Queen sound of the 70's. Like "The Show Must Go On", this is Freddy looking back on his life.
Hang On In There - Never heard this one, before. Pretty good. Like the overall sound and shiny production.
Hijack My Heart - Good, dance-oriented groove. Sounds like Roger Taylor singing the lead. I like his voice. It has almost a Rod Stewart-like quality.
Stealin' - I like this one. Nice, catchy groove and melody. Great acoustic guitar work from Brian, and an epic supercharged ending.
Chinese Torture - Interesting instrumental. Sounds like something from a movie battle scene.
Overall, I'll give this a 7/10. Some sub-standard stuff, but the good far outweighs the bad.
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Post by 88keys on Oct 27, 2015 4:22:51 GMT
Lots of misses and a few hits. That's how I sum this album up.
The Great I Want It All Breakthru Invisible Man Chinese Torture
The Good Party Stealin'
The OK Khashoggi's Ship Hang On In There
The Bad The Miracle...(ugh!!) Scandal Rain Must Fall My Baby Does Me Was It All Worth It Hijack My Heart
I'm sure the circumstances behind the recording of this album were difficult, but the weird thing is that Innuendo, which was their final album with a very ill Freddy Mercury, is so much better than this!
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Post by PowWow on Oct 27, 2015 10:03:58 GMT
Lots of misses and a few hits. That's how I sum this album up. The GreatI Want It All Breakthru Invisible Man Chinese Torture The GoodParty Stealin' The OKKhashoggi's Ship Hang On In There The BadThe Miracle...(ugh!!) Scandal Rain Must Fall My Baby Does Me Was It All Worth It Hijack My Heart I'm sure the circumstances behind the recording of this album were difficult, but the weird thing is that Innuendo, which was their final album with a very ill Freddy Mercury, is so much better than this! I was ok with your choices but as soon as you put Was It All Worth It underneath the bad header alarm bells rang inside my head; is that really bad song?
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Post by 88keys on Oct 27, 2015 15:31:06 GMT
Lots of misses and a few hits. That's how I sum this album up. The GreatI Want It All Breakthru Invisible Man Chinese Torture The GoodParty Stealin' The OKKhashoggi's Ship Hang On In There The BadThe Miracle...(ugh!!) Scandal Rain Must Fall My Baby Does Me Was It All Worth It Hijack My Heart I'm sure the circumstances behind the recording of this album were difficult, but the weird thing is that Innuendo, which was their final album with a very ill Freddy Mercury, is so much better than this! I was ok with your choices but as soon as you put Was It All Worth It underneath the bad header alarm bells rang inside my head; is that really bad song? hahaha. Compared to Justin Bieber, it's a masterpiece. But for a great band like Queen, it's not at all up to their standards.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2015 22:34:13 GMT
This isn't the Queen I love most, but I can still appreciate it's good points, like Scandal, Stealin, I Want It All, BreakThru, The Miracle, and Invisible Man.
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Post by unomusette on Oct 30, 2015 20:50:48 GMT
1. Party - Jumps straight in, I quite like the way it's just loads of vocal layers and drums. You can tell it's Queen because of Freddie being all over it but for them it's something a bit different. 2. Khashoggi's Ship - Hello! They don't waste any time galloping off with this either. Great vocals and growly guitar, it's classic Queen. 3. The Miracle - Their classic sound in spades again, it's not one of my favourites though and I'm not sure why. Possibly because it's a bit over-long for my taste and slightly ploddy. 4. I Want It All - This I do like rather a lot, it's puzzling because it's the same tempo more or less as The Miracle. Probably because the shouty, "look at me" vocals appeal to me for some reason, ahem. Fab song, best so far. 5. The Invisible Man - I don't blame them for exploring new electronic sounds, it's OK but not completely my cup of tea. The video is pretty cool though. 6. Breakthru - Another neat video but the niggling electro-backdrop detracts from it for me. Freddie is really on top form vocal-wise on this album, I must say. 7. Rain Must Fall - Again a bit too electro sounding for me, but at the time lots of music had this kind of feel, you can't blame them. Nice calypso style rhythm. 8. Scandal - More excellent vocals, but nothing else outstanding considering what Queen can be capable of. 9. My Baby Does Me - Unfortunately it doesn nothing for me, sorry. Bit of a filler. 10. Was It All Worth It - Bit worried it's going to be another damp squib with all the horrid chimey keyboards at the start, but no! It kicks off nicely about a minute in. Proper meaty sound, this is a lot more like it although it's too long for my liking. Hang On In There - Interesting, but you can see why it was a B side. Good outro though. Hijack My Heart - Roger Taylor is a pretty good vocalist but he does somewhat weak compared to the immortal Freddie. Goes on a bit long without actually going anywhere to these ears. Stealin' - Tee hee! Freddie is SO unconvincing as an Artful Dodger type character, bless him. I like the way it wanders off on different tangents as it progresses, good track. Chinese Torture - Oooh, big keyboard intro and a lot of guitar noodling. Quirky, in a word. I'm not the biggest fan of Queen's later output, although I do love their early stuff and can appreciate the epic musicianship from all four members throughout. Knowing how poorly Freddie was just makes his performance even more astounding, there will never be a better frontman and his vocals are much the best thing on this album for me. The cover art is clever too. 6 out of 10 for me, thanks for sharing PowWow
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Post by PowWow on Oct 31, 2015 8:52:53 GMT
For some reason I now feel bad for not going with Innuendo instead XD
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Post by jrmugz on Nov 1, 2015 16:18:43 GMT
Been running on the treadmill all week to this CD and enjoying it a lot, especially the middle 5 or 6 songs. Sorry late on the review, hopefully later today!
Jim
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Post by jrmugz on Nov 2, 2015 12:26:44 GMT
OK PowWow, here is my review of Queen "The Miracle":
01. "Party" - Unique, sparse, interesting. Guess the force of Freddie makes it work. 02. "Khasoggi's Ship" - A really good Aerosmith imitation, some clear nods to Steven Tyler there. 03. "The Miracle" - Beautiful music and tone expressing universal sentiments for an end to strife, etc. 04. "I Want It All" - Begins the string of REALLY good tunes. Probably the most easily accessible song on the CD so far. Good stuff. The bridge brings it from a good song to a great song. 05. "Invisible Man" - Great pop song with all the right hooks; Brian May rose to the occasion for his turn on the song the best, IMHO! John Deacon's vocal part was good too. 06. "Breakthru" - Good stuff, a lot of this rightly on the best of collection that was reviewed a couple months or so back. 07. "Rain Must Fall" - A very good one. Really like the bass line. 08. "Scandal" - Pretty good, goes on a little long, but works just fine! 09. "My Baby Does Me" - Nice groove of a song, which I guess was the idea. 10. "Was It All Worth It?" - Nice dramatic finish to a very good CD. Good song for anyone's personal reflection.
Star Rating: 4.1 out of 5 Prime Cuts: "I Want It All", "Invisible Man", "Breakthru", "Rain Must Fall", "Was It Worth It All?" Bottom Line: Did what "Hot Space" failed to do, namely made an authentically Queen funky groove album that was true to themselves.
My measuring stick for Queen will always be "The Game" as that to me anyways, is their best album of the right balance of all their stuff with all of the teamwork.
So this album nine years later, seems to be along those lines with a sound and feel appropriate to 1989.
Thanks for sharing PowWow, I really enjoyed it and was great to finally delve into it.
So, what about "Innunendo" and "A Kind of Magic", do either of those compare in your book? Those are ones I need to delve into too, along with the last one they made, I believe "Heaven" was in the title?
Jim
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Post by jrmugz on Nov 2, 2015 12:29:51 GMT
I'll try to get to the bonus tracks later.
Jim
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Post by queenofthehours on Nov 4, 2015 18:01:54 GMT
The Party – Great opening track. Sounds very un-Queen-like to my ears until the bass comes in and that entry along with the guitar is VERY Queen. It’s got Brian May all over it. Khashoggi's Ship – I’m not familiar with this track but it’s the most Queen-like song of any Queen track I don’t already know. If that makes sense. This is very loud.
The Miracle – I really like beginning of this song. It reminds me of so many other bands – Beatles, Procol Harum… but in essence it’s all Queen.
I Want It All – I never noticed before the mix of both acoustic guitar and electric here. In fact I can’t even remember hearing this song from the start before.
The Invisible Man – I think this is the most “Queen” thing I have ever heard. Unfortunately it reminds me of the Ghostbusters theme. Great track nonetheless.
Breakthru – I take that back, THIS is the most Queen this I’ve ever heard!
Rain Must Fall – This is very 80s, so much going on here even before Freddie starts singing. More restrained than the usual Queen track.
Scandal – A very pleasant track, not overly extreme but still upbeat and rocking. Could appeal to non-Queen fans as it has everything they do best but very modestly.
My Baby Does Me – Rather downbeat in comparison to the rest of the record but still not quite a ballad.
Was It All Worth It – This is very noisy, guitars everywhere. Loud drums, everything you need. Great track to end with.
Hang On In There – Great pop song. Music sounds a bit like Prince.
Hijack My Heart - Great drums and even better productions. Nice to hear Rog. Really weird to hear a Queen atmosphere without Fred's vocals - it's like Rod Stewart singing Queen for his local pub's Karaoke night! Stealin' - This is very different, very groovy and catchy. Not Queen-ish at all. Love the bass. Bit of a country feel.
Chinese Torture - Very dramatic. Guitars straight from Bill and Ted!
This album has one very creepy LP cover. A few things are guaranteed with a Queen record – Freddie, who puts his all into everything, Brian who's guitar blasts are at just right level between flashy and cheeky, and a "Queen" atmosphere which is strong as The Beatles or ELO.
If Brian could sing well he’d be singing as close to Fred as Lennon to McCartney but as he isn’t he lets his guitar do the singing. Bri's guitar and Freddie's vocals are the John and Paul of Queen.
What I like best about this album is the fact that it chugs along nicely, there are no ballads to speak of just full on rock.
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