As Adam Lambert gears up for a globe-trotting tour with Queen, he’s done more than simply pick the brains of co-founders Roger Taylor and Brian May on the legend of Freddie Mercury. He’s gone back to the source tapes, all in an effort to strike the right balance between honoring the fallen frontman and adding new wrinkles to it.
“I’m one to really dive into the whole world when I do something,” Lambert tells News.com.au. “I’ve watched countless documentaries about Freddie; I’ve asked questions of Roger and Brian. It makes it feel more real, I’m creating a world for myself to exist in on stage. I can watch a DVD of Queen in Montreal and listen to the interesting things they did musically that might be different to the record. There are so many ins and outs; it’s a real challenge and a treat.”
Lambert has been stepping into the late Mercury’s shoes in appearances with Queen dating back to 2009, when they shared the stage during the finale of television’s American Idol. Mercury died in 1991 from complications relating to the AIDS virus, and Queen bassist John Deacon subsequently retired.
That’s left May and Taylor to carry on, both as keepers of the Queen flame and as key mentors to someone like Adam who wasn’t there when so many of the band’s most iconic moments unfolded. “Freddie was so many different things — a great vocalist, a great showman and an amazing songwriter,” Lambert says “I do my best interpreting the songs with the original intent. Brian and Roger are the icons here; I look to them for a lot of guidance.”
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What does he mean, “adding new wrinkles to it”? He needs to leave everything alone and just sing the songs. Read where a crew has been hired to work on Adam Lambert. Great, all we need is a remanufactured person to temporarily fill in for the late great naturally talented Mercury.
You again…? I read some very nice things you have said about Adam in the past ,why all the angst now??It’s not a crew It’s a sylist for Adam’s clothes..” Come on Get Happy”
Adding wrinkles IMHO means Adam is interpreting the songs his way.. He is not going to imitate Freddie Mercury. If you know anything about Adam Lambert,he marches to his own tune and is a star in his own right.He’s just helping to keep the great Queen music alive.. I think Brian and Roger know Adam’s worth ,I trust them. BTW Brian May is responsible for some of Queen’s greatest songs he plays a mean guitar and he still wants to perform…Adam has a sylist to work on outfits.
I have gained much knowledge learning about Queen ,there is tons of info. on Adam..
A performer going on a tour of this magnitude needs a crew to not only help with the selection of clothes, many of his costumes will be hand made and all will be altered to fit, and he will need more than one of each. These people take care of any cleaning, repair, and changes. He will need someone to cut and style his hair, hair grows over a three month period. When Adam leaves the stage things must go smoothly. It’s the people behind the scenes that allow Adam to concentrate on singing, not “Oh crap, where the hell are my shoes”..
Why are we still on this debate. The ticket buyers have spoken you know. It’s going to be sold out….the entire tour!
Freddie Mercury is my favourite performer of all time and Adam is the only singer with the powerful vocals to front Queen. Respect Brian and Rogers choice. The rest of us have and we can’t wait for this tour to start.