Queen: The Complete Works (117 page)

THE PLATINUM COLLECTION

Parlophone 529 8832, November 2000 [63]

Parlophone 529 8832, May 2002 [2]

Hollywood 7 2061-62360-2, October 2002 [48]

Featuring all three
Greatest Hits
compilations,
The Platinum Collection
was yet another cash-in, but this time it worked: although the initial November 2000 release reached only No. 63 in the UK charts, its May 2002 re-release was an unqualified success, peaking at No. 2. In October of the same year, it headed to the US where it performed only modestly in the charts, peaking at No. 48, though considering that the last time the band were in the American charts was in 1995 with
Made In Heaven
, this was comparatively gratifying.

Interestingly, it was revealed in 2005 that Queen Productions had intended to release this collection with a VHS version of
Greatest Video Hits 2
as a box set for a German shopping channel, but Roger expressed disgust at the idea: “We don’t sell things on shopping channels!” he exclaimed. Unfortunately, production had already started by the time the idea was vetoed, and the product sat in a warehouse for years until Brian came up with the idea of giving them away at the September 2005 Fan Club Convention, with the caveat that none of them appear on eBay. Though, of course, human nature being what it is, some of them duly did.

STONE COLD CLASSICS

Hollywood 7 2061-62606-2, April 2006 [45]

‘Stone Cold Crazy’ (2’17), ‘Tie Your Mother Down’ (3’46), ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ (3’25), ‘Another One Bites The Dust’ (3’36), ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ (2’44), ‘We Will Rock You’ (2’02), ‘We Are The Champions’ (3’01), ‘Radio Ga Ga’ (5’49), ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ (5’55), ‘The Show Must Go On’ (4’33), ‘These Are The Days Of Our Lives’ (4’15), ‘I Want It All’ (4’31)

Bonus tracks performed by Queen + Paul Rodgers:
‘All Right Now’ (6’55), ‘Feel Like Making Love’ (6’21)

Released in April 2006 to total indifference,
Stone Cold Classics
was a pathetic attempt by Hollywood Records to cash in on the US Queen + Paul Rodgers tour (which was just about to finish by the time this compilation was released) as well as the
American Idol
Queen night. Brian and Roger appeared on that popular show to offer their feedback and assist the contestants with appropriate arrangements, though Brian was heavily critical of the way the show portrayed him and regretted his decision to appear. At one point, a contestant wanted to turn ‘We Will Rock You’ into a more urbanized variation with a different rhythm, which Brian scoffed at, saying, “You’re not doing that to my song.” Whether it was mean-spirited (which many
American Idol
fans claimed) or interpreted wrongly (which Brian claimed) is beside the point; for fans subjecting themselves to the torture of watching manufactured pop stars stumble their way through their beloved band’s hits, Brian’s mild outburst was a downright hoot.

It’s likely, then, that
Stone Cold Classics
wasn’t instigated by Queen; the track listing is predictable, boring and poorly programmed, and the appearance of ‘All Right Now’ and ‘Feel Like Making Love’ is unneccessary since they had been released on
Return Of The Champions
less than a year before. The packaging, too, is un-creative; wrapped in a funereal black sleeve with the floating heads from
Queen II
sandwiched between the band’s name and the album’s title, the cover uses a once-iconic image in a tired and formulaic fashion. Additionally, where informative liner notes would have graced a sleeve, here they offer little more than who wrote the songs. The only redeeming quality of the album is that it introduced a new generation of fans, curious about their heroes’ interpretations of the songs on
American Idol
, to the music of Queen, evident in its Billboard chart peak at No. 45.

THE A–Z OF QUEEN, VOLUME 1

Hollywood Records D000049500, July 2007

‘A Kind Of Magic’ (4’25), ‘Another One Bites The Dust’ (3’38), ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ (5’54), ‘Bicycle Race’ (3’04), ‘I Want It All’ (4’02), ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ (2’45), ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ (3’29), ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’
(edit)
(3’27), ‘Flash’
(edit)
(2’52), ‘Innuendo’ (6’31), ‘Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy’ (2’54)
Bonus DVD:
‘A Kind Of Magic’
(promo video)
, ‘Another One Bites The Dust’
(from Queen On Fire At The Bowl)
, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’
(promo video)
, ‘I Want It All’
(from Return Of The Champions)
, ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’
(from Live At Wembley Stadium)
, ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’
(promo video)
, ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’
(from Return Of The Champions)
, ‘Innuendo’
(promo video)
, Wembley Stadium concert interview
(from Live At Wembley Stadium)

In the never-ending cycle of compilation release after compilation release,
The A–Z Of Queen, Volume 1
takes an old idea and puts a different spin on it. Instead of being ordered chronologically, the songs are presented alphabetically, though someone should have had the compiler take a remedial course in alphabetics. Pedantry aside,
The A–Z Of Queen, Volume 1
was an exclusive, Wal-Mart- and
Amazon.com
-only release, designed to cash in on nothing in particular. However, it did allow Queen a good amount of shelf life in the chain store conglomerate, though this didn’t amount to substantial sales. The bonus of a DVD mixing promotional videos and selections from their live releases made the package appealing, while, more significantly, the ‘Innuendo’ promotional video was released for the first time in the US, as well as for the first time on DVD. (Further bonus material included downloadable ringtones of ‘Play The Game’ and ‘Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy’.) Whatever Hollywood Records’ intentions for future alphabetically-themed compilations seems to have stagnated, for further volumes never appeared.

THE SINGLES COLLECTION, VOLUMES 1–4

Volume 1:
Parlophone 50999 243358 2 9, December 2008

Disc 1:
‘Keep Yourself Alive’ (3’48), ‘Son And Daughter’ (3’22);
Disc 2:
‘Seven Seas Of Rhye’ (2’49), ‘See What A Fool I’ve Been’ (4’33);
Disc 3:
‘Killer Queen’ (3’01), ‘Flick Of The Wrist’
(single version)
(3’17);
Disc 4:
‘Now I’m Here’ (4’14), ‘Lily Of The Valley’
(single version)
(1’39);
Disc 5:
‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ (5’54), ‘I’m In Love With My Car’ (3’05);
Disc 6:
‘You’re My Best Friend’ (2’52), ‘’39’ (3’30);
Disc 7:
‘Somebody To Love’ (4’58), ‘White Man’ (4’59);
Disc 8:
‘Tie Your Mother Down’
(single version)
(3’45), ‘You And I’ (3’27);
Disc 9:
‘Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy’ (2’54), ‘Death On Two Legs (Dedicated to......’ (3’44), ‘Tenement Funster’
(single version)
(2’58), ‘White Queen (As It Began)’ (4’35);
Disc 10:
‘We Are The Champions’ (3’03), ‘We Will Rock
You’ (2’03);
Disc 11:
‘Spread Your Wings’ (4’35), ‘Sheer Heart Attack’ (3’27);
Disc 12:
‘Bicycle Race’ (3’04), ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’
(single version)
(3’27);
Disc 13:
‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ (3’29), ‘In Only Seven Days’ (2’30)

Volume 2:
Parlophone 50999 965497 2 8, June 2009

Disc 1:
‘Love Of My Life’
(live)
(3’43), ‘Now I’m Here’
(live)
(8’42);
Disc 2:
‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ (2’45), ‘We Will Rock You’
(fast live)
(3’08);
Disc 3:
‘Save Me’ (3’50), ‘Let Me Entertain You’
(live)
(3’14);
Disc 4:
‘Play The Game’ (3’33), ‘A Human Body’ (3’43);
Disc 5:
‘Another One Bites The Dust’ (3’36), ‘Dragon Attack’ (4’19);
Disc 6:
‘Flash’
(single edit)
(2’52), ‘Football Fight’ (1’29);
Disc 7:
‘Under Pressure’ (4’07), ‘Soul Brother’ (3’39);
Disc 8:
‘Body Language’ (4’34), ‘Life Is Real (Song For Lennon)’ (3’30);
Disc 9:
‘Las Palabras De Amor (The Words Of Love)’ (4’32), ‘Cool Cat’ (3’29);
Disc 10:
‘Calling All Girls’ (3’54), ‘Put Out The Fire’ (3’20);
Disc 11:
‘Back Chat’
(single remix)
(4’12), ‘Staying Power’ (4’12);
Disc 12:
‘Radio Ga Ga’ (5’50), ‘I Go Crazy’ (3’43);
Disc 13:
‘I Want To Break Free’
(single version)
(4’26), ‘Machines (Or ‘Back To Humans’)’ (5’09)

Volume 3:
Parlophone 50999 984839 2 0, May 2010

Disc 1:
‘It’s A Hard Life’ (4’10), ‘Is This The World We Created...?’ (2’13);
Disc 2:
‘Hammer To Fall’
(single edit)
(3’41), ‘Tear It Up’ (3’26);
Disc 3:
‘Thank God It’s Christmas’ (4’23), ‘Man On The Prowl’ (3’29), ‘Keep Passing The Open Windows’ (5’23);
Disc 4:
‘One Vision’
(single edit)
(4’04), ‘Blurred Vision’ (4’42);
Disc 5:
‘A Kind Of Magic’ (4’28), ‘A Dozen Red Roses For My Darling’ (4’45);
Disc 6:
‘Friends Will Be Friends’ (4’08), ‘Princes Of The Universe’ (3’32);
Disc 7:
‘Pain Is So Close To Pleasure’
(single remix)
(4’01), ‘Don’t Lose Your Head’ (4’39);
Disc 8:
‘Who Wants To Live Forever’
(single edit)
(4’04), ‘Forever’ (3’21);
Disc 9:
‘One Year Of Love’ (4’29), ‘Gimme The Prize (Kurgan’s Theme)’ (4’35);
Disc 10:
‘I Want It All’
(single edit)
(4’04), ‘Hang On In There’ (3’46);
Disc 11:
‘Breakthru’ (4’11), ‘Stealin” (3’59);
Disc 12:
‘The Invisible Man’ (3’59), ‘Hijack My Heart’ (4’12);
Disc 13:
‘Scandal’ (4’45), ‘My Life Has Been Saved’ (3’16)

Volume 4:
Parlophone 50999 909215 2 0, October 2010

Disc 1:
‘The Miracle’ (5’03), ‘Stone Cold Crazy’
(live)
(2’10);
Disc 2:
‘Innuendo’ (6’33), ‘Bijou’ (3’37);
Disc 3:
‘I’m Going Slightly Mad’ (4’25), ‘The Hitman’ (4’57);
Disc 4:
‘Headlong’ (4’36), ‘All God’s People’ (4’22);
Disc 5:
‘The Show Must Go On’ (4’32), ‘Queen Talks’ (1’44);
Disc 6:
‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ (5’57), ‘These Are The Days Of Our Lives’ (4’16);
Disc 7:
‘Heaven For Everyone’
(single edit)
(4’46), ‘It’s A Beautiful Day’
(single version)
(3’58);
Disc 8:
‘A Winter’s Tale’ (3’54), ‘Rock In Rio Blues’ (4’35);
Disc 9:
‘Too Much Love Will Kill You’ (4’22), ‘I Was Born To Love You’ (4’52);
Disc 10:
‘Let Me Live’ (4’48), ‘We Will Rock You’
(live)
(2’57), ‘We Are The Champions’
(live)
(4’05);
Disc 11:
‘You Don’t Fool Me’
(single version)
(3’56), ‘You Don’t Fool Me’
(album version)
(5’25);
Disc 12:
‘No-One But You (Only The Good Die Young)’ (4’15), ‘We Will Rock You’
(Ruined by Rick Rubin)
(5’02), ‘Gimme The Prize (Kurgan’s Theme)’
(instrumental remix)
(4’02);
Disc 13:
‘Under Pressure’
(rah mix)
(4’09), ‘Under Pressure’
(Mike Spencer remix)
(3’55), ‘Under Pressure’
(Knebworth mix)
(4’18)

Starting in the late 1990s, it was popular for bands to go beyond issuing greatest hits collections and instead issue singles collections, usually box sets of a dozen or so singles that faithfully reproduced the sleeve art of the original 7” vinyl. In the modern era of technology, such excesses – thirteen discs, with two songs per disc, depending on the era (for instance, singles released in the 1980s might have additional tracks, depending on variations released on 12” vinyl or CD singles) – was deemed unneccessary, and its exorbitant price tag didn’t help the format find acceptance among casual fans. This niche product understandably found favour with the hardcore fan, who was overjoyed with finally having long-unavailable single edits, rare extended remixes, and non-album A- and B-sides collected into one complete package, but availability was limited due to the expense of production. So while the idea in theory is a solid one, in practice, singles collections struggled.

After the popularity of these collections peaked in the early 2000s, Queen Productions finally jumped on board toward the end of the decade, after years of hinting from Greg Brooks, the official archivist, who indicated a variant of the singles collection box: a ten-disc set with every known single released throughout the world in a book-bound box à la
The Solo Collection
. But before long, what started off as a good idea devolved into a farcical display of disinterest and pretzel logic: the single edit of ‘Liar’ was voted out, because Brian and Roger officially disowned it; same with the various remixes of ‘You Don’t Fool Me’.
Additionally, an arbitrary rule was imposed to include only singles that reached the Top Forty anywhere in the world, with the exception of ‘Keep Yourself Alive’, included only because of its significance as Queen’s first single. This meant ‘Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)’, ‘Mustapha’, ‘Jealousy’, ‘It’s Late’, ‘Need Your Loving Tonight’, and ‘Long Away’ were all deemed unnecessary simply because they weren’t accepted by the hit parade, unique edits (in some cases) be damned.

The integrity of the 7” format was maintained, with the argument against using any of the extended remixes being that if they didn’t appear on the original vinyl single, it wouldn’t be authentic. What of the unique pairings of ‘Friends Will Be Friends’ and ‘Princes Of The Universe’, then? Or ‘Who Wants To Live Forever’ and ‘Forever’, or ‘Let Me Live’ and live versions of ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘We Are The Champions’, or ‘Too Much Love Will Kill You’ and ‘I Was Born To Love You’? These weren’t released as singles together anywhere in the world; in fact, in the case of the first two singles from 1986, ‘Seven Seas Of Rhye’ and ‘Killer Queen’ were the respective B-sides, but Queen Productions decided that to repeat those singles once again would be overkill – a fair assessment, of course, but then on the fourth box, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ is once again present, this time as a double A-side with ‘These Are The Days Of Our Lives’. With an average running time of seven minutes per disc, certainly some concessions could have been made to include the remixes and CD single tracks? (Which means that, because it wasn’t a B-side of a 7” release but instead an extra track on the CD single of ‘Headlong’, ‘Lost Opportunity’ is nowhere to be found.)