Queen have been busy lately, as they are about to embark on an arena tour with American Idol singer Adam Lambert and they have been working on new recordings using unearthed Freddie Mercury demos. Adding to the pile, they've now announced an archival live album. Live at the Rainbow '74 will be out on September 9 via Hollywood Records/Virgin Records.
The set includes two different shows, both recorded in 1974 at the Rainbow in London. One of the gigs was in March, and the other was in November.
The March gig was recorded by Roy Thomas Baker, who co-produced the band's first four albums, and this was initially intended to be released that year. Instead, the band ended up going into the studio to record Sheer Heart Attack, and the live album was shelved. Following Sheer Heart Attack, they returned to the same venue in November.
According to a press release, "These recordings capture Queen at that time in all their glory: the dramatic stage presence, the highly original self-penned repertoire of songs, high-energy performances coupled with stunning melodic and harmonic content, and the uncompromising perfectionist approach to every aspect of their performance which is still maintained to this day."
The newly mixed and mastered album will be available in various formats: single CD (the November show), double CD (both shows), DVD or Blu-ray (the November show plus a few bonus cuts from March), double vinyl (the originally planned abridged live album from March, plus highlights from the November show), quadruple-vinyl box set (both shows in full), and super deluxe box set. The super deluxe edition includes two CDs, the DVD and Blu-ray, a 60-page hardcover book, and various memorabilia items.
The tracklists from the full shows are below. Note that this full tracklist doesn't appear in every version.
Some of the footage from November was previously released on VHS as part of the 1992 set Box of Tricks.
Meanwhile, you can see Queen's upcoming tour dates here.
Queen II Tour - March '74:
1. Procession
2. Father to Son
3. Ogre Battle
4. Son and Daughter
5. Guitar Solo
6. Son and Daughter (Reprise)
7. White Queen (As It Began)
8. Great King Rat
9. The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke
10. Keep Yourself Alive
11. Drum Solo
12. Keep Yourself Alive (Reprise)
13. Seven Seas of Rhye
14. Modern Times Rock 'n' Roll
15. Jailhouse Rock/Stupid Cupid/Be Bop A Lula (Medley)
16. Liar
17. See What a Fool I've Been
Sheer Heart Attack Tour - November '74:
1. Procession
2. Now I'm Here
3. Ogre Battle
4. Father To Son
5. White Queen (As It Began)
6. Flick of the Wrist
7. In the Lap of the Gods
8. Killer Queen
9. The March of the Black Queen
10. Bring Back That Leroy Brown
11. Son and Daughter
12. Guitar Solo
13. Son and Daughter (Reprise)
14. Keep Yourself Alive
15. Drum Solo
16. Keep Yourself Alive (Reprise)
17. Seven Seas of Rhye
18. Stone Cold Crazy
19. Liar
20. In the Lap of the Gods… Revisited
21. Big Spender
22. Modern Times Rock 'n' Roll
23. Jailhouse Rock
24. God Save the Queen
The set includes two different shows, both recorded in 1974 at the Rainbow in London. One of the gigs was in March, and the other was in November.
The March gig was recorded by Roy Thomas Baker, who co-produced the band's first four albums, and this was initially intended to be released that year. Instead, the band ended up going into the studio to record Sheer Heart Attack, and the live album was shelved. Following Sheer Heart Attack, they returned to the same venue in November.
According to a press release, "These recordings capture Queen at that time in all their glory: the dramatic stage presence, the highly original self-penned repertoire of songs, high-energy performances coupled with stunning melodic and harmonic content, and the uncompromising perfectionist approach to every aspect of their performance which is still maintained to this day."
The newly mixed and mastered album will be available in various formats: single CD (the November show), double CD (both shows), DVD or Blu-ray (the November show plus a few bonus cuts from March), double vinyl (the originally planned abridged live album from March, plus highlights from the November show), quadruple-vinyl box set (both shows in full), and super deluxe box set. The super deluxe edition includes two CDs, the DVD and Blu-ray, a 60-page hardcover book, and various memorabilia items.
The tracklists from the full shows are below. Note that this full tracklist doesn't appear in every version.
Some of the footage from November was previously released on VHS as part of the 1992 set Box of Tricks.
Meanwhile, you can see Queen's upcoming tour dates here.
Queen II Tour - March '74:
1. Procession
2. Father to Son
3. Ogre Battle
4. Son and Daughter
5. Guitar Solo
6. Son and Daughter (Reprise)
7. White Queen (As It Began)
8. Great King Rat
9. The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke
10. Keep Yourself Alive
11. Drum Solo
12. Keep Yourself Alive (Reprise)
13. Seven Seas of Rhye
14. Modern Times Rock 'n' Roll
15. Jailhouse Rock/Stupid Cupid/Be Bop A Lula (Medley)
16. Liar
17. See What a Fool I've Been
Sheer Heart Attack Tour - November '74:
1. Procession
2. Now I'm Here
3. Ogre Battle
4. Father To Son
5. White Queen (As It Began)
6. Flick of the Wrist
7. In the Lap of the Gods
8. Killer Queen
9. The March of the Black Queen
10. Bring Back That Leroy Brown
11. Son and Daughter
12. Guitar Solo
13. Son and Daughter (Reprise)
14. Keep Yourself Alive
15. Drum Solo
16. Keep Yourself Alive (Reprise)
17. Seven Seas of Rhye
18. Stone Cold Crazy
19. Liar
20. In the Lap of the Gods… Revisited
21. Big Spender
22. Modern Times Rock 'n' Roll
23. Jailhouse Rock
24. God Save the Queen
