Queen guitarist Brian May talked about when Paul Rodgers joined the band as Freddie Mercury‘s replacement in a new video shared on Queen’s official YouTube channel.
Following Freddie Mercury’s death in 1991, the remaining members of Queen rarely went on the stage except for some award ceremonies and charity concerts. After those performances, many Queen fans wanted them to perform again. However, they didn’t think that anybody could replace Mercury.
In November 2004, Queen performed with Paul Rodgers during an award ceremony after their induction into the UK Music Hall Of Fame. This was the first time they took the stage with Rodgers, and at the end of 2004, May and Taylor announced that they had decided to reunite and return touring with Rodgers’ addition.
Between 2005 and 2006, Queen + Paul Rodgers embarked on a world tour, the first time they toured as Queen after their last tour with Mercury in 1986. They then released their first studio album titled ‘The Cosmos Rock’ in 2008. However, Queen and Rodgers decided to split up one year later, on May 12, 2009.
On March 19, 2021, Queen decided to celebrate their Golden Jubilee by sharing exclusive series of clips consisting of 50 videos for 50 weeks on their YouTube channel. In the 45th episode of the band’s series posted recently, Brian May is seen talking about Paul Rodgers’ addition to the band in a 2005 interview.
Brian May stated in the interview that although people were asking them to do a Queen tour, he told them they wouldn’t consider it unless a miracle happened and they found the right person. The guitarist then said they didn’t want to perform as Queen without Mercury, but after their performance with Rodgers, he realized they had found the right person to sing.
In the video, Brian May said the following:
“We’ve done odd gigs as Queen in a sense, using guest artists. I remember saying not many months ago when somebody said, ‘Can you do a Queen tour? Can you call it Queen?’ ‘Well, no, not really. Not barring a miracle. If there’s a miracle that we find the right person to sing, then yes.’
Even though we were proud of what we’d done, we didn’t want to go out there and be Queen again without Freddie. And it happened almost by accident at an awards show. I played with Paul Rodgers, who was a hero of ours. And, I remember coming off stage, and Paul’s lady said, ‘Oh, you guys seem to really have great chemistry. All you need is a drummer.’ And I went ‘Well, I think I know a drummer!'”
You can check out the 45th episode of ‘Queen The Greatest’ below.
