Jazz

by

Queen

Edit

At this point, Queen were on the verge of another makeover: this time toward a more funk/pop phase which was slightly hinted at here, but taken up even more on the next two albums following this one: _The Game_ and _Hot Space_ (excluding the Flash Gordon soundtrack.)

It seems that this album gets pretty mixed reviews from diehard Queen fans, and more casual ones. My opinion of the album? I tend to agree with both sides of the camp. I'm going to get to the negative stuff first, just to get it out of the way.

While I think it's a great album, I can't help feeling that some of it seems a bit lackluster, uninspired and forced for Queen's own typical high standards, particularly during the second half. First off, the album seems a bit uneven, mainly because the hard-hitting and upbeat numbers seem to play out consecutively throughout the first half, while the second half seems more subdued in dynamics and atmosphere. Listening to the transition from a (mostly) first half of upbeat numbers to a (mostly) second half of low-key numbers can be quite a tough pill to swallow for a listener. It probably would have been nicer if the track order was switched around and mixed up more, like they did on the majority of their earlier 70s albums. All of this gives the impression that Queen got a bit hasty and careless with the production of the album, as if they were on a quick deadline to release an album within a short period of time. The overall feel of the album comes across as a bit sloppily executed, when in fact Queen were one of THE bands/producers known for their precision, meticulousness and perfectionism.

Queen fans will probably want to see me fry in hell for all of these last comments, but Queen is only my all-time favorite band, and I say all of this because Queen were a band who set high standards for themselves, and it's hard not to notice when they've stepped down a bit.

Now the goods. This is definitely a fun (and elegant) album to listen to, especially when you're in need of a good cheer-up. Hard to not feel good after listening to the sensuous, lusty and jovial/celebratory vocals of Freddie Mercury, the hypnotic crunch of Brian's self-made guitar, the bombastic drumming of Roger Talyor and John Deacon's tasty basslines backing it all up. "Mustapha" is an Arabic-like number with Freddie singing mostly wordless (but hypnotic and engrossing) vocal lines which give the track an almost spiritual aura. The musicianship is intelligent and top-notch here as well. "Fat Bottomed Girls" many probably know. "Jealousy" is an excellent number featuring Brian May playing some guitar lines that sound almost eastern. Freddie's vocals as always are convincing. "Bicycle Race" shows off the kind of perfectionism and meticulousness Queen were known for perfectly: a number with a sheer amount of complexity crammed throughout it's short playing time. I always loved how Queen made tracks that sounded like "many songs played within a single song." They managed to make their complex musical point in quarter time of what most classic progressive rockers did, which puts the latter to shame. The intelligent chords & progressions, the abrupt switches in dynamics and other factors give this track an almost symphonic quality, as it plays out like an almost ultra-quick symphony - and not to mention those ultra-classy vocal harmonies soaked throughout. During the second half of the track, Brian May manages to slip in some licks based on ionian scales for three different keys - all of which are in ascending mode. This also adds to the "symphonic" quality the track possesses.

"Let Me Entertain You" and "Dead On Time" are hard-hitters in the Queen tradition. The former features some fairly risqué lyrics, with some of Freddie's more expressive vocals, while the latter seems to return to the proto-speed metal that Queen pretty much pioneered with "Stone Cold Crazy," particularly in Brian May's frenzied riffing. This track is somewhat scary, as well as exciting. "In Only Seven Days" is a fairly low-key number written by bassist John Deacon. Features some wispy orchestration (nope, Queen didn't use synths - mostly Brian's guitar) and Freddie gives an elegant and sexy vocal performance. "Dreamer's Ball" mixes lounge jazz and Renaissance attributes - the latter in an irreverent, inorganic fashion (reminds me a bit of Gentle Giant.) "Fun It" gives the hint of things to come on later albums, as it's a funk/disco track. "Leaving Home Ain't Easy" is a nice ballad with a nice use of Brian May's gentle vocals. "Don't Stop Me Now" is just downright exciting and sophisticated. "More Of That Jazz" is a mid-tempo rocker featuring some scorching guitar licks. There's a part near the end of the track where you get a recap of the album, as you hear quick bits of a few tracks spliced together for an almost mind-warping remix.

The uneven feel of the album is the only real flaw, which causes me to take off 1/2 star from the 5 scale, but on the whole, the strengths outweigh the flaws by a longshot, as the songwriting and musicianship are still strong.

1978 saw Queen retaining their unquenchable self-belief, but struggling somewhat to maintain the standards of their first 6 albums, particularly in the song writing and album sequencing departments. Firstly, why didn't they open this album with Let Me Entertain You? This would have been as arresting an opener as Death On Two Legs was on A Night At The Opera. Nevermind...Mustapha opens proceedings with a quirky blast - I didn't really 'get' this number till I listened in the phones and heard it explode in widescreen with Brian's double-tracked guitars. Awesome! Fat Bottomed Girls is ludicrous, but fun. I find it hard to resist Brian's rockers, and despite the ridiculous words this has the feel of a Queen classic. Jealousy is a fine Freddy ballad, with some lovely acoustic flourishes from Brian. Bicycle Race, like FBG, is ridiculous, but irresistable! I don't think there's too many bands one can say that about. The musicianship and complex arrangement win through, although in terms of emotional impact, I don't think Bicycle/Fat was a patch on Rock You/Champions the previous year. I'm not a fan of most of John Deacon's songs - Best Friend and Dust being the exceptions, and I think his two songs here, If You Can't Beat 'Em and In Only Seven Days, are pop fluff. Queen usually managed to put interesting touches into all their arrangements, but John's songs too often sound like they could have been written for any forgettable 70s pop band. Let Me Entertain You is another fun, hard-rocking and not-a-little-camp number, with great riffing and drumming. Brian's Dead On Time contains mind-boggling riffing from the guitar maestro - a reminder of why he and Queen are still feted as visionaries by subsequent generations of rocking bands. Brian also shines with the lovely harmonies of Leaving Home Ain't Easy, and the jazz-blues atmospherics of Dreamers Ball. This song sounds more like a vaudevillian Freddie number, until you remember that Brian also wrote Good Company. I'm not a huge fan of Roger's songwriting either - although he does have some good rocking numbers on the earlier albums. His work here, though, truly is not up to scratch. Both Fun It and More Of That Jazz are not really songs as such - they're just ideas. Of course there are the usual nice touches, particularly from Brian, but they're not enough to turn these pieces into anything approaching memorable songs. So, overall this album doesn't suffer from its diversity as such: it suffers from the lacklustre efforts of some of the song writing. Although this album feels like the end of an era for me, in terms of Queen's loveably bombastic 70s work, it also gives an indication of what was to come - simpler recordings, 'drier' drum sounds and a bunch of filler on each album. Ah well, they had a good run - and their next album, The Game, contains at least 5 great songs. If you're a Queen fan, however, I would recommend buying Jazz, and indeed any of their first eight albums - they all have fantastic album tracks that you won't find on any Greatest Hits compilation.