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zone

Bohemian: 261 posts
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After The HotSpace record and tour Queen was never the same in America again.Some reports had fans throwing razors on stage letting Freddie know just how they felt.
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kdj2hot

Bohemian: 965 posts
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I always try to be a nice guy. then I read something I think is ignorant and idiotic and go on calling folks idiots and dummies, making myself seem like a pretentious ass: This is one of those times: Hey Dummy, number 1 they stopped touring in the USA. That more than anything else effected things in the "states". Touring always is the best way to let people know you're still out there and a way to drum up press all over the country.
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zone

Bohemian: 261 posts
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Well fist of all if you knew anything about the band you would know the reason they stopped touring the states was because of the back lash they were getting from the press and their own fans.I was there in 82 and it was hard being a Queen fan especially with Freddies new look and coming out with an album like Hot Space didn't help.It's obvious you don't know to much about the bands history. Let's try and keep this civil.
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Donna13

Royalty: 1686 posts
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After Hot Space they didn't get any radio play. We never heard their 80's music because of this. I think there was a negative reaction to Hot Space because there was a negative reaction to anything that was disco or dance music at that point. This was the period after disco and before punk rock and people were really really sick of disco at this point. There were even bumper stickers saying "Disco Sucks!". I don't really think Freddie's look had that much to do with it. However, he did change his look and I think he ended up looking too "Studio 54" (which we associated with disco) and not enough of what we thought rock stars should look like. Also John and Roger cut their hair from the long rock star look. England is usually ahead of the US when it comes to hair styles, I think, and it was much later that the American rock stars started to cut their hair shorter. So, maybe the fans in America thought they were signaling to us that they were no longer going to be a rock band. Who knows about that one. It is not like we were given the opportunity to make our minds up, because Queen just did not make themselves visible in the US after Hot Space.
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zone

Bohemian: 261 posts
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It just accord to me that KDJ2hot might of misinterpreted what I said about the razors being thrown on stage.It was to let Freddie know they didn't like the moustache not to cut his wrists.
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teleman

Bohemian: 740 posts
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Donna13 wrote: After Hot Space they didn't get any radio play. We never heard their 80's music because of this. I think there was a negative reaction to Hot Space because there was a negative reaction to anything that was disco or dance music at that point. This was the period after disco and before punk rock and people were really really sick of disco at this point. There were even bumper stickers saying "Disco Sucks!". I don't really think Freddie's look had that much to do with it. However, he did change his look and I think he ended up looking too "Studio 54" (which we associated with disco) and not enough of what we thought rock stars should look like. Also John and Roger cut their hair from the long rock star look. England is usually ahead of the US when it comes to hair styles, I think, and it was much later that the American rock stars started to cut their hair shorter. Sorry but you have your time periods wrong. Punk was a mid to late 70s thing. Think Ramones, Sex Pistols, The Damned, The Clash etc. They were all from the 70s. Disco was slightly earlier than Punk but both predated 'Hot Space' by a few years. 'Hot Space was a major departure from what they'd done before and there was a backlash to that. There was also a backlash to Freddie's 'gay' fashion. I remember people really disliking it. The final nail in the coffin was the 'I Want To Break Free' video. North Americans didn't really get the humour because they didn't know about the TV show Queen were copying. Most saw it as a very "Gay" video. I knew people who had been huge Queen fans up to that time. North America in the 80s was not very open minded in some ways. There were other factors which also came into play as well. There has been a lot of interesting discussion on these boards about this very subject. I'm too lazy to do a search and point to these threads but you might find them of interest.
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Donna13

Royalty: 1686 posts
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Thanks for the clarificaton on the time periods.
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RETROLOVE

Deity: 2522 posts
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One word to describe Queen's relationship in America- BITTERSWEET! I just didnt get the whole being against the "I want to break free" video...I mean come on, its such a cute video...but hey, I was born in 1983...so thats nothing to me...but yeah, its just a shame becuase other British bands get soooooo much respect here in the states...and Queen gets some, but not as much as they should... I think too, the timing for releasing hotspaces was all wrong, because thats when disco really faded out...ya know...
Loving the pass, cherishing the present, and looking forward to the future
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goinback

Bohemian: 997 posts
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I still believe Brian's explanation of their record A&R guy pissing everyone off was the real reason...though Flash Gordon, Hot Space and the IWTBF video didn't help.
"I have no time for Time magazine. Or Rolling Stone." Jethro Tull
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radio_what's_new

Bohemian: 542 posts
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I think the thing what really caused queens dead in the usa was the video for I want to break free. Apart from liberated places as new york, americans didn't understand the humor of it....stupid rednecks
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ninehi

Be Gentle, I'm a newbie: 9 posts
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We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions was the first nail. Overplayed to the Bay City Rollers effect. Thing Called Love was the second nail. Compared to Ozzy's Blizzard Of Ozz album, they lost a lot of the male audience with this track. Final nail Hot Space & Body Language, nobody cared after that. The video for I Wanna Break Free really didn't get much play.
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Poo, again

Deity: 4776 posts
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*throws razors in all directions*
[QUOTE][QUOTENAME]Jake? wrote: I want him to shove it down my throat and shoot. Shoot! Shoot! C'mon! SHOOT! SHOOT!
[/QUOTENAME]
[/QUOTE]
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radio_what's_new

Bohemian: 542 posts
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ninehi wrote: We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions was the first nail. Overplayed to the Bay City Rollers effect. Thing Called Love was the second nail. Compared to Ozzy's Blizzard Of Ozz album, they lost a lot of the male audience with this track. Final nail Hot Space & Body Language, nobody cared after that. The video for I Wanna Break Free really didn't get much play. CLTCL reached number 1 in the USA so no nail there
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billycat

Bohemian: 103 posts
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I remember the Radio Ga Ga video being shown on Mtv what seemed like all the time. Can't remember if it was on the radio much though. That was the last I recall seeing much of Queen in the US though until Innuendo.
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Winter Land Man

Jake
Deity: 4400 posts
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Donna13 wrote: After Hot Space they didn't get any radio play. We never heard their 80's music because of this. I think there was a negative reaction to Hot Space because there was a negative reaction to anything that was disco or dance music at that point. This was the period after disco and before punk rock and people were really really sick of disco at this point. There were even bumper stickers saying "Disco Sucks!". I don't really think Freddie's look had that much to do with it. However, he did change his look and I think he ended up looking too "Studio 54" (which we associated with disco) and not enough of what we thought rock stars should look like. Also John and Roger cut their hair from the long rock star look. England is usually ahead of the US when it comes to hair styles, I think, and it was much later that the American rock stars started to cut their hair shorter. So, maybe the fans in America thought they were signaling to us that they were no longer going to be a rock band. Who knows about that one. It is not like we were given the opportunity to make our minds up, because Queen just did not make themselves visible in the US after Hot Space. Radio GaGa was never played? Well it was played on MTV I know, cause they play the top 20. And Radio GaGa was part of it. And I know they played Hot Space tracks on the radio... and according to others, they heard some other stuff from 'The Works' and 'A Kind Of Magic' as well as someone mentioning they heard 'stuff from 'The Miracle'... I know they played things from 'Innuendo'. One person who was out of Queen for a couple years, first heard Queen again on Freddie's death when 'These Are The Days Of Our Lives' was on the radio, and they got into it again (or something like that). I believe someone recalls hearing 'I Want It All' a LOT on their radio station, and according to 'mainstream rock' which is basically radio, it was #3, and they play the top 40, so that's pretty good.
"Please buy my upcoming album... I need the money"
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ninehi

Be Gentle, I'm a newbie: 9 posts
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radio_what's_new wrote: CLTCL reached number 1 in the USA so no nail there Yeah it became music your parents & little sister listened to. It surpassed Do That To Me One More Time by the Capt. & Tennille. Ozzy, AC/DC & Van Halen=Cool by teenage North American males, Queen was not at this time. The Game was an album I had to listen to at home, at high school I had Ozzy. NAIL
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zone

Bohemian: 261 posts
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Your right I only really listen to Queen at home.At school and out with my friends it was always Zeppelin Van Halen and Def Leppard.
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coops

Bohemian: 410 posts
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Looking back, it's amusing that Queen and FM were so popular when he wore leotards and sequins, finger nail polish, was very camp and so on, but start wearing jeans and a "gay" moustache, and you are no longer cool. In the 80's MTV was becoming popular and video sold singles/albums, and the IWTBF video just did not cut it here. The humor was lost, sales were poor and who tours a country after poor sales?
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queenfan7474

Rocker: 46 posts
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I love how everyone says the "gay" part of the i want to break free video was the guys dressed up as women.The gay part is the extended middle part with freddie rolling around on the other bodies,blowing the horn and being carried around.That part was the gay part.As far as why their popularity lessened,i think its because their music became uninspired pop.Also because they did 2 soundtracks to two horrible movies and like everyone said,didnt tour here.Check the charts from the Works.GA GA,Break Free,and Hard Life all charted.Not touring here didnt help support that.After that it was too late.
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Donna13

Royalty: 1686 posts
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I do remember hearing Radio Ga Ga played on the radio a few times, but not much.
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