Jazz [Bonus Tracks]

Performer: Queen
Engineer: Geoff Workman; John Etchells
Producer: Roy Thomas Baker; Queen
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Queen: Freddie Mercury (vocals, piano); Brian May (guitar, background vocals); John Deacon (bass); Roger Taylor (drums, background vocals). Recorded in Montreux, Switzerland and Nice, France between July and October, 1978. Recording information: Montreux, Switzerland (07/1978-10/1978); Nice, France (07/1978-10/1978). Photographers: Peter Hince; David Finch. In 1978, all eyes were on Queen as they released the follow-up to their monster global hit NEWS OF THE WORLD. Predictably, JAZZ didn't achieve the massive commercial success of it's predecessor, but in aesthetic terms, it's a solid statement, and a marked progression of the band's musical vision. Though the band was already well into their "eclectic" mode by this time, the stylistic ventures the band takes on this album bring them even further afield from the heavy rock they're best known for. Freddie Mercury kicks things off with "Mustapha," a nod to his Middle Eastern origins. Queen exhibits a ribald sense of humour on "Fat Bottomed Girls." Mercury indulges his Broadway tendencies to the hilt on "IF You Can't Beat Them" and "Don't Stop Me Now," which sound like they could have come from some obscure '50s musical. The jazzy "Dreamer's Ball" and the mellow, romantic "In Only Seven Days" provide welcome contrast. Amid all this eclecticism, though, the standout tracks are the propulsive rockers "Let Me Entertain You" (whose promise they fulfill) and "Dead on Time." Famously tagged as "fascist" in a Rolling Stone review printed at the time of its 1978 release, Jazz does indeed showcase a band that does thrive upon its power, thrilling upon the hold that it has on its audience. That confidence, that self-intoxication, was hinted at on News of the World but it takes full flower here, and that assurance acts as a cohesive device, turning this into one of Queen's sleekest albums. Like its patchwork predecessor, Jazz also dabbles in a bunch of different sounds -- that's a perennial problem with Queen, where the four songwriters were often pulling in different directions -- but it sounds bigger, heavier than News, thanks to the mountains of guitars Brian May has layered all over this record. If May has indulged himself, Freddie Mercury runs riot all over this album, infusing it with an absurdity that's hard to resist. This goofiness is apparent from the galloping overture "Mustapha," and things only get a lot sillier from that point out, as the group sings the praises of "Fat Bottomed Girls" and "Bicycle Races," as May and Mercury have an unspoken competition on who can overdub the most onto a particular track while Roger Taylor steers them toward their first disco song in the gloriously dumb "Fun It." But since over-the-top campiness has always been an attribute in Queen, this kind of grand-scale exaggeration gives Jazz a sense of ridiculousness that makes it more fun than many of their other albums. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Which CD - Performance 7 / Sound 9 Q (Magazine) (p.119) - "JAZZ has aged surprisingly well....[With] a pair of genuinely great songs in the shape of 'Don't Stop Me Now' and 'Jealousy,' both with Mercury in grandstanding form..."

Queen embodied 1970s glam rock--mixing heavy riffs and intricate vocal harmonies with a gender-bending image. Freddie Mercury's operatic voice and Brian May's guitar were multi-tracked ad infinitum to create pomp-rock in the grandest sense. In the '80s, Queen tried on rockabilly, disco, and more, but always returned to their arena-rock roots. The group ended with Mercury's tragic AIDS-related death in 1991.

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