Review
by Collectors
music reviews
All good releases require a sequel and the
Master Stroke label followed up their initial release with Rare Cuts
Vol. 2. Just like the first, the second volume anthologizes the
rare tracks from Queen’s career, this time A Night At The Opera in
1975 through Jazz in 1978.
The first track is a “piano” version of “Bohemian
Rhapsody.” All the instruments are removed from the track except
for the piano. The vocal performance is the same as found on A
Night At The Opera with some difference in the mix during the middle
“opera” section. Mixes like this are beneficial in focusing upon
a specific part of a song, and this one is good for emphasizing
Freddie’s actual vocal delivery of the studio cut.
The narrative in the song has always been mysterious.
Why did his momma shoot a man? Why did she pull “my” trigger?
Why does he have to leave and “face the truth?” But the vocals
have enough passion and conviction to gloss over its vagaries.
The rest of the tracks are culled from official
releases that can be easily found. “Fat Bottomed Girls” is the
Malouf mix from the 1991 Hollywood remaster of Jazz. It has
some phasing added to the vocals and guitar and drum effects, and has
slightly different lyrics at the end when Freddie sings “them dirty
ladies get me every time.”
“Tie Your Mother Down” is another remix from the
1991 Hollywood edition of Queen’s catalogue. Minor vocal effects
added to Freddie’s lead vocal and some lead guitar removed. The
differences are minor but are effective. It is followed by another
1991 remix “I’m In Love With My Car.” This version starts with
a vocal phased intro of the band singing “I’m in love with my car”
with engine sound effects and goes into the normal drum/piano intro.
The same chorus is used at the end.
“Death On Two Legs” is called “The eYe
Version,” taken from the EA videogame released in 1998. The game
uses a forty-second clip, but this track is a three minute long edit
without the lead vocals. This version is very good at emphasizing
the diabolic piano melody Freddie composed for the tune. It’s the
product of a very angry mind and shows how vicious (in music) he could be.
It’s followed by
another 1991 Hollywood remix. “You’re My Best Friend” from A
Night At The Opera sounds almost identical to the regular studio cut.
Freddie’s vocal is a bit louder, but otherwise there is nothing
interesting about it.
The Trent Reznor remix of “Stone Cold Crazy” was released on a three
track promo CD and the Hollywood Records Freakshow promo sampler
CD among others. It’s a great remix, sounding close to NIN circa
the Broken EP, a mix between the Queen song and “Happiness In
Slavery.” Reznor thrown in some samples from “Sheer Heart
Attack” and studio sound bites such as Freddie saying “that should
have been a good take” at the end.
“Sweet Lady” is simply the live version from the famous Hyde Park
performance in 1976 and is taken from the DVD Classic Albums: The
Making Of A Night At The Opera. This take isn’t
available on any official CD.
The demo for “You Take
My Breath Away” is a simple run-through with Freddie on piano.
It’s followed by the last 1991 Hollywood Records remix in the
collection. “Somebody To Love” has little touches here and
there, but nothing too significant or interesting.
“Fight From The Inside” from News Of The World
is taken from The eYe. It’s a three minute long instrumental track
showcasing the bizarre rhythms of the track. It’s followed by the
1977 BBC version of “We Will Rock You.” This version
incorporates both the “slow” track and the “fast” arrangement,
with Roger Taylor reading from Herman Hesse’s Siddhartha as a
bridge.
“Get Down, Make Love,” another track from News
Of The World, is simply a more raw mix of the studio track. It
lasts fifteen seconds longer, has less reverb and affects in the verses,
and ends with Freddie’s “love,” a period of silence, and a cymbal
crash instead of only Freddie’s “love” like the official version.
“Feelings, Feelings” is a Brian May written outtake
from the News Of The World sessions and two takes are in current
circulation. Take number ten was included on the 2011 re-release of
the album, so Master Stroke offer take nine. It starts off with
studio chatter saying “number nine” in the same intonation as John
Lennon on “Revolution #9″ from The Beatles. Thought
to be from earlier in their career, it’s a basic and enjoyable rock
number.
“More Of That Jazz” from is taken from The eYe
game. It’s a simple instrumental without vocals and the snippets
of the other songs found on the studio cut. It starts off with the
opening guitar chords instead of the lazy drum beat, but otherwise is the
same as found on Jazz.
“It’s Late” dates from the October 1977 BBC radio
session. Found on countless bootlegs, it’s is a strange edit of
the studio cut and the ecstasy middle of “Get Down, Make Love.”
“Sheer Heart Attack” is an edit found on the Queen
Rocks VHS release. It’s almost identical to the News Of The
World mix except missing some of the guitar effects. It’s followed
by the High Definition mix of “Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)”
found on Jewels II and Japan 2008 In Vision.
The final track in this collection is a
semi-instrumental version of “We Are The Champions.” Freddie’s
vocals from the verses is missing, but the chorus of “we are the
champions” is intact. It’s interesting and a nice addition, but
not very revealing.
Overall Rare Cuts Vol. 2 is a good release,
but not very ground breaking. Almost all of these tracks can
be found in other collections in similar sound quality. We could
assume that other volumes, covering their eighties and nineties output,
will be forth coming and hopefully will have actual rarities making it
worth having. |
