I’ve been studying for my microbiology tests that are coming up in this week. I’m actually really into this material, so studying isn’t like “studying,” if you know what I mean.
Anyhow, I take a few breaks here and there because no matter how much “fun” microbiology is, it still doesn’t compare to music (sorry to all you microbiologists). I usually have my iPod on “shuffle” when I take these breaks, and whaddyaknow, Queen’s monster magnum opus “Bohemian Rhapsody” came on.
I must admit, I haven’t heard the song in quite a long time… it’s always a joy to listen to because it’s one of those songs that… no matter how many times you hear it, you always find something new to notice.
What did I notice this time around? That I have never heard the song performed live in its entirety. Sure, Queen has played it countless times live, but the middle “opera” section is always done with a backing tape. I don’t blame them for doing that because it’s such a classic section… as a Queen fan, I just want to sing every part of it at the top of my lungs, especially the “Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me!” line. As a kid I would ask my mom, “Who is Beezlebub?”
My mom would look at me and say, “Are you on drugs?”
Anyhow, I looked up “Bohemian Rhapsody” on Wikipedia and found a huge breakdown of the structure… a most interesting read. If you haven’t seen this page, click here and you’ll waste a good 30 minutes reading it.
At the end of the page, I read about the only time the song has ever been performed completely live (even the opera section). It apparently happened on June 3, 2002 at the Party at the Palace, a gala concert event celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s 50th year as England’s monarch.
So then I went to the ever-faithful YouTube.com and found this video:
Frikkin’ amazing!!!!! I totally dug it with a capital “DUG IT.”
I’ll admit that the guy’s voice at 4:38 (what’s with the interspersed falsetto crap?) annoyed me, but overall it was a solid performance. The opera section sounded great and everybody appeared to have fun with it. There was even the held over note on the “Let me gooooo” line. Nice!
So my point to this post is for you to watch the frikkin’ video. And go pick up Queen’s album, A Night at the Opera. I played that album about ten trillion times when I was about 20 years old… one of the greatest albums ever recorded.
And now, for no other reason than to look at it and say “What the hell?” Here’s Lady Gaga showing that oral sex is STILL sex, no matter how you look at it… so in order to stick with the abstinence plan, pick up one of these:
Here’s a funny… kidshealth.org states that “Abstinence is 100% effective in preventing pregnancy.” Hmmm… can’t argue with that… but so is cutting off Little Swap… and that’s just not gonna happen.
Your Dig-It Download:
Download: Bohemian Rhapsody (live at Live Aid)
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