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Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1970 by Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (guitar, vocals) and Roger Taylor (drums, vocals), later joined by John Deacon (bass). Their earliest works were influenced by progressive rock, hard rock and heavy metal, but the band gradually ventured into more conventional and radio-friendly works by incorporating further styles, such as arena rock and pop rock.

Before forming Queen, May and Taylor had played together in the band Smile. Mercury was a fan of Smile and encouraged them to experiment with more elaborate stage and recording techniques. He joined in 1970 and suggested the name "Queen". Deacon was recruited in February 1971, before the band released their debut album in 1973. Queen first charted in the UK with their second album, Queen II, in 1974. Sheer Heart Attack later that year and A Night at the Opera in 1975 brought them international success. The latter featured "Bohemian Rhapsody", which stayed at number one in the UK for nine weeks and helped popularise the music video format.

The band's 1977 album News of the World contained "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions", which have become anthems at sporting events. By the early 1980s, Queen were one of the biggest stadium rock bands in the world. "Another One Bites the Dust" from The Game (1980) became their best-selling single, while their 1981 compilation album Greatest Hits is the best-selling album in the UK and is certified nine times platinum in the US. Their performance at the 1985 Live Aid concert is ranked among the greatest in rock history by various publications. In August 1986, Mercury gave his last performance with Queen at Knebworth, England.

Though he kept his condition private, Mercury was diagnosed with AIDS in 1987. The band released two more albums, The Miracle in 1989 and Innuendo in 1991. On 23 November 1991, Mercury publicly revealed that he had AIDS, and the next day died of bronchopneumonia, a complication of AIDS. One more album was released featuring Mercury's vocal, 1995's Made in Heaven. John Deacon retired in 1997, while May and Taylor continued to make sporadic appearances together. Since 2004 they have toured as "Queen +", with vocalists Paul Rodgers and Adam Lambert.

Queen have been a global presence in popular culture for more than half a century. Estimates of their record sales range from 250 million to 300 million, making them one of the world's best-selling music artists. In 1990, Queen received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, and with each member having composed hit singles all four were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003. In 2005 they received the Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Song Collection from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers, and Authors, and in 2018 they were presented the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

History1968–1971: Foundations

Queen in 1970. Left to right; Mike Grose, Roger Taylor, Freddie Mercury and Brian May

The founding members of Queen met in West London during the late 1960s. Guitarist Brian May had built his own guitar with his father in 1963, and formed the group 1984 (named after Orwell's novel) the following year with singer Tim Staffell.[1] May left the group in early 1968 to focus on his degree in Physics and Infrared Astronomy at Imperial College and find a group that could write original material.[2] He formed the group Smile with Staffell (now playing bass) and keyboardist Chris Smith.[3] To complete the line-up, May placed an advertisement on a college notice board for a "Mitch Mitchell/Ginger Baker type" drummer; Roger Taylor, a young dental student, auditioned and got the job.[4] Smith left the group in early 1969, immediately before a gig at the Royal Albert Hall with Free and the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band.[5]

While attending Ealing Art College in west London, Staffell became friends with fellow student Freddie Bulsara, who was from Zanzibar and of Indian Parsi descent.[6][7] Bulsara had studied fashion design for a year before switching to graphic art and design,[8] and soon became a keen fan of Smile. He asked if he could join the group as lead singer, but May felt Staffell would not give up that role.[9] He also ran a stall in Kensington Market with Taylor.[10]

PRS for Music heritage award commemorating Queen's first performance, Prince Consort Road, London

In 1970, Staffell quit Smile, feeling his interests in soul and R&B clashed with the group's hard rock sound and being fed up with the lack of success. He formed the group Humpy Bong with former Bee Gees drummer Colin Petersen.[11] The remaining members accepted Bulsara as lead singer, and recruited Taylor's friend Mike Grose as bassist. The four played their first gig at a fundraising event in Truro on 27 June 1970.[12] Bulsara suggested the group should be renamed to "Queen". The others were uncertain at first, but he said, "it's wonderful, dear, people will love it".[12] At the same time, he decided to change his surname to Mercury, inspired by the line "Mother Mercury, look what they've done to me" in the song "My Fairy King".[13] The group played their first London gig on 18 July.[14] The early set consisted of material that would later appear on the first two albums, along with various rock and roll covers, such as Cliff Richard and the Shadows' "Please Don't Tease". They attracted the attention of producer John Anthony, who was interested in the group's sound but thought they had the wrong bass player.[13] After three live gigs, Mike Grose decided not to continue with the band and was replaced by Barry Mitchell (ex Crushed Butler) on bass guitar. Mitchell played thirteen gigs with Queen between August 1970 to January 1971. [15] In turn, Barry Mitchell left in January 1971 and was replaced by Doug Bogie for two live gigs.[16]

In 1974, ABBA were Sweden's first winner of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Waterloo", which in 2005 was chosen as the best song in the competition's history as part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the contest.[3] During the band's main active years, it consisted of two married couples: Fältskog and Ulvaeus, and Lyngstad and Andersson. With the increase of their popularity, their personal lives suffered, which eventually resulted in the collapse of both marriages. The relationship changes were reflected in the group's music, with later compositions featuring darker and more introspective lyrics.[4] After ABBA disbanded in December 1982, Andersson and Ulvaeus continued their success writing music for multiple audiences including stage, musicals and movies,[5][6] while Fältskog and Lyngstad pursued solo careers.[7][8]

Ten years after the group broke up, a compilation, ABBA Gold, was released, becoming a worldwide best-seller. In 1999, ABBA's music was adapted into Mamma Mia!, a stage musical that toured worldwide and, as of April 2022, is still in the top-ten longest running productions on both Broadway (closed in 2015) and the West End (still running). A film of the same name, released in 2008, became the highest-grossing film in the United Kingdom that year. A sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, was released in 2018.

ABBA are among thebest-selling music artists in history, with record sales estimated to be between 150 million to 385 million sold worldwide[13][14]and the group were ranked 3rd best-selling singles artists in the United Kingdom with a total of 11.3 million singles sold by 3 November 2012.[15]In May 2023 ABBA were awarded the BRIT Billion Award which celebrates those who have surpassed the milestone of one billion UK streams in their career.[16]ABBA were the first group from a non-English-speaking country to achieve consistent success in the charts of English-speaking countries, including theUnited Kingdom,Australia,United States,Republic of Ireland,Canada,New ZealandandSouth Africa.[17]They are the best-selling Swedish band of all time[18]and the best-selling band originating incontinental Europe. ABBA had eight consecutive number-one albums in the UK. The group also enjoyed significant success in Latin America and recorded acollectionof their hit songs in Spanish. ABBA were inducted into theVocal Group Hall of Famein 2002.[19]The group were inducted into theRock and Roll Hall of Famein 2010, the first recording artists to receive this honour from outside an Anglophonic country.[20]In 2015, their song "Dancing Queen" was inducted into theRecording Academy'sGrammy Hall of Fame.[21]

The Show Must Go On – Multi-Tribute Show Band – Including Queen Tribute Finale

An exciting new concept in tribute show entertainment! The Show Must Go On includes multiple tribute acts, all appearing on the same bill: Freddie Mercury (Queen), David Bowie, Madonna, Robbie Williams, The Police, Blondie, Dire Straits, Elvis Costello, & Bryan Ferry. There really is no other tribute show like this! The show is a seamless flow of world-class tribute artists with a live band, providing more variety than could ever be imagined. The finale is an amazing reproduction of Queen’s Live Aid performance featuring an outstanding Freddie Mercury (Queen) tribute performer.

If you want variety in your tribute show entertainment then this is what you are looking for!

This show is based in Perth and is now taking bookings to perform throughout Australia. Once the international boarders are lifted, we will accept bookings from overseas promotors for Asia and the Pacific.

ROBBIE WILLIAMS - Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, and achieved commercial success after launching a solo career in 1996. His debut studio album, Life thru a Lens, was released in 1997, and included his signature song, "Angels". His second album, I've Been Expecting You, featured the songs "Millennium" and "She's the One", his first number one singles. His discography includes seven UK No. 1 singles, and all but one of his 14 studio albums have reached No. 1 in the UK. Six of his albums are among the top 100 biggest-selling albums in the UK, with two of them in the top 60, and he gained a Guinness World Record in 2006 for selling 1.6 million tickets in a single day during his Close Encounters Tour.[1]

Williams has received a record 18 Brit Awards, winning Best British Male Artist four times, Outstanding Contribution to Music twice, an Icon Award for his lasting impact on British culture, eight German ECHO Awards, and three MTV European Music Awards.[2][3] In 2004, he was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame after being voted the Greatest Artist of the 1990s. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), he has been certified for 20.2 million albums and 8.66 million singles in the UK as a solo artist.[4] Five of his albums have also topped the Australian albums chart, and has sold 75 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He also topped the 2000–2010 UK airplay chart. His three concerts at Knebworth in 2003 drew over 375,000 people, the UK's biggest music event to that point.[5] In 2014, he was awarded the freedom of his hometown of Stoke-on-Trent and had a tourist trail created and streets named in his honour. Williams' thirteenth album, XXV was released on 9 September 2022.[6][7]

After 15 years, Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 to co-write and perform lead vocals on their album Progress, which became the second-fastest-selling album in UK chart history[8] and the fastest-selling record of the century at the time.[9] The subsequent stadium tour, which featured seven songs from Williams' solo career, became the biggest-selling concert in UK history when it sold 1.34 million tickets in less than 24 hours. In 2011, Take That frontman Gary Barlow confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time to focus on his solo career, although he stated that the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin Take That in the future.[10] Williams has since performed with Take That on three separate television appearances,[11][12][13] and collaborated with Barlow on a number of projects[14] such as the West End musical The Band.[15]

THE BLUES BROTHERS - is the name of a rhythm-and-blues band fronted, incognito, by comedians Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi.
Belushi (as vocalist Jake Blues) and Aykroyd (as harpist Elwood Blues), both members of the original cast of NBC’s Saturday Night Live television program, created The Blues Brothers and their alternate identities in early 1976 to warm up SNL audiences.

The Blues Brothers made their first appearance on air at SNL, with Belushi and Aykroyd dressed in the bee costumes they normally wore for the ‘Killer Bees’ sketch, performing Slim Harpo’s ‘I’m a King Bee.’ In the weeks following that performance, The Blues Brothers became a popular addition to the show and began to appear on a semi-regular basis. Part of the humour is the image of two men who are dressed in black suits looking like mob hitmen suddenly exploding into energetic song and dance.

Backing Jake and Elwood were top session men like guitarist Steve Cropper, bassist Donald ‘Duck’ Dunn, and Matt ‘Guitar’ Murphy.
The Blues Brothers recorded their first album, Briefcase Full of Blues, in 1978 while opening for comedian Steve Martin in Los Angeles. The album went platinum, and featured Top 40 hit covers of ‘Soul Man’ and ‘Rubber Biscuit.’

The Blues Brothers movie
In 1980, The Blues Brothers motion picture, directed by†John Landis, was released, featuring cameos by Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Cab Calloway, Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, Carrie Fisher, Frank Oz, Steven Spielberg, Joe Walsh, John Candy, and Paul Reubens. The motion picture is set in Chicago, Illinois.

The Blues Brothers also toured that year to promote the movie. Jake and Elwood released their second LP, Made in America, which included the Top 40 hits ‘Gimme Some Lovin”†and ‘Who’s Making Love’.

The movie revolves around the title characters, who are reunited at the beginning of the film as ‘Joliet’ Jake is released from Joliet Prison into his brother’s custody (he was imprisoned for armed robbery). The two almost immediately attract the attention of the police with their reckless driving habits (in an old Dodge Monaco police car, affectionately known as the Bluesmobile). Early in the film, they learn that the orphanage they were raised in is to be torn down unless the back property taxes on the building can be paid within a short time.

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

The Blues Brothers spend the rest of the film tracking down members of the Band and convincing them to rejoin, as well†as playing venues to raise the requisite $5,000. Staged and spontaneous musical numbers commence during their journey. The duo also make numerous enemies along the way, notably a neo-Nazi group, the Chicago Police, Illinois state troopers, a Country and Western band, and Jake’s former fiance who continually tries (and fails) to kill them with various methods at certain parts of the film, most involving a bazooka. Several car chases with an extremely large number of crashes result (as a parody of the car chase in the movie The French Connection).

The Blues Brothers is often regarded as the best of many films adapted from Saturday Night Live sketches.In 1981, The Best of the Blues Brothers was released.On March 5, 1982, Belushi died in Hollywood of an accidental drug overdose.

In 1988 Cropper, Dunn, Murphy and others re-formed The Blues Brothers Band for a world tour. They released an album of new material in 1992 entitled Red White and Blues, which included a guest appearance from Elwood Blues. A ykroyd started his House of Blues franchise, an international chain of blues clubs. As Elwood, he hosts the syndicated ‘House of Blues Radio Hour.’In 1998, Blues Brothers 2000 was released to theaters but had none of the spirit and charm of the first film and failed miserably. It featured John Goodman singing with Aykroyd and cameos by Blues Traveler, B.B. King, Erykah Badu, Junior Wells, Taj Mahal, Lonnie Brooks, James Brown, Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Paul Shaffer, Koko Taylor, Bo Diddley, Isaac Hayes, Dr. John, Lou Rawls,Travis Tritt, Jimmie Vaughan, Wilson Pickett and many others, many of whom featured as members of the fictional band The Louisiana Gator Boys.

1978 Briefcase Full of Blues (Atlantic)

1980 The Blues Brothers: Music from the Soundtrack (Atlantic)

1980 Made in America (Atlantic)

1981 Best of the Blues Brothers (Atlantic)

1983 Dancin’ Wid Da Blues Brothers (Atlantic)

1988 Everybody Needs the Blues Brothers

1990 The Blues Brothers Band Live in Montreux (recorded on July 12, 1989 at the Montreux Casino with Eddie Floyd and Larry “T” Thurston, vocals)[13]

1992 Red, White & Blues (Turnstyle)[14]

1992 The Definitive Collection (Atlantic/WEA)

1995 The Very Best of The Blues Brothers (Atlantic)

1997 Blues Brothers & Friends: Live from House of Blues (A&M)

1998 Blues Brothers 2000: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

1998 The Blues Brothers Complete (Atlantic)[15]

2003 The Essentials (Warner Strategic)[16]