Queen

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Queen in 1974. Clockwise from top: May, Taylor, Mercury, Deacon
Members
Roger Taylor Brian May
Former members
Freddie Mercury John Deacon

Queen are an English rock band formed in 1970 in London by guitarist Brian May, singer Freddie Mercury and drummer Roger Taylor, with bassist John Deacon joining the following year. Queen rose to prominence during the 1970s and are one of Britain's most successful bands of the past three decades.

The band is noted for its musical diversity, multi-layered arrangements, vocal harmonies and incorporation of audience participation into their live performances. They are regarded as one of the most accomplished rock acts to ever be on stage.

Queen had moderate success in the early 1970s, with the albums Queen and Queen II, but it was with the release of Sheer Heart Attack in 1974 and A Night at the Opera the following year that the band gained international success. From that album forward, all of the band's studio albums reached number one on numerous charts around the world. Since 1973, they have released fifteen studio albums, five live albums, and numerous compilation albums and have sold more than 300 million copies worldwide, including more than 35.5 million in the United States alone (as of 2004), making them one of the world's best-selling music artists.

Following Mercury's death and Deacon's retirement in the 1990s, May and Taylor collaborated with Paul Rodgers, under the moniker Queen + Paul Rodgers.