ICON TRIBUTE: Remembering Freddie Mercury - Lead Singer of 80's rockband QUEEN

HAPPY 65th BIRTHDAY FREDDIE

Best know as the outrageously flamboyant front man for the rock group QUEEN. Freddie Mercury was unquestionably one of the most talented singer-song writer's of the 20th century. Today we would be celebrating his 65th birthday.

Mercury fronted QUEEN through 18 albums and help make them one of the biggest selling rock groups in recording history.    In 1973, the band released their first self-titled album, but it took two more recordings for Queen’s music to really catch on. Their third record, Sheer Heart Attack (1974), featured their first hit, "Killer Queen," a song about a high-class call girl. The single hit No. 2 on the U.K. charts, and peaked at No. 12 in the U.S.

With a sound that has been described as a fusion of hard rock and glam rock, Queen had an even bigger hit the following year with their album, A Night at the Opera (1975). Mercury wrote the song "Bohemian Rhapsody," a seven-minute rock operetta, for the album. Overdubbing his voice, Mercury showed off his impressive four-octave vocal range on this innovative track. The song hit the top of the charts in Britain and became a Top 10 hit in the United States.

In addition to his talents as a singer and songwriter, Mercury was also a skilled showman. He knew how to entertain audiences and how to connect with them. He liked to wear costumes—often featuring skintight spandex—and strutted around the stage, encouraging fans to join in the fun. Artistic in nature, Mercury was also actively involved in designing the art for many of the group’s albums.

Queen's popularity continued to soar through the late 70s and early 80s. "We Are the Champions," off of News of the World (1978), became a Top 10 hit in the United States and in Britain. It was featured on a single with “We Will Rock You”—both songs have taken on a life of their own as popular anthems played at sporting events. Always exploring new and different sounds, Queen also tried their hand at the big music trend of the time, with the disco-flavored “Another Bites the Dust” in 1980. Off that same album, The Game (1980), Mercury and the rest of the band showed their range as performers with the rockabilly-influenced hit “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” which Mercury penned.

Mercury's proverbial performance at 1985's Live Aid Concert has been judged rocks greatest ever and put the personally enigmatic Mercury on the list of the greatest singers of all time. How great he could of become remains a mystery. It was 1987 and an unknown disease was about to infect the world. A silent killer that would take the lives of many including the life of one of the greatest singers in rock history.
On November 23, 1991, Mercury released a statement: “I wish to confirm that I have been tested HIV positive and have AIDS. The next day Freddie Mercury passed.