Brian May has rejected the accusation that he and Roger Taylor keep resurrecting Queen in order to make money.
He insist they only come back because fans want them to – and he wouldn’t like to do so any more often than he does.
The late Freddie Mercury’s bandmates are gearing up to tour as Queen with Adam Lambert, with a run of arena shows booked across the US during June and July.
Asked if he’s only doing it as a cash-grab, May tells The Times Of Malta: “We don’t need the money. We don’t need the fame. So why would we do it? It’s because people want it.
“If the Queen legacy is going on and on it’s not because of us. Just now and again it’s nice to give people what they want – that’s all I can say.”
After two decades of full-time work behind Mercury, May says he wouldn’t go back to that level of commitment. “I like doing it,” he reflects, “but I don’t have to do it, and I certainly don’t want to do it all the time any more. I like to have the freedom to do astronomy and to try to change the world.”
In the same interview the guitarist recalls working on Mother Love, the last song Mercury worked on before his death in 1991.
May says: “For each line he did four takes, then we’d write another. Vodka gave him his strength – he’d take a shot and he’d go, ‘Write me more; give me more lyrics. I want to do this, then you can finish it when I’m gone.’
“He was completely focused. He knew he wouldn’t be there long.”
Mercury was unable to complete the recording, leaving May to sing the final verse. The guitarist remembers of the writing process: “Underneath we’re talking about, where’s Freddie going? And where are we all going eventually?”
