Review Summary: Don't buy this unless you're a casual fan.
Ah,
Queen. The number of compilations they have released is probably somewhere in the neighborhood of infinity times two. When I go into cd stores I sometimes see Queen compilations I've never even seen before. They even released one earlier this year. This was released simultaneously with the more tasteful compilation, Classic Queen.
What I liked
Instead of being an expansive, three disc collection that has seemingly absolutely everything, this cd keeps it short and to the point. These are basically the best Queen songs that you hear on the radio. It ranges from the much overplayed Another One Bites The Dust to the underrated Seven Seas Of Rhye. This cd nearly accomplishes what it’s title says in less than 60 minutes. Non of these songs are skipable for me, except Body Language gets annoying pretty fast.
What I did not like
Obviously, just by looking at the back of this cd, there are two huge flaws. It is missing Under Pressure, and, of course, Bohemian Rhapsody. Under Pressure may be the greatest song this band ever wrote. Bohemian Rhapsody is by far the greatest hit this band ever had. What kind of a cd called “Greatest Hits” doesn’t have a band’s greatest hit? Other than that, this cd is pretty fun to listen to. It’s not great for a music junky, but more for a little kid.
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Other than the overplayed singles like We Will Rock You and Crazy Little Thing Called Love, there are a few songs that you might not previously know, but grow to love. Save Me is just plain incredible, I love all of the guitar playing in that song and Freddie's remarkable singing. Don't Stop Me Now, Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy and I Want To Break Free all fall under this category. You really can't ever grow sick of these songs.
When you look at the members of Queen, this band was stacked with talent. If you asked randomly 1,000,000 people who the greatest singer of all time is, most would probably point towards Freddie Mercury. His singing is powerful like none other, and his range is remarkable. Then there's Brian May, one of my favorite guitar players ever. I absolutely love his style, and the way he wails on Red Special. He doesn't do too much soloing, but plays a really mean lead. John Deacon wrote two of the most famous bass lines ever, so you can't deny his talent. Roger Taylor is better than the average drummer, but it's his backup vocals that work perfectly with Freddie's that make him so special. If I were to make a list of the most talented bands ever, Queen would make the top ten.
This was the second cd I ever bought, so by now I’ve gotten a little sick of it. I highly suggest buying Queen’s studio albums instead. Unfortunately, if you walk into a cd store all you’ll be able to find are endless amounts of compilations with the same songs. It’s smarter to just order them off the internet. If you buy a Queen compilation like this, you might get bored with it fast because these are, for the most part, the exact same songs you hear on the radio often. For casual fans, this and Classic Queen together have just about everything, but you might want to buy some other ultimate collection if it is priced better.
This cd could be as high as a 4.5/5 if it included the two omissions. But since those songs are so good, I’m going to have to drop it down to a 3.5.
