FEATURE:
Second Spin
Queen – The Miracle
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THERE seems to be this split…
of people who really love Queen’s music and those who have no time for it. I have always been someone who has embraced what they do but, even in their fanbase, there seems to be this division. Maybe their goldens days were between 1974-1976 when they released Sheer Heart Attack, A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races a year apart from one another. It is a brilliant run of albums and stands as the most revered – in critical terms – spell. Albums after 1976 were not exactly hit and miss, but they didn’t receive the same sort of celebration and respect from critics. I don’t think Queen have ever made a bad album; their standard was pretty high, and there are a few albums that contain filler, for sure. That said, even their less successful and hits-jammed albums have really great songs on them. One album that received mixed reviews upon its release – and continues to do so now – is The Miracle. The thirteenth album by the band, it was released on 22nd May, 1989. The album was recorded as the band reacted and recovered from Brian May’s marital problems and the devastating news of Freddie Mercury’s AIDS diagnosis in 1987. It must have been an extremely challenging time for the band learning that their lead and friend was dying. Regardless, the band continued on and recording of The Miracle began in 1988.
Recording started in January 1988 and lasted for an entire year. The last Queen album to feature photos of all the members on the cover, I think some critics were a little unfair towards the album and its songs. I think The Miracle stands alongside the great Queen albums. I Want It All is an obvious standout; composed in 1987, it is a Brian May song and one of the best from the band’s cannon. Mercury delivers a sensational lead vocal, and he is joined by May on the bridge of the track. Breakthru is another wonderful song, written by Roger Taylor, and it was released as a single and made the top-ten in the summer of 1989. The Invisible Man, another gem, is a Taylor song. Each of the band members are name-checked in the song by Mercury. Oddly, Taylor wrote the song in his bath – as Mercury did for Crazy Little Thing Called Love -, and it is one of my favourite Queen songs. Even though it was a tricky personal period for Queen, I think they released a really solid album that is not often talked about today. Most of the reviews I have seen are two/three-star (out of five), but I feel The Miracle is ripe for reinvestigation. This is what Rolling Stone offered when they reviewed The Miracle in 1989:
“Basically, The Miracle is a showcase for Freddie Mercury and his love of sweeping, quasi-operatic vocals. And indeed, Mercury — especially on the title track — has never sounded better. One of his strengths is his ability to take even the schlockiest material and make it his own, and that gift comes in handy on The Miracle.
Brian May is still in fighting trim, too — when you can hear him. May’s role on The Miracle is, for the most part, limited to a quick, typically brilliant solo here and there. As a result, the album lacks the sense of dynamics that marked most of Queen’s early work. Only on a few tracks (“Khashoggi’s Ship” and “Was It All Worth It”) does May really let it rip, and when he does, it’s like the old Queen peeping out for just a moment and then turning tail. If you’re a fan who’s been hankering for years to hear Queen get back to the bombast of its heyday, replace your old copy of A Night at the Opera or News of the World instead. But don’t give up hope. At least The Miracle offers little snippets of Queen’s former majesty”.
I have found a few good reviews for The Miracle, but most tend to a bit mixed and not entirely positive. Although AllMusic awarded the album three out of five stars, they did have some positive points to make:
“Following their massive 1986 European stadium tour for the A Kind of Magic album, Queen took an extended break. Rumors swirled about an impending breakup, but it turned out the break was brought on by a painful marital divorce for guitarist Brian May (who subsequently battled depression and contemplated suicide), and Freddie Mercury being diagnosed with AIDS. Instead of sinking further into misery, the band regrouped, worked on each other's mental state, and recorded one of their most inspired albums, 1989's The Miracle.
Lyrically, the songs tend to reflect on the band's past accomplishments ("Khashoggi's Ship," "Was It All Worth It") as well as the state of the world in the late '80s (the title track, "I Want It All"). Produced by the band and David Richards, The Miracle packs quite a sonic punch, recalling the rich sounds of their past classics (1976's A Day at the Races, etc.). Split 50/50 between pop ("Breakthru," "The Invisible Man," "Rain Must Fall") and heavy rock (the aforementioned "I Want It All," "Khashoggi's Ship," "Was It All Worth It"), the album was another global smash, even re-establishing the band stateside (going Top 30 and attaining gold status). Along with The Game, The Miracle is Queen's strongest album of the '80s”.
Even if you are not a Queen fan, I think there is enough good stuff on The Miracle to keep you interested; from the more obvious hits to the more experimental or less immediate tracks. It is the band sounding incredible at a time when things were pretty disruptive. Although there are a couple of weaker tracks, I am a fan of The Miracle. Check it out if you can, and make…
THAT breakthrough.