ILD Web Event: Freddy 4 a Day
Tomorrow, September 5, I Love Disco, following the example of Hard Rock Cafés around the world, celebrates “FREDDY FOR A DAY.” How will we do it? By organizing a web event directly on the ILOVEDISCOOfficial Facebook page. And you, Discolovers, cannot miss it!
Memories, songs, images, and trivia about the greatest legend in world rock, FREDDY MERCURY of Queen, will follow one another for an entire day, non-stop. Everyone knows the songs that made him a Rock legend worldwide, but few know about his private life. Let us try, then, to discover something more about the man: who was Freddie? Where was he born? What instrument could he play? What was his first band? Who did he love? What was he like in his private life?
Freddie Mercury was born on September 5, 67 years ago in Zanzibar, Stone Town to be exact.
Contrary to what people think, he arrived in England only at eighteen, and his schooling began in India. From the start, his natural propensity for music was evident, so much so that the St. Peter Boarding School in Bombay itself recommended to the family additional piano lessons for the young Farrokh Bulsara (this was in fact his birth name).
His early London days were a continuous wandering between studying and searching for the ‘right’ band to play in. He tried unsuccessfully with the Smile of Tim Staffell and future bandmates Brian May and Roger Taylor, then joined Ibex, a band from nearby Liverpool.
But on September 9, 1969, something happened that marked their lives. Whether by astral alignment or simple luck, on that September 9, both rock groups, Smile and Ibex, performed in Liverpool. It is said that Taylor and May invited young Bulsara on stage to perform some songs. It was the first official contact between the three musicians, but Roger Taylor had already heard him sing in some gay clubs, which he regularly frequented, despite being straight.
Tim Staffell left his two bandmates at the end of the year. May and Taylor then decided to hire Farrokh, “Freddie,” as lead singer: thus Queen was born. The band’s logo was designed by Mercury himself, who, in addition to the phoenix, also reproduced the band’s zodiac signs.
Remembered by all for his voice, his performances charged with sensuality, and his histrionic shows, Freddie was above all a brilliant songwriter.
May and Taylor themselves admitted in an interview that there was great competitiveness within Queen for writing lyrics, and Freddie was certainly the one who best knew how to reinvent himself. It was an innate talent. He composed most of his songs at the piano, but for him everything was a source of inspiration.
From his first public appearances, he showed himself to be a stage animal. Great charisma, an imposing presence, and an extravagant character. He took the name Freddie Mercury following the composition of My Fairy King.
In a 1974 interview, he made his homosexuality public and thus became an icon for the gay movement. The clothing selected for various performances, most often adorned with heavy makeup, simply contributed to increasing the spectacle of his concerts and enhancing the character. The look changes were many and always sudden, from long hair and white jacket and suit, to short hair and mustache with tight outfits and flashy makeup. He always said: ‘a concert is not a live rendition of our album. It is a theatrical event.’
1989 coincided with his decision to withdraw from public life. It was precisely during that period that he confirmed he had contracted the HIV virus; however, the news was kept semi-hidden almost until the end and, ironically, the announcement of the illness was made by Mercury himself with a statement issued on November 23, 1991, the day before his tragic death. Here it is:
“…I wish to confirm that I have tested positive for the HIV virus and have contracted AIDS. I felt it appropriate to keep this information private until now in order to protect the privacy of those around me. However, the time has come for my friends and fans around the world to know the truth, and I hope that everyone will join me, the doctors who are treating me, and those around the world in the fight against this terrible disease…”
Only 35 people attended his funeral, including his partner Jim Hutton, Elton John, Michael Jackson, and David Bowie. Ten million pounds, half of his estate, went to Mary Austin, the rest to his family. To his partner Jim, 500,000 pounds.
On April 20, 1992, the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert was organized at Wembley Stadium (London), the proceeds of which were directed to the newly established “Mercury Phoenix Trust,” an association committed to fighting the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The funds that will also be raised tomorrow, September 5, with the worldwide event “FREDDY FOR A DAY” will be donated to the “Mercury Phoenix Trust,” because as Freddy would say: “the show must go on”!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xXny7VDjpY
