Over the summer, I visited Los Angeles for the first time. As I was planning my trip, I asked friends what should be on my “must see” list. One suggested I find out if any good bands were playing at the Hollywood Bowl so I could see a concert there. Considering the legendary status of that venue, I thought that was a great idea. But what were the chances there’d be a band playing during my visit that was as renowned as the concert hall itself?
When I saw that Queen was scheduled during the last night of my trip, I knew this was the perfect ending for my LA vacation.
Obviously, no one can match the vocal power and stage presence of the late Freddie Mercury, but Adam Lambert did as good a job fronting the legendary band as you could possibly hope for. He was not only vocally up to the challenge, but also humble about the opportunity to perform those incredible songs. It was a fantastic evening of music in one of America’s greatest live music venues!
It also gave me a renewed respect for the music of Queen. I already have all of their albums, but the show made me want to dig deeper. With that in mind, the newly announced News Of The World 40th Anniversary Edition may be just what I was looking for.
Coming out on November 17, this super deluxe box set is packed with great extras. We’ll get the obligatory original album remastered (it’s the 2011 remaster, so it may or may not be an upgrade for you, depending on what version you already have), plus two more discs of music. One disc features the “raw sessions,” alternate versions of every track on the album. Another disc of bonus tracks is packed with live cuts, BBC sessions and more. There’s also a documentary DVD featuring footage from the 1977 News Of The World concert tour, the remastered album on vinyl, a 60 page book, and a few fun swag items thrown in to complete the set.
Here’s the complete track list:
Disc 1- Original Album (2011 Remaster):
01. We Will Rock You
02. We Are The Champions
03. Sheer Heart Attack
04. All Dead, All Dead
05. Spread Your Wings
06. Fight From The Inside
07. Get Down, Make Love
08. Sleeping On The Sidewalk
09. Who Needs You
10. It’s Late
11. My Melancholy Blues
Disc 2- Raw Sessions:
01. We Will Rock You (Alternative Version)
02. We Are the Champions (Alternative Version)
03. Sheer Heart Attack (Original Rough Mix)
04. All Dead, All Dead (Original Rough Mix)
05. Spread Your Wings (Alternative Take)
06. Fight From the Inside (Demo Vocal Version)
07. Get Down, Make Love (Early Take)
08. Sleeping on the Sidewalk (Live in the USA, 1977)
09. Who Needs You (Acoustic Take)
10. It’s Late (Alternative Version)
11. My Melancholy Blues (Original Rough Mix)
Disc 3- Bonus Tracks:
01. Feelings Feelings
02. We Will Rock You
03. We Will Rock You (Fast)
04. Spread Your Wings
05. It’s Late
06. My Melancholy Blues
07. We Will Rock You
08. We Are the Champions
09. Spread Your Wings
10. Fight From The Inside
11. Get Down, Make Love
12. It’s Late (USA Radio Edit 1978)
13. Sheer Heart Attack (Live in Paris 1979)
14. We Will Rock You (Live in Tokyo 1982)
15. My Melancholy Blues (Live in Houston 1977)
16. Get Down, Make Love (Live in Montreal 1981)
17. Spread Your Wings (Live in Europe 1979)
18. We Will Rock You (Live at the MK Bowl 1982)
19. We Are the Champions (Live at the MK Bowl 1982)
