Once upon a time, in a land far, far away called the 1970s, lived a breed of human-alien hybrids known as “rock stars,” who refused to submit to the rules of Earthly existence. There was Ziggy Stardust and his Spiders from Mars, Elton “Rocket man” John, Lou Reed, the Stooges and a collection of kings called Queen.
The last of this oddball menagerie saw their frontman shuffle off the mortal coil way too early, but their legend has grown in his absence. Hollywood celebrated the late Freddie Mercury last year with a movie that is 60 percent fabrication and false memories. No matter — what made these beings above it all is that were glittery, fabulous incarnations of what life could be, should be, but not, ultimately, what it is.
This abdication of normality lends itself to flights of fancy and gives credence to the existence of a tribute band like Absolute Queen. Tribute bands are not cover bands; tribute bands do justice to the majesty of a beloved group’s material by fully looking, sounding and acting the part. This mirage must be good enough to charm even the staunchest fans, and being in a tribute band is no joke. Absolute Queen’s talent and booking agency, Maximum Bands, boasts of “the largest roster of Tribute Bands on the planet.” Because emulating the greatness of others is a full-time job, especially when some of those greats are still alive. So the aim is to recreate the past in as spectacular a fashion as possible. Is it the reality of the past? Probably not, but neither is “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the movie.
The fact is that John Deacon hasn’t played bass with Queen since 1997, and guitarist Brian May is busier today being an astrophysicist. Reed and Bowie are gone. Sir Elton has followed in Queen’s cinematic path with a biopic that also looks like the sum of all the lawyering, dealing and industry pilot-fish positioning that got it made. None of that sounds fun, and facts get in the way of a good story. What is fun is experiencing history whether it’s real or not, yours or someone else’s. Now’s your chance!
Absolute Queen play an all ages show 7pm Friday July 12 at Revolution in Fort Lauderdale. facebook.com/absolutequeenrocks ~ Tim Moffatt
