Reviews  QFN-19
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GA GA - LIVE AT THE ORANGE, LONDON
Concert Review by Joy & Tony Whitelock

In conjunction with the International Queen Fan Club 'Ga Ga'
were billed to play in concert at The Orange, in Kensington,
London, on Saturday 17th June 1995. 

On arriving at The Orange it was quite a pleasant surprise
to discover plenty of parking available on the road just
outside theclub. The club was also sited next to a pub where
most of the Queen fans gathered. The doors were due to open
at 8.30 pm and a queue started to form beforehand.

Once the doors were opened the club quickly started to fill
up. Just inside the door 'Ga Ga'' had set up their
merchandise stall and were selling the normal items such as
posters, T-shirts and programmes etc. Before 'Ga Ga' came on
stage the DJ played a mixture of Queen music which helped to
set the mood.

The stage was at one end of the club, in front was a small
dance floor around which were tables and chairs. The bar
(very important!) was located on a raised balcony area where
there was more seating. It was a quite a good venue because
no matter where you stood or sat you were able to get a good
view of the stage.

At approximately 9.45 pm 'Ga Ga', the three-piece Queen
cover band took to the stage and opened with 'We Will Rock
You', followed quickly by 'Tie Your Mother Down'. Next John
(the lead guitarist and vocalist) welcomed everyone to the
concert and the band continued with 'I Want to Break Free'.
Next came 'Under Pressure' which was dedicated to The
Hedgehogs! (the reviewers - Ed) followed by 'Son and
Daughter' (which the crowd loved!) and 'Somebody to Love'.
By now most people were joining in with the band who were
being very well received. The other two members of the band
(Graham on drums and Dave on bass guitar) left the stage and
John sang 'Love of my Life' which of course was dedicated to
Freddie, again most people joined in. The other two then
came back on to the stage and were introduced to everyone by
John. They then performed 'I'm Going Slightly Mad', and
'Bohemian Rhapsody' (which they dedicated to Jacky from the
Fan Club who had come along). They ended the first set with
'Brighton Rock' which received a loud applause from the
audience and then left the stage.

During the interval (which was about 20 minutes long) the DJ
played Queen records.

The second set opened with 'One Vision' and 'It's a Kind of
Magic'. By now many people were on the dance floor and it
was all going very well. The set went on to include 'These
are the Days of our Lives', 'Now I'm Here', 'Crazy Little
Thing Called Love', 'Another One Bites the Dust', 'Keep
Yourself Alive', 'Headlong', 'Hammer to Fall', and ended
with 'The Show Must Go On'. With this the band thanked
everyone for coming and left the stage.

This was followed by loud applause and cries for more, so
the band returned to the stage for their encore and played,
'Spread Your Wings', 'Radio 'Ga Ga' (with everyone joining
in!) 'We Will Rock You' and 'We are the Champions'. The band
then left the stage and 'God Save the Queen' was played as
the band came back onto the stage to take their final bow
and each one in turn said "Goodnight".

Sadly another concert had come to an end. The band however
did emerge back into the club to sign autographs and chat
with the fans who had waited. If you would like any further
information regarding 'Ga Ga' and their concert dates please
write to the Liverpool address below.

If you do get the chance to see them, then do as we are sure
you won't regret it.

Ga Ga
5 Christopher Close
Childwall
Liverpool
L16 1JL
Merseyside
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THE SAS BAND
LIVE AT THE SHEPHERD'S BUSH EMPIRE

Concert Review by Joy & Tony Whitelock

On the 1st July 1995, the SAS (Spike's All Stars) Band
returned to Shepherd's Bush, London for another one of their
'all stars' concerts. However this time there was to be a
change of venue as the band had moved from their normal
venue The Bottom Line Club into the Shepherd's Bush Empire
which is next door.

We arrived in London just after 7 pm. only to discover that
quite a long queue had formed outside the venue. However,
straight away, the night got off to a great start with Mark
Shaw, John Marter, Fish and a few others sat outside the
local pub having a drink and it was really great to be able
to say "Hello" and wish them "All the Best" for the night.

Before the SAS Band took the stage the support band did a
set lasting about 45 minutes. One of the members in the band
was John Deacon's son, (it was the drummer - Ed) but no-one
was saying which one he was! Anyway the lads started the
night going and we only heard good comments about them.

At approximately 10 pm. Spike came on stage to welcome
everyone and then he was joined by several others including
Jamie Moses and Chris Thompson and they opened with 'Davy's
on the Road Again' and quickly followed this with 'Since
You've Been Gone' to get the crowd into a party mood. On
drums was John Marter and Steve Stroud played bass guitar.
This promised to be a really great concert with lots of
surprises and special guests as the night went on.

Next on stage for lead vocals was Tony Hadley who sang
'Jealousy' followed by Mark Shaw who sang two numbers. The
second of which was the first Queen song of the night 'Tie
Your Mother Down'. By now the audience was obviously having
a great time and a good concert spirit was in the air.

The concert continued with various star guests coming onto
the stage including Stevie Lange, Fish (who even dedicated a
song 'Five Years' to Hugh Grant after his recent unfortunate
indiscretion),  Roger Chapman, and Cathy Porter, and then
the highlight of the night for everyone, especially the many
Queen fans present, John Deacon joined the band on stage to
play bass guitar.

John received a huge cheer from the crowd and played bass on
3 songs, 'My Girl' and '6345789' with Chris Thompson on lead
vocals and then the Queen song 'Crazy Little Thing Called
Love' with Tony Hadley on lead vocals, with the crowd
singing along at the top of their voices! After this John
left the stage and the concert continued with 'Hammer to
Fall' and then 'All the Young Dudes' with most of the guests
coming back onto the stage to join in. At the end of this
song the SAS Band left the stage.

Fortunately this was not the end of the concert which
continued with an encore consisting of 6 numbers, the first
few being sang by Chris Thompson and the last two numbers
had everyone again joining in, Sadly at approximately 12.15
am the SAS concert had come to an end.

The bar remained open for some time and a few fans started
to chat and have a few more drinks. By 1.20 am only a
handful of fans remained when suddenly John Deacon walked
out onto the stage and came down to spend a few minutes with
the few of us that were left. John was very nice and took
the time to shake hands and speak to all of us. He also gave
autographs and allowed a few photographs. This was a really
fantastic end to what had been a great night, (Many thanks
John, hope you enjoyed the Hedgehog Cake!).

All that now remained was the long drive home. The SAS Band
are planning further concerts and details can be obtained by
writing to the address below.

SAS Information
58 Kinloch Drive
London
NW9 7LH
England.

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Queen Prints - A Review.

At the moment there seems to be a lot of very good 'Fine
Art' prints on the market for Queen fans. Trevor Horswell is
quite a well-known artist in his field, although he doesn't
just specialise in Queen works, as he produces many original
paintings of popular images which include subjects as
diverse as the band U2 and Star Trek and top boxers. These
paintings are then reproduced on paper as 'art prints' which
are then available in limited, numbered editions; rather
like a CD or vinyl release. Each print from the edition is
usually signed and numbered by the artist and classed as an
original print. These original prints gain in value
dependent on subject, artist and of course quality.

Various fans have begun to produce very good work, and even
fans' families have been persuaded one way or another into
producing paintings of Queen or the individual members. 

Of course these works of art cannot be reproduced with any
justification within the pages of QFN, as colour adds very
much to the warmth, quality and feel of a painting. Think
how the TV seems to come alive when in colour compared to
old fashioned black and white programmes. So, I won't
pretend anything that I do illustrate here, if at all,
are/is representative of the final piece of art. Any black
and white images used here will merely illustrate the layout
and content of a painting/print. In no way can these
illustrations pretend to convey the subtlety of the
originals.

Recently certain artists have been kind enough to donate
prints of their original artwork to QFN and these prints
will be given away as prizes in future issues of the
newsletter (via the quiz). I am very grateful to all the
artists concerned and look forward to seeing more of the
same high-quality artwork in future. It is the
above-mentioned donations which I will describe for you now.

Very few of you will be aware of the fact that I (the QFN
editor) have a degree in 'Fine Art', so I feel I can comment
with some authority on this subject. All the prints
mentioned here can be bought direct from the artist should
you wish. Each section below will end with information about
the artist and their work. Please make cheques payable
direct to the artist unless otherwise stated. I do hope you
will support the artists concerned, as they will
collectively have spent many hundreds of hours producing the
superb artwork described. Please mention QFN when you order
anything - thank you.

Firstly, those of you who have been to any concerts in the
UK to see the Queen tribute band 'Ga Ga' may also have seen
some prints for sale on their merchandise stand. I believe
there are four prints available at the moment although I
have been informed by a band member that a new one of
Freddie will be available very soon. The artist concerned is
Barry Dobson and the band commission Barry to produce the
prints which 'Ga Ga' sell at their concerts. The prints are
of very high quality pen and ink / pencil drawings. Some
have been reproduce in the official magazine recently and
are very good value for money.

With the exception of 'Live Magic' which is full colour, the
other three prints are in black and white - all are very
effective.

Prints available are:

Live Magic (painting of FM and BM on stage at Wembley) - A2.
As It Began (drawn version of 'Miracle' sleeve of Queen). A3.
Queen (Queen members from 'Works' period). A3.
Ga Ga (Ga Ga members as 'Miracle' sleeve). A3.

Artists Name     : Barry Dobson
Limited Editions : 'Live Magic' 1000 copies. B/W - Not Known
B/W Price        : A3 b/w are 5 each in UK
Colour Price     : A2 colour print is 10 in UK 
Print Size       : Various (see below for sizes in mm)
Cheques payable  : Graham Patrick
Special          : Buy all 4 prints together for 15.

Contact Address:

Graham Patrick
5 Christopher Close
Childwall
Liverpool
L16 1JL
Tel: 0151 772 0303

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The next artist has produced a montage (a mixture) of Roger
images from thoughout his career, right up to one which is
very much like the cover of 'Happiness?' Roger can be seen
performing in all his capacities - singing, drumming and
just plain posing! This is a superb print, the best of its
type I have ever seen and truly believe it wouldn't look out
of place on an album cover. The print is in full colour and
includes Roger's signature above the central image. The fan
club called this print "stunning" when it was reproduced in
the Spring 1995 issue. If you are a Roger fan this is a
must. You won't be disappointed. Remember, small
reproductions convey very little of the real thing.

Prints available are:

Print 1      : Roger Taylor
Artists Name : Darren Mundy
Print Prices : 11.99 in UK
             : 12.99 in Europe
             : 14.99 for Rest Of World 
Size         : A3
Ltd Edition  : 350 copies

Cheques payable to : Darren Mundy 

Contact Address:

Darren Mundy
46 Prudhoe Street
North Sheilds
Tyne & Wear
NE29 6QX

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Finally, in this current round-up of Queen-related prints is
an absolutely fantasic painting of Freddie - 'The Three
Faces Of Freddie'. It was painted by a professional portrait
painter for his son's 25th birthday who is a huge Queen fan
(and so is his mother who donated the print).

The print was reproduced in the Spring 1995 issue of the fan
club magazine though only in b/w, and its true beauty can
not be gleaned from such a simplified reproduction. The
painting has 3 images of Freddie, with the central one being
from 1986. Two smaller portraits (from 1973 and 1991
respectively) are placed either side of the main image.
Behind the central portrait of Freddie are a set of lights
which are in the shape of, and symbolise, a crown for the
king of Queen.

Two of the light beams of the stage lighting form a
crucifix, and considering Freddie's untimely death is
tragically appropriate. There are hands reaching up to
Freddie at the bottom of the painting and these obviously
signify the adoring fans. However, apart from the fact that
the word 'Queen' and the numbers 73, 86, 91 (which signify
the dates of the images) are upside down (on the fan's
wrist) the small 1973 portrait can be seen with Freddie's
right fingernails painted in what seems to be purple. As all
dedicated fans know, Freddie only ever painted his left-hand
fingernails, and only ever in black. If this sort of thing
bothers you, you will be able to take consolation in the
fact that the central painting could be one of the best
portraits of Freddie you will see anywhere! All Freddie fans
should get a copy of this. It will be a treasure for ever to
hang in your front room. The print is signed and numbered
personally by the artists. 

Prints available are:

Print Name    :The Three Faces Of Freddie
Artists Name  : HJ Underwood Print
Price         : 35 Print
Size          : Custom - 750mm x 570mm  Limited Edition
              : 1000 numbered  copies. 250 rejected.

Cheques payable : HJ Underwood 

Contact Address:
HJ Underwood
Carraigm Fhada
Port Ellen
Isle of Islay
PA42 7AX

Tel:0496 302114


Correspondence to any of the above must be accompanied by an
SAE or IRC for a reply. All payments must be in pounds
sterling ONLY please. Either Cheques / Eurocheques / Postal
Orders / International Money Orders / Bankers Drafts etc. Do
not send cash.

Paper sizes:
A4 210mm x 297mm 
A3 297mm x 420mm 
A2 420mm x 594mm 

If you are an artist, or know someone who has produced some
Queen-related prints/paintings, then please send in copies
of their work, with details as above for possible inclusion
in the next review. Thanks. 

_____________________________________________________________________

The Days Of Our Lives.

The Days Of Our Lives is the name of a new Queen magazine
produced by long-time fan Jan Lea, who lives quite close to
me here in Preston.

Jan's magazine takes a refreshingly different approach to
other magazines which are around at the moment, as the focus
in it is set firmly on Queen's glorious past, rather than
reporting what Brian, John and Roger are up to at the
moment.

The magazine is A4 size and Issue One contains a review of
Queen's concert in Edinburgh 2nd June 1982, a very long
interview with Brian from 1987 which is quite revealing, and
a look at Queen live in the early Seventies. You can also
buy limited edition prints from the same address, or any one
of 43 designs of notepaper produced on quality paper. For
more information send a large SAE or 2 x IRC's to the
following address and request subscription details and/or a
copy of the catalogue.

Jan Lea
10 Clarence Street
Leyland
Preston
Lancashire
PR5 2WX


The Freddie Mercury Friendship Group magazine recently
reported that they have a party planned on November 25th.
Tickets are 6, so if you're in the Bournemouth area or
willing to travel, contact the address below for ticket
availability. A revealing interview with Eddie Howell can be
found in issue 8, and various events and releases are
reviewed there too.

Gary & Izzy Taylor
The Freddie Mercury Friendship Group
73 Southbourne Road
Southbourne
Bournemouth
Dorset
BH6 5AQ

Tel: 01202 417980   
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