I’ll admit to being a sceptic. Queen without the legendary Freddie Mercury? One of the great vocalists of contemporary rock? The ultimate showman? A man who loved the limelight and could control thousands of fans with his voice.
After his death and a distancing for the band, their hiatus and solo outings eventually found Brian May and Roger Taylor (bassist John Deacon retired from the industry) returning to live performances as Queen with friends as guest vocalists. There was also the huge success of the rock musical, We Will Rock You. And then along came American Idol runner-up, Adam Lambert.
A man as much in love with the limelight as Mercury, a man with a big voice and a man who is an entertainer with a capital E. And now Queen with Adam Lambert tour to stadia and huge sell-out concerts across the globe.
The Show Must Go On is a hugely enjoyable documentary (directors Simon Lupton & Christopher Bird) with new and archival footage of both Queen and Adam Lambert’s journeys along with interviews (including Rami Malek, Simon Cowell, an erudite Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters), recollections and anecdotes. It’s straightforward with nothing overly fancy or showy – that’s left to the extremely personable Lambert.
Rating: 68%
An Opinion or Two 