Memorable Quotes from Ben Hardy
7 quotesLate Arrival and Quick Wit
Freddie Mercury
What's going on?
Roger Taylor
You'd know if you were on time.
[he and the rest of Queen stop]
Freddie Mercury
I'm a performer, darling. Not a Swiss train conductor. Sorry I'm late.
[to Roger; pause; to Brian May]
John Deacon
Again.
Freddie Mercury
All right. Now, will you please tell me why you're not playing any instruments?
Brian May
I want to give the audience a song that they can perform. Right? Let them be part of the band. So, what can they do? Imagine...thousands of people...doing this in unison. Huh?
[resumes the 'stomp-stomp-clap' beat for "We Will Rock You." Roger and John join in, followed their wives, and Freddie Mercury.]
Freddie Mercury
Well? What's the lyric?
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Unity Among Misfits in Music
John Reid
So, tell me. What makes Queen any different from all of the other wannabe rock stars I meet?
Freddie Mercury
I'll tell you what it is. We're four misfits who don't belong together playing to the other misfits. The outcasts, right at the back of the room who are pretty sure they don't belong either. We belong to them.
Brian May
We're a family.
Roger Taylor
But no two of us are the same.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
A Masterpiece Beyond Promised Expectations
Ray Foster
]; groans] Christ. Well, I'm not entirely sure that's the album you promised us.
[after listening to [[w:Bohemian Rhapsody|Bohemian Rhapsody; Freddie stops music reel]
Freddie Mercury
No, it's better than the album we promised you. It's better than any album anyone's ever promised you, darling. It is a bloody masterpiece.
Ray Foster
Christ.
[under his breath]
John Reid
It is a good album, Ray.
Roger Taylor
We prefer "masterpiece.
Ray Foster
It's expensive, and as for... Bohemian...
Brian May
Rhapsody.
[clears throat]
Ray Foster
...Rhapsody. What is that?
Freddie Mercury
It's an epic poem.
Ray Foster
It goes on forever; 6 bloody minutes.
Freddie Mercury
I pity your wife if you think 6 minutes is forever. And you know what? We're going to release it as our single.
[Paul scoffs]
Ray Foster
Not possible. Anything over three minutes, and the radio stations won't program it, period. And what on Earth is it about, anyway? "Scaramouche"? "Galileo"? And all that "Ismillah" business? "Ishmillah"?
[chortles]
Freddie Mercury
Bismillah.
[pause]
Ray Foster
Oh, aye. Bismillah. What's it about anyway? Bloody Bismillah?
Freddie Mercury
True poetry is for the listener.
Brian May
It ruins the mystery if everything's explained.
Ray Foster
Seldom ruins sales. 3 minutes is the standard. John.
John Reid
Yeah, we need radio. Format is three minutes. I have to agree with Ray. I actually think the single's Love of my Life.
Brian May
No.
John Reid
Okay, how about John's song, You're My Best Friend? You know, "Ooh, you make me live." Catchy, stronger.
Ray Foster
What about I'm in Love with My Car?
Brian May
You're joking!
Roger Taylor
Huh.
Brian May
Oh, Jesus.
Ray Foster
I love it. Well, ] Bohemian Rhapsody will never be that song.
[Freddie kicks Ray's desk; [Wayne's World|that's the kind of songs teenagers can crank up the volume in their car and bang their heads to.]
Brian May
It's the band's decision. Bohemian Rhapsody. That's it.
Ray Foster
You're My Best Friend. And it's my money.
Roger Taylor
Bo-Rhap. Period.
Freddie Mercury
Or we walk.
[removes music reel]
Paul Prenter
] was 7 minutes long. It was a hit.
[pauses; [w:MacArthur Park (song)|MacArthur Park]
Ray Foster
Look, I'm not arguing with Bohemian whatever's...
Freddie Mercury
Rhapsody.
Ray Foster
...musicianship, but there's no way in Hell the station will play a six minute quasi-operatic dirge, comprised of nonsense words! "Bismillah"? Bullshit! I paid for this record, so I say what goes!
Roger Taylor
Have we no legal recourse on this?
Jim "Miami" Beach
Ray, you did Dark Side of the Moon, haven't you?
Ray Foster
I did.
[nods]
Jim "Miami" Beach
Yeah, I absolutely love that record. Uh, legally, no. No, he's got your balls in a vice. It's a different matter in a court of public opinion, of course. Ray Foster's a giant name in the music industry, but... to the average person. Say the name "Queen", on the other hand...ears prick up.
[to Roger Taylor; answering his question; shrugs]
Ray Foster
We're going with You're My Best Friend. Done.
[refusing to back down]
Freddie Mercury
No, we know what we have, even if you don't. It's called Bohemian... ...Rhapsody. You will forever be known as the man who lost Queen.
[he puts his cigarette out on Ray's papers; leaves with the band]
John Reid
Temperamental artists, eh? They're well aware they're tied to a contract, but who knows what goes on inside the inscrutable mind of the recording artist?
Ray Foster
Mark these words. If they're not careful, by the end of the year, no one will know the name "Queen". Christ!
[brick is thrown through window]
Freddie Mercury
You can take that out of our royalties, twat!
[shouting]
Ray Foster
Wanker!
Brian May
You can shove your gold discs! You made a mistake, Foster!
Freddie Mercury
Arsehole!
Ray Foster
You'll never have a gold disc, you medium talent! And to think, I worked with ].
[shouting; to Paul; [w: Jimi Hendrix|Hendrix]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
A New Beginning for the Band
Freddie Mercury
I enjoyed the show. I also, I write songs.
Roger Taylor
Well, you're five minutes too late.
Brian May
Our lead singer just quit.
Freddie Mercury
Well, then, you'll need someone new.
Brian May
Any ideas?
Freddie Mercury
What about me?
Roger Taylor
Errr...not with those teeth, mate.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
A Playful Exchange on Identity and Expression
Freddie Mercury
What do you think?
[re: Freddie’s new house]
Roger Taylor
Gayer.
[re: Freddie’s new moustache]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Celebrating Legend Status Among Friends
Roger Taylor
You're a legend, Fred.
Freddie Mercury
We're all legends. But you're right, I am a legend.
[pause]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Complexity of Queen's Identity and Impact
Brian May
It's America. They're Puritans in public, perverts in private.
Roger Taylor
There's no musical ghetto that can contain us.
John Deacon
Nobody knows what Queen means because it doesn't mean one thing.
Ray Foster
Mark these words. If they're not careful, by the end of the year, no one will know the name "Queen".
Roger Taylor
How many more "Galileo"'s do you want?
Mary Austin
I love the way you move on stage. The whole room belongs to you. Don't you see what you can be?
[to Freddie]
Brian May & John Deacon
Not the coffee machine!
[Roger picks up the coffee machine and almost throws it; in unison]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.