CHRONICLE LIVE
9 January 2015 by Gordon Barr
We take a look at the Queen and Adam Lambert partnership ahead of their new UK tour Queen and Adam Lambert – They will, they will, rock you!
Queen and Adam Lambert kick off their UK tour next week at the Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle on January 13. It follows a sold-out world tour last year taking in North America, Australia, New Zealand and outdoor festival stops in Korea and Japan. Coming two years after May, Taylor and Lambert last performed a short tour together of the UK and Europe, this lengthier outing will see them perform two dozen shows in 10 countries.
Queen first teamed up with Adam Lambert in 2009 to perform the band’s rock anthem We Are the Champions on American Idol’s season eight finale. They partnered again in 2011 at the MTV European Music Awards in Belfast. In the summer of 2012, they performed their first live concerts together with three sold-out shows in the UK at London’s Hammersmith Apollo as well as concert appearances in Russia, Ukraine and Poland.
“On the technical side, it’s definitely more of a production than two years ago,” says Lambert. “We’ve had a lot more cities to visit and so I think we all decided to build up the visuals.”
Brian May adds: “We have a very interesting set design. It’s big and daring.”
Roger Taylor continues: “Each time we’ve worked with Adam with our music, he’s just the most incredible front man. He’s sensational. He has this amazing range, Freddie had a great range. Adam can really cover it.”
It would seem the Queen and Adam Lambert partnership is likely, for now, to remain limited to their live collaborations. Lambert is currently in the final stages of writing and recording his third album. Late last year they were awarded Band of the Year at the 10th annual Classic Rock Roll of Honour Awards in Los Angeles.
In addition, ITV broadcast The Nation’s Favourite Queen Song, which uncovered the origins of Queen’s best-loved tunes and told the stories behind the band’s bold and inventive music videos.