Rockfield Studio Remembers Queen's Epic Bohemian Rhapsody 50 Years Later

Fifty years ago, the legendary rock band Queen arrived at Rockfield Studios, a famous recording studio located in the countryside near Monmouth, Wales. The band had first visited the studio in 1974, but when they returned in 1975, they were much more successful, thanks to the popularity of their song Killer Queen. Kingsley Ward, one of the studio's founders, remembers that when Queen came back, they were already well-known and financially secure. During their stay, Kingsley noticed that the band had not made much progress on their new music. While playing frisbee outside with guitarist Brian May, he learned that Freddie Mercury, the band's frontman, was inside working on a new song. Curious, Kingsley went inside and found Freddie practicing on the piano. The song was called Freddie's Thing at the time, but it would later become Bohemian Rhapsody, one of the most famous songs in rock history.

This week marks the 50th anniversary of the completion of Bohemian Rhapsody's recording at Rockfield Studios. To celebrate this milestone, Brian May and Roger Taylor performed the song with the BBC Symphony Orchestra during the Last Night of the Proms Finale. The song continues to be popular today, especially on social media. Recently, a flash mob led by French pianist Julien Cohen performed Bohemian Rhapsody on a street in Paris, stopping traffic and attracting a large crowd. The video of the performance has received more than 11 million likes on Instagram. Olly Pearson, an electric guitarist from Wrexham, played the famous guitar solo in the video and described the experience as incredible.

Rockfield Studios has played an important role in the history of rock music. Kingsley and his brother Charles started the studio in the 1960s after deciding to work independently. Over the years, many famous bands have recorded there, including Oasis and Black Sabbath. Ozzy Osbourne, the lead singer of Black Sabbath, once said that Rockfield allowed them to play as loudly as they wanted, which was unusual for studios at the time. Kingsley recalls that hearing Freddie Mercury's solo during the recording of Bohemian Rhapsody was one of his favorite moments. He did not hear the complete song until he listened to it on the radio while driving, and he was amazed by how good it sounded. Kingsley also praised the recent Paris performance, especially Olly's guitar solo, calling it fantastic. Olly said he was proud to be part of such a famous song and hopes to one day play in a big band at Wembley Stadium, possibly alongside Brian May. Kingsley believes that Brian May would be interested in meeting Olly, describing him as a very nice person.