Queen - Jazz (1978)

Tracklist:
1. Mustapha
2. Fat Bottomed Girls
3. Jealousy
4. Bicycle Race
5. If You Can't Beat Them
6. Let Me Entertain You
7. Dead on Time
8. In Only Seven Days
9. Dreamers Ball
10. Fun It
11. Leaving Home Ain't Easy
12. Don't Stop Me Now
13. More of That Jazz

Please, More of that Jazz! – 8,5/10

Well, well... after the horrible News of the World album Queen surely recovered it with this record known as Jazz. This is the hardest Queen release to really have a stable grip at. It flies from one corner to the other in terms of musical style, and seems to be executed well in every aspect. It’s pretty different from every other Queen record, and even the songs on the album are all so different from each other. It goes from an attempt at Arabic folk to some laid back rock; from a sensitive ballad to a happy pop song; from fast-paced hard rock to a classic-dance track; and from funk-influences to smooth ‘n catchy glam rock. One word to describe Jazz: impossible!

I have never seen so much diversity on one studio record by one single band. Mostly if you combine different styles it results in too different atmospheres to be a really good combination, but Jazz does the trick. Although there is no jazz music on the album, all the styles that do feature mix together very well. The album is no commercial hitbag and is no progressive masterpiece, but certainly stands its own. We are welcomed into it by the Arabic chants of “Mustapha” and this is one of Queen’s most odd album openers ever. As Freddie chants “Allah, Allah, we’ll pray for you” the music kicks in and doesn’t sound too Arabic at all. Actually they just recorded a rock song in an exotic scale and with Persian lyrics, yet it sounds so unique and odd, but in a good way. From one subject to another, “Fat Bottomed Girls” begins with stadium chanting and harmonies by the familiar Queen choir. When it’s over we get to hear a laid back rock riff eventually evolving into a real stadium anthem, slightly resembling glam rock. Gone were the Arabic influences. Next track “Jealousy” is a more piano driven sensitive ballad with a stunning vocal performance by our dearest Freddie Mercury. Gone were the glam rock influences. “Bicycle Race”, though beginning with the choirs again, more resembles the sloppy happy pop songs seen before on Sheer Heart Attack and A Night at the Opera, but changes a bit after a while. The main chorus is quite massive and choiry, the verses are sloppy and happy, a bit rappy, the bridge is more rocking and epic again, and the break features bicycle bells. Gone is the sensitive ballad.

I could go from song to song, but that would just be boring. I will limit myself to the highlights. “If You Can’t Beat Them” is a swift Deacon-penned anthem with a unique character, “Let Me Entertain You” is an odd hard rock song which is great yet has some unpleasant reminders to “Get Down, Make Love”. “Dead on Time” rocks your socks off and features a complex and fast riff and is one of the better rockers since “Tie Your Mother Down”. “In Only Seven Days” is another great ballad by John Deacon; “Dreamers Ball” is a song with a bit of an old sound to it, reminding of ballroom dancing. “Fun It” is a more funk-influenced Taylor-written composition with a rare sharing of vocals between Mercury and Taylor, perhaps slightly forwarding to the ill-famed Hot Space release of the future. Yet this track is a lot more original and features a great guitar riff. Brian May returns with his voice on “Leaving Home Ain’t Easy”. It’s not as spectacular as his other compositions such as “Long Away” or “’39”, but certainly enjoyable to say the least. Then comes two album highlights. “Don’t Stop Me Now” starts off with the familiar piano tunes and the vocals, but soon evolves into a fast-paced piano-based pop song. The vocals preach an irresistible melody and the lack of guitars in the accompaniment was a great move, it only adds more to the guitars in the solo, which is terrifically melodic. Closing track “More of That Jazz” is also great. It features an unusual rhythm and cool arpeggiated chords, before the heavy guitar joins in, thus transforming it into hard rock track with Taylor on vocals. Somewhere in the middle parts of other songs start to interfere, which is a pity, but with modern audio editing technology they can be edited away to create a version which is unbeatable.

As you can read, Jazz is a very diverse recording. A lot of different styles show up here and all compositions are good, varying from enjoyable to great. Especially Roger Taylor is in top form on this album in terms of composing. Yet this album doesn’t live up to the unbeatable positions of A Day at the Races or Queen II. I would not recommend Jazz to the Queen newbie, but to the more experienced Queen fan, since this album demands some Queen listening experience.

Strongest tracks: “Fat Bottomed Girls”, “Fun It”, “Don’t Stop Me Now” and “More of That Jazz”.