80s Degree

[80sdegree]

"At first I didn't even want to play it for the guys. I thought that Metallica could only be the four of us. These are songs about destroying things, head banging, bleeding for the crowd, whatever it is, as long as it wasn't about chicks and fast cars, even though that's what we liked. The song was about a girlfriend at the time. It turned out to be a pretty big song."

- James Hetfield on writing Nothing Else Matters (2008)

Nothing Else Matters was no doubt a very different sound from what Metallica had produced in years prior, but to no avail the song peaked at number eleven on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart, number six on UK Singles Chart, number one in Denmark, and top ten on many other European charts.

Singer Elton John has also expressed his love for the song saying, “This is one of the best songs ever written.”

And I agree wholeheartedly.

[80sdegree]

“When Freddie died, it was like losing a family member, and we all handled it in different ways. For a time, I really wanted to escape from Queen; I didn’t want to know about it. I think that was my grieving process. But I’m very proud of what we did together. My God, we really did go on some interesting excursions! Mostly, it makes me feel good.”

- Brian May talking about Queen after Freddie’s death in 1991 (2011)

[80sdegree]

"He's sort of quiet, lots of people think that. Don't underestimate him, he's got a fiery streak underneath all that. I talk so much anyway, he likes to let me do all the talking. But once people crack that thin ice, then he's alright. (You can never stop him talking then)."

- Freddie Mercury talking about John Deacon (1976)

[80sdegree]

Q: How was it when you were out there on stage for Live Aid?

“It was new because there was daylight, there weren't many lights and we were dressed in normal clothes. So we just thought, we better do a good performance, let the music speak for itself. And I sort of remember looking up and thinking, during Radio Gaga, they are loving it, this is going well, and then 10 minutes later, near the end, in We Are the Champions, I looked up and it looked like a cornfield, with everyone waving their arms and I just thought, "Yeah, this is going well. I think we've done well here." It was very satisfying.”

- Roger Taylor on performing at Live Aid (2018)

[80sdegree]

“Yeah, it was long and involved and very wearying. Because the tape machines would break and we had a lot of breakdowns. There were, I don’t know how many voices, 150-odd voices, which is basically three voices — Freddie, myself and Brian. It was a lot of work, but Freddie had it all in his head and we believed in it, so we carried it through. I’ve got to say, I remember that we finished the track and we thought, “That’s pretty good!” We were very pleased with it.”

- Roger Taylor on process of Bohemian Rhapsody (2014)

[80sdegree]

“One thing I’d like to say is that, I don’t live in a prison, and I’m not afraid of anything. I haven’t built any walls around myself, I am just like anyone else. I need love, water; and I don’t really consider myself a superstar. I live in a small town, and I always will, because I can walk around and be me. And that’s all I want to be, that’s all I’ll ever try to be.”

- Prince Rogers Nelson’s first televised interview with MTV (1985)