"If I'm not back again this time tomorrow," Freddie Mercury sang, "Carry on, carry on, as if nothing really matters." Well it seems that Queen have finally taken that suggestion to heart: for the first time in 13 years, the band will be releasing a new studio album, The Cosmos Rocks - followed by a massive worldwide tour.
Rest assured, it's not an exercise in artistic disinterment. They have not taken the typical hip-hop route, or even the path that the Beatles chose circa Real Love; the late, great Mercury will not have demos resurrected or his voice computer-generated. Instead, as on 2005 and 2006 tours, vocals will be provided by Paul Rodgers, the former lead singer of Free and Bad Company.
Though the tour will be billed as "Queen + Paul Rodgers", it's not yet clear whether the album will bear the annoying "plus Paul" appendix, or if they will go with just-plain-Queen.
The Cosmos Rocks will be released September 1. Songs were written and produced jointly by Brian May, Roger Taylor and Paul Rodgers, with the exception of one cover song. They're not yet telling us what the cover is, which - as always - leads us to speculate. Perhaps a track by the Queen-aping Mika or similarly glam Scissor Sisters? A tribute to a pal such as David Bowie? Or maybe the band have made their choice solely based on band-names, and we're in for a Queen-covers-Queensryche treat.
Say It's Not True, released last year as a World Aids Day fundraiser, will also be included on the album.
Queen's most recent studio album was 1995's Made In Heaven, featuring Mercury's last recordings. It sold 20 million copies. Their Greatest Hits 1, meanwhile, is the UK's biggest-selling album of all time. So if you're the betting sort, it seems safe to predict that the new one will sell at least, say a dozen copies.
The misleadingly-named Rock the Cosmos 2008 Tour will feature 28 performances spanning Europe and the UK, with South American dates to follow. Though every gig takes place on the planet Earth, they will bravely perform at exotic locales such as Gdansk, Budapest and Birmingham.
Tickets go on sale April 2 at Queen's official website.
Full concert dates:
Tuesday, September 16 - Moscow, Russia (SCO Olympic Arena)
Wednesday, September 17 - Moscow, Russia (SCO Olympic Arena)
Saturday, September 20 - Gdansk, Poland (Gdansk Shipyard)
Sunday, September 21 - Berlin, Germany (Velodrom)
Tuesday, September 23 - Antwerp, Belgium (Sportspaleis)
Wednesday, September 23 - Paris, France (Bercy)
Friday, September 26 - Rome, Italy (Palalottomatica)
Sunday, September 28 - Verona, Italy (Arena)
Monday, September 29 - Zurich, Switzerland (Hallenstadion)
Wednesday, October 1 - Munich, Germany (Olympiahalle)
Thursday, October 2 - Mannheim, Germany (SAP Arena)
Saturday, October 4 - Hannover, Germany (TUI Arena)
Sunday, October 5 - Hamburg, Germany (Color Line Arena)
Tuesday, October 7 - Rotterdam, Netherlands (Ahoy)
Friday, October 10 - Nottingham, UK (Arena)
Saturday, October 11 - Glasgow, UK (SECC)
Monday, October 13 - London (O2 Arena)
Tuesday, October 14 - Cardiff (Arena)
Thursday, October 16 - Birmingham (NIA)
Saturday, October 18 - Liverpool (Arena)
Wednesday, October 22- Barcelona, Spain (Palau Sant Jordi)
Friday, October 24 - Murcia, Spain (Estadio Municipal)
Saturday, October 25 - Madrid, Spain (Palacio de Deportes)
Tuesday, October 28 - Budapest, Hungary (Sportarena)
Wednesday, October 29 - Belgrade, Serbia (Arena)
Friday, October 31 - Prague, Czech Republic (O2 Arena)
Saturday, November 1 - Vienna, Austria (Stadhalle)