There are two things I remember vividly from the pre-Queenbert era:
1. the worry about Adam's voice and how it would handle such demanding songs for six shows. Back then I didn't even know how big the set was going to be. After Kiev, I was shocked by the sheer duration of it. Bloody marathon!
2. Adam's insistence that this would be a one time thing because he has his own material, the new album, etc, etc...
About the first: insert here any ass-shaking, foot-stomping, hands-clapping, face-splitting happy grin because his voice is a MONSTER and last night, I listened to him belt out his glory notes with such ease and thought that this freak could go on and on and on, and they could have booked more shows and he would have done it, in a slide! He is a tough cookie, a very gorgeous, sexy, adorable, tough cookie!
The second makes my heart melt because somewhere along the line, in the purple haze of the reflectors and pyro, while Adam was tiptoeing around the emotional and historic subcontext of the shows, something wonderful happened. He let go, whether gently pushed by ever so warm, supportive and lovely Brian and Roger, or by the more than appreciative, confused at first and then enlightened, jaw gapping audience, and finally accepted this creation as his, too.
It was the thing of heart, not of his stage play. What Adam felt about this cannot be measured in minutes he spent next to or behind Brian as opposed to the time he spent in the spotlight. It's physical manifestation is irrelevant. The shows could have been over without Adam truly embracing the creative part of his own in them.
It was nothing short of a miracle to me. As if he finally allowed himself to acknowkledge his part, his hard work and his contribution to the performances. To feel free to think that this is his work of art as well. Here is that moment:
And that's why we are going to see more of this amazing collaboration, because Adam, and I think Brian and Roger as well, realized that it's so much more than an AI runner-up singing old Queen songs with Queen-but-not-Queen: they created something different, something new, born out of their interaction and they liked it. We liked it. And judging by the reviews, the world liked it as well.
This morning, I wanted to tweet Adam with ever so corny, but surprisingly fitting: Good morning. Welcome to the first day of the rest of your life. Thankfully, I didn't, but that's how I felt. These shows are a huge landmark of his career, his life. It has left impact on both. And I won't even begin to describe what it has done to us.
I'm joyfully looking forward to Adam's work, whether it be with his own songs or the shows with Queen again. Both are equally magical.
