5.12.14 Adam Out and About in WeHo

Vaucluse is a restaurant, bar and event venue. The building was Charlie Chaplin’s home in the 1920’s, a speakeasy during the prohibition era, and once Janis Joplin and Bob Dylan’s home. Secret tunnels run underground and connect the building to nearby hotels including the Château Marmont Hotel. In the recent past it has been a string of clubs and restaurants; most famous incarnation was as The Libertine. For a while in 2010 it was a recording studio.

The specialty of Vaucluse Lounge is craft cocktails. Time Out selected the Grand Maple ($15) as the best from the menu, “an impeccable blend of fresh strawberries, balsamic and maple with vodka and Grand Marnier. Since the master mixologist is infusing it himself, the Peanut-Butter Rum ($15) made with butterscotch liqueur, cinnamon, caramel and almond is a must. And for a brazenly sweet and refreshing option, opt for the Pear & Rhubarb ($15) with Absolut Pear, house-made rhubarb syrup, St. Germaine, fresh pear and cinnamon.” They also offer a $10,000 diamond martini which is a PR stunt and a copy or the “Diamonds are Forever” Martini offered by the Ritz-Carlton Tokyo. And, yes, diamond martinis come with a real diamond in place of the olive. Vaucluse serves American Australian food.

Queen II was a breakthrough in terms of power and ambition, but Queen's third album Sheer Heart Attack was where the band started to gel. It followed quickly on the heels of the second record -- just by a matter of months; it was the second album they released in 1974 -- but it feels like it had a longer incubation period, so great is the progress here. Which isn't quite to say that Sheer Heart Attack is flawless -- it still has a tendency to meander, sometimes within a song itself, as when the killer opening "Brighton Rock" suddenly veers into long stretches of Brian May solo guitar -- but all these detours do not distract from the overall album, they're in many ways the key to the record itself: it's the sound of Queen stretching their wings as they learn how to soar to the clouds. There's a genuine excitement in hearing all the elements to Queen's sound fall into place here, as the music grows grander and catchier without sacrificing their brutal, hard attack. One of the great strengths of the album is how all four members find their voices as songwriters, penning hooks that are big, bold, and insistent and crafting them in songs that work as cohesive entities instead of flourishes of ideas. This is evident not just in "Killer Queen" -- the first, best flourishing of Freddie Mercury's vaudevillian camp -- but also on the pummeling "Stone Cold Crazy," a frenzied piece of jagged metal that's all the more exciting because it has a real melodic hook. Those hooks are threaded throughout the record, on both the ballads and the other rockers, but it isn't just that this is poppier, it's that they're able to execute their drama with flair and style. There are still references to mystical worlds ("Lily of the Valley," "In the Lap of Gods") but the fantasy does not overwhelm as it did on the first two records; the theatricality is now wielded on everyday affairs, which ironically makes them sound larger than life. And this sense of scale, combined with the heavy guitars, pop hooks, and theatrical style, marks the true unveiling of Queen, making Sheer Heart Attack as the moment where they truly came into their own.

The album is very varied, we took it to extreme I suppose, but we are very interested in studio techniques and wanted to use what was available. We learnt a lot about technique while we were making the first two albums. Of course there has been some criticism, and the constructive criticism has been very good for us. But to be frank I'm not that keen on the British music press, and they've been pretty unfair to us. I feel that up and coming journalists, by the large, put themselves above the artists. They've certainly been under a misconception about us. We've been called a supermarket hype. But if you see us up on a stage, that's what we're all about. We are basically a rock band.
—Freddie Mercury, November 9, 1974 in an interview with Melody Maker

Sheer Heart Attack - Phonograph Record
March 1975, by John Mendelssohn

HAVING BEEN duly, uh, blown away by the opening tracks on their previous two albums, I prepared to savor the first cut on Queen's Sheer Heart Attack with what might have been described as drooling anticipation, only to discover that ‘Brighton Rock’ is a little more than Brian May attempting to convince us that he, and neither Robin Trower nor anyone else, is Jimi Hendrix incarnate.

Visibly shaken, vastly saddened, and a little angry, I hunted all over both sides of this latest album for something, anything, even remotely as magnificient as ‘Keep Yourself Alive’ or ‘Father to Son’, only to end up empty-earred and bawling.

With a little concentration these geezers could become the best English group in Britain. At the moment, though, they've got a disastrously cock-eyed view of their own strengths. The production effects they pile on with so little restraint and their apparent phobic dread of ever over-dubbing fewer than thirty-five guitar parts on anything combine to smother the actual songs, to which they seem to be paying less and less attention. For instance, were May to spend as much time composing lead vocal lines as he does constructing harmonies for his guitar leads, he might, one suspects, come up with a lot more memorable songs.

I mean I adore the heavily-produced English sound as much as any man on earth, but Queen have just gone overboard.

It ought to be pointed out to them that some of the best-loved groups in rock history have contained members who didn't compose. Drummer Roger Taylor and bassist John Deacon certainly don't do so with appreciable proficiency, but, typically, the group nevertheless try to sneak ‘Tenament Funster’ and ‘Misfire’ past us in a cloud of production effects. Naughty boys: Spector himself couldn't make either of these sound like much.

Considering how exquisitely May's, Freddie Mercury's and Taylor's voices blend, why is there so little vocal harmony? Lotsa people can play the guitar as well as Brian May, but there probably aren't ten groups recording who can harmonize like that

What with their excellent vocals, extensive instrumental proficiency in the ‘heavy’ manner, and rich (if presently too-rich) imaginations concerning recording technology, Queen may one day make an album comparable to The Move's incomparable Shazam. When that day comes, mark my words, they'll swear they never made an album called Sheer Heart Attack.

Link: www.queenarchives.com/index.php?title=Queen_-_03-XX-1975_-_Sheer_Heart_Attack_-_Phonograph_Record

SHEER HEART ATTACK What Classic Rock Said
Release Date: 8/11/74
Highest Chart Position: 2
Singles:
Killer Queen (11/10/74), 2
Now I'm Here (17/1/75), 11

Brighton Rock
Writer: Brian May

An interesting intro to the album - this song couldn't have gone anywhere else. It starts off with the background noises of a fairground, before the guitar kicks in - the dominant part of this track. The contribution from the other three is minimal - a couple of verses and a bridge sung by Freddie at the start, and another verse at the end. The lyrics there are seem to be about nothing other than a brief encounter on a bank holiday. The guitar solo, which forms the majority of this track, seems to explore various styles, but doesn't really go anywhere. The term "curio" would be more appropriate. Slightly lacking, but it's not that bad. But it's just too forgettable - I have listened to this, and just not noticed the guitar bit.

Rating: 5

Killer Queen
Writer: Freddie Mercury

The song that got the band recognised in the big wide world - Seven Seas Of Rhye was their first hit over here, but failed to chart in many countries. This song was big everywhere. Anyway, onto the review. This song is very slick, very tongue-in-cheek - about, according to one source, "a high-class call girl". That sounds right. The best part of the song, for me, has to be the guitar solo. A trait that would carry on all through the years, Brian echoes the melody on his Red Special for the first time with this song. The vocals are deceptively superb - Freddie ascends to the high notes so slowly that you don't realise it until you're singing along and suddenly can't make the same note. Subject-wise, the song doesn't carry much depth, and I believe in music for self-expression; however, this song is very clever. It was David Essex's "Gonna Make You A Star" that kept this from the top spot, and ironically, this is Essex's favourite Queen song! A song that you can't help but chuckle at. Good. Rating: 7

Tenement Funster
Writer: Roger Taylor (vocal)

The start of another medley - as was established with the last album, I don't like tracks being joined together on albums (live is OK). I like them separable. Anyway, this one seems to be Roger singing about various little things, that he likes. There seems to be some dig at something somewhere in this - "I like the good things in life, but most of the best ain't free", he's definitely poking holes. Roger is talking about something, looking through his own eyes. OK, but I still prefer Loser In The End. Rating: 5

Flick Of The Wrist
Writer: Freddie Mercury

Whoah! Just as the last song doesn't finish (remember we're in a medley here), we change styles to something much more aggressive. In fact, downright nasty at times. I suspect this was descended from Great King Rat and Liar on the first album, with a little bit of March Of The Black Queen thrown in for good measure. It doesn't do anything for me, I'm afraid. Lyrically, it's another of those things where I haven't a clue what Freddie's going on about. A little poor. This song was released, in fact, as a double-A sided single with Killer Queen, but never remembered. This is unfortunate, because it drags the album down a peg.
Rating: 3

Lily Of The Valley
Writer: Freddie Mercury

A pity this was connected in the medley, and inseparable, as it's really lovely. (I can't help wonder, though, with a title like that, if anybody had cottoned onto Freddie's sexuality at that point . . .) It seems to be to do with all sorts of questions (a theme that would later be revisited in Innuendo), a search for some kind of answer - "I am forever searching high and low, but why does everybody tell me no?" could be to do with loneliness, it's an interesting little number. A pity it's inseparable from the previous song. Otherwise, it would probably have got another mark.

Rating: 6

Now I'm Here
Writer: Brian May

The most naturally chart-friendly song to date, this is a well thought-out song about the road to stardom. Starting off as "a baby", and leaving "my memories with you". There is also a reference, with the line "down in the city, just Hoople and me", to their playing support to the band Mott The Hoople on tour. (It's a name you remember for its weirdness). The most played song at their live shows - on the Live Killers album, this song is the start of the singalong session - the audience are enlisted to join in. And they do this with great enthusiasm. In terms of Queen's later standard, it's not amazing, but it really is very good; especially the opening guitar passage, and the soft, echoing vocals at the start. Then it ups a gear and becomes a real belter, before softening down for the final bit of meaningful lyrics. After that, the outro returns to the rocking style of the majority of the song. Oh, yes. The high point of the album for me.

Rating: 8

In The Lap Of The Gods
Writer: Freddie Mercury

You could be forgiven for thinking Roger Taylor had been kicked where it hurts at the start of this song - the scream he utters is genuinely quite shocking. Freddie's vocals are then unrecognisable, as they have been mechanically lowered in pitch, and I would imagine slowed down slightly from his original rendition of them. Nothing overly difficult as regards what the song is about. It's about a devoted lover who doesn't seem to be getting much out of his relationship. Eventually, he says, "OK, I'll just let fate decide" - "leave it in the lap of the gods". It's well thought-out, but it's a little bit pieced together. It doesn't seem to flow like some of the other songs here, such as Killer Queen. Worth a listen, but not brilliant.

Rating: 5

Stone Cold Crazy
Writer: Queen

The ancestor of modern grunge music, this is as heavy as Queen get - not so much rock as metal here. It is short, but most definitely not sweet. It is breathless. Vocally, it goes by so quickly that you need to have the lyrics in front of you to understand what on earth Freddie's going on about. It tells the story of somebody going off the rails. Quite literally going stone cold crazy. It is probably an ancestor to I'm Going Slightly Mad from the album "Innuendo". Instrumentally, it is again nothing like typical Queen - very much a heavy metal song more than a rocker. It isn't a bad song at all. It's not great, but you could get to really like it. It's OK.

Rating: 6

Dear Friends
Writer: Brian May

After the intensely rapid pace of the last number, this one is short and sweet with it. Instrumentally, it's quite simple mainly on the piano. It's really quite nice indeed, about starting anew when friendships collapse. I have to wonder what it would sound like with Brian on lead. His voice would fit this one well. Not that Freddie does a bad job, I hasten to add. A very enjoyable song. The high point of this side.

Rating: 7

Misfire
Writer: John Deacon

At last! A song written by John Deacon! Up until now, aside from a slightly dubious credit on Stone Cold Crazy, John hadn't written anything for the band. And, incidentally, he plays almost all the guitars on this one. It seems that John, like Roger, he was very possessive of his compositions. That aside, review time. It's a catchy thing, an early 60's feel to it - typical of several of John's songs; subsequent examples include You And I, and Need Your Loving Tonight. Just imagine the Beatles or any other group from the period doing these. As far as the song itself goes, it's nothing special. It's quite standard, progressive rock'n'roll. Freddie's vocals are comparable to those in Father To Son on the previous album. Difficult to judge this song. It's all right, but again, like so much on this album, nothing special.

Rating: 6

Bring Back That Leroy Brown
Writer: Freddie Mercury

Whoah! As the last one fades out, suddenly this one explodes onto the speakers. I think I can safely say that this song is about as far removed from their normal style as Queen got in their tenure as a rock group. It's quite catchy, in that it seems to go all out everywhere. I can't quite work out where this song belongs; in between the two world wars, is, I think, as narrow as I can get. Freddie is having a whale of a time here, one can tell. It is impossible to take this song seriously. Once you accept that, though, this song is quite enjoyable. It's nothing special, but it's OK.

Rating: 5

She Makes Me (Stormtrooper In Stilettos)
Writer: Brian May (vocal)

Er, sorry, but just what is this? After Some Day One Day provided Brian's vocal debut for the band, I was expecting something better than this. Brian seems to be singing here about doing things for his lover that he doesn't really want to do, but does them regardless. His mood could be the reason that the tone hardly varies. There is little in the way of interesting instrumentals here, too. A very monotonous song. And too long. It would have been much better for the album if this had been shorter and Dear Friends had been longer. That would have lengthened the strong point, and shortened the weak point. Rating: 1

In The Lap Of The Gods . . . Revisited
Writer: Freddie Mercury

Aah! Just what the doctor ordered, especially after the nose-dive that the last song took. Freddie in his element here - his vocals are sublime, as per usual. Musically it bears no resemblance to the opener on the second side. It's in a different time signature for a start. Lyrically, it seems to be diametrically opposed to its forbear; it therefore comes as no surprise to read about people comparing the two songs as two opposing sides to the same story. This is the better side, by far. It's better thought out. It's the more rational viewpoint. Musically, it is the only one on this side (with the possible exception of Dear Friends) that stands a chance of working with the vocals replaced by an instrument on the melody.

Rating: 7

In General: Despite the acclaim this album had, I'm not terribly keen on it. It has some high points, but there are just not enough really memorable songs. The memorable ones do include the two singles, though, which was probably the reason for the album's success. On the plus side, the order of the songs seems to make sense - changing styles all the time, which is also what happens with the next album. Also of note, Brian wasn't quite up to his usual greatness as a writer - he did two really good songs, but at the same time, he did two songs that were distinctly lacking. This, however, could be put down to his recovering from hepatitis at the time. All things considered, though, I think that despite two other albums getting a lower average, this one is the weakest album they ever did.

The Best Song Musically: Killer Queen takes the prize here, it is musically brilliant, and in this way stands out more than anything else that they have done before. Only Some Day One Day on the previous album comes close. In second place on this album would be Misfire.

The Best Song Lyrically: I would have to plump for Now I'm Here on this one, with Dear Friends in close second. Aside from those, however, there's not a great lot in the way of great lyrical stuff on this album.

The Best Song Vocally: Well, picking Freddie's best performance here, that's a toughie. I would have to say it's a close call between Killer Queen and In The Lap Of The Gods (Revisited) - I think I 'll have to go with the latter.

The Best Song All Round: It's a hard task picking a best song from this album, because there's nothing that I really love to bits. I'll have to go with Now I'm Here, the only song to get more than 7. Second comes Dear Friends. So it's still Brian's stuff at the top. Also worthy of a mention are Killer Queen and In The Lap Of The Gods (Revisited).

The Worst Song: She Makes Me. Flick Of The Wrist a close second.

Average rating for the whole album: 5.7