The Show Must Go On4 Out Of 5 Stars
"Innuendo" was released in February of 1991. The single "These are The Days Of Our Lives" was issued ahead of the album to little airplay, while "Headlong" fared better at rock radio. The video for "Days" was interesting in that Mercury seemed frail looking and in poor health. In November, Freddie Mercury released a press statement that he was terminally ill with AIDS, and then died within days. As is now well known, Mercury was fighting to complete this album (along with tracks that eventually would become "Made in Heaven") as his last testament.
As such, "Innuendo" is a really solid late Queen album, as good as "A Kind of Magic" and better than "A Day At The Races." Mortality was obviously weighing heavily on Mercury and his bandmates, as semi-autobiographical numbers like "I'm Going Slightly Mad," Mercury's ode to his cats "Delilah," the bittersweet "Days" and the stately "The Show Must Go On" all indicate. Brain May's guitar is hotter here than on many of their post-Game discs, on both "Bijou" and the epic title track.
Queen's pop sense also was in full swing here, with such missed opportunities for singles as "All God's Children" and "I Can't Live With You." Even though Mercury was in failing health, the band's tradition for pomp and grandeur continued with an album launch party occurring on the fabled Queen Mary liner in the US after Hollywood Records signed the band in the US. It's a considerable feat that the band decided to go out at full-throttle, with Mercury delivering some top-notch work. As the album closes, Mercury delivers what could be his finest goodbye.
"My soul is painted
like the wings of butterflies,
Fairy tales of yesterday,
will grow but never die,
I can fly, my friends!
The Show must go on!"
As far as the bonus cuts go, there are two noteworthy ones. First is the re-recorded version of "I Can't Live With You," which originally appeared on the now out of print "Queen Rocks" collection, the other a B-Side titled "Lost Opportunity." The passing of Mercury so soon after the release of "Innuendo" meant no live performances, though the Elton John rendition of "The Show Must Go On" from the Freddie Mercury Tribute shows would have been nice.
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