Allegedly planned for an official release back in 1974 or 1975 but scrapped by the creation of A Night at the Opera, Live at the Rainbow '74 fills in part of Queen's history: it is the first official live album to capture the band at their pre-Night at the Opera fury. The brief 1989 release, At the Beeb, touched upon the same territory, capturing their two sessions from 1973, but this is something else, a full concert – and in the case of the double-CD, quadruple vinyl, two full concerts – that showcases the band's rapidly increasing range, not to mention their brute force…
Ever since Freddie Mercury's passing in 1991, fans have seen countless Queen compilations and reissues come their way. And in early 2011, another one arrived, Deep Cuts 1973-1976. As its title suggests, the 14-track compilation is comprised of tunes that were not hits (in other words, don't expect the likes of "Killer Queen," "Bohemian Rhapsody," etc.). But as longtime Queen admirers know, Queen was always an "album rock band," meaning that many of their albums were all killer-no filler from beginning to end. So as a result, many of their uncommon tracks were quite strong on their own…
Queen played three sold-out shows at the legendary Rainbow Theatre, Finsbury Park, North London, in 1974. The first was in March, the crowning glory of the Queen II tour; the band then returned for two more nights in November as part of the Sheer Heart Attack tour. 1974 was a year of high achievement for Freddie, Brian, Roger and John; as well as releasing two albums, from which came their first two hit singles, “Seven Seas Of Rhye” and “Killer Queen,” the latter charting all around the world, they completed major tours across the UK, America and Europe. Queen dazzled their audience with an unforgettable show delivered with a skill and confidence which belied their youth. The tape machines were rolling, capturing the highly energetic performances. To mark the 4oth anniversary of these legendary shows, here, finally, is Queen at the Rainbow; lovingly restored, mixed and digitally mastered, and including material never previously available.
Hungarian Rhapsody: Queen Live in Budapest is a concert film of English rock band Queen's performance at the concert in Budapest on 27 July 1986, starring Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon. The film had a limited release in theatres worldwide on 20 September 2012. The concert was released on DVD and Blu-ray for the first time on 5 November 2012 worldwide, except in the United States where it was released a day later.