Queen in Japan, March 22nd 1976

by JOE

I continued to wait with baited breath for Queen to return to Japan, my heart dancing with anticipation all the while, and it happened earlier than I had expected—one year after their first visit, they returned in the spring of 1976. (They spoiled us Japanese fans back then!) This time I had prepared by saving up a bunch of money so I could see them in both Tokyo AND Osaka. Not only that, but I hatched a master plan to go to Haneda Airport to see them arrive (Narita Airport hadn't even been built yet!). I'm sure you all have heard a million times now about the chaos at the airport, what with hair being pulled in all directions, poor Brian almost getting knocked over... the images are vividly floating in my brain even now. The dozens of—no, it had to be close to a hundred—taxis full of fans giving chase to Queen's limo. My friends and I jumped in one of those taxis ourselves.

After the car chase, which was like something out of an action movie, Queen and the fans rolled into Shinagawa Pacific Hotel all together like a gigantic raging wave. I couldn't help but be surprised as soon as I stepped foot in the lobby. The hotel was bursting at the seams with girls desperate to catch a glimpse of the band. We decided to head to the restaurant on the top floor. Maybe the guys were hungry, my heart whispered.

The moment our elevator door opened to the top floor, who should appear before our eyes but all four of them, waiting for their orders at the front of the restaurant!! (It's this sort of scene where you start screaming "KYAAA!" before you can even process it!!) Turns out dreams DO come true! It was a slightly eerie experience. They noticed us, and Brian and John said hello and shook our hands, but Roger seemed to be in a foul mood and just glared at us from afar. (I bet he was really hungry.) And then Freddie... well he was teeming with grace and proud as a peacock, and he felt like perfection to us, as could be expected. In that instant, it was like a heavenly light was showing behind the four of them... and then suddenly Freddie began to walk in our direction, leaving the other three behind. He had the elegance and refinement of a model, and even as he swung his room key around and around, he looked like a painted picture.

Just as onstage, here Freddie's movements were extremely graceful and beautiful... he felt like a natural-born dancer. Just before he came over he had stood up, turning around once, and even that was stunning! He moved so effortlessly, there really can't be anyone else giving off the same splendor as him! He quickly returned to where he was a moment prior. To him he was just taking a look around the restaurant, but to us he was bestowing a free "show" upon us, and we were completely enraptured, thinking we must've done something great in a previous life to warrant this opportunity. Thinking about it now, Freddie wasn't just a creator of his art, he himself was a walking piece of art. This world will never see another artist quite like him.

Both the Tokyo and Osaka shows were total successes, and the curtain came down. The fans were left literally half-crazed after being shown such moving performances, a phenomenon that hasn't been seen in Japan since. At the Budoukan, the fans turned into a stampede, tearing apart the security rope and bumrushing the stage. They tore into the stage with their frenzied arms, myriad hands snaking in, and there was Freddie, naked but for tiny shorts, dancing, jumping, shouting, inciting us all further. Right beneath the stage, I felt nothing but the heated atmosphere, the sweat flying, the deafening cacophony... even now, I feel like I might explode just remembering it all.

After the concert, my entire body was covered with bruises. It had been a battle between life or death, and I had survived... that's the way this band made you feel!

Another unforgettable moment at the Budoukan... Freddie threw his tambourine into the audience, and I caught it! But the joy was fleeting, for the ten or so fans standing closest to me all jumped on me at once, and sadly it was taken from me. (Sometimes life has other plans for us...) In the end, that tambourine ended up in the hands of a determined pro groupie, who snatched it away and scurried off quick as a rabbit. (Even now, the jealousy!!) Oh tambourine, where are you today...?

P.S., or an excuse... Concerning Queen, I'm not at all confident that the above is how I would've described things when they first happened, since it was so long ago. I wrote it with my love of Queen in mind, so please take with a grain of salt. I've come to realize that in this case, love for Queen is really a kind of blinding madness. And this love and madness for Queen is, for me, eternal!!!!

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