Bohemian Rhapsody - reprised - original post

I like to listen to music when I am critiquing my writing, or if I am writing. No matter if I am happy or sad, it would be safe to say that music gets me centered and in a creative mindset. It keeps sane as well. I was at my favorite coffee shop last Friday, going over a manuscript. I had my headphones on and I was in the zone. I put on the Queen channel. For you young folks, Queen was an innovative group from England that came out in the 1970’s. Their first hit was “Bohemian Rhapsody.” It featured Freddie Mercury as the lead singer. He was a powerful vocalist and could play piano with a light touch that would melt your heart. He was a dynamic entertainer, a sexually attractive man with the worst teeth that you have ever seen. Somehow, that overbite seemed to contribute to his overall charm. To say that Freddie Mercury and Queen were trailblazers in alternative music and dress etc. would be rather an understatement. In fact, some of what they did and said, I did not even understand until I was well into my thirties. (We were totally naïve growing up in the mountains of WNC.) All I knew was that I liked it. Freddie Mercury died at the age of 45 from bronchial pneumonia as a complication of AIDS. He had remained silent on his condition until the day before his death to protect those close to him. However, he went public at the last to throw the disease into the light in hopes protecting others and searching for a cure. Now, when I play the videos, I feel a vacuum has been created in the entertainment atmosphere. The award list of his professional career is too long to name, but it can be summed up in one word, talent. I miss Freddie.

Bohemian Rhapsody - reprised

I recently viewed the movie Bohemian Rhapsody about Freddie Mercury and Queen. While it was a wonderfully made movie with a very talented young actor, it is the cautionary tale of insight into those who view the world differently than the average workaday person. Their reality is on a different plane and they perceive the world with an eye for some of the visionary, beautiful things that escape most understanding. It is often incredibly sad and their existence can be lonely as they live in their own dimensions. Even with a crowd of people around them, they are alone. If you look at the genius of Freddie Mercury, Robin Williams, Hand Williams Sr. and so many more, they are beyond the pale of talent, but isolated within this scope. It is as if they are speaking a language only they understand and while they are talking, the world is enjoying their show, but no one listens to them. This is why some self medicate, to dull the pain and loneliness. In this, we should all give them a little bit of extra slack for their idiosyncrasies and habits and just try to appreciate them. When stars fall from the sky, one cannot hold it in one's hands for very long for it burns when touched and cannot be contained for long.