FIRSTS AND ACHIEVEMENTS
Here is a list of all first times and the prizes which comes from our beloved fan club : http://www.queenworld.com
Queen were the first band
to:
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"Test" De Lane Lea Studios
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Make a "pop" video
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Have FOUR Albums in the UK Top Twenty (Queen. Queen II,
Sheer Heart Attack, Night At The Opera)
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Have 50 naked girls riding bicycles
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Choose their own debut single - usually chosen by the
record company
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Play stadium dates in Argentina
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Play stadium dates in Brazil
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Attract a paying audience of 131,000 - the biggest
paying audience ever for ONE band
-
Play three nights in a stadium in the same city - Buenos
Aires
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Release the first proper collection of promotional
videos commercially (Greatest Flix)
-
Get into the Guinness Book Of Records as the Highest
Paid Executives
-
Release a video of their performance at the Rock In Rio
Festival on video (the ONLY band to do so)
-
Play Melbourne, Australia with NO lighting rig - it
broke down.
-
Be thought of by Russell Mulcahy to write the music for
Highlander
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Broadcast a "simulcast" between Channel Four and the
Independent Radio Network in the UK
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Play a large stadium date in the Eastern Bloc
(Budapest)
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Have their entire album catalogue released
simultaneously on Compact Disc
-
Have a lead singer record an Operatic
album
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Premier a full length concert feature film in the
Eastern Bloc (Live In Budapest)
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Release a video single in the UK
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Hold a three day fan club convention
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Have a number one video in the UK
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Have 10 albums in the Argentinean Top Ten (the ONLY band
to do so!)
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Install naked lift operators at The Roof Gardens in
London
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First British band to receive an American Billboard
crossover award for Another One Bites the Dust.
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Be listened to by Dino De Laurentiis
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Buy Mountain Studios
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Get all the senior executives of two major record
companies to attend the same party (Jazz Party, New Orleans
1979)
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Create a head with five eyes (The Miracle
cover!)
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Record God Save The Queen
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Forget the words to Imagine
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Have it's lead singer carried on stage by Superman AND
Darth Vader AND Father Christmas
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Have it's mail forwarded on to it by Buckingham
Palace
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Break an all time attendance record for the UK leg of
The Magic Tour, 1986
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Cause the biggest traffic jam in British history in
Knebworth, Hertfordshire as people tried to get to their 1986
show
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Release a "true" greatest hits album, ALL hits, no
'fillers'
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Open the Birmingham NEC Arena
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Have a single in the Argentinean charts for over a year
(Love Of My Life)
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Have the biggest outdoor concert ever in Ireland - Slane
Castle in 1986
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Acheive the fastest selling show staged in Manchester's
Maine Road in 1986
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Have The Walt Disney Company provide animation for a
music video - These Are The Days Of Our Lives
-
Invite members of their fan club to participate in a
music video (We Are The Champions)
-
To play three sold out concerts at Brussels "Forest
National"
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To use a moving lighting rig in the UK
IN THE USA: Queen were the first band to have a #1 hit
for the decade of 1980
-
They were also the first in the 80's to have 2 top 10
hits in the same week. #1 & #3 I believe in the first week of
January.
-
Queen's Another one bites the dust was also the first
song in the U.s. to cross- over #1 in three different cat.
Disco,rock/pop,& r&b
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Greatest hits 2 is best selling foreign album in
Finland ever.
-
Queen Greatest Hits II is the joint 4th longest album on
the charts in SWEDEN, it
spent 50 Weeks and peaked at no. 2
-
They are the first and only band to have two songs
played back to back(We Will Rock and We Are The Champions) EVERYTIME they are
played on the radio at any radio station in any city or town in the
U.S.
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In 1992 Queen's Greatest Hits II was the best selling
foreign album of the year in Hungary.
-
Queen played the largest audience in Germany. 78.000
people in Mannheim / Maimarktgelände. (21.06.1986)
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Queen are the ONLY band to have all band members to have
written at least one song to go into the UK top ten.
-
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Queen's GREATEST HITS has spent an incredible 550 weeks
in the British Album chart so far
-
Bohemian Rhapsody has spent a total of 14 weeks at
Number One (1975/6 and 1991/2 - there were 14 years 363 days between Bo Rap
being number one first time and it's re-release number one in
1991.)
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It was the fastest selling single ever in the
UK
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It was the only time a re-released single went back to
number one.
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It was the first time ever a previous Christmas number
one has returned to the top spot for another Christmas.
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"Bohemian Rhapsody" is the only single to have been a
number one hit in four separate years, (1975, 1976, 1991 and
1992).
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Queen have played over 702 live
concerts.
-
Queen claimed the highest ever attendance at an indoor
concert in the UK at the Birmingham NEC in 1979 - 14,000.
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QUEEN have collected the following awards and
accolades:
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1974: SOUNDS: 3rd best New British Band, 9th best
International Band.
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DISC: 10th Brightest Hope.
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NME: 2nd Most Promising New Name
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1975: RECORD MIRROR: 2nd best British Newcomer, 2nd best
Single (Killer Queen), 9th International Group.
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NME: 8th Best British Group, 7th Best Stage Band, 4th
Most Promising Group In The World, 3rd Most Promising New Name & 17th Best
World Group.
-
DISC: Top live band, Top International group, Top
British Group, Top single (Killer Queen), 3rd best album (SHA) 5th best album
(Queen II).
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IVOR NOVELLO AWARD to Freddie for Killer
Queen.
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GOLDEN LION AWARD (Belgium) to Freddie for Killer
Queen.
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CARL ALLEN AWARD: for contribution to the Ballroom
Dancing Industry
-
1976: NME: 1st British Stage Band, 2nd Group, 5th World
group, 3rd World stage band, Freddie 7th World singer, Brian 3rd top
guitarist, Bohemian Rhapsody 1st British single, NATO 2nd
album.
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RECORD MIRROR/DISC: 1st Best British Group, 1st World
group, Bo Rap number one single, NATO number 6 album, Freddie 5th British
singer, 6th world singer, 4th British songwriter, 5th world songwriter. Brian
4th British musician 4th world musician.
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IVOR NOVELLO AWARD: To Freddie for Bohemian
Rhapsody.
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1977: BRITTANIA AWARD: Best British Single of the Last
25 years - Bohemian Rhapsody
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EUROPE ONE RADIO: Most Potential Rock
Band.
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DAILY MAIL: Best group
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DAILY MIRROR: Best rock group
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1979: MUSIC LIFE JAPAN: Top group, Top album (Jazz), Top
single, Top Bass Player, Top Guitarist, To Drummer, Top
Singer.
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1980: JUNO AWARDS CANADA: Best International Single
(Another One Bites The Dust), Best International Album (The Game), Best
group.
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RECORD WORLD USA: Top male group, Top producer, Top
disco crossover (All for Another One Bites The Dust)
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DICK CLARKE AWARDS USA: Best band
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CIRCUS MAGAZINE USA: 2nd best group, Freddie 2nd make
vocalist, 1st live show, No.1 album The Game, No.1 single Another One Bites
The Dust, No.3 best single Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Freddie 3rd best
songwriter, Brian 3rd best guitarist, John 3rd best bassist, Roger 3rd best
drummer. Freddie 3rd best keyboard player.
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1981: MUSIC LIFE JAPAN: Best group, best bass, best
vocalist, 2nd best guitarist, 2nd best drummer.
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NARM Award USA: Biggest selling single of 1980 for
Another One Bites The Dust
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1984: NORDOFF-ROBBINS MUSIC THERAPY SILVER CLEF AWARD:
Outstanding Contribution To British Music.
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UK VIDEO AWARDS: Highly Commended in Best Compilation
Category for The Works EP. Best Video award for RADIO GA GA.
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1986: DAILY MIRROR READERS POLL: Top British Group, Top
Male vocalist, 5th best album for Kind Of Magic.
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DAILY EXPRESS: Best Album Cover Award for A Kind Of
Magic
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BRITISH VIDEO AWARDS: Top Music Video award for LIVE IN
RIO
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1987: SUN: Best male vocalist for
Freddie
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CAPITAL RADIO LONDON: Best group
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IVOR NOVELLO AWARD: for Outstanding Contribution to
British Music.
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BRITISH VIDEO AWARDS: Best video, Music category for
Live In Budapest
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1988: GOLDEN ROSE FESTIVAL, Montreux:International Music
Media Conference; IMMC Award for Best Long Form Video worldwide for The Magic
Years. (DORO)
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FESTRIO, Rio De Janeiro: Best video documentary award
for The Magic Years. (DORO)
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1989: Independent Television Awards: Best Band Of The
Eighties
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US FILM & VIDEO FESTIVAL: Silver Screen Award for
The Magic Years (DORO)
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DIAMOND AWARDS, Antwerp: Invisible Man, Best Special
Effects award.(DORO)
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1990: BRIT AWARDS: Outstanding Contribution to
Music.
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1991: AMERICAN FILM AND VIDEO FESTIVAL, Chicago:
"Innuendo" won 1st and "Slightly Mad" 3rd prize for Creative Excellence in the
Art Culture and Performing Arts category. (DORO)
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MONITOR AWARDS (Int. Teleproduction Society), New York
City: Best Achievement in Music Video award for INNUENDO. (DORO)
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1992: BRIT AWARDS: Freddie received a posthumous
Outstanding Contribution To Music award (the first posthumous award given),
and Days Of Our Lives got a Best Single award.
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IVOR NOVELLO: Best single for "Days Of Our Lives" and
Brian May received a Best TV Commercial Music award for Driven By
You.
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GOLDEN GIRAFFE AWARD for Greatest Hits 2. (An award
given by the Association of Hungarian Record Publishers)
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MTV AWARDS: Bohemian Rhapsody won Best Video From A
Movie category.
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US FILM & VIDEO FESTIVAL, Chicago: Gold Camera
Awards for The Freddie Mercury Tribute, Greatest Flix II, The Show Must Go On
& These Are The Days Of Our Lives.(DORO)
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1993 IVOR NOVELLO award to Freddie Mercury for "Living
On My Own"
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AMERICAN SOCIETY OF COMPOSERS, AUTHORS & PUBLISHERS:
Freddie awarded a posthumous award for Bohemian Rhapsody as the Most Played
Record in the USA of 1993.
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MONITOR AWARDS, Hollywood: "Red Couch" awards for
Greatest Flix II and I'm Going Slightly Mad.(DORO)
The following award status of the albums was correct
about two years ago - EMI are currently checking to find out what the current
status is, as it must have risen!
GOLD
QUEEN
QUEEN II
DAY AT THE RACES
NEWS OF THE WORLD
JAZZ
THE GAME
FLASH GORDON
HOT SPACE
LIVE AT WEMBLEY
1xPLATINUM
NIGHT AT THE OPERA
THE WORKS
SHEER HEART ATTACK
THE MIRACLE
LIVE MAGIC
INNUENDO
2xPLATINUM
A KIND OF MAGIC
5x PLATINUM
GREATEST HITS II
11x PLATINUM
GREATEST HITS