Resurrection [Single, Import]

STOP! What you have just picked up is not your normal kind of album. Not an album which has been "thoughtfully pieced together by a coordinated band as a balanced and polished listening experience". Not a Queen album. Not a Brian May solo album. It is a record of a unique event. On the 21st and 22nd of April 1983, five musicians from different backgrounds, who had previously known each other only as friends, played together for the first time. Purely for fun. In listening to this record, I hope you will share in the excitement we felt. STAR FLEET is the theme tune for a superb t.v. sci-fi series broadcast in England for kids of all ages; Japanese visuals and British soundtrack including music by Paul Bliss. The heroes pilot space vehicles which can assemble into a giant robot for land battles. The aliens fly fantastic insect-like craft which spawn smaller fighting machines; all intent on possession of the secret F Zero One... Having been introduced to all this by my small boy, I became equally obsessed by it, and formed the idea of making a hard rock version of the title theme. A few months later I found myself in Los Angeles doing very little. I suddenly realized that four musicians, with whom I'd long wanted to play, were at the end of a local telephone call. To my great surprise, they all liked the ideas I had, so I took my courage in both hands, booked a studio, and in we went. None of us had done this kind of thing before - no record company, no plans for release, no back-up organizations - just us. Just for fun. In STAR FLEET, recorded on the first day, you can hear a kind of nervous exhilaration. The new situation produced a strange and different kind of energy. In LET ME OUT - an old song of mine which had found new life - and in BLUES BREAKER, which of course is pretty spontaneous, you can hear a much more relaxed set of people, just laying back and enjoying the fresh inspiration of each other's playing... I could have put away these tapes in a bottom drawer and kept them as a private record of one of the best experiences of my life. But the few people I've played them for have urged me to "publish", and will make me very happy if others can enjoy this stuff the way I have. I've attempted to hone STAR FLEET into something like a "proper record" - my thanks to ROGER for helping me with the chorus vocals. But I haven't messed one scrap with the tracking done on the day. The rest is simply mixed 'naked'. In BLUES BREAKER, you can hear us smiling as we search for answering phrases. In the last solo of LET ME OUT, Edward tortures his top string to its audible death and winds up quite naturally on the remaining five. The rest I'll leave to the imagination. It's not too hard to figure out who did what! Thank you!! Enjoy!!!

Brian May August, 1983

As a huge May/Queen fan, I am admittedly biased. I think he's the greatest rock guitarist ever. What's great about this particular CD is that it contains not only every B-side on the two-part UK version of the single (save for the short instrumental, Driven By You II - why didn't they include that rather than the LP version of Love Token?!?), but also the three-track EP Brian recorded with friends in 1983 entitled 'Star Fleet Project'. If you're any bit of fan, than you already know of this legendary record, and this is the only issuing of it on CD thus far. (I keep hoping Hollywood records will issue it, possibly with some bonus tracks) I am fortunate enough to own this CD, as well as an original vinyl copy in nearly pristine condition. This disc allows me to leave my record alone, and keep it that way - but what sucks is, the Ressurrection disc has none of the packaging of the original. So you get quality copies of the songs, but no pics. What I'll do is, in a separate review, retype Brian's message on the back cover for those of you that don't have it. Long story short - if you claim to be any sort of May fan, you must buy this CD!

P.S. - The excellent live version of 'Too Much Love' (recorded at the show I was at in Hollywood in '93) contains one of Brian's most passionate solos ever.

This is a definitive album of guitar work. Brian has always been cutting edge and know he has proven it. The final 3 songs, he teams up with none other than Eddie Van Halen. This is a line up that should be revisited again in the future. Along with Phil Chen(Studio Artist) and Alan Gratzer(REO Speedwagon)Brian and Eddie come up with some fantastic Blues.

This is a must for anyone who truly loves music played by "real Musicians"!!