Freddie Mercury: Queen’s musical EVOLUTION ‘We tried to do everything’ says Roger Taylor

If you go back and listen to Queen’s early work, not only will you occasionally find Brian May and Roger Taylor as lead singer instead of Freddie Mercury on their own songs, but also a heavier sound. If anything, the band’s earlier tracks are closer to hard rock and heavy metal before they really started experimenting musically. Speaking exclusively with Express.co.uk, Queen drummer Roger Taylor said: “We thought of ourselves as a fairly hard rock band.”

The 71-year-old, who was promoting his new solo single Isolation, continued: “It had elements of all sorts of things.

“It was based on hard rock, which is kind of based on blues.

“And then obviously we went off on all sort of tangents.

“Classical regions, operatic, gospel, funk – we tried to do everything really.”

READ MORE: Freddie Mercury: Roger Taylor on how singer got ‘BETTER and better’

Taylor added: “But Freddie was obviously the lead singer and the best singer I might add as well.

“I guess in those days one would tend to sing one’s own songs.

“But after a while, I would expect Freddie to sing the song[s that I wrote] because he was the better singer.

“And he could put things out there so well. I suppose we sang leads less as we went on yeah.”

On his solo creative output these days, the 71-year-old said: “I just go song by song these days. I mean I had a song called Journey’s End a couple of years ago.

“It’s just nice to do it as it happens. It’s more of a reflection of where you are at the time. It’s a real luxury to just pootle things out, as they happen.”

Taking inspiration from another music legend, Taylor admitted: “I’ve been following Bob Dylan and his output recently. It’s just fantastic.

“He’s had his biggest ever hit I think with that wonderful Murder Most Foul. fabulous.” He’s right, Dylan’s 17-minute JFK assassination reflection was the first of any of his hits to top any Billboard chart on US Rock Digital Song Sales.”