Happy Birthday, Freddie Mercury
Great music lives on forever, and great artistes are never lost. If you look at the Google doodle today, it’s a tribute to the legendary British musician, singer and songwriter Freddie Mercury who died at the age of 45. The doodle opens out into a wonderful video which captures the essence of Freddie Mercury perfectly – check it out!
For desis, there’s an Indian connection in the Freddie Mercury story which some readers may not know about, – Freddie Mercury was born Farrokh Balsara in 1946, in Zanzibar. Both parents Bomi and Jer Bulsara were Parsee, and Freddie himself was sent to English boarding school in Panchgani which is near Bombay. It was here that he got the name of Freddie from friends. He stayed on in Bombay, completing his school education while he lived with his aunt and grandmother. It seems strange to think that he must have walked the same crowded pavements in Bombay as many of us, seen the same Indian crows caw-cawing across the morning sky as the water of the Arabian Sea dashed against the sea wall.
Mercury, who has been hailed as Britain’s first Asian Rock Star and one of the greatest singers of all time, would have been 65 today. This charismatic performer has a huge fan following all over the world. You can read about his life and times Here
GoogleBlog’s Brian May Tribute to Freddie Mercury
The Googleblog has a thoughtful post by Brian May, guitarist and songwriter, who is a founding member of Queen and wrote many of the band’s hits including ‘We Will Rock You.’ He is also a founder of Freddie for a Day (www.freddieforaday.com), global organization fighting HIV/AIDS. In the post he recalls his first impressions when he met him: “He was a frail but energised dandy, with seemingly impossible dreams and a wicked twinkle in his eye. A while later we had the opportunity to actually see him sing … and it was scary! He was wild and untutored, but massively charismatic. Soon, he began his evolution into a world-class vocal talent, right in front of our eyes.”
Read the full post here Happy Birthday, Freddie Mercury
Indeed, this Bombay Boy went far and left a lasting impression on the world of music.
More Freddie Mercury news:
The Guardian on Freddie Mercury Google Doodle
2 Comments
Thanks for your comment, Sonia. I enjoyed the video too – I think Google did a good job in capturing the Freddie Mercury spirit.
Great fun post! No, I did not know his history. Loved it. Thanks.