From Loudersoud.
Unearthed handwritten notes by Freddie Mercury reveal his early ideas for Queen‘s flagship anthem Bohemian Rhapsody.
The most interesting musing written by the late frontman shows his original intentions for the song’s title, and that he was at one point leaning towards the phrase ‘Mongolian Rhapsody’.
The item of stationary, which was taken from a now-defunct British airline, British Midland, displays the former working-title, with the word ‘Mongolian‘ crossed out and ‘Bohemian‘ written above it.
Elsewhere in the notes, the vocalist appears to have jotted down other lyrical ideas, such as ‘fandango,‘ ‘Figaro,’ ‘thunderbolts and lighting’ and ‘belladonna’.
Other revelations from the draft show Mercury’s initial lyrics for the verse. Instead of ‘Mama/Just killed a man/Put a gun against his head/Pulled my trigger, now he’s dead’, the singer proposed: ‘Mama/There’s a war began/I’ve got to leave tonight/I’ve got to stand and fight.’
The 15 pages of notes – which were recently uncovered after Mercury’s longtime friend Mary Austin offered up thousands of the singer’s items to go under the hammer at Sotheby’s auction house in London – are estimated to be worth $1.5 million.
Fans and collectors will be able to bid for the piece in a live auction on September 6.
Among the 1,500 items up for auction, there are also manuscripts of working lyrics to other Queen songs including Don’t Stop Me Now, Somebody To Love and We Are The Champions.
Mercury’s signature crown and cloak ensemble, famously worn throughout 1986’s Magic Tour, is also available, and expected to bring in £60,000-£80,000.
Following the death of Queen’s vocalist in 1991, Austin inherited much of his estate. Austin tells the BBC that she is selling the memorabilia in the hope of getting her “affairs in order”, adding that the collection “takes you deeper within the individual and the man I knew.”
View the Bohemian Rhapsody draft below:
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- Queen - Somebody To Love - UK - 7" vinyl - £10.00, $12.20, €11.60 (New Item) (arrived 29-Sep-2023 16:07)on September 30, 2023 at 3:49 am
QUEEN Somebody To Love (1976 UK 7" vinyl single with 'crest' picture labels & four prong centre, also featuring White Man, plain die-cut paper sleeve. The vinyl is Excellent with just light evidence of play EMI2565)
- Queen - Hammer To Fall - Red Sleeve - UK - 12" vinyl - £12.00, $14.64, €13.92 (New Item) (arrived 25-Sep-2023 12:48)on September 30, 2023 at 3:49 am
QUEEN Hammer To Fall (1984 UK 12" single, featuring the Headbanger's Mix, also including Tear It Up, glossy red picture sleeve with black & gold text. The sleeve displays some minor ringwear and edge creasing, whilst the vinyl shows only light signs of play 12QUEEN4)
- Queen - Bicycle Race - UK - 7" vinyl - £10.00, $12.20, €11.60 (New Item) (arrived 24-Sep-2023 11:26)on September 30, 2023 at 3:49 am
QUEEN Bicycle Race (1978 UK 7" vinyl single with intact four prong centre, also including Fat Bottomed Girls, plain company die-cut paper sleeve. The vinyl remains in excellent condition EMI2870)
- Queen - Queen's First EP - 4pr - EX - UK - 7" vinyl - £20.00, $24.40, €23.20 (New Item) (arrived 25-Sep-2023 09:53)on September 30, 2023 at 3:49 am
QUEEN Queen's First EP (1976 UK 4-track 7" vinyl EP with intact four prong centre, including Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy, Death On Two Legs, Tenement Funster and White Queen (As It Began), flipback card picture sleeve. The sleeve displays some minor general wear and has a small split at the bottom, whilst the vinyl remains excellent with only light signs of play EMI2623)
- Queen - Sheer Heart Attack - 1st + Inner - VG - UK - vinyl LP - £30.00, $36.60, €34.80 (New Item) (arrived 25-Sep-2023 11:01)on September 30, 2023 at 3:49 am
QUEEN Sheer Heart Attack (1974 UK first issue 13-track vinyl LP, their marvellous third studio album including Stone Cold Crazy, Now I'm Here, Killer Queen & Brighton Rock, fully laminated picture sleeve complete with the lyric inner which displays angle-cut corners and the trident logo with the 'G&L' credit printed below. The sleeve shows some genral storage wear, the inner is split on the bottom edge with some edge wear and the vinyl is VG+ with some minor evidence of play EMC3061)
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