08-04-2003 – Blabbermouth – Australian Singer To Join Queen

Australian singer John Farnham has reportedly been asked to join rock legends QUEEN.

The Daily Telegraph reported Farnham had been offered “the gig of a lifetime” — to follow in the footsteps of the late Freddie Mercury as QUEEN’s lead singer.

Farnham “blew away” the band after recording a new version of its classic “We Will Rock You” with QUEEN guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor in Melbourne two weeks ago, the newspaper said.

The former LITTLE RIVER BAND frontman who’s gone on to have a successful solo career recorded his vocals in May in Melbourne, and then sent the tapes to London, where May and Taylor added their parts.

In a posting on his web site, brianmaynews.com, May called Farnham’s vocals “truly awesome…The marvels of a great singer!…It gets better the more you listen to it…It stars off very true to the original but gets to a new place…It sounds huge.”

May estimates that he layered 15 guitar parts onto the song.

The song was recorded for release as an official 2003 Rugby World Cup theme.

“We have not heard the last of John Farnham and QUEEN,” an industry source said, the paper reported.

Farnham’s manager Glenn Wheatley had confirmed discussions between Farnham and May had taken place.

QUEEN’s U.K.-based management team will be in Melbourne on Tuesday (Aug. 5) to discuss Farnham’s commitment to the band beyond the “We Will Rock You” track, according to the paper.

QUEEN are preparing for the Australian opening of their musical, “We Will Rock You”, on August 7 in Melbourne.