Freddie Mercury

Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara) remains one of rock's ultimate characters; an outrageously flamboyant personality who would strut around raising the audience to a frenzy with the incredible range of his voice and a vast repertoire of rock classics. Born to Persian parents in Zanzibar, where his father was a cashier at the British Colonial Office, Mercury later went to boarding school in India, changed his name to Freddie and formed his first band, playing piano with The Hectics. When he was 17 he moved to England with his family and studied art, going on to join various bands while selling second hand clothes at Kensington Market. In 1970 he met guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, changed his surname to Mercury and formed Queen. His amazing tenor voice and camp personality lent itself to epic songs like Bohemian Rhapsody, We Are The Champions and Crazy Little Thing Called Love. As Mercury's legend grew, Queen became a stadium act and when the hits began to fade, he produced an unforgettable performance at the Wembley leg of the Live Aid concert in 1985 to revive them. He also recorded the Mr Bad Guy album in 1985, the hit single Barcelona with Spanish opera singer Montserrat Caballé in 1987, a cover of the old Platters hit The Great Pretender and collaborations with David Bowie, Michael Jackson and Mick Jagger. In 1987 he was diagnosed with AIDS and died in 1991.