Behind the scenes with Queen’s tour photographer Neal Preston: ‘They were simply possessed’

When I was 16 years old, I started my career as a professional photographer. At that time I immediately gravitated towards working with musicians. Within a few years, I found myself being hired to photograph rock musicians on tour. Needless to say, these gigs were heady experiences for me.

But I began to realise that touring with any big rock band, despite the implied perks, is gruelling. Stress and fatigue became my constant companions. Those camera bags can get awfully heavy after a couple of shows. There have been plenty of times on tour when I did not want to get out of bed. I’d have paid any amount of money for another hour of sleep. But at 22 or 23 years old, youth and resilience take over like the afterburners on a jet fighter.

Working with Queen was different. I was welcomed with open arms and encouraged to go for broke – and I did. The scale of each production, from the 1977 tour through the 1986 tour, grew almost exponentially. The productions were full of thunder and lightning, and bigger was definitely better. For me, it was like being a kid in the ultimate candy store, and many of the photographs in my new book, Queen: The Neal Preston Photographs, bear that out.

Going on tour was serious business for them. Every aspect of each show had to be perfect. All the bands I’ve worked with have one thing in common: they’re never quite happy with a gig when it’s over. Ask any member of a big rock band after they come off stage what they thought of the gig, and you’ll rarely get anything close to a positive response.

I recall one particular gig in 1978 that I thought was truly amazing. When I asked Brian afterwards what he thought of it he said, “It was s--t, the sound was crap.” I asked Roger the same question, and his answer was the same but his language was far more colourful. I didn’t have to ask Freddie – I heard him express himself at the top of his lungs from the next room. And John had a look on his face that said, “Don’t even think of talking to me.”

I couldn’t believe it because I knew how good the show had been. But I came to understand that what I was really hearing from each guy was: “It could have been better.” I was dealing with four world-class perfectionists.

Night after night, Queen reinforced the idea to me that you should never settle for anything less than your best and never take your job for granted. Before I started writing the text for this book, I decided to watch a tape of the band’s performance at Live Aid. I hadn’t seen it in years, and I’d never really watched it as a fan would watch it because I was too close to it, having been on that stage with them.

I played the tape three times in a row and I’ve never heard Brian, Roger and John play like that. Freddie was, of course, beyond amazing but something much bigger was happening during those 30-odd minutes that I never hear anyone talk about. They were simply possessed.

South America, 1981

I know it looks like a typical stadium crowd, but the fact is there were 160,000 people in the audience at this gig in South America. It was an absolutely massive amount of people. I climbed onto Roger's drum riser to shoot this picture at the very end of the band's set, and his exuberance in this photo says it all.”

Queen in 1980

You’ve got to love a stage this shiny. It makes for some great photos. Freddie’s personal keyboard/guitar roadie was a guy named Peter Hince (otherwise known to us all as Ratty) who kept Freddie’s black piano as shiny and reflective as any mirror ever made.

The first day I toured with Queen in 1977, I made a point of introducing myself to every individual crew member. When I got to Ratty, I stuck my hand out to shake his and he wouldn’t even look me in the eye. All he said to me was, “If you even so much as breathe on this piano, your a--- will be off this f---ing stage in a second.”

Needless to say, Ratty and I became great friends, and he’s a wonderful photographer as well. He's one of the crew guys I really miss.

Brian May, Jazz Tour, USA, 1978

I’ve always loved this shot of Brian because even though you can’t see his face you know exactly who it is. I once heard a famous cinematographer named John Toll say, “It’s not always the light you add – sometimes it’s the light you take away that makes a shot.” This one’s a perfect example of what he meant… A real “guitar hero” photo.

Queen and police escort, South America, 1981

In South America we had police/military/paramilitary escorts everywhere we went. In this case, I believe we had all (including the security personnel) eaten dinner at this amazing restaurant outside of Buenos Aires called Los Loco Anos (Spanish for “The Crazy Years”). I distinctly remember that they had a grill in this restaurant that must have been 150 metres long and they were cooking about 200 steaks at once. The happy looks on everybody’s face can be translated as pure gluttony. This shot was also 100 per cent Freddie’s idea.

Queen and their Britannia 4-engine jet, USA, 1978

In 1978, on the American tour, we had our very own and very comfortable prop jet for band, management and key personnel. I don’t remember much about this particular plane – I’ve flown on so many private planes of all types that they all meld in my brain into one medium-sized generic air transpoert unit.

This was far smaller than Zeppelin’s famous Starship (which was actually owned in part by pop singer Bobby Sherman), but then again, everyone’s plane was smaller than the Starship. And private airfields are usually great places to set up group shots, as long as there are no raging hangovers to deal with.

Freddie Mercury & Roger Taylor, 1980

This shot was actually a test frame I’d shot of Freddie and Roger while someone was out wrangling Brian and Deacon for a group photo. This is as casual a moment as you’d ever see on a Queen tour: Freddie is ready to shoot and Rog is probably taking the piss out of me for some reason or another!

John Deacon & Brian May backstage, South America, 1981

This picture would more or less repeat itself before any Queen show I’ve ever seen. Brian and John in the tuning room was something I’d seen many times – and the guy I caught in the mirror who looks like a managerial type is, in fact, Jim Beach.

Queen, Live Aid, Wembley Stadium, 1985

A shot from the legendary Live Aid gig in 1985. I was one of the official photographers for the London gig, so I had to shoot every band every single minute. If it walked, talked, sang or smiled, I had to shoot it. Right before Queen’s set, the band’s tour manager Gerry Stickells literally grabbed me as I ran out from under the stage, carried me up the stairs, and deposited me in back of Brian’s amps. It was the only time I felt like I was “home” that entire day. When I got back to the Mayfair Hotel, I realised I’d shot 96 rolls of film that day.

Queen doing a sound check, Argentina, 1981

Most of the band’s sound checks seemed to turn into impromptu band meetings, and this one was no different. Each member of Queen was a perfectionist and the band took every gig very seriously. I really began to understand early on that, with Queen, good was only good, better was only better, and each and every show was an opportunity to excel. I learned from them that even if you do your best, there is always room for improvement.

Freddie Mercury, Wembley Stadium, 1986

This shot was taken at Wembley Stadium in 1986, and it has become one of the most well-known photos of Freddie ever shot. When I looked at the original proof-sheet of this roll a few years ago, I realised that it was only the fifth frame I’d shot that day. It looks like I was on stage, but in fact I had positioned myself just under the catwalk that jutted out from the main stage and popped my head up at just the right time. My trusty 24mm lens “spread” the crowd out and really added the drama that made the image as powerful as it is.

Brian May in Disneyland Florida, 1978?

This was shot during a band outing to Disneyland on an off-day in Los Angeles. Brian, John and Roger came on the visit – Freddie did not. It was tons of fun that day! This is a picture where I caught Brian literally stopping to smell the roses.

Queen in South America, 1981

All the soccer stadiums in South America seemed so massive, even to me, and as an American I’m used to large stadium shows.

But it seemed to me to be a dereliction of duty to not try and set up a group shot that showed the scale of the empty stadium in the background. Every member of the band agreed with me in that this would be an important photograph to get. Indeed, almost a once-in-a-lifetime shot. We all trudged up hundreds of steps to make that photo happen!

All images by Neal Preston ? Queen Productions. ?Exclusively excerpted from Queen: The Neal Preston Photographs, published by Reel Art Press at ￡49.95