In 1991, the world lost one of the most revered lead vocalists in the history of rock music. Freddie Mercury, the iconic frontman of Queen, had a flair of pure artistry and the strength of a four-octave vocal range while on stage.
Following his death, the British singer was commemorated by a tribute concert on April 20, 1992. The concert was produced for television and took place at London's iconic Wembley Stadium, with an attendance of 72,000 people. Bassist John Deacon, guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor collaborated to organize a show that would highlight the legacy that Mercury left behind. After the announcement of the show, tickets sold out in just three hours, despite there being little mention of who the performers were going to be.
The remaining band members of Queen organized the concert in order to garner donations for AIDS research and awareness. They used the profits to establish an AIDS charity organization, The Mercury Phoenix Trust, in honor of Mercury, who passed away from HIV/AIDS.
Deacon, May and Taylor delivered short speeches at the beginning of the concert before jumping into the first portion of the show. It included brief sets from various artists influenced by Queen. Metallica kicked off the tribute with three performances of their classic tracks “Enter Sandman,” “Sad but True” and “Nothing Else Matters.”
Rock band Extreme followed up with a moving medley of Queen’s hits. They blended songs such as “Mustapha,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Keep Yourself Alive,” “I Want to Break Free” and “We Will Rock You,” among a number of other gems.
Gary Cherone & Nuno Bettencourt gave performances of Queen’s “Love of My Life” and Extreme’s “More Than Words.” The tribute went on to feature four more musicians who performed iconic sets that are still talked about to this day.
Among these were Def Leppard, Bob Geldolf, Spinal Tap and Guns N’ Roses, who performed “Paradise City” and Bob Dylan’s “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.” The London Gospel Choir also provided backing vocals to many of the performances.
The second half of the concert included a 22-song setlist from the members of Queen, who played some of their most popular hits alongside guest musicians. They started off with “Tie Your Mother Down,” performed with Joe Elliott of Def Leppard and Slash of GnR.
The packed set also included “Las palabras de amor (The Words of Love)” with Zucchero, “Radio Ga Ga” with Paul Young, a traditional cover of “The Lord’s Prayer” with David Bowie, “Somebody to Love” with George Michael, “Bohemian Rhapsody” with Elton John and Axl Rose and “We Will Rock You” with Axl Rose.
The tribute closed out with a powerful delivery of “We Are the Champions,” performed with Liza Minnelli and supported by everyone else who performed at the concert. The show ended with one last remark from Roger Taylor, who said: “Good night Freddie, we love you.”
See the full setlist below:
