Roger Taylor: “The Unblinking Eye (Everything Is Broken)”

My interest in Queen and Queen-related projects has waned considerably since the publication of my book (which is one of many reasons I’m taking my time with my Elvis Costello and The Who books: I’d rather not burn myself out to the point that I can’t stand listening to them for any extended period of time), but I became genuinely excited within the past week or two when it was revealed that Roger Taylor was set to release his first solo single in 12 years.

At least, that’s according to the press release. Obviously they’ve forgotten about the catchy ‘Woman You’re So Beautiful (But Still A Pain In The Ass)’, which was released as Felix + Arty back in the summer of 2006. (Felix, for those not in the know, is Taylor’s eldest son and the source of the phrase “radio ka ka”, which gave way, of course, to ‘Radio Ga Ga’. Arty is Roger Taylor’s initials pronounced phonetically. Clever, no?) And Taylor’s most recent solo album was released in 1998, not 1997. But let’s not quibble over technicalities and such; the man has put out a new single, and it’s pretty damn good.

In the press release, Taylor laments the “loss” of the protest song, and as soon as I read that, I cringed. Throughout his solo career, Taylor has taken pot-shots at politicians and undeserving celebrities, and while they may have been deserved, some of his word usage is questionable at best, and laughable at worst. (Here’s one of his winning verses: “VIPs and royalty get treated like they’re specialty / But the trick is there for all to see / They’re people just like you and me / You can shove it!”) A 90 second sample of the new song was made available over the weekend, and one overenthusiastic Queen fan stated that Taylor is the British Bob Dylan. I found such a statement incredulous and baffling. Dylan’s lyrics, which at one point were the voice of a generation, are timeless and classic works of poetry; Taylor’s lyrics – in fact, most of Queen’s lyrics – are timeless and classic, but more as a way of filling in spaces around the music. They say a lot, and they say nothing, whereas Dylan draws on personal experience to speak personally and from the heart. There’s no denying that Taylor might speak personally and from the heart on his songs, but Dylan has such a way with words that very few people can lyrically touch him. To me, Elvis Costello is the British Bob Dylan, but Dylan is in a class all of his own, that it’s unfair to compare him with anyone else.

So, now that I’ve blustered on for far too long about one stupid statement: what of the song? Titled ‘The Unblinking Eye (Everything Is Broken)’ (hey, maybe that’s where the Queen fan drew the Dylan reference!), it’s a six minute epic that is less of a ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and more of a combination of ‘Happiness?’ and ‘Foreign Sand’, both from Taylor’s wonderful 1994 album Happiness?. There’s nothing too over-the-top or bombastic here, and Taylor proves himself to be a jack-of-all-trades by playing all the instruments – quite well, too; that’s some accomplished piano and keyboard playing, for sure – and singing all the vocals. Lyrically, it deals with the Iraq war, clueless politicians, and the invasion of privacy in London, but it’s not acerbic enough to be a true protest song. When I think of protest songs, I think of anger and frustration, sharp, loud guitars, and emotions boiling over, but the languid pace and relatively restrained vocals gives it a resigned weariness, as if Taylor has little else to do but accept what he’s protesting.

For what it’s worth, the song is lovely (not only is there a nice orchestration – undoubtedly done on keyboards – but also a Stylophone solo), and I’m really pleased that Taylor has had the creative fire lit under him: his songs on the patchy but enjoyable The Cosmos Rocks were some of the best that he’s written, and as spotty as his solo career has been in the past, it’s certainly diverse and interesting enough to pick up again. I remember being disappointed when he announced he wouldn’t be doing anymore solo albums after the release of his excellent Electric Fire in 1998, because I’ve always found his solo material more enjoyable than, say, Brian May’s output, but I’m pleased to see that he’s since retracted that statement and is at least putting out some singles. I just hope a full album is in the works, because ‘The Unblinking Eye’ is too good to be forgotten as a download-only single.

Download ‘The Unblinking Eye (Everything Is Broken)’ from the Queenonline store or watch the video here. But buy the single, because it’s good.