'Under Pressure'
--David Bowie and Freddie Mercury (Queen) (1981)

Bowie and Mercury: a collaboration so perfect not even Vanilla Ice could tarnish its legacy. Although that distinctive bass line has become deservedly famous, it's the pairing of two of rock's most dramatic voices that sets this song apart. Born out of an impromptu jam session, it evolved into one of the most inspiring musical moments of the 1980s.

Born: Farrokh Bulsara

What's in a Name: Born in Zanzibar to a Zoroastrian family of Indian descent, the man who would be Queen began calling himself Freddie while at boarding school near Bombay, where he started a band called the Hectics.





Listen to Freddie Mercury on Napster

"I won't be a rock star. I will be a legend."
-- Freddie Mercury

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U.S. Tour, 1980: That's just one of those moments that isn't that "private" but the public never gets to see. When I was working with Queen, I hung a lot more with Brian [May] and Roger [Taylor] and, quite frankly, the roadies. I truly loved working with those guys. I didn't spend as much time around Fred since he had his own posse, as it were (for obvious reasons). Fred primped and preened and didn't have half the ego that he could have had, and he loved being Freddie Mercury. When we toured South America in 1982, he could've been elected president of Brazil and Argentina. I miss him, what can I say?



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Hail to the Queen

Six months after the AIDS-related death of Queen's lead singer, his surviving bandmates hosted the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert for AIDS Awareness. Metallica, Guns N' Roses, Elton John and Robert Plant led an all-star cast celebrating that crazy little thing called love.