FM on ET

I haven’t watched Entertainment Tonight in a long time — ET Canada, yes; regular ET, no — but caught a mention of Freddie by co-host, Chris Jacobs, as they went into a commercial break. He mentioned something about lost interviews with Freddie, don’t want to miss it, etc.

Sure enough, after the break there was a lengthy (4–5 minute) segment that was a response to the newly released video documentary called Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender (TGP), and the companion photo book called Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender, a Life in Pictures.

Amongst the other biographical details mentioned in TGP, the lost interview they were referring to prior to the commercial break was taken during the period Freddie collaborated with Michael Jackson in the early ’80s. There was an audio clip of the two of them singing together and at one point Freddie claims that if the timing had been better, he might have been on Thriller.

On thing that apparently irked Freddie about Michael’s recording routine was his propensity for bringing farm animals into the studio. I guess Freddie wasn’t accustomed to having a recording session turned into a petting zoo. But just when you think Freddie’s excesses were noteworthy, even his idiosyncrasies pale in comparison to Jackson’s.

All-in-all a positive look at Freddie’s latest posthumous effort. Chris Jacobs even made the comment that he loves Freddie and he loves Queen, so that was a nice wrap-up to the segment. As a car enthusiast, perhaps I’m in Love With My Car caught his ear as a kid and he’s been hooked on Queen ever since.

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