Thank you for watching our reaction to Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé's incredible performance of "Barcelona"! 🎶🔥 If you enjoyed our reaction, please give this video a thumbs up 👍, subscribe to our channel 🔔, and share your thoughts in the comments below. Support Freddie Mercury by Subscribing to his channel: www.youtube.com/@FreddieMercury Got more song recommendations? Drop them in the comments section below! 👇 Let’s keep the music and memories alive, friends!
You two need to hear Delores O'riordon (from the Cranberries) dueting with Pavarotti singing 'Ave Maria '🎶 Two legends both gone, Delores died age 46. Her voice is heavenly, nobody comes close⭐ Pavarotti actually reached out to her saying she was the only person he wanted to duet with‼️ The video is here on RUclips. As far as I know there's just one channel that has it, but other people have reacted to it with no problem‼️ PLEASE SQUEEZE IT IN, ITS BEAUTIFUL.JESS WILL CRY😢❤😊
If you want to see and hear Opera at its best try this link: ruclips.net/video/YuBeBjqKSGQ/видео.html This is The Magic Flute - Queen of the Night aria (Mozart; Diana Damrau, The Royal Opera). Prepared to have your mind blown!
Freddie had always had a love of opera, as can be clearly seen in Bohemian Rhapsody. When he wrote Barcelona and then met Montserrat Caballe, of whom he was a big fan, a great friendship and mutual admiration was created. Montserrat said to Freddie that they should try to sing this at the upcoming summer Olympics which was going to be held in Barcelona in a few years, to which Freddie replied, 'darling, I won't be here'. Montserrat rarely gave interviews, and so this came out many years after Freddie's passing. Clearly he knew he was quite ill, and that he didn't have long to go. Sure enough he passed in '91, and this song became THE song for the Barcelona summer Olympics in '92.
Although Freddie did not appear in a Stage Musical by Dave Clark called, 'In My Defence', His singing was. One of his songs was, 'Time Waits For No One', and it was Videod. Dave knew that song Belonged to Freddie. After Freddie's death, Dave Clark edited the Video removing everyone but Freddie and used a Piano only. Then he released it as a Tribute to Freddie. Check out The Official Video of, 'Time Waits For No One'. The song is so True!!🕺
Thanks, appreciate your channel and content. Jess your smile is wonderful, smiling with your eyes, saying that as a still married grandad -;) from London
Freddie wrote the song, he was friends with her and ask her to do a collaboration with him. He wrote a whole opera album...... Incredible 🥂🥂🥂 thanks for sharing. The song was the theme song for the Barcelona Olympics
Freddie had been asking her to sing with hom for years but she always refused believing that no rock singer could do justice in a duet. One day freddie went to her apartment and sang for her not only his lines but hers as well and was so impressed she finally agreed to sing with him. They didnt only do this one song they did a whole album together
Freddie was dead by the time of the '92 Olympics. This video is from 8 October 1988, when the Olympic flag arrived in Barcelona following the closing ceremony of the '88 Games in Seoul, South Korea. It was Freddie's final live performance.
@@eddiebest1951 i love aviation when planes retire OMG when the wingwave on last flight out i'm in bits mate ..music wise pink floyd i can listen all day ..Freddie was awesome ofcourse this song is so beautiful ..sorry went on a ramble then
Freddie died the year before the 1992 Barcelona Olympics so never got to open it with Montserrat. He was asked to write the official song for the opening of the Olympics. There's a line in the Barcelona song about meeting again someday and Montserrat sings it so softly before Freddie kisses her hand.. I believe he told her he was dying of the HIV/Aids infection. Greatest duet I have ever heard. There's an interview on RUclips with Montserrat Caballe regarding her friendly relationship with Freddie.. it's amazing, she adored him.
They made the song to enter the competition for the Olympic theme song but they did not win the competition and it wasn’t the official theme song of the Olympics, he wasn’t asked to write the Olympic theme song, Montserrat suggested to Freddie that they enter the competition because it was her home city and it was suggested to her that she should enter because she was a Barcelona native
she knew he was dying from aids when they first met, he told her so during the writing of the song and making of the song, she also said that he would never kiss her on the lips because he didnt want to harm her, she was his favourite opera singer,
As time goes by I think people are becoming more aware of how special Freddie Mercury really was. Such a travesty that we lost him at such a young age.
Monserrat Caballé was the idol of Freddie since he was very young, a real inspiration for him. He considered the opera singers and specially Montserrat the highest level of singing. When he became famous he had the dream of doing a duet with her. He called her and she said yes. This was the result.
Freddie went to a concert she gave in London and was unable to believe that a human being could make such a celestial noise. He asked to meet her and they became friends. Barcelona was written by him in her home and overnight. He wrote a bit - played it to her - she commented - he altered and by the morning it was done. it was used for the Barcelona Olympics but coincidentally. He wrote it in order to have something she would agree to sing with him. I was there. I still weep every time i hear it as i just did. Love your reactions incidentally.
Freddie was a massive opera fan. After they recorded this, him and Caballé became close friends. She was one of the first people he told that he was dying of AIDS and wouldn't be there to sing the son at the Barcelona Olympics opening ceremony.
Barcelona is not just an excellent song, it is an entire album composed by freddie mercury. It's absolutely fantastic, I recommend you listen to it in its entirety.
I would say Freddie has got to be one of the greatest singers who ever lived, his range, power and control is just ridiculous... Holding your own with a female opera singer, whether you wrote the song or not, isn't something many singers can do
They used it for the Spanish Olympics in 1992. She wanted them to sing it live but he had to tell that he would not make it till 92, since he passed in 91.
One of my favourite Freddy Mercury songs. Montserrat Caballe voice of an angel. I believe opera singers have to spend considerable amounts of time to achieve the lung capacity and muscle control. It is beautiful to see how fond of each other Montserrat and Freddy are. May they rest in peace and never be forgotten. 😢
This whole album is amazing. It's the first time Freddie was ever recorded singing in his natural baritone voice. He had seen Montserrat perform on many occasions as several of his friends have verified. I so wish he had lived to see this song played at the Olympics in Barcelona. I would recommend every song on this album. ✌💖😀
Montserrat had asked Freddie if he would sing this at the opening of the Barcelona Olympics with her, he replied Darling I won't be here💔 And now I'm shedding a tear 😢 knowing they are making beautiful music together even though we'll never get to hear it. ❤❤❤
IMO, no Rockstar has ever been able to do what Freddie did. You wouldn't think it was possible for a Rockstar and a great opera singer to be together. Sometimes I just wonder,, What is it that Freddie Mercury can't do,, because he seems like a perfect person in the field of music. It's a total package. Who doesn't admire him when it comes to music, even well-known personalities admire him a lot and that can't be denied because of his contribution to the music industry. He is truly a LEGEND. I admire and I ❤this man. Nothing compares! Thank you for your great reaction. Hope you can also watch and give review to "How can I go on".
They adored each other she had the most beautiful voice and Freddie well what can you say he was sublime this was the song to the Olympics in Barcelona 1992 sheer perfection they are both a huge loss to this world xxx
This was when written for the 92 Olympics and Freddie knew he wouldn't be here to see it. He wasn't just a Rockstar he was so much more than that. Please react to time waits for nobody it's great you're love it and it's very relevant to today. Thank you
Watch the rest of the tracks performed at "Le nit" in Barcelona in front of the fountain brilliant ❤ this concert was 88 just after they were awarded the games. Montserrat wanted them to perform it at the opening ceremony but Freddie had to tell her he would be dead by then😢 she was one of the few who knew
They adored one another. Theirs was a love affair of respect and admiration of each others skills and dedication in their respective disciplines. Both are missed terribly.
I was a teenager when this first came out and cryed then. I'd never heard opera before and was blown away then and cryed and 40 years later i still cry every time i listen to Freddie and Montseratt. Two beautiful voices. I got the single on vinyl and Barcelona album on vinyl and cd. Montseratt couldnt believe Freddie would want to sing with her because of her size. He totally reassured her that size has nothing to do with a good voice and great music. Freddie was a genius. Montseratt spent time at Freddies home in London writing, and arranging along with the guy playing piano. This is an absolute masterpiece.
Freddie always professed his admiration for Montserrat Caballé and it was always a dream of his to sing with her, they kind of killed it didn't they !!.
amongst the many brilliant songs freddie and queen wrote and performed this has got to be one of the most amazing ones from their huge catalogue very emotional too or is that just me
Freddie wrote it as he always wanted to do an opera song since day one . . . . . they were friends and he asked her to sing on it. It became the anthem of the Barcelona Olympics after his death in 1991!
A song you never expected to hear and didn't know you needed. 2 musical anomalies colliding on stage creating music you'll never forget. What a beautiful friendship they had, Freddie's dream came true hearing her sing the music he wrote for her.
Freddie called her up and said he couldn't do it as he was sick .She loved him so much as he her he wrote this 1 for her and as you can see he made it ,he always loved opera 😢
they met and sang together in privat all night. monserat asked freddie to write some numbers they could performe together. freddie wrote barcelona among other numbers. they remaind friends until he died.
When they asked Montserrat to sing this alone at the opening of the Barcelona Olympics but she refused and insisted that they included Freddie. They played the recording with both of them singing whilst showing the scenery of Barcelona as the intro to the opening event. She was a wonderful woman
After his death she also flatly refused to sing it as a duet with anybody else. Wouldn't even consider it. That song belongs to Freddie & me, no one else. Try if you want, I don't care if you get permission from the estate. I'm never going to do it & no other professional opera singer is going to sing it, not while I'm alive. **This was not a threat, this was... They all have too much respect for me & my position in the opera community. It would be in poor taste professionally to do it without my approval & they're never going to get it.
OMG.... Had this playing in my car while on my way to the hospital for the Birth of my eldest son. Thats 1 night i will never forget. Or this song for that memory.
@@paultaylor9498 are you copying and pasting insults you've had from other people, or are these your own original material? Be honest, I promise I won't laugh
He didn’t just collaborate with an opera singer, he, along with Mike Moran, composed an entire album for Freddie & Montserrat to sing. I love his look at the end, as if to say, “well that went well didn’t it?” They became great friends.
This brings tears to my eyes everytime I listen to it. The sheer genious of Freddie along with Caballé is incredible. Freddie was never one to shy away from experimenting with sound and in this, he absolutely nailed it. Thank you for sharing this.
So glad you found this! He opening of the Olympics by Freddie and Monserrat was soon chilling. I was electrified ! I count believe what I was witnessing. It stands to showcase Freddies talent! Freddie wrote and produced the whole RrNgement! I shall save this video to watch again and again!
I was fifteen years old that day. I perfectly remember the excitement over the concert and the fact that the city was chosen for the next Olympic Games in 1992. That concert was celebrated for it. From the base of the Venetian towers I could see this masterpiece. Today, when I walk by the fountains I can feel the same magic as that day. I cried when Freddy died, for the end of Queen and for never seeing that duo again at the Olympic opening show with our Montserrat and our city in the background. By the way, I recommend listening to the entire "Barcelona" album... I've loved it all my life... Thank you for remember them. Very good reaction and hugs for both from Barcelona...❤
This was performed live in 1988 at La Nit festival which was an open air festival to celebrate the arrival of the Olympic Flag from Seoul and start the 4 year journey to the 92 Olympic Games in Barcelona. This was Freddie’s last live performance. The song was recorded in 1987 to be an entry into the competition for the Olympic theme song which would be decided in 1988. It wasn’t chosen as the theme song but it was used as a kind of unofficial song of the Olympics and was used in promotional campaigns and it was played at the opening ceremony, obviously not live because Freddie had passed away 8 months before the opening ceremony. It was also later used as the Champions League Final in 1999 (Soccer) which I remember well because I am a Manchester United fan and it was the first Champions League Final that we had got to in my lifetime and we won it in very dramatic style right at the end, something I will never forget. It was played at Camp Nou which is the home stadium of Barcelona FC and Montserrat performed live while Freddie’s part was the recording and the footage of him singing was shown on the tv screen in the stadium.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you kick off a summer olympic games - 1992 if I remember correctly. Caballé and Freddy Mercury had a particularly special connection, look for the interview with Montserrat Caballé about Freddy that she gave after his death. He admired her.
There's a million back-stories to how this song got written and recorded and filmed etc, and all of them are important and valid, but when I first heard it as a kid I didn't know any of that, I just heard the song. It's one of the most epic compositions and performances I've ever heard. It can still give me goosebumps and/or bring me to tears. It's still one of my go-to songs when I'm on RUclips at 3am (like it is right now). I have tried (and failed) a few times to learn the not-English lyrics, but it doesn't really matter, it's pretty much a perfect song by two perfect singers.
Also that build Montserrat Caballe does at 6:01 and 6:45 is what makes this song for me. It's SO good the whole way through, but those two moments are next-level.
He adored her and it was HIS idea. In the end, his second solo album - following the success of Mr. Bad Guy in 1985 - became the 1988 triumph Barcelona, the bold and groundbreaking musical collaboration with Montserrat Caballé that allowed Mercury to fulfill a long-held dream of combining rock and opera. It was also a total thrill for the singer to work alongside a Spanish operatic soprano whose voice he considered “the best in the world.”
Freddie was so much more than a rock singer. This was the first crossover between a rock singer and an opera diva in the history. Montserrat mentioned, that it was a great service towards the people who never listend to opera before, because their collaboration definitely increased the popularity of this genre. Montserrat Caballé was brave enough to dive herself into a whole new musical world that Freddie offered to her, because she very soon realized The Musician in Freddie. There are 2 more songs at La Nit 88. The Golden Boy (that is even more dramatic) and How Can I Go On, worth to check them out.
Olympics 92, only one i went to and I was in tears listening right at back as sooooo busy. They play it at venue still (well hope so not been 4 ten years) still brings tears of joy
I visited Barcelona a few years ago and visited the Magic Fountain which is located at the foot of Montjuïc hill. The fountains and lights perform to Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé, Barcelona - it's spectacular.
There’s a whole album they made together. You must listen Freddie’s voice in EXERCISES IN FREE LOVE from the self -titled Barcelona album. You’ll not believe it is him…and yes, this song, It was made for that opening Olympic piece in 1992 in Barcelona. Montserrat was asked to make a song from her home town, and she asked Freddie to write it, collaborate with her. He was a massive fan of hers, they became great friends. Two other performances that were able to be recorded before his death was THE GOLDEN BIY and HOW CAN I GO ON. The whole album was written by Freddie and MikeMoran, Freddie never have written operatic pieces or for Montserrat’s soprano vouce. It’s GREAT, FABULOUS. Thank you. 👍❤
The idea to work together was Freddie's he mentioned in an interview he was a huge fan of hers and would love to meet her, the rest as they say is history. It was written for the Olympics but Freddie had died by the time the Olympics opened.
I absolutely loved your reaction. So good to see the delight on your faces. If I am honest I can never control my emotions when watching this performance, I cry every time. I remember it launching and was absolutely stunned. God bless Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballe.
I watched both your faces during this video it was brilliant, I love this song, but I tear up every time I hear it, and then I have to watch Frankie Boyle or Kevin Bridges or Mickey Flanagan to bring me back to earth, keep doing what you're doing you're amazing.❤
I was 9 in 1992 and the Barcelona Olympics was when I fell in love with Athletics. I was a half decent 200m runner in my teens and early 20s, all thanks to that event and it inspiring me to train.
Thank you for watching our reaction to Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé's incredible performance of "Barcelona"! 🎶🔥
If you enjoyed our reaction, please give this video a thumbs up 👍, subscribe to our channel 🔔, and share your thoughts in the comments below.
Support Freddie Mercury by Subscribing to his channel: www.youtube.com/@FreddieMercury
Got more song recommendations? Drop them in the comments section below! 👇
Let’s keep the music and memories alive, friends!
You two need to hear Delores O'riordon (from the Cranberries) dueting with Pavarotti singing 'Ave Maria '🎶 Two legends both gone, Delores died age 46. Her voice is heavenly, nobody comes close⭐ Pavarotti actually reached out to her saying she was the only person he wanted to duet with‼️ The video is here on RUclips. As far as I know there's just one channel that has it, but other people have reacted to it with no problem‼️ PLEASE SQUEEZE IT IN, ITS BEAUTIFUL.JESS WILL CRY😢❤😊
If you want to see and hear Opera at its best try this link:
ruclips.net/video/YuBeBjqKSGQ/видео.html
This is The Magic Flute - Queen of the Night aria (Mozart; Diana Damrau, The Royal Opera). Prepared to have your mind blown!
Freddie had always had a love of opera, as can be clearly seen in Bohemian Rhapsody.
When he wrote Barcelona and then met Montserrat Caballe, of whom he was a big fan, a great friendship and mutual admiration was created. Montserrat said to Freddie that they should try to sing this at the upcoming summer Olympics which was going to be held in Barcelona in a few years, to which Freddie replied, 'darling, I won't be here'.
Montserrat rarely gave interviews, and so this came out many years after Freddie's passing. Clearly he knew he was quite ill, and that he didn't have long to go. Sure enough he passed in '91, and this song became THE song for the Barcelona summer Olympics in '92.
Although Freddie did not appear in a Stage Musical by Dave Clark called, 'In My Defence', His singing was. One of his songs was, 'Time Waits For No One', and it was Videod. Dave knew that song Belonged to Freddie. After Freddie's death, Dave Clark edited the Video removing everyone but Freddie and used a Piano only. Then he released it as a Tribute to Freddie. Check out The Official Video of, 'Time Waits For No One'. The song is so True!!🕺
Thanks, appreciate your channel and content. Jess your smile is wonderful, smiling with your eyes, saying that as a still married grandad -;) from London
Freddie is the genius. Anyone who has the musical brain to come up with Bohemian Rhapsody, Barcelona and Innuendo is a complete one off genius.
Fantastic comment 👍❤
Freddie wrote the song, he was friends with her and ask her to do a collaboration with him. He wrote a whole opera album...... Incredible 🥂🥂🥂 thanks for sharing. The song was the theme song for the Barcelona Olympics
Yes the image in Spanish colours in the background was the logo for the Olympics.
Freddie had been asking her to sing with hom for years but she always refused believing that no rock singer could do justice in a duet. One day freddie went to her apartment and sang for her not only his lines but hers as well and was so impressed she finally agreed to sing with him. They didnt only do this one song they did a whole album together
Freddie was dead by the time of the '92 Olympics. This video is from 8 October 1988, when the Olympic flag arrived in Barcelona following the closing ceremony of the '88 Games in Seoul, South Korea. It was Freddie's final live performance.
I asked my now wife to marry me at the fountain in Barcelona with this song playing in the background, an epic moment for the both of us
How perfect❤❤🎉🎉🎉
A seventy year old man here and I appear to have something in my eye...I'm not crying honest! 🤫👍🇬🇧
70 year young woman here with same problem!!!
I'm 54 and I cry every time I see and hear this because of knowing how things ended.
@steddie4514 those pesky onions at it again
73 years old and have the same problem 👍
@@eddiebest1951 i love aviation when planes retire OMG when the wingwave on last flight out i'm in bits mate ..music wise pink floyd i can listen all day ..Freddie was awesome ofcourse this song is so beautiful ..sorry went on a ramble then
The best song written for the Olympics ever in my opinion, absolute genius ❤
4:27 Freddie Mercury, that's who composed this modern classic. RIP Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé.
Freddie died the year before the 1992 Barcelona Olympics so never got to open it with Montserrat. He was asked to write the official song for the opening of the Olympics. There's a line in the Barcelona song about meeting again someday and Montserrat sings it so softly before Freddie kisses her hand.. I believe he told her he was dying of the HIV/Aids infection.
Greatest duet I have ever heard.
There's an interview on RUclips with Montserrat Caballe regarding her friendly relationship with Freddie.. it's amazing, she adored him.
They made the song to enter the competition for the Olympic theme song but they did not win the competition and it wasn’t the official theme song of the Olympics, he wasn’t asked to write the Olympic theme song, Montserrat suggested to Freddie that they enter the competition because it was her home city and it was suggested to her that she should enter because she was a Barcelona native
she knew he was dying from aids when they first met, he told her so during the writing of the song and making of the song, she also said that he would never kiss her on the lips because he didnt want to harm her, she was his favourite opera singer,
How many other rock / pop singers could stand next to an opera diva and sound comparable? Two of the finest voices ever.
Imagine what Freddie would have accomplished had he lived longer.
IKR. How come so many evil SOBs live into their 80s and 90s while so many beautiful talented people are taken from us so young?
As time goes by I think people are becoming more aware of how special Freddie Mercury really was. Such a travesty that we lost him at such a young age.
Monserrat Caballé was the idol of Freddie since he was very young, a real inspiration for him. He considered the opera singers and specially Montserrat the highest level of singing. When he became famous he had the dream of doing a duet with her. He called her and she said yes. This was the result.
Freddie had confided in her that he was dying. At the opening ceremony she sang this theme song for the games but with a hologram of Freddie. RIP.
Freddie went to a concert she gave in London and was unable to believe that a human being could make such a celestial noise. He asked to meet her and they became friends. Barcelona was written by him in her home and overnight. He wrote a bit - played it to her - she commented - he altered and by the morning it was done. it was used for the Barcelona Olympics but coincidentally. He wrote it in order to have something she would agree to sing with him. I was there. I still weep every time i hear it as i just did. Love your reactions incidentally.
Freddie was a massive opera fan. After they recorded this, him and Caballé became close friends. She was one of the first people he told that he was dying of AIDS and wouldn't be there to sing the son at the Barcelona Olympics opening ceremony.
“Whoever came up with the idea to mix these two (things) together is a Genius!”
GENIUS = FREDDIE MERCURY 😉
Even now the people of Barcelona have taken this song to their hearts. It's their anthem.
Well, Freddie was THE expert at writing anthems
Barcelona is not just an excellent song, it is an entire album composed by freddie mercury. It's absolutely fantastic, I recommend you listen to it in its entirety.
I would say Freddie has got to be one of the greatest singers who ever lived, his range, power and control is just ridiculous... Holding your own with a female opera singer, whether you wrote the song or not, isn't something many singers can do
He loved opera mucic and was a huge fan of Montserrat. Feelings were mutual and they ended up big friends. RIP to both.
They used it for the Spanish Olympics in 1992. She wanted them to sing it live but he had to tell that he would not make it till 92, since he passed in 91.
Freddie wrote the song, and it’s about the first time he saw her perform, which was in Barcelona.
One of my favourite Freddy Mercury songs. Montserrat Caballe voice of an angel. I believe opera singers have to spend considerable amounts of time to achieve the lung capacity and muscle control. It is beautiful to see how fond of each other Montserrat and Freddy are. May they rest in peace and never be forgotten. 😢
This whole album is amazing. It's the first time Freddie was ever recorded singing in his natural baritone voice. He had seen Montserrat perform on many occasions as several of his friends have verified. I so wish he had lived to see this song played at the Olympics in Barcelona. I would recommend every song on this album. ✌💖😀
Montserrat had asked Freddie if he would sing this at the opening of the Barcelona Olympics with her, he replied Darling I won't be here💔 And now I'm shedding a tear 😢 knowing they are making beautiful music together even though we'll never get to hear it. ❤❤❤
November is always a sad month..., we're coming up on the 24th next week... 33 years Freddie is absent... But he will never be "gone"
Never never never , always in my heart ,
Freddie was the ultimate showman, no one comes close to his genius
Well the lady he was singing with, not only comes close, but surpassed him by a million miles
IMO, no Rockstar has ever been able to do what Freddie did. You wouldn't think it was possible for a Rockstar and a great opera singer to be together. Sometimes I just wonder,, What is it that Freddie Mercury can't do,, because he seems like a perfect person in the field of music. It's a total package. Who doesn't admire him when it comes to music, even well-known personalities admire him a lot and that can't be denied because of his contribution to the music industry. He is truly a LEGEND. I admire and I ❤this man. Nothing compares! Thank you for your great reaction. Hope you can also watch and give review to "How can I go on".
Good comment I think the same
you are right...whoever came up with this idea is a genius....its Freddie..
Freddie came up with it,he was a genious
Only Freddie could have gotten away with this, it's absurd but frickin' epic!
They adored each other she had the most beautiful voice and Freddie well what can you say he was sublime this was the song to the Olympics in Barcelona 1992 sheer perfection they are both a huge loss to this world xxx
This was when written for the 92 Olympics and Freddie knew he wouldn't be here to see it. He wasn't just a Rockstar he was so much more than that. Please react to time waits for nobody it's great you're love it and it's very relevant to today. Thank you
Watch the rest of the tracks performed at "Le nit" in Barcelona in front of the fountain brilliant ❤ this concert was 88 just after they were awarded the games. Montserrat wanted them to perform it at the opening ceremony but Freddie had to tell her he would be dead by then😢 she was one of the few who knew
The band queen broke the mold with their mix of rock and opera, just take a look at the titles of their albums
PLEASE react to Freddie and Montserrat singing The Golden Boy at La Nit. You'll be blown away!
Agree. Freddie is a genius please watch this
Just beautiful. I dont know much about opera but i think she has the best opera voice in the world. Freddie adored her.
Some people are special.
How privileged we are to live in a time when their voices can be shared and not just tales of their talent told.
This was for the Barcelona Olympics, it’s still amazing & always gives me chills ❤️🎶
They adored one another. Theirs was a love affair of respect and admiration of each others skills and dedication in their respective disciplines. Both are missed terribly.
Freddie wrote the whole album they did together….it’s all amazing!!🎼❤️🎼🇬🇧🇬🇧
This never fails to give me chills.
I visited the musical fountains in Barcelona where they played this song and it was truly a spiritual moment
I was a teenager when this first came out and cryed then. I'd never heard opera before and was blown away then and cryed and 40 years later i still cry every time i listen to Freddie and Montseratt. Two beautiful voices. I got the single on vinyl and Barcelona album on vinyl and cd.
Montseratt couldnt believe Freddie would want to sing with her because of her size. He totally reassured her that size has nothing to do with a good voice and great music. Freddie was a genius. Montseratt spent time at Freddies home in London writing, and arranging along with the guy playing piano. This is an absolute masterpiece.
Freddie always professed his admiration for Montserrat Caballé and it was always a dream of his to sing with her, they kind of killed it didn't they !!.
amongst the many brilliant songs freddie and queen wrote and performed this has got to be one of the most amazing ones from their huge catalogue very emotional too or is that just me
Freddie wrote it as he always wanted to do an opera song since day one . . . . . they were friends and he asked her to sing on it. It became the anthem of the Barcelona Olympics after his death in 1991!
A song you never expected to hear and didn't know you needed. 2 musical anomalies colliding on stage creating music you'll never forget. What a beautiful friendship they had, Freddie's dream came true hearing her sing the music he wrote for her.
Freddie called her up and said he couldn't do it as he was sick .She loved him so much as he her he wrote this 1 for her and as you can see he made it ,he always loved opera 😢
I've watched this performance multiple times and I always cry, so I make sure I watch it in private.🤣 Absolute tears of joy.
BEAUTIFUL....RESPECT FROM SCOTLAND 🏴🏴👊
If I could ever time travel, this is one thing I'd go back to witness, Freddy was truly one in a billion musician
One of, if not, THE greatest showman of all time. I know there have been others but he is the G.O.A.T.
they met and sang together in privat all night. monserat asked freddie to write some numbers they could performe together. freddie wrote barcelona among other numbers. they remaind friends until he died.
Freddie came up with it......he was a genius!
FREDDIE Will always be Freddie when he sings..his voice is just different..original..
When they asked Montserrat to sing this alone at the opening of the Barcelona Olympics but she refused and insisted that they included Freddie. They played the recording with both of them singing whilst showing the scenery of Barcelona as the intro to the opening event. She was a wonderful woman
After his death she also flatly refused to sing it as a duet with anybody else. Wouldn't even consider it. That song belongs to Freddie & me, no one else. Try if you want, I don't care if you get permission from the estate. I'm never going to do it & no other professional opera singer is going to sing it, not while I'm alive. **This was not a threat, this was... They all have too much respect for me & my position in the opera community. It would be in poor taste professionally to do it without my approval & they're never going to get it.
The opening of the Olympics. THANK YOU
OMG.... Had this playing in my car while on my way to the hospital for the Birth of my eldest son. Thats 1 night i will never forget. Or this song for that memory.
Wonderful, isn't it? Always moves me to tears. 😊 Both of them are a huge loss to.music.
no autotune or anything digital, just their voices into a microphone
What microphone(s)? Nope. This was recorded, and they lip-synced the performance here. Not to say the whole thing wasn't staggeringly wonderful.
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He didn’t just collaborate with an opera singer, he, along with Mike Moran, composed an entire album for Freddie & Montserrat to sing.
I love his look at the end, as if to say, “well that went well didn’t it?”
They became great friends.
This brings tears to my eyes everytime I listen to it. The sheer genious of Freddie along with Caballé is incredible. Freddie was never one to shy away from experimenting with sound and in this, he absolutely nailed it. Thank you for sharing this.
The people standing in the crowd will never see anything any more grand and beautiful than this in their whole life's.
Freddy Mercury wrote the song and has always greatly admired Montserrat Caballe and always wanted to sing with her.😊
So glad you found this! He opening of the Olympics by Freddie and Monserrat was soon chilling. I was electrified ! I count believe what I was witnessing.
It stands to showcase Freddies talent!
Freddie wrote and produced the whole RrNgement!
I shall save this video to watch again and again!
A beautiful classic and one off Fred's bucket list as he knew he was positive and had a few years left to live.
I was fifteen years old that day. I perfectly remember the excitement over the concert and the fact that the city was chosen for the next Olympic Games in 1992. That concert was celebrated for it. From the base of the Venetian towers I could see this masterpiece. Today, when I walk by the fountains I can feel the same magic as that day. I cried when Freddy died, for the end of Queen and for never seeing that duo again at the Olympic opening show with our Montserrat and our city in the background. By the way, I recommend listening to the entire "Barcelona" album... I've loved it all my life... Thank you for remember them. Very good reaction and hugs for both from Barcelona...❤
They are both amazing I love them singing this together.
This was performed live in 1988 at La Nit festival which was an open air festival to celebrate the arrival of the Olympic Flag from Seoul and start the 4 year journey to the 92 Olympic Games in Barcelona.
This was Freddie’s last live performance.
The song was recorded in 1987 to be an entry into the competition for the Olympic theme song which would be decided in 1988.
It wasn’t chosen as the theme song but it was used as a kind of unofficial song of the Olympics and was used in promotional campaigns and it was played at the opening ceremony, obviously not live because Freddie had passed away 8 months before the opening ceremony.
It was also later used as the Champions League Final in 1999 (Soccer) which I remember well because I am a Manchester United fan and it was the first Champions League Final that we had got to in my lifetime and we won it in very dramatic style right at the end, something I will never forget.
It was played at Camp Nou which is the home stadium of Barcelona FC and Montserrat performed live while Freddie’s part was the recording and the footage of him singing was shown on the tv screen in the stadium.
Not many singers in 80’s and 90’s could sing live we’ll never mind this standard x
I prefer the official video to this. The vocals are clearer and the fireworks actually get in the way in this one.
Conducted with a lightsabre !
Barcelona is the appetizer, The Golden Boy is the entree! Bon Appetit
They were great and close friends, I know they are still singing together with the Angels in heaven.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you kick off a summer olympic games - 1992 if I remember correctly. Caballé and Freddy Mercury had a particularly special connection, look for the interview with Montserrat Caballé about Freddy that she gave after his death. He admired her.
It’s magnificent. Two angels in heaven now ❤️❤️❤️
One of Freddie's dreams came true, I was so happy for him. Love it, love him.x
There's a million back-stories to how this song got written and recorded and filmed etc, and all of them are important and valid, but when I first heard it as a kid I didn't know any of that, I just heard the song. It's one of the most epic compositions and performances I've ever heard. It can still give me goosebumps and/or bring me to tears. It's still one of my go-to songs when I'm on RUclips at 3am (like it is right now). I have tried (and failed) a few times to learn the not-English lyrics, but it doesn't really matter, it's pretty much a perfect song by two perfect singers.
Also that build Montserrat Caballe does at 6:01 and 6:45 is what makes this song for me. It's SO good the whole way through, but those two moments are next-level.
You can see the genuine love between Freddie and Monserrat ❤ R.I.P.
He adored her and it was HIS idea. In the end, his second solo album - following the success of Mr. Bad Guy in 1985 - became the 1988 triumph Barcelona, the bold and groundbreaking musical collaboration with Montserrat Caballé that allowed Mercury to fulfill a long-held dream of combining rock and opera. It was also a total thrill for the singer to work alongside a Spanish operatic soprano whose voice he considered “the best in the world.”
What a man, what a singer, what a Legend ---- I'm in tears 😢
This song literally brings tears to your eyes! 😢😢 an amazing song that is brought to life live ❤
I think you described it perfectly when you said "It's magical!"
Freddie as magical as he always will be
Freddie was so much more than a rock singer.
This was the first crossover between a rock singer and an opera diva in the history. Montserrat mentioned, that it was a great service towards the people who never listend to opera before, because their collaboration definitely increased the popularity of this genre.
Montserrat Caballé was brave enough to dive herself into a whole new musical world that Freddie offered to her, because she very soon realized The Musician in Freddie. There are 2 more songs at La Nit 88. The Golden Boy (that is even more dramatic) and How Can I Go On, worth to check them out.
Olympics 92, only one i went to and I was in tears listening right at back as sooooo busy. They play it at venue still (well hope so not been 4 ten years) still brings tears of joy
I visited Barcelona a few years ago and visited the Magic Fountain which is located at the foot of Montjuïc hill. The fountains and lights perform to Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé, Barcelona - it's spectacular.
I saw, queen 7 times, and met Freddie twice, he wouldn't sign an autograph. He actually said, darling I don't do autographs. Legend🤘🤘
There’s a whole album they made together. You must listen Freddie’s voice in EXERCISES IN FREE LOVE from the self -titled Barcelona album. You’ll not believe it is him…and yes, this song, It was made for that opening Olympic piece in 1992 in Barcelona. Montserrat was asked to make a song from her home town, and she asked Freddie to write it, collaborate with her. He was a massive fan of hers, they became great friends. Two other performances that were able to be recorded before his death was THE GOLDEN BIY and HOW CAN I GO ON. The whole album was written by Freddie and MikeMoran, Freddie never have written operatic pieces or for Montserrat’s soprano vouce. It’s GREAT, FABULOUS. Thank you. 👍❤
1992 Olímpic games in Barcelona
Ther are others songs by Freddy and Monserrat. Golden Boy and how i can go on are beautiful songs.
Thanks from Spain
First heard it as a child at the olympics - still moves me hearing it now.
It is beyond Cool! It's magnificent!❤❤❤
The idea to work together was Freddie's he mentioned in an interview he was a huge fan of hers and would love to meet her, the rest as they say is history. It was written for the Olympics but Freddie had died by the time the Olympics opened.
Her smile throughout the whole reaction, priceless.
I absolutely loved your reaction. So good to see the delight on your faces. If I am honest I can never control my emotions when watching this performance, I cry every time. I remember it launching and was absolutely stunned. God bless Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballe.
Freddie shook the foundations from the sky❤❤❤
I watched both your faces during this video it was brilliant, I love this song, but I tear up every time I hear it, and then I have to watch Frankie Boyle or Kevin Bridges or Mickey Flanagan to bring me back to earth, keep doing what you're doing you're amazing.❤
I was 9 in 1992 and the Barcelona Olympics was when I fell in love with Athletics. I was a half decent 200m runner in my teens and early 20s, all thanks to that event and it inspiring me to train.
Hi guys. Great reaction. The song was composed and produced by Mike Moran and Freddie Mercury.
Oh yes he looks like Fred.... beautiful!!! Only he could out sparkle fireworks.
Love, love this song gives me total body goosebumps ❤❤❤