On This Day in 1970, Queen Found Their Name and Played Their First Ever Live Gig

If you are a dreamer, seeing and experiencing the success of giants can make your dream seem overwhelming and impossible. However, remember, everyone has to start somewhere, and there is rarely, if ever, guaranteed success. That being so, one has to try and try again and fail time after time to get anywhere. Every major name in the music business has done this, including Queen, who performed their first live show on this day, June 27, in 1970.

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Queen’s first show was a seemingly half-baked plan that came together on a whim. It was the first time Freddie Mercury, Brian May, and Roger Taylor all performed publicly together. Also, if it makes you feel any better, you should remember that Taylor’s mom primarily organized and booked the venue for the musicians. Nevertheless, May, Mercury, and Taylor probably knew this singular performance wasn’t going to get them anywhere. Although, it would get them ready for the next one, and then the next one, and then the next one. So, they did what they had to and gave it a shot.

The “Rough” and Impromptu Nature of Queen’s First Performance

Queen’s first performance took place on this day 55 years ago at the City Hall in the Cornwall parish of Truro. It was put on as a charity event for the Red Cross. Funny enough, Taylor’s mother had booked the show far before Mercury was planned to take part. Furthermore, when booked, the band wasn’t even called Queen. Rather, they were still going under their former name as Smile.

However, moments before the show, Taylor, May, and Mercury decided to go under a different name. That name is the name we all know today: Queen. That moment is iconic, but the rest of the show was not, as their bassist at the time, Mike Grose, recalled, “We tried to hide the gaffes, but to be brutally frank, we were rough,” per Queen Live.

Many other details about the show have been lost in the translation of time, but folks have confirmed that Queen played “Stone Cold Crazy” and “Son and Daughter” during the inaugural performance.

Needless to say, Queen was a major work in progress. However, this was the push that turned the mere pebble into an avalanche. Two years after their first-ever performance, Queen released their debut album, Queen I. And contrary to their “rough” first performance, their debut album graced the Billboard 200.

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