Under the banner of Brian May + Friends, the original 3-track “mini-album” saw May joined by Edward Van Halen, drummer Alan Gratzer, bassist Phil Chen and keyboardist Fred Mandel over two days at The Record Plant in Los Angeles, CA.
The set’s title track was inspired by the Queen rocker’s hard rock re-imagining of the signature tune from the Japanese-made kid's science fiction series of the same name; the program was compulsive regular viewing for Brian and his four year-old son Jimmy on Saturday morning TV.
Billed as “Star Fleet Sessions”, the 40th anniversary reissue box set delivers an extensively revisited and expanded box set edition of the legendary sessions, with 2023 remixes of the original three songs and a new single version of the title track alongside interviews and live recordings from the era - plus 23 tracks of previously-unreleased material.
"We are going to give you everything… every take of every song, the things that went wrong, the laughing, the finding new things to do,” May writes in his introductory sleeve notes. “But it won't be just a remaster – we've rescued everything from the original multitracks, every detail magnificently remixed, and more! You'll hear every take from the historic 1983 sessions plus fragments of conversations, out-takes and musical experimentation."
"It's been very exciting to open up the vault to find these tapes where, in the blink of an eye, I'm trading licks with my friends including the fantastic Ed Van Halen,” adds May. “It's highly emotional, especially since Ed is sadly no longer around. We have since also lost Phil - so the rest of us cherish these fleeting moments together."
Across two CDs, a 12" vinyl LP, and a 7" vinyl single, the “Star Fleet Sessions” box set houses the proof. Presented in 180g transparent red vinyl, the original LP issue has been treated to a full new mix, executed by Queen sound engineers Justin Shirley-Smith and Kris Fredriksson under Brian's direction at his Surrey studio from the original multitrack tapes.
A separate exclusive 7" double A-side single, also available on CD comes out on the same day, (July 14), featuring newly mixed single versions of "Star Fleet" and "Let Me Out." A special red vinyl version will be available exclusively through the official Queen Online store and is available to pre-order.
The box set release is ushered in with a special standalone digital single, "Star Fleet (Edited Single Version)".
Pick up your copy of the single here.
See also:
Queen revisit intimate 1986 Wembley performance on The Greatest Live
Queen revisit 1982 performance of Dragon Attack on The Greatest Live
Queen revisit 1986 Magic Tour on The Greatest Live
Queen reveal setlist strategy on The Greatest Live
Search Queen at hennemusic
