Freddie Mercury wrote “Love of My Life” — the ballad from Queen’s basic 1975 album “A Night at the Opera” — about Mary Austin, his girlfriend he met in 1969.
And even after he got here out as bisexual to his then-fiancée within the ’70s, ending their romantic relationship, the 2 retained their particular, loving bond.
In reality, Mercury remained extraordinarily near Austin even after she discovered one other associate in bassist Jo Burt.
“This was the great love of his life, in a sense,” Burt solely instructed The Put up. “I think he was quite lucky because I was the kind of guy who appreciated the love they had between them.”
Burt met Austin in 1981, 5 years after she had break up up with Mercury. “I’d been introduced to Mary, and she and I became partners for the next six years or so,” mentioned Burt.
Realizing Austin’s historical past with Mercury, Burt was “a bit nervous” about assembly the “Bohemian Rhapsody” singer.
“Obviously, the initial introduction to him was pretty nerve-racking,” he mentioned about assembly a “cautious” Mercury. “He was going to have to agree to somebody else taking over that part of his life.”
However Mercury was gained over by Burt, grateful that Austin had discovered a brand new love in her life.
“He often said to me how pleased he was that she was happy and her life was expanding more than I think probably she expected,” mentioned Burt. “I never ever got between that friendship that they had. I understood it completely, and I think he appreciated that fact as well.”
Certainly, Burt himself turned “very close” with Mercury on account of their mutual love for Austin, who was with the Queen frontman till the very finish when he died from AIDS in 1991 and inherited most of his fortune.
“I acquired to know Freddie very well, “ mentioned Burt. “I lived within the flat that he purchased for [Austin], and I turned very a lot a part of his household.
“The rest of the guys in Queen, they each had their own sort of family situations, which they pretty much retired to when they weren’t working,” he continued. “And Freddie had his own, although not with a wife and kids. It really was quite a family affair.”
Burt and Mercury additionally bonded over their music connection. “Funny enough, I was being managed by John Reid, who also managed Freddie sometime before,” he mentioned. “And the fact that he was in the same business that I was … we understood each other.”
Certainly, when Mercury got down to make his debut solo album “Mr. Bad Guy” — which was launched 40 years in the past on April 29, 1985 — he recruited Burt to play fretless bass on “Man Made Paradise.”
“It was an amazing thing to be asked to record with him,” mentioned Burt. “I performed nearly solely fretless bass by this time, and Freddie was fairly intrigued by that. He used to joke that I’ve been ripped off as a result of I didn’t have any frets.
“But it was a fantastic situation to sit in the studio [across from Mercury], as opposed to across the dining room table. I’d love to say that I was second only to [Queen’s] John Deacon as a bass player.”
