The second batch of Queen re-issues are upon us covering 1977 to 1982 and there is a second 'Deep Cuts' compilation to complement them. The first one had the Foo Fighters' Taylor Hawkins helping Queen's Brian May and Roger Taylor select the songs, not sure if he is involved again on this one.

The beauty of these 'Deep Cut' albums is that they are ideal for the casual Queen fan that has all the 'Greatest Hit' albums but fancies delving a bit deeper into the band's rich and varied back catalogue without having to buy all the studio albums.

There is a good mix of the rockier side of the band in 'Sheer Heart Attack' (Queen go punk), the slow building 'It's Late' (nicely covered by Anthrax a few years back), one of my personal favourite Queen songs 'Rock It' and 'Put Out The Fire'. Then there are the quieter moments such as 'Sail Away Sweet Sister', the jazzy shuffle on 'Sleeping On The Sidewalk' and 'Jealousy', where Freddie Mercury again shows his vocal prowess.

Of course fans will argue, as they do on the numerous Queen forums, about which songs should go on here (I'd have added 'My Melancholy Blues' for instance) but that simply highlights the quality of the band's music. Perfect then for the casual Queen fan and looking forward to seeing what makes volume 3.

****½

Review by Jason Ritchie

Album review (2011 reissues)