Brian May Reveals Extremely Uncomfortable John Deacon told him ‘I Can NEVER Do This Again' in 1997

John Deacon's last ever Queen performance saw the bassist unhappy and extremely nervous. The retired rock star was "so desperately uncomfortable" following the death of Freddie Mercury and told Brian May and Roger Taylor, "I can never do this again".

Following Freddie Mercury’s death in November 1991, Queen bassist John Deacon couldn’t see the point of the band carrying on, knowing it was impossible to replace Freddie. He retired from the music industry 25 years ago and lives a quiet life in South-West London, but was still convinced to perform with Brian May and Roger Taylor three more times in the early 1990s. There was the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert in 1992, a charity concert with the Queen drummer in 1993 and finally the opening on the Béjart Ballet in Paris on January 17, 1997, which he really struggled to get through.
The latest episode of Queen the Greatest looked back at the band’s collaboration with French ballet legend Maurice Béjart.

Brian remembered: “The first proper public show was due to be in Paris, and we talked about being there and we said we'd like to be there. We thought ‘Oh dear’, because it's a strange thing for us to do, firstly, we haven't played for God knows how long. We don't have a singer. It's one song and you have to get a whole production for one song, one performance. And then this message came from Elton saying, ‘Let's play’.”

So at the show’s premiere at the Théâtre de Challot in Paris, Queen performed The Show Must Go On with Elton John on vocals in what would be Deacon’s final time with the band.

Roger Taylor shared: “And that was John's last ever performance, and I could tell he wasn't happy because he was sort of chain-smoking and very, very nervous and had been severely traumatised by losing Freddie.”

Brian added: “Deacy, our dear friend John, I think he didn't arrive at the same places as we did. And John is there, but John is really so desperately uncomfortable with the whole thing. You can see him kind of his whole body is sort of reacting against it. And at the end of it, he says, ‘I can never do this again. I can't do this.’ And it was true, that’s the last time he ever played with us, John, in public.”

Since retiring, Deacon chose not the attend Queen’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. And while Brian and Roger have kept the band alive with Paul Rodgers and Adam Lambert as singers for live tours, the bassist is still very much a present business partner even though they haven’t seen him in almost 20 years.

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[TheAxeEver]

Nothing but massive respect for John Deacon.

[seaniek]

There is an authenticity with John that's admirable and rare. He knew you couldn't have Queen without Freddie

[reneeherr]

I feel so sorry for John deacon he is so sweet of a man and I know how he misses Freddie so much my heart goes out to him ❤

[dilwich]

John is one of the underrated bass players ever . . . .He is amazing.

[BennieTarrMusic]

John Deacon gave us way more than enough, in terms of songwriting, bass playing, and electronics technology... He should be left alone and enjoy his life.

[Playitstraight]

This is the downside to being a fan of something. People do not know when its time to say goodbye. John Deacon strikes me as a very sensible and reasonable human being. Queen was a once in a lifetime ensemble of rare and burgeoning talent that came together during an era that is still celebrated today. But with Freddie gone. that's like putting the Beatles back together without Lennon/McCartney. Freddie was it's soul and signature vocal sound that brought songs to life in a way the instruments could not have done by themselves. John Deacon did not have a nervous breakdown. He simply chose to retire. There's nothing wrong with that and fans, including fellow band members, need to respect that.

[rogergreen]

He lost his muse when Freddie passed. Not just his great friend, but the inspiration to write hit songs to be lovingly handed over to that irreplaceable, spectacular performer to make them otherworldly. What a joy it must have been to hammer out the basslines to your own compositions as Fred's voice rose.

[seltaeb]

A lot of Queen songs are Deacon songs & people just think, oh he's just the bass player not realising his contribution. He really loved Freddie in a deep deep way.

[mihaeladragutu]

I understand the pain of John, who lost a close friend and that it was very difficult for him to get over it! John remain one of the four musical geniuses of Queen, the best bassist ever in my opinion!!! Thank you, great video!!!

[midnightrose]

My heart hurts for Deacy. The others went through their grieving processes, and it took years. Luckily for us, they have found it therapeutic to carry on their music in different incarnations, whether it be with their own bands, or in different lead singers within Queen. Even during the pandemic lockdowns, Brian and Roger were playing and even giving tutorials on Youtube. Their music was their therapy and I thank God they have it. Deacy dealt with his loss by going in the opposite direction, and each person has to grieve the way that works for them. I would give my eye teeth to see him someday come out of his shell and play with the guys again, I think that would make Freddie deliriously happy, but I also understand if he can't.

[davidwilkinson]

How many people walk right past john in the street, not knowing who he is, who he was and the songs hes written and played on. And everyone will know his songs aswell. Thanks for the memories john. God bless ya🙏🙏🙏

[debramoore]

💟 R E S P E C T 💟 I don’t blame John for making the decision to retire!! What it must’ve been like on stage playing next to the greatest rock vocalist & frontman on the planet … then losing him, a Queen mate & friend. John was a family man with six kids! ☮️ P E A C E ☮️

[hixyhicks]

Queen died when Freddie passed away .Respect to john deacon for not wanting to do it .Roger and brian could of played on with a new project .

[marcosvalverde]

Much respect for this man. John is a nice guy, very shy and reserved. Thank you John, for everything you gave us. God bless you so much, Mr. Deacon.

[ColinDrinkwater]

I saw John Deacon on stage with Spike Edney at the Shepherds Bush Empire in 1995. This was The SAS.Band.

[theroastreactions]

John is the only real Queen member left.

[mjsanchidrian]

Gracias! Entiendo perfectamente que John no pudiera seguir, todos mis respetos, aunque le hachamos de menos. Yo por más que me gustaría, no voy a conciertos de Queen ahora, no puedo ver a otra persona ocupando su lugar, no puedo. Siempre Freddie ❤❤

[markselbygal]

“Freddie is …Well, he’s my best friend. He’s very good for me, you know. I do not like meeting new people, but when I’m with Freddie I stop being shy! It’s amazing how he “works on me”.
And sometimes he’s the only one person who understands me... He’s my voice, you know…” John Deacon

[tonydoherty]

It is impossible to replace freddy they haven't done it yet