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The Cosmos Rocks is the only studio album by Queen + Paul Rodgers. It was released on 15 September 2008 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States.

The album saw the hard rock influences of remaining Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor mix with the blues roots of Paul Rodgers. It is the first studio album of new material from the two remaining members of Queen since 1995′s Made in Heaven.

The Cosmos Rocks was received with mixed to positive reviews, with several reviewers citing trite and boring lyrics. Conversely, Paul Rodger's domineering performances on the album were praised. Commercially, however, the album was only a modest success, reaching #5 on the UK Albums Charts.

History[]

Recording[]

The band entered Roger Taylor's Priory studio in late 2006, having completed the American leg of a world tour. Sessions were initially scheduled around Rodgers' other touring commitments. On tour, the band had debuted a new song, "Take Love", which did not make the album. On his solo tour, Rodgers debuted songs such as "Warboys" and "Voodoo".

John Deacon's retirement meant that bass duties were shared between Rodgers and May.

The first single, "Say It's Not True" was released nine months before the album. The second, "C-lebrity" was previewed on Al Murray's Happy Hour in April, five months before the album.

The album's release came 17 years after the death in 1991 of former Queen singer Freddie Mercury.

"It had some great stuff on it," Taylor recalled. "I just think that Paul's more blues and soul – one of our favourite singers, ever, but, when it boils down to it, he wasn't the perfect frontman for us. I felt the album was badly promoted by EMI, who were falling to bits at the time. We were on tour in Europe, and I went into record stores and we weren't in them. And I remember being furious, thinking, 'Why did we make this fucking record?'"

Release[]

Track Listings[]

No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "Cosmos Rockin'" Roger Taylor 4:10
2. "Time to Shine" Paul Rodgers 4:23
3. "Still Burnin'" Brian May 4:04
4. "Small" Taylor 4:39
5. "Warboys" Rodgers 3:18
6. "We Believe" May 6:08
7. "Call Me" Rodgers 2:59
8. "Voodoo" Rodgers 4:27
9. "Some Things That Glitter" May 4:03
10. "C-lebrity" Taylor 3:38
11. "Through the Night" Rodgers 4:54
12. "Say It's Not True" Taylor 4:00
13. "Surf's Up... School's Out!" Taylor 5:56
14. "Small Reprise" Taylor 2:03
iTunes exclusive bonus track
No. Title Writer(s) Length
15. "Runaway" Del Shannon, Max Crook 5:28
Amazon.com bonus track
No. Title Writer(s) Length
15. "Fire and Water (Live from Japan)" (B-side to "C-lebrity" single) Rodgers, Andy Fraser 2:51
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