The song «Keep Smiling» is the most beautiful gift from the legendary Freddie Mercury to a fan of the band.
In the early months of 1987, the band Queen and its lead singer Freddie Mercury had successfully wrapped up their Magic Tour, leading the group to take a break to pursue personal projects and other activities, free from the usual pressures that came with being part of Queen.
Despite the fact that his debut solo album, released a few years earlier, had not garnered much acclaim, Freddie chose to book some time at Townhouse Studios. His goal was to experiment with new ideas and begin work on a second solo project, in collaboration with Mike Moran.
While they were there working on the first single (which would end up being a cover of The Platters’ song titled The Great Pretender), Freddie received a call from the Queen Fan Club.
The club’s manager, Jacky Gunn, a close friend of Freddie’s, had been contacted by the distressed family of a Queen fan. They explained to Jacky that their son, Colin Preston, was suffering from cancer and going through a critical period, as he seemed to be losing the battle against the disease. Colin Preston was a passionate admirer of Queen and Freddie, and his life revolved around that. He often dressed, styled his hair, and acted as if he were his idol, Freddie Mercury. At times, he even saw himself as an impersonator of him.
The family was urgently seeking the chance for Freddie to personally visit the young man in the hospital. Freddie wasn’t typically inclined toward such events. There are no records of him agreeing to visit fans in similar situations. He had plenty of reasons to avoid it, given that, as is well known, Freddie highly valued his privacy. However, Colin’s story touched him deeply. This was even more poignant considering that, at that very moment, he had just received confirmation of his positive HIV diagnosis.
He told his collaborators Mike Moran and David Richards, who were in the studio with him, that he would record a song to send to him, and he did just that. That track, known as Keep Smiling, was recorded onto a cassette and delivered to Colin’s family.
His relatives photographed him with the cassette, which included a photo of Freddie (identical to the one on the cover of the ‘Freddie Mercury Album’), along with a short and warm handwritten message from Freddie: «Dear Colin. Keep smiling, I hope you enjoy your song. Love. Freddie.» The cassette bore the title «Colin’s Song. (Keep Smiling).»
Unfortunately, Colin couldn’t regain his smile. He passed away from cancer shortly afterward. His family chose to cremate him along with the cassette sent by Freddie, as a final measure to prevent anyone from desecrating his grave in search of the recording or other items—something that sadly could happen. Colin was 26 years old.
A local newspaper from the area where he and his family lived reported that a group of young men from a water polo team raised around 600 euros to provide Colin with a dignified vacation in his final days.
It’s intriguing that, thirteen years later, a track with the same name appeared in Freddie Mercury’s impressive Solo Collection box set. There’s no evidence that this version (lasting just one and a half minutes) is identical to the one Freddie sent to Colin in early 1987. It’s possible that the one included in the box set is a demo of the original intended for the deceased young man. Nevertheless, what supports this anecdote is that, in the middle of the song, Freddie shouts: «Colin!»
This is an ideal moment to rediscover this rare gem and appreciate it from a different perspective. Hopefully, wherever Colin may be, he has been able to reunite with his hero, and together they can listen to the recording that Freddie gifted him.