"No, we have our ups and downs, but we're all very up at the moment"
About this Quote
The line lands like a grin you can hear through the microphone: a tidy bit of band diplomacy wrapped in wordplay. John Deacon takes the most overused cliché in group-life interviews ("ups and downs") and flips it into a quick, disarming punchline ("we're all very up"). It’s a musician’s way of refusing the narrative journalists love to script onto famous bands: the simmering feud, the fragile egos, the inevitable collapse. Instead of denying tension outright, he acknowledges it just enough to sound honest, then redirects the spotlight onto momentum.
The specific intent is reputational maintenance without sounding managed. Deacon wasn’t Queen’s frontman; he was the quiet architect of grooves and structure, which makes this kind of low-drama charm especially on-brand. The subtext: yes, there are pressures, arguments, mood swings, and fatigue, but right now the machine is working. And crucially, he says "we're all" - a democratic framing that smooths over the usual hierarchy in rock bands. It implies unity without insisting on perfection.
Context matters because Queen’s public image often toggled between flamboyant spectacle and tabloid appetite. Deacon’s sentence is a small act of control: it keeps the story in the present tense, away from both scandal and mythmaking. He doesn’t romanticize struggle or sell conflict as authenticity; he sells steadiness as excitement. That’s why it works: it’s funny, it’s modest, and it quietly insists that success can be functional, not just dramatic.
The specific intent is reputational maintenance without sounding managed. Deacon wasn’t Queen’s frontman; he was the quiet architect of grooves and structure, which makes this kind of low-drama charm especially on-brand. The subtext: yes, there are pressures, arguments, mood swings, and fatigue, but right now the machine is working. And crucially, he says "we're all" - a democratic framing that smooths over the usual hierarchy in rock bands. It implies unity without insisting on perfection.
Context matters because Queen’s public image often toggled between flamboyant spectacle and tabloid appetite. Deacon’s sentence is a small act of control: it keeps the story in the present tense, away from both scandal and mythmaking. He doesn’t romanticize struggle or sell conflict as authenticity; he sells steadiness as excitement. That’s why it works: it’s funny, it’s modest, and it quietly insists that success can be functional, not just dramatic.
Quote Details
| Topic | Optimism |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
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