MERCURY, FREDDIE

Autograph letter signed and original drawing sent to Ibex bandmate Mick “Miffer” Smith. Paddington, London: 16 October 1969. A two-page autograph letter in dark blue ink from Freddie Mercury, signed "Fred," addressed to Mick Smith as "Miffer." The letter with Mercury's "40 Ferry Rd" address at the head. Each page 6 3/4 x 5 1/2 inches (17 x 13.5 cm). The letter in a framed display with a fine pencil portrait of Smith by Mercury signed "Ponce," this 6 3/4 x 5 inches (17 x 12 cm), the original postmarked mailing envelope in Mercury's hand addressed to Smith in Widnes, and an original ticket to the debut performance of Ibex at Honiton Hall (Penketh) dated 23 May 1969, the ticket with a scalloped edge in gold. The letter with a usual horizontal crease and a few faint spots to the second page, very fine and dark overall, the drawing with a few spots, the whole nicely framed together and the items have not been removed from the frame but does not appear laid-down; Together with the book Queen: As it Began, inscribed for "Miffer" by the fellow Ibex bandmates in 1992 (published after Mercury's death). Publisher's cloth in dust jacket, minor wear but a fine copy overall. Also offered in the lot is a Time Magazine publication offering early photographs of Mercury, Miffer and this early group of friends and bandmates.

A remarkable and rare letter from Freddie Mercury (1946-1991) dated 1969, in the salad days a year before the forming of Queen, with references to seeing Led Zeppelin, sexuality, songs he is writing, and upcoming performances. Freddie Mercury is best-remembered as a singer/songwriter but in the mid-1960s, Zanzibar-born Mercury was an aspiring student at Ealing Art College (Pete Townsend and Ronnie Wood also attended) and is known to have decorated his walls with drawings he made of Jimi Hendrix. Mercury was a very capable draftsman as attested by the detailed drawing offered with this letter which is published in Queen: As it Began. Graduating in the spring of 1969, Mercury bought a guitar, taught himself to play, and began writing songs. That summer he was introduced to the Liverpool-based heavy blues trio Ibex which comprised guitarist Mike Bersin and bassist John "Tupp" Taylor, both of whom have signed the volume here presented to the drummer, Mick "Miffer" Smith, who later recalled: "We auditioned Freddie to take over lead vocals from Mike ... we were all competent players, we could handle our instruments, but none of us was particularly good at singing. Freddie had a great voice, with a terrific range, but he didn't really know how to use it. Once we had Freddie, we were a little rough and ready, but we showed a lot of potential" (Queen: As it Began, p. 28). Ibex's first performance was at Honitan Hall in May of 1969 and a very rare artifact is a ticket to this debut concert framed alongside the drawing and letter. Mick "Miffer" Smith moved to the United States in late 1969 and Mercury briefly joined Sour Milk Sea before rejoining Bersin and Taylor to form Wreckage. Disbanded by March 1970, in April Mercury teamed up with guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor to form Smile. Joined by bassist John Deacon in 1971, they renamed themselves Queen and the rest is rock 'n roll history.

But just before Queen was formed, in October 1969, Freddie Mercury wrote this remarkable letter to his friend and bandmate "Miffer," who had returned to Widnes to assist his family. The letter is a tour-de-force of descriptive thought and a growing passion for writing music. Penned in dark blue ink in Mercury's distinctive hand with looping letters and neat circles dotting i's and j's, the letter opens with Mercury hoping that "this finds you in the pink of health" and jokes that he doesn't need to ask about Smith's "sexual pleasures of late as your kinky perverted mind will have led you to obscenities and variations never before performed in Widnes." After mentioning moving into his new flat (that at 40 Ferry Road in London) and nearly being "sacked" from his job (possibly as a baggage handler at Heathrow?), Mercury eloquently describes seeing Led Zeppelin at the Lyceum. Robert Plant's performance is described as "orgasmic" and he goes into detail about the masterful drumming of John Bonham which would have appealed to "Miffer," Ibex's hard-hitting drummer. On his sexuality, Freddie Mercury writes that "I hear from several sources that you've informed them that I've turned into a fully fledged queer ... Meanwhile I'm making do with John." Personal statements such as those from Mercury are rife with research potential.

The next two paragraphs are devoted to music. He reports on the upcoming gigs with Wreckage at St. Mark and St. John and most notably another "with Smile on Dec. 6th (Definite)," this one of Mercury's earliest performances with Brian May and the band that would become Queen. Still between the two groups, Mercury mentions entering Wreckage into the "Melody Makers Group contest" noting that the "top group gets loads of equipment and money. So we definitely need a thorough practice." He continues "I've written the words to the new songs, titled 'Green' 'Cancer on my Mind' and 'Without you.' Smile are playing with the Taste on Saturday and I'm going to ponce along." The drawing of Miffer present here is also signed "Ponce," a term used playfully and frequently by Mercury to describe his stage presence although in British slang this term has a multitude of meanings. The letter closes by asking after friends and is signed "All the best, Fred."

We trace few letters from Freddie Mercury in the auction record and none from this pivotal early period, written to a bandmate, and before the success of Queen changed his life forever.