Queen‘s second album, originally released in March 1974, is getting remixed, remastered and expanded to five CDs in March.
The 5CD/2LP Queen II Collector’s Edition box set features a 2026 mix of the album and will be available on March 27.
In addition to the new mix of the original album, the upcoming reissue will include discs featuring session tracks, BBC recordings and live performances.
READ MORE: Revisiting Queen’s Debut Album
Brian May and Roger Taylor serve as executive producers for the set, which includes previously unheard outtakes and demos, live tracks and radio sessions from the era.
“Queen II was the single biggest leap we ever made,” said May in a press release announcing the box. “That’s when we really started making music the way we wanted to, rather than the way we were being pushed into recording it.”
“With Queen II, I couldn’t believe how much work we put into it,” noted Taylor. “I think we felt we were evolving our own sound. We were pioneering this sort of multitracking thing. It gave you a tremendous palette, massive choral effects with just three of us singing.”
What’s on Queen’s ‘Queen II: Collector’s Edition’?
Queen II is generally regarded as the band’s breakthrough record, where Queen began developing the classic group sound. It became their first Top 10 album in the U.K. and included the single “Seven Seas of Rhye.”
queen ii reissue
The new Queen II: Collector’s Edition features a newly mixed and remastered version of the original album. It also features a disc of previously unreleased album sessions, including multiple takes and demo versions of album tracks “The Loser in the End” and “The March of the Black Queen.”
Backing tracks for the LP’s songs are also included on a disc. Another CD features Queen’s appearances on BBC radio programs in 1973 and 1974, when they performed songs from Queen II, including “Nevermore,” “White Queen (As It Began),” and others.
A fifth and final disc includes live tracks of several album songs, recorded at the Rainbow and Hammersmith Odeon in March 1974 and December 1975.
You can see the full track listing for Queen II: Collector’s Edition below.
How Is the 2026 Mix of Queen II Different?
“The idea was to reveal more of the clarity of the songs,” said Justin Shirley-Smith, part of the team that mixed the album for the new release. “Rather than add anything, we wanted to reveal more of what was there and get that desired sound.”
“The lengths the band went to achieve what they achieved with the technology they had at the time was incredible,” added another part of the team, Joshua J Macrae. “Some of it is so ahead of its time. Working on this was like entering a room of fabulousness.”
Queen, ‘Queen II: Collector’s Edition 2026 Mix’ Track Listing
CD1: Queen II – 2026 Mix
1 Procession
2 Father To Son
3 White Queen (As It Began)
4 Some Day One Day
5 The Loser in the End
6 Ogre Battle
7 The Fairy Feller’s Master-Stroke
8 Nevermore
9 The March of the Black Queen
10 Funny How Love Is
11 Seven Seas Of Rhye
CD2: Queen II – Sessions
1 Procession (Stage Intro Tape – April 1973)
2 Father To Son (Takes 4 & 9 – with Guide Vocal)
3 As It Began (Brian’s Studio Demo – October 1969)
4 Some Day One Day (Take 1 – with Guide Vocals)
5 The Loser In The End (Roger’s First Demo)
6 The Loser In The End (Roger’s Second Demo)
7 Ogre Battle (Takes 2 & 6 – with Guide Vocal)
8 The Fairy Feller’s Master-Stroke (Takes 4 & 9)
9 Nevermore (Take 6)
10 The March Of The Black Queen (First Section Takes 3 & 5)
11 The March Of The Black Queen (Second Section Take 1)
12 Funny How Love Is (Take 4)
13 Seven Seas Of Rhye (Takes 4, 5 & 6)
14 I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside (Take 4)
15 See What A Fool I’ve Been (B-side Version 2026 Mix)
16 Not For Sale (Polar Bear)
CD3: Queen II – Backing Tracks
1 Procession
2 Father To Son
3 White Queen (As It Began)
4 Some Day One Day
5 The Loser in the End
6 Ogre Battle
7 The Fairy Feller’s Master-Stroke
8 Nevermore
9 The March of the Black Queen
10 Funny How Love Is
11 Seven Seas Of Rhye
CD4: Queen II – At The BBC
1 See What a Fool I’ve Been (BBC Session 2, July 1973 – 2011 Mix)
2 Ogre Battle (BBC Session 3, December 1973)
3 Nevermore (BBC Session 4, April 1974)
4 White Queen (As It Began) (BBC Session 4, April 1974)
5 Procession – Intro Tape (Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, 13th September 1973)
6 Father To Son (Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, 13th September 1973)
7 Son And Daughter (Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, 13th September 1973)
8 Guitar Solo (Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, 13th September 1973)
9 Son And Daughter – Reprise (Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, 13th September 1973)
10 Ogre Battle (Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, 13th September 1973)
11 Liar (Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, 13th September 1973)
12 Jailhouse Rock (Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, 13th September 1973)
CD5: Queen II – Live
1 Procession – Intro Tape (Live at the Rainbow, March 1974)
2 Father To Son (Live at the Rainbow, March 1974)
3 Ogre Battle (Live at the Rainbow, March 1974)
4 White Queen (As It Began) (Live at the Hammersmith Odeon, December 1975)
5 The March Of The Black Queen (Live at the Rainbow, March 1974)
6 The Fairy Feller’s Master-Stroke (Live at the Rainbow, March 1974)
7 Seven Seas Of Rhye (Live at the Rainbow, March 1974)
8 See What A Fool I’ve Been (Live at the Rainbow, March 1974)
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They remain so present in the news and fans’ hearts that it’s pretty hard to believe singer Freddie Mercury has been gone for decades now.
Gallery Credit: Eduardo Rivadavia
