he can do nothing: his words and songs can do nothing, if the people who cause the problems do nothing.

In much the same way the song 'Mr Bad Guy' is, at one level, a reaction to those who have called his life and lifestyle 'bad' - rather then bow down before them, he takes responsibility for his actions and invites the listener to come away with him. This is much like the earlier folk songs, such as 'The Gypsy Rover', or before that - on another level - the trickster. This is the ultimate civilizing spirit found often in spiritual religions, such as those of the Native Americans or Native Australians. The trickster is the bad guy, but not evil: just there to show another way, to tempt and to 'trick'. The rainbow chasing (wishes and dreams) and the ecstasy (emotional fulfillment), together with the 'spread your wings and fly away' all link to dreams and desires: all of which are suppressed by the society in which we live. Like the immortal trickster, Freddie is inviting us to break those bonds and to fly away with him as the Bad Guy. He ruins people's lives by giving them dreams and hope and hence making them no longer fit into the society that holds them. In this song, perhaps more then any other, he shows his awareness of how

he frees his listeners rather then putting himself down.

The last song of the trilogy of 'Who am I?' songs is the title track from the album 'The Great Pretender'. This song, not written by Freddie, but one which he made his own, can again be looked at at various levels. It is important, however, that it is looked at in terms of his body of work, not in terms of trying to prove or disprove a theory about his personal life.

The Great Pretender is originally a love song as is shown by the last line "...pretending that you're still around." Indeed, the great majority of Freddie's work is in the area of love songs and he may well have chosen it for this particular message. Yet it has been selected out of all the possible love songs and the question here is why? The lyrics can also be taken, from what we know of Freddie, to be the simplest and most direct exposition of the problems he has with his dual identity. His outgoing stage front comparing with his private home front. If this song is looked at in this way then we see the home Freddie calling out to his audience, telling them of the control his stage persona has over his life to