Ahead of the first show of the Grateful Dead‘s 50th anniversary run, advice for Phish front-man Trey Anastasio is coming from an unlikely source: Adam Lambert. Lambert, who got his start as the runner-up in season eight of American Idol, has worked as Freddie Mercury‘s replacement in Queen, and as a result, knows a thing or two about replacing an icon.
In an interview with Radio.com, Lambert spoke about the challenges and excitement of replacing a legend.
“I knew right away when I got this opportunity with Queen that that wasn’t how I wanted to approach it. I didn’t think it would go over well,” Lambert said to Brian Ives of Radio.com. “I think it would have been kind of tacky if I got up there and imitated Freddie. I don’t know if I could do that anyway. Freddie was incredible! It’s like with Jerry Garcia, he’s an icon.”
While Lambert himself said he’s not a fan of the Grateful Dead, that doesn’t detract from the unique position both he and Anastasio find themselves in.
“It’s in how you approach it. I don’t think it should be looked at as, he’s ‘playing the role of…’ It’s not a film or a play. It’s a live piece of music. But, yeah, you’re taking the place of that person,” he said.
Anastasio and the rest of the Dead kick off a two-night stand at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California before heading to Chicago to play three nights at historic Soldier Field on July 3-5. For those who want a taste of what’s to come, check out Friday night’s soundcheck, which stretched two hours.
-Brian Weidy (@frostedweidies)