Cosmos Rocks
by Queen + Paul Rodgers
Metascore
42

Mixed or average reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 10
  3. Negative: 3 out of 10
  1. AllMusic
    40
    Certainly, it's not the embarrassment of the live album, but it has its own internal logic that keeps it humming along, and that's good enough for a listen and to get the band out on tour again, even it's not good enough for a second spin.
  2. Uncut
    40
    This ill-fitting rebirth, fronted by the defiantly ungay, unIndian and uneccentric Paul Rodgers, can be seen as an attempt to ditch the Mercury-inspired absurdity and bolster Queen’s hard 'rawkin’credentials.
  3. Mojo
    60
    Occasionally they stumble, as on the clunky 'Warboys.' But with Rogers imperious, Queen's second coming is vindicated. [Oct 2008, p.100]
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  5. Rolling Stone
    40
    Queen 2.0 are competent enough to rock arenas, but don't expect a repeat of the glory days.
  6. The Guardian
    40
    As with a lot of The Cosmos Rocks, you listen to Warboys boggling that Queen--famously intelligent men--didn't at any point notice that the lyrics were stupid, trite, a bit offensive and bound to have an undermining effect on whatever musical efforts they put behind it.
  7. Billboard
    40
    It's a shame that the end result, the first under the Queen name in 13 years, is not very memorable.

Awards & Rankings

75
#75 Most Discussed Album of 2008

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 41 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 41
  3. Negative: 8 out of 41
  1. Docky101
    Apr 8, 2019
    9
    I think allout of people listen to this thinking its gonna be Paul Rodgers Brian May and Roger Taylor making a new masterpiece....well theI think allout of people listen to this thinking its gonna be Paul Rodgers Brian May and Roger Taylor making a new masterpiece....well the thing is that they never wanted to make a masterpiece...this album is clearly Brian Roger and Paul having fun making new material. Saying this album is bad because its not Queen is probably coming from the same people who defend Hot Space for being different. Some of the best songs on the album would be Cosmos Rockin' , Still Burnin' , Call Me , Warboys , C-lebrity , Voodoo , Surf's Up...School's Out and Say It's Not True. The other songs on the album aren't bad but I just don't like them as much as the songs I mentioned above.
    Cosmos Rocks is bassicly a classic Rock n Roll song from the 60s-70s and its god damn awesome.
    Time To Shine is one of the weaker songs on the album in my opinion...It's just not as good as the next song on the album.
    Still Burnin' is the 2nd best song on the album... the song sounds good and I think the part where they play a bit of We Will Rock You about 2:47 mins into the song works really well...the chorus is just so good.
    Small is one of the slower songs on the album and i think the lyrics are a bit generic...
    Warboys is a really good song about soldiers going to war, you can hear explosions and people shooting around 2 mins into the song...overall the song is a really good song and i recommend it,
    We Believe is....the most generic song in this album in terms of lyrics...this song should have been taken out of the album and replaced with Take Love, a song only played live I think once...they said it would be coming to the Cosmos Rocks album but sadly never made it into the album.
    Call Me for me should be considered a classic by all means...the chorus is so catchy , everyone should listen to this song in my opinion...
    Voodoo is another good song and another one of the slower songs on the album..
    Some Things That Glitter is an okay song ...I dont really have anything to say about it...its an okay song...not good not bad
    C-lebrity ...my favourite song on the album and i think its the best on the album...it was the second single from this album. The song is about someone with no talents trying to become a c-lebrity...it's clearly a joke about celebrities with no talents or reasons to be celebrities other then why not...the chorus is super catchy , almoust as catchy as the one for Call Me.
    Through The Night is another okay song on the album ...the lyrics are okay and the chorus is meh...another song that could have been replaced by Take Love...
    Say It's Not True is the saddest songs on this album and one of the saddest songs made by Queen... its about AIDS...the song has some great lyrics and I think putting this song right before the heaviest song on the album was a bad choice.
    Surf's Up....School's Out is the heaviest song on the album and it's a kick-ass song...would have been the perfect end to this album but...
    small reprise....I mean its just a different version of Small....i don't know why they couldn't just choose one version and maybe work on finishing Take Love or making some of the weaker tracks a bit better...
    At the end of the day this album has some great songs and is worth a listen for both Queen and Paul Rodgers/Free/Bad Company/The Firm/The Law fans, I give this album a 9/10    … Full Review »
  2. MikeMusicguy
    Feb 7, 2009
    3
    I like Paul Rodgers and was very fond of Queen. I don't expect mensa lyrics but I want fun sassy and something great. The songwriting is I like Paul Rodgers and was very fond of Queen. I don't expect mensa lyrics but I want fun sassy and something great. The songwriting is appalling everything about it is trite and hackneyed. It tries to hard rock like old queen but second rate melodies, I really wanted to like it. Honest. It is awful. I didn't download a single song into my MP3 player I'd everwant to hear again. Tie your mother down? Tie this crap to a raft and float it out to sea.… Full Review »
  3. Joe
    Dec 22, 2008
    10
    Paul Rodgers has long been a moving force (Free, Bad Company, The Firm, The Law, solo projects, etc.) that this is a surprisingly good fit Paul Rodgers has long been a moving force (Free, Bad Company, The Firm, The Law, solo projects, etc.) that this is a surprisingly good fit for both Rodgers and Queen. No, he's not Freddie Mercury, nor is anyone quite as vocally unique as Paul Rodgers. Cosmos Rocks allows Rodgers to flourish and he's surrounded by a quality, creative and extremely talented group of musicians. Stop dreaming of a Queen without Freddie. Instead, imagine a reborn Bad Company with rich guitars, powerful musical arrangements, and outstanding vocals by Rodgers. Any fan of his voice will not want to miss this disc.… Full Review »
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