300m album sales, £85m in the bank – but can you name this rock legend?
WITH his sensible anorak and grey trousers, he hardly seems the typical rock star.
Indeed, anyone passing this unassuming-looking gentleman in the street would probably fail to give him a second glance.
And that’s just the way he likes it – because this is John Deacon, the reclusive former Queen bass player who wrote some of their biggest hits and is now worth £85million.
Strolling near his home holding a copy of the Daily Mail, the 64-year-old looked a far cry from the flamboyantly-dressed figure who rose to fame with the band in the 1970s. Despite not having played with Queen since
‘Retired from any kind of social contact’
1997, Deacon receives lucrative royalties from his hits such as I Want To Break Free.
This week the group’s remaining members, Roger Taylor, 66, and Brian May, 68, set off on a tour of South America. Former American Idol contestant Adam Lambert, 33, is taking the place of singer Freddie Mercury, who died in 1991 after suffering from Aids.
But Deacon turned down the chance to rejoin the band – estimated to have sold up to 300million albums – and stayed at home in west London. Last year May and Taylor said they barely keep in touch with him and that he has ‘completely retired from any kind of social contact’. Taylor said: ‘I think he’s a little fragile and just didn’t want to know any- thing about talking to people in the music business or whatever. That’s fair enough. We respect that.’ May added: ‘He wants to be private and in his own universe. He still keeps an eye on the finances, though.’
Deacon, a father of six who lives with his wife of 40 years Veronica Tetzlaff, has seen his fortune grow by an estimated £20million in the past four years, partly due to the success of West End musical We Will Rock You.