There has never been a band quite like Queen. Drawing from hard rock and heavy metal, prog-rock and glam, their styles eventually extended vaudeville and disco, gospel and rockabilly. A motley group of college graduates, they were one of the unlikeliest aggregates to reach stadium-level megastardom.

Queen arrive by helicopter for a concert in Hertfordshire, England on the ‘Kind of Magic’ tour, 1986

Yet Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon and Roger Taylor were one of the greatest powerhouses in music history. With certified worldwide sales over 100 million, Queen racked up eighteen number one albums and eighteen number one singles. (Notably, the band is the only group in which every member has composed more than one chart-topping single.) Their Greatest Hits album is the best-selling record in U.K. history—yes, bigger than any Beatles album—with Greatest Hits II not far behind. Queen’s set at Live Aid has been called the greatest performance in rock history, and in 2009, “We Are the Champions” was voted the world’s favorite song in a global music poll.

Guitarist May and drummer Taylor have occasionally reunited under the Queen name following Mercury’s death of AIDS-related causes in 1991, first with Bad Company’s Paul Rodgers as lead vocalist, and more recently, with former American Idol contestant Adam Lambert out front. Despite obvious concerns that no one could fill Mercury’s (sparkly platform) shoes, each configuration of the band has filled arenas and even stadiums around the world. Bassist John Deacon retired in 1997; “He supports our endeavors,” says Taylor, while May adds “he still keeps an eye on the purse strings, because he was always the one who was good at that, but we don’t hear from him—it’s a shame, because he was a damn good bass player.”

Roger Taylor and Brian May receive The Heritage award at Imperial College London in March, 2013

A few years back, I met with May and Taylor over lunch in the garden of Taylor’s 13th-century estate, a former priory southwest of London. The occasion was the release of their last studio album, The Cosmos Rocks, and some of our conversation appeared in a Rolling Stone news story about the record. The rest was intended as background for a comprehensive Queen essay by another writer, which finally appeared a few months ago. But most of our interview, which included some of their most candid comments about Freddie Mercury’s final days, has never been published.

With last month’s release of a new collection, Queen Forever (including three newly-completed songs, one of them a long-rumored duet with Michael Jackson), and the success of their ongoing worldwide tour with Lambert, it seemed like a good time to revisit this expansive discussion. What stands out, aside from May and Taylor’s ongoing affection for their incomparable frontman, is the open spirit with which Queen — alternately hilarious and pompous, badass and sentimental — approached music-making.

“We had never really had a method, actually,” says May, “never really had a stock modus operandi. There have been so many different processes over the years. And it’s all exploratory—sometimes you have to throw your hands up and say, No, that didn’t work.”

Alan Light: Is there a defining essence to the Queen sound?

Brian May: I suppose Roger and I historically, and Freddie and John, were always going for the ultimate in any direction. We were known for being excessive at times, but it’s like pushing the passion to the limit in every direction you can. As loud as you can, as fast as you can, as slow as you can—in tune with people’s emotions, which really do stretch.

Roger Taylor: And it’s a strange thing, but something ignites, usually live. If it’s all sounding right, something ignites, some kind of chemistry.

May: You give what you would like to receive. Roger and I used to go to Who concerts, and you would get that feeling of reckless danger, anger, passion. And that’s what we seek. Pete Townshend, in full flight, is a dangerous experience.

What is the definitive Queen song? Most people would probably say “Bohemian Rhapsody,” but is that the one for you?

Taylor: We always thoughts of ourselves as being eclectic, so that is a good answer, because it’s got so many moods in it. And it was a big hit, so that would probably be the best answer for me. But we have a lot of stuff that wasn’t a big, global hit that is also very much of our essence.

May: There’s a song called “Millionaire Waltz,” on A Day at the Races, which actually would sum up most of what we were about. But it’s something that’s very seldom played, I think it was almost like the successor to “Bohemian Rhapsody.” It’s so incredibly complex that it doesn’t program on radio, I suppose. But, boy, there’s some stuff in there. It’s a favorite of mine—it’s so extreme!