Watch Queen and Adam Lambert cover opera anthem Nessun Dorma in Italy

“So proud of Adam!” gushes Brian May, as Queen’s frontman serves up a goosebump-inducing live take on Nessun Dorma

(Image credit: Aldara Zarraoa/Redferns)

Queen’s Brian May has hailed vocalist Adam Lambert for his spontaneous rendition of popular opera standard Nessun Dorma during the band’s July 10 show in Bologna, Italy.

Lambert performed an impromptu version of the song at the Unipol Arena on the first of Queen’s two nights in Bologna, much to the guitarist’s delight.

An aria from the closing act of Giacomo Puccini’s 1924 three-act opera Turandot, Nessun Dorma became engraved on global consciousness when and reached new audiences in 1990 when the legendary Italian tenor Luciana Pavarotti performed it during the 1990 FIFA World Cup finals in Italy.

“A spontaneous gift to Bologna last night!!!” May posted on Instagram. “So proud of Adam!!! I can see our dear departed friend Luciano smiling!! Let’s Rock tonight!!!”

The package containing all three of Queen’s Greatest Hits albums originally launched on CD in 2000 and was re-released in 2011 to mark the band’s 40th anniversary celebrations.

Now a new limited edition vinyl edition will arrive on June 17 spread across six 180g discs on yellow, red, pink, purple, blue and green vinyl. Each disc has been mastered at half speed at Abbey Road Studios.

The Platinum Collection will also feature a slipcase with new artwork, while each of the six sleeves will come with their own individually designed sleeve. In addition, the new release will also include a 24-page, 12-inch photo booklet.

In other Queen-related news, Brian May has teamed up with 10cc’s Graham Gouldman to record a new song to celebrate the historic first deep space images captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.

The song, Floating In Heaven, is available to stream now.