Enigmatic Variations No. 1432: Jazz by Vismut

Hello everyone.  I hope you are well and enjoying the bank holiday weekend.  Well, I am finding that Vismut puzzles just get more and more fun.  I don’t think this was too hard, although for a change of scene I solved it with a friend over Zoom, so can’t properly compare on that front.  Together we zoomed along at a pace appropriate to the theme.

The preamble reads:

Wordplay in 11 across clues leads to the answer and an extra letter not to be entered: in clue order these spell out the name of a JAZZ track.  Solvers should draw separate lines through three of the band members performing and two identical circles through the inspiration of the track and an appropriate translation of its title.  Wordplay in 12 down clues leads to the answer and an extra letter not to be entered: in clue order these spell out what a frontman is always wearing; the name of the band’s frontman is entered in the space over the top of the grid, which should be coloured in appropriately to get a complete picture.  Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.

I’d barely laid eyes on the preamble before my co-solver suggested the right kind of JAZZ track, but fortunately did not come up with any containing 11 letters.  I rather think that that would have made me grumpy!  So we concentrated on solving the clues and collecting those extra letters, and had much of the grid completed before seeing that the letters from the across clues were forming BICYCLE RACE.  Yes, a track from the album JAZZ by Queen (whose frontman will fit neatly into those seven cells at the top of the grid).  It wasn’t hard to find the other band members in the grid – John DEACON was swiftly followed by Roger TAYLOR and then (after a small deviation flying over the handlebars) Brian MAY.

My research assistant informed me that the track was inspired by seeing the 18th stage of the 1978 TOUR DE FRANCE passing the studios in Montreux where the band were recording the album.  Translating BICYCLE RACE appropriately into French gives COURSE DE VÉLO, which handily has the same number of letters.  With these located in the grid, the wheels could be put on!

The extra letters from the down clues had hitherto stubbornly refused to make any sense, but now we could see the yellow jersey, or MAILLOT JAUNE, worn by a frontman in the race – and attire the band’s frontman Freddie MERCURY suitably.  Finally, a few loose clues to chase down, and over the line.

All very neat, very tidy, and very nice.  Thanks Vismut!