Queen [ tickets ] guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, along with Free/Bad Company frontman Paul Rodgers [ tickets ], have officially announced plans for a spring tour that will visit a dozen European countries over six weeks.

The outing, billed as "Queen + Paul Rodgers," so far isn't scheduled to visit North America, though a fall tour is under consideration. Set lists will feature a mix of Queen material and songs from Rodgers' bands, according to a press release.

Queen last toured in 1986, before late frontman Freddie Mercury began showing symptoms of AIDS. Mercury died of the disease in 1991.

"I was always against the idea of putting someone in there trying to impersonate Freddie in any way," May said in a statement. "Then suddenly I'm looking at this guy who doesn't in any sense try to take the place of Freddie. He's nothing like Freddie because he comes from his own place.

"Suddenly I thought, 'yes we can do this', we could do one more tour and the songs would mean something new. This would not be like rehashing, trying to pretend Freddie's still here; suddenly we can reinterpret these songs with someone who understands what he's about, someone who relates to us. Suddenly it felt right. It's colossal, and I can't quite believe it."

Last year, Rodgers sang with May and Taylor during Queen's induction into the U.K. Music Hall of Fame and at a concert in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Fender Stratocaster guitar.

"'Let's do more' was the unanimous feeling," Rodgers said in a statement. "Which is why we are joining forces for this tour of Europe and the U.K. this spring and possibly the U.S. and Canada in the fall. We intend to merge our styles and our music at the point where they meet most naturally."

Longtime Queen bassist John Deacon has retired from performing, and won't participate in the tour, the tour announcement said.

The surviving members of Queen have played together at a few events since Mercury's death, including a 1992 tribute to Mercury and at the band's 2001 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

More information, including the European itinerary, is posted Queen's website.