The music of Queen keeps reawakening every few years which means it never seemingly disappears. The fall 2018 release of the 20th Century Fox film, Bohemian Rhapsody gave the band a refresh and it also gave many of their long-time fans a reboot as well. Today, Queen is rightly regarded as one of the greatest rock bands of all-time, but back in the 1970's some of the music critics were more critical than non-critical. Clearly, in hindsight, those folks got it more than wrong.
My initial encounter with the music of Queen goes way back, since I came of age in the era of classic rock's heyday. The band was composed of gifted musicians and songwriters and they were fronted by a master of showmanship, Freddie Mercury. Mercury is arguably the possessor of the most significant on-stage presence of any frontman ever. Being a teen in the 1970's meant you couldn't avoid Queen.
Freddie Mercury had a voice that has not been duplicated in the last forty plus years. He sounds like no one else and therefore would not be mistaken for any other singer from any genre. Mercury has been deceased close to 30 years; but since he died so young he is locked in as the physical image we remember from an earlier time and place. Like James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, Jim Morrison and so many others who went to their graves early in their earthly lives we still see them as young people. It's just what we do. We have no ability to see beyond time and space.
It is not completely off the mark to say Queen is bigger now than they were at the height of their day to day success back in the 1970's and early 1980's. New fans have taken root, bloomed and blossomed all over the world. Their continued success is well deserved, since they were a dynamic band propelled by deep driving lyrical narratives and compelling and complex melodies.
Endings almost always have a disproportionate influence on any narrative and Freddie's ending is still haunt inducing. Friends of his seemingly agree on a few things and based on those assessments he was an anguished, complicated and conflicted human being. He was intelligent, insecure (off the stage) and sensitive.
I set about to put a footprint on the great songs of Queen; and quite frankly we all know that attempting to coordinate a list is a subjective canvas of your own mind. If I were to do this list two months from now or if I had done the list two, three, four years ago the list would most likely be slightly different, but with a tremendous amount of determination and respect for the music I set forth the 20 greatest Queen songs. Having said this, the top five songs on this list haven't changed in over thirty years. The top five never change.
20) Crazy Little Thing Called Love - A huge top 40 hit for the band upon its release back in early 1980 and it is still one of their most played songs. It is a throwback to the rockabilly period that played a role in the coming of age years for the members of the band. It's an upbeat song and dance tune. Technically, this wouldn't be one of their greatest musical achievements, but it certainly is a song that proves their range and diversity. This was not a standard type of song for a band of their stature upon its release, but the song is fun and it shows a side of Queen not often heard. Freddie Mercury wrote this song on the guitar which was unusual for him. He was not a skilled guitarist and wrote all of his songs on the piano. Rockabilly master, Dwight Yoakam has a superb version of Crazy Little Thing Called Love.
Words and Music: Freddie Mercury
Album: The Game
Album Release: 1980
19) A Winter's Tale - Freddie Mercury paints a dreamy landscape of physical beauty (you can almost see it all via the words) and also of his mindset. Freddie Mercury never received enough credit for his lyrics and music. His lyrics are introspective and retrospective as he nearly always goes above and beyond what any other lyricist and composer would be doing within the confines of any given song. He was a poet. A free-form poet. As his life tilted to death, we got A Winter's Tale.
Words and Music: Freddie Mercury
Album: Made in Heaven
Album Release: 1996
18) It's A Beautiful Day - In the midst of his impending death, Freddie Mercury wrote some of the most emotional and powerful songs than at any other point in his career. Many of the songs from Queen's last album are life affirming even though he was suffering a long and painful end. This song is a sunrise, a sunset, a baby's laugh, the bloom of those first spring flowers, a loving hug from a proud parent. Yes, it's a beautiful day. A spectacular song filled with life's promises. The song is credited to Queen, but Mercury wrote this tune.
Words and Music: Queen
Album: Made in Heaven
Release: 1996
17) Love of My Life - The song features some of Mercury's most poignant of music compositions; and to hear Brian May play the harp may be worth it all. Mercury was trained to play classical music pieces and one can hear his love of classical music on this track. If you ever had the good fortune to see Queen in concert you would have been in the crowd singing this song back to Freddie. Mercury did not reveal who or what were the influences behind his music and lyrics (outside of Killer Queen), but based on what we know Mary Austin was the only person Mercury said he truly, fully and implicitly trusted in his life. Mercury was intensely private and revealed little of himself over the years. Mercury's near seven year relationship with Mary Austin may have ended in heartbreak for both of them, but their relationship would survive literally anything. Mary Austin was the woman who dated and lived with Freddie Mercury from 1970 through 1976. After their breakup, he purchased her homes which would be visible from his homes and she became a part of the Queen entourage. For those who knew them, she was the most important person in that entourage.
Mercury left Austin half of his wealth (including recording and publishing royalties which still account for millions of dollars per year in additional added income) with the other half going to his mom, dad and sister. Mary also received his real estate, art and antiques. Mercury's relationship with Mary Austin is one of the most fascinating relationships in all of rock music. Mercury said: "All my lovers asked me why they couldn't replace Mary, but it's simply impossible. The only friend I have is Mary, and I don't want anybody else. To me, she was my common-law wife and we are in a marriage. We believe in each other and that's everything for me." "Our love affair ended in tears, but a deep bond grew out of it and that's something nobody can take away from us. It's unreachable. We look after each other and that's a wonderful form of love. I might have all the problems in the world, but I have Mary and that gets me through life."
Mercury said on more than one occasion that he just made material up for his songs, so Love of My Life may not be about Mary or anyone else for that matter. Quite honestly, it is irrelevant who it is about. It's a lovely song. As Mick Rock, an official photographer for Queen said, "the great irony of Freddie's life is that though he was essentially gay, his greatest relationship was with a woman."
Words and Music: Freddie Mercury
Album: A Night at the Opera
Album Release: 1975
16) Let Me Live - Even in their heartache, Queen had hope. Let Me Live showcases wonderful vocal achievements. The harmonies throughout their catalog have long been underrated. Obviously, their were great harmony singing acts in rock, including the Beach Boys, Crosby, Stills & Nash and the Bee Gees. The Eagles were given deserved acclaim for their harmony work and of course, no act could ever surpass the work of The Everly Brothers, but Queen is certainly an equal to most of the above mentioned artists. This song gives us the opportunity and gift of hearing Freddie Mercury, Roger Taylor and Brian May all singing on this track. Both Roger Taylor and Brian May had superb voices and easily could have been lead singers in any other band. They were musical volcanoes who overwhelmed their fans in lava flows of words and music.
Words and Music: Queen
Album: Made in Heaven
Album Release: 1996
15) Who Wants To Live Forever - Brian May sings a bit on this song and for a brief shining moment he comes close to sounding a bit like Freddie Mercury. Who Wants to Live Forever is one of their most unyielding of sounds. It literally could be an attachment to Leonard Bernstein's and Stephen Sondheim's powerful closing ballad, Somewhere from West Side Story. As usual, it is a gorgeous vocal by Mercury. It's a haunting song. It's an eclectic masterpiece and since it was recorded near the end of Mercury's life it is even more painful to listen to. One can only imagine what he and they would have and could have accomplished musically had he lived into his fifties and sixties. The film score sound is fitting since the song was written for the film Highlander. The band recorded the song with a full orchestra with orchestrations by Michael Kamen. Contemplate the brevity and fragility of life.
Words and Music: Brian May
Album: A Kind of Magic
Album Release: 1986
13) You're My Best Friend - John Deacon wrote this song and no other rock band ever could have recorded this song and gotten away with it. In many ways, it is an appealing pop song that could have been released by any number of one-hit wonders from that era. Instead it proves how enduring and legendary Queen is, because this song is a great song from an act so consequential that they even take a loose fitting pop song and turn it into a substantial music track. Freddie Mercury's vocal is joyful and downright festive. It is one of the simplest songs Queen ever recorded, but it is an indelible part of their catalog. This song just makes you feel good.
Music and Lyrics: John Deacon
Album: A Night at the Opera
Album Release: 1975
11) Jesus - During this period of their lives and careers (1973) none of the members of Queen were professing Christians, although a few investigative journalists have indicated Mercury may have converted to Christianity before he passed away. He attended a Christian private school while growing up (St. Peter's Church of England School), so clearly Mercury heard the Gospel. The song Jesus appears on Queen's first album. The entire album (Queen I) is filled with reflections on life from all angles. It is interesting that their first album and their last album are both takes on life and death. Jesus is a hard driving raw rock song as it features some heavy metal musicianship between the calls for all to fall down. Mercury's voice here is pristine, authoritative and commanding. His intense delivery on this track is downright breathtaking. Freddie Mercury delivers the Gospel. This song easily could have been a part of Andrew Lloyd Webber's and Tim Rice's Jesus Christ Superstar. Mercury's interpretation of his own lyric is stunning in its power. No Christian rock band ever delivered the Gospel in quite such a way. Mercury takes the birth of Jesus Christ and the healings of Jesus Christ and literally tells the listener to worship with his "all going down" chorus. The music is one of the freest forms of any track ever recorded by Queen. Freddie's exam to pass his A levels which would get him into the Ealing College of Art and Technology was a painting of the Crucifixion. He painted Jesus nailed to the Cross and it was so well reviewed it did gain him entry to Ealing, although it would later be revealed he did not paint the centurions looking on.
Music and Lyrics: Freddie Mercury
Album: Queen
Album Release: 1973
Words and Music: Freddie Mercury and Brian May
Album: Made in Heaven
Album Release: 1995
5) We Are the Champions - Mercury penned this track for the band's album News of the World. It is a separate track from We Will Rock You (see number four). We Will Rock You was written by Brian May, so at the time one had nothing to do with the other. Today, these two tracks are almost always played in conjunction with one another making some people think they are the same song. The one thing they share is the common bond of making sure your audience sings along. Imagine the royalty checks the band collected on these two tracks alone? They have been played thousands of times and most likely tens of thousands of times at sporting events all over the world. These two songs were the emotional high points of any Queen concert as audiences sang along and fully participated. Mercury was a highly accomplished pianist and he integrated a lot of jazz chords into the song. He also composed a song that is demanding for a lead vocalist, but obviously he knew what he was capable of and thankfully, so do we. He was able to hit high notes; and on We Are the Champions he hits a C5 in both a belted rock and falsetto. We Are The Champions and We Will Rock You are two intertwined strands to the Queen story even though they are stand-alone musical achievements. Mercury said of We Are the Champions - "it was the most egotistical and arrogant song I ever wrote." Arrogance never sounded so good.
Music and Lyrics: Freddie Mercury
Album: News of the World
Album Release: 1977
4) We Will Rock You - We Will Rock You is the mighty anthem that was born when Brian May dreamt it up and then stomped his foot. May, of course is a superb guitarist and guitarists always get lots of love from rock fans. May also wrote many other notable songs for Queen and he was as good of a songwriter as Mercury. Few people living on planet earth have never heard this track. It is a gigantic explosion of rock. It was the perfect theme for the 1970's arena rock soundtrack. It also brought home the idea of audience participation. It was released as a double A side with We Are the Champions; and it has long been Queen's most sought after two song mantra in sporting events and advertisements. The song largely features clapping and stomping and these are the two elements that keep the beat. The studio's engineers and deck staff joined in on the stomps and hand claps. The only instrument used on the track is the electric guitar. Brian May does close the song out with an extended guitar farewell. Linda Ronstadt (Linda, like Freddie had a magnificent voice and could sing rock, pop, country, opera, the standards and her ancestral Mexican music) recorded this song as a children's lullaby in 1996 and her interpretation gives it a twist like no cover ever. The classic 1980's comedy, Cheers paid tribute to this song in one of their more famous show opens. Check out those tributes, since they are worthy and respectful in their own separate ways (included in the post). Sing it!
Music and Lyrics: Brian May
Album: News of the World
Album Release: 1977
3) Somebody to Love - This song nearly breaks the heart. With all of the magnificent songs released over Queen's career, Somebody to Love is the one displaying the most of the vocal versatility of Freddie Mercury. His vocals, phrasing and passion on this track make it perhaps the single finest example of Mercury's talent. By saying this, I am delivering compliment upon compliment, since Mercury's vocal talents were displayed throughout the career of the band. The song is a gem for his voice alone. Mercury was blessed with so much talent, and this vocal is a testament to that talent. Mercury sang with conviction, heart and soul. Somebody to Love is a highly complex and multi-layered vocal arrangement and it is a complicated melody. It is a tour de force of multi-part harmonies. Queen knew how to write and play for their stacked vocals. No other band could do this so well. The Gospel sounding choir was not a 100 person group, but it was Freddie Mercury, Brian May and Roger Taylor sounding like a 100 person choir. Somebody to Love is about faith, desperation and soul-searching. Mercury is examining love or lack thereof, and the role of God in his life. Mercury's great range is on full display as he goes from an F2 to an A6/A4 and everything in between. No other vocalist in the rock era could do this with his voice. His range, depth and versatility lend itself to a host of vocal gymnastics and yet he sounds effortless, as always. His piano work is among the best of his career and May's guitar solo work is quite memorable. This may be Freddie Mercury's greatest musical achievement, but it is also the single finest achievement in a vocal recording during the rock era. His lung capacity and his ability to hold his breath is simply phenomenal. Freddie Mercury thought this was the best song he ever wrote.
Music and Lyrics: Freddie Mercury
Album: A Day at the Races
Album Release: 1976
2) Under Pressure - Under Pressure is a wonderful piece of musical architecture and if it weren't for Bohemian Rhapsody it would certainly qualify as the single greatest rock song in Queen's career, and of course that is saying something. It is not even arguable to say it is one of the grandest rock songs of all-time. Queen collaborated with David Bowie on this track and after nearly forty years you have to ask yourself, wouldn't it have been wonderful if these two artists recorded more than one track? The bass line (John Deacon's bass work is always worthy of a whole host of accolades) is one of the most famous bass lines in all of popular music. Let's not forget or perhaps, we should forget that Vanilla Ice sampled Under Pressure and then attempted not to give the five Brits credit. Bowie, of course is one of rock's greatest singers, but it is Mercury who takes this track into the outer reaches of the musical universe. This was an era full of talented people. People who could write lyrics and melodies. People who could arrange music. People who could play music and people who could sing. People singing without auto-tune and various studio tools. The distinctiveness of this song is highlighted by the fact that it appears on what is the least worthy Queen album recorded. Hot Space was a huge misfire. They were a rock band. Club crowd? Dance elements? The album was a dud, but it gifted us with Under Pressure. Under Pressure rises like the sun off of a beautiful lake in an isolated region anywhere on the planet. There is a spring in the step of this song that makes you feel good, but then as it concludes there is a tinge of sadness in the air. It is almost tangible the way both Bowie and Mercury change the spin of their voices. Under Pressure is a highly undervalued, under appreciated and underrated piece of pop/rock music. The songwriting credits are given to all four members of Queen and David Bowie, but the primary writers were Freddie Mercury and David Bowie. Mercury also adds the lovely piano and Hammond organ pieces that are strikingly presented throughout the piece. Under Pressure is one of their musical summits.
Music and Lyrics: Queen and David Bowie
Album: Hot Space
Album Release: 1982
1) Bohemian Rhapsody - Surprise. Surprise. All these decades after its original release, Bohemian Rhapsody is as catastrophically unique as it was the first time one heard it. At this stage of reflection, it is quite obviously one of the most eminently mighty pieces of popular music of the 20th century. It is in the same league as George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and the B side of Abbey Road by the Beatles. It is a three act play reaching into the vast skies of musicality. It is a defining frame of musicianship, songwriting, soaring lead vocal and some of the finest harmony singing ever put on a recording. Bohemian Rhapsody remains a rich patchwork of celebrated notability in a business that rarely delivers originality. It is complex, abundant, misunderstood (no one actually knows what it is about and that's what Mercury intended) and in some bizarre way, ever-changing. It could have been a novelty song, but its sheer force of mad genius catapults it into the stratosphere of timelessness. The word brilliant is used way too often, since there are few moments of brilliance in any arena and certainly very little in popular music, but Bohemian Rhapsody is brilliant. The first act is Mercury's rhetorical overture and it sets the stage as the windup before the real pitch. Oh, and the song has no chorus. That's nearly unheard of in popular music.
Brian May said "Freddie Mercury was a very complex person. He was flippant and funny on the surface, but he concealed insecurities and problems in squaring up his life with his childhood. He never explained the lyrics, but I think he put a lot of himself into that song."
It has become the most streamed song in history with 1.6 billion streams and counting. Obviously, this will continue to grow as new audiences discover Queen's music year in, year out. Bohemian Rhapsody was gigantic at the time of its release, but let's not forget how much pop culture love was bestowed upon this mansion of a song with the 1992 release of the film, Wayne's World. That now infamous moment in film history may have done more for Bohemian Rhapsody than any other element in the song's storied success. Smartly, Mike Myers wanted the incomparable Queen song while the studio wanted him to use an act that was more contemporary in 1992. Myers rejected a Guns N' Roses song and opted for a classic among classics, for Bohemian Rhapsody is a giant among giants. No other song in the rock era can lay claim to as much creativity and originality as Bohemian Rhapsody. Not even A Day in the Life by the Beatles can one-up the wildly off the wall and yet on the wall song as Freddie Mercury's opus that delivers a ballad, a mini-opera and hard driving rock 'n' roll. It took Queen three weeks and an unprecedented 180 vocal overdubs to create this song. It's a piano ballad, a pseudo opera and a hard rock collage.
It is a near six minutes in recorded length and Mercury's vocal performance is the single most revered performance of his distinguished contribution to rock music. It is amazing that they were able to record this song, since at the time they only had access to 24 track analog tape, so those 180 separate overdubs are even more outstanding when you think of the limited technology they were dealing with in 1975. Roger Taylor's falsetto still sends a chill up the spine even though it is Mercury's four octave range voice that covers the entire spectrum of vocal work. May's rocket propelled guitar work is on full display. Bohemian Rhapsody is one of the most intricate compositions in all of rock music's history. It is a masterpiece that no other artist could have pulled off or would have pulled off. It's a symphonic rock/pop song that still holds sway with contemporary audiences all these years later. Nearly every university/college marching band (and I do mean literally nearly every one of them) includes Queen in their performance tributes. Queen has been among these play lists for years. Those intricate vocal harmonies gifted us with this extraordinary piece of music. The original recording of Bohemian Rhapsody is too monumental a presence on the global map of music to not be in the number one position.
Any way the wind blows...
Music and Lyrics: Freddie Mercury
Album: A Night at the Opera
Album Release: 1975
Freddie Mercury died on Sunday, November 24, 1991. I've been keeping journals for most of my life. In writing this post I checked my journal entry for that date. I'd gone to church that morning and spent the rest of the day Christmas shopping. I concluded the day's entry with:
Freddie Mercury died today. Sad.
Mercury was a legend in his own time; and Queen had aristocratic appeal. Unfortunately, we will not see their likes again. Mercury's final live concert took place on August 9, 1986 at Knebworth Park in the U.K.
It is still sad. He had been blessed with a great deal of musical talent. No one sang like Mercury. He could hit a note, hold a note, hug the note, straighten it out, lay it down, walk with it, bring it to a fork in a road, explain it or not, twist it to perfection. He is and most likely will remain one of the most engaging and unique performers in the history of music.
"The best virtuoso rock 'n' roll singer of all time. He could sing anything in any style. He could change his style from line to line, and God, that's an art and he was brilliant at it."
Roger Daltrey
Founding Member and Lead Vocalist
The Who
Copyright (C) 2019 by The Flaming Nose
Album: The Game
Album Release: 1980
19) A Winter's Tale - Freddie Mercury paints a dreamy landscape of physical beauty (you can almost see it all via the words) and also of his mindset. Freddie Mercury never received enough credit for his lyrics and music. His lyrics are introspective and retrospective as he nearly always goes above and beyond what any other lyricist and composer would be doing within the confines of any given song. He was a poet. A free-form poet. As his life tilted to death, we got A Winter's Tale.
Words and Music: Freddie Mercury
Album: Made in Heaven
Album Release: 1996
18) It's A Beautiful Day - In the midst of his impending death, Freddie Mercury wrote some of the most emotional and powerful songs than at any other point in his career. Many of the songs from Queen's last album are life affirming even though he was suffering a long and painful end. This song is a sunrise, a sunset, a baby's laugh, the bloom of those first spring flowers, a loving hug from a proud parent. Yes, it's a beautiful day. A spectacular song filled with life's promises. The song is credited to Queen, but Mercury wrote this tune.
Words and Music: Queen
Album: Made in Heaven
Release: 1996
17) Love of My Life - The song features some of Mercury's most poignant of music compositions; and to hear Brian May play the harp may be worth it all. Mercury was trained to play classical music pieces and one can hear his love of classical music on this track. If you ever had the good fortune to see Queen in concert you would have been in the crowd singing this song back to Freddie. Mercury did not reveal who or what were the influences behind his music and lyrics (outside of Killer Queen), but based on what we know Mary Austin was the only person Mercury said he truly, fully and implicitly trusted in his life. Mercury was intensely private and revealed little of himself over the years. Mercury's near seven year relationship with Mary Austin may have ended in heartbreak for both of them, but their relationship would survive literally anything. Mary Austin was the woman who dated and lived with Freddie Mercury from 1970 through 1976. After their breakup, he purchased her homes which would be visible from his homes and she became a part of the Queen entourage. For those who knew them, she was the most important person in that entourage.
Mercury left Austin half of his wealth (including recording and publishing royalties which still account for millions of dollars per year in additional added income) with the other half going to his mom, dad and sister. Mary also received his real estate, art and antiques. Mercury's relationship with Mary Austin is one of the most fascinating relationships in all of rock music. Mercury said: "All my lovers asked me why they couldn't replace Mary, but it's simply impossible. The only friend I have is Mary, and I don't want anybody else. To me, she was my common-law wife and we are in a marriage. We believe in each other and that's everything for me." "Our love affair ended in tears, but a deep bond grew out of it and that's something nobody can take away from us. It's unreachable. We look after each other and that's a wonderful form of love. I might have all the problems in the world, but I have Mary and that gets me through life."
Mercury said on more than one occasion that he just made material up for his songs, so Love of My Life may not be about Mary or anyone else for that matter. Quite honestly, it is irrelevant who it is about. It's a lovely song. As Mick Rock, an official photographer for Queen said, "the great irony of Freddie's life is that though he was essentially gay, his greatest relationship was with a woman."
Words and Music: Freddie Mercury
Album: A Night at the Opera
Album Release: 1975
16) Let Me Live - Even in their heartache, Queen had hope. Let Me Live showcases wonderful vocal achievements. The harmonies throughout their catalog have long been underrated. Obviously, their were great harmony singing acts in rock, including the Beach Boys, Crosby, Stills & Nash and the Bee Gees. The Eagles were given deserved acclaim for their harmony work and of course, no act could ever surpass the work of The Everly Brothers, but Queen is certainly an equal to most of the above mentioned artists. This song gives us the opportunity and gift of hearing Freddie Mercury, Roger Taylor and Brian May all singing on this track. Both Roger Taylor and Brian May had superb voices and easily could have been lead singers in any other band. They were musical volcanoes who overwhelmed their fans in lava flows of words and music.
Words and Music: Queen
Album: Made in Heaven
Album Release: 1996
15) Who Wants To Live Forever - Brian May sings a bit on this song and for a brief shining moment he comes close to sounding a bit like Freddie Mercury. Who Wants to Live Forever is one of their most unyielding of sounds. It literally could be an attachment to Leonard Bernstein's and Stephen Sondheim's powerful closing ballad, Somewhere from West Side Story. As usual, it is a gorgeous vocal by Mercury. It's a haunting song. It's an eclectic masterpiece and since it was recorded near the end of Mercury's life it is even more painful to listen to. One can only imagine what he and they would have and could have accomplished musically had he lived into his fifties and sixties. The film score sound is fitting since the song was written for the film Highlander. The band recorded the song with a full orchestra with orchestrations by Michael Kamen. Contemplate the brevity and fragility of life.
Words and Music: Brian May
Album: A Kind of Magic
Album Release: 1986
14) Doing All Right - Doing All Right is art as rock. Freddie Mercury's younger voice is thrilling to listen to. Literally thrilling. I feel I just jumped out of a plane listening to this masterful singer, vocalist, stylist, phraser and interpreter of song. His tonal quality is unmatched in the circles of their genre. I love Freddie's voice, but there is a majestic tilt in the early years of his singing and phrasing that you don't hear in the later years. This is inevitable. No singer can keep the same tone throughout a lifetime of work. His famed vibrato rises to the occasion here. The pitch variation and the speed at which the pitch is varied are all over the place in Queen's music. This is one of the few times Brian May plays piano on a Queen track.
Words and Music: Brian May and Timothy Staffel
Album: Queen
Album Release: 1973
13) You're My Best Friend - John Deacon wrote this song and no other rock band ever could have recorded this song and gotten away with it. In many ways, it is an appealing pop song that could have been released by any number of one-hit wonders from that era. Instead it proves how enduring and legendary Queen is, because this song is a great song from an act so consequential that they even take a loose fitting pop song and turn it into a substantial music track. Freddie Mercury's vocal is joyful and downright festive. It is one of the simplest songs Queen ever recorded, but it is an indelible part of their catalog. This song just makes you feel good.
Music and Lyrics: John Deacon
Album: A Night at the Opera
Album Release: 1975
12) Killer Queen - Killer Queen has a unique sound and it was wholly different from any track on their first two albums. Killer Queen was their first big hit and the track appears on their third album, Sheer Heart Attack. The entire album is full of technical complexities and it also features some elaborate arrangements. Killer Queen has a stage persona to it and in many ways it is quite baroque. Freddie Mercury wrote the song and he explained in more than one interview that he wrote the lyric prior to the melody which was the exact opposite of the way he usually wrote songs. Killer Queen features a fully developed and meticulously detailed four part harmony. It's a clever song with a driving rock guitar and some of Roger's high harmonies. Mercury rarely indulged journalists with the meanings behind songs, but he did admit that the song was about a high class call girl, claiming that even classy people are essentially whores. I don't know how Marie Antoinette would feel, but one would think that historically she would feel pretty good about being named in a classic rock song from one of the most magnificent artists of 20th century music. They were hard rockers who could compose grand ballads and pop. Sumptuous harmonies with elegant piano work which Mercury excelled at.
Word and Music: Freddie Mercury
Album: Sheer Heart Attack
Album Release: 197411) Jesus - During this period of their lives and careers (1973) none of the members of Queen were professing Christians, although a few investigative journalists have indicated Mercury may have converted to Christianity before he passed away. He attended a Christian private school while growing up (St. Peter's Church of England School), so clearly Mercury heard the Gospel. The song Jesus appears on Queen's first album. The entire album (Queen I) is filled with reflections on life from all angles. It is interesting that their first album and their last album are both takes on life and death. Jesus is a hard driving raw rock song as it features some heavy metal musicianship between the calls for all to fall down. Mercury's voice here is pristine, authoritative and commanding. His intense delivery on this track is downright breathtaking. Freddie Mercury delivers the Gospel. This song easily could have been a part of Andrew Lloyd Webber's and Tim Rice's Jesus Christ Superstar. Mercury's interpretation of his own lyric is stunning in its power. No Christian rock band ever delivered the Gospel in quite such a way. Mercury takes the birth of Jesus Christ and the healings of Jesus Christ and literally tells the listener to worship with his "all going down" chorus. The music is one of the freest forms of any track ever recorded by Queen. Freddie's exam to pass his A levels which would get him into the Ealing College of Art and Technology was a painting of the Crucifixion. He painted Jesus nailed to the Cross and it was so well reviewed it did gain him entry to Ealing, although it would later be revealed he did not paint the centurions looking on.
Music and Lyrics: Freddie Mercury
Album: Queen
Album Release: 1973
10) I Want It All - Freddie Mercury never sounded more desperate. The back and forth vocal conversation between Mercury and May is riveting. They incorporated aspects of their own lives into their music and this relay of words between two friends and musical partners is appropriate for in this world they will forever be linked together. As a complete aside, when you see the original video for this song you can't help but think Brian May would have made a perfect Mr. Darcy in some version of Pride and Prejudice. The song was written by Brian May, but it is attributed to Queen. Queen famously decided to attribute all of their songs past mid-1980's to the band at-large, something that U2 has done for most of its career. Freddie Mercury's health was already deteriorating at the time they recorded this song, but he was pushing on and if you didn't know, you wouldn't know he was sick and terminally ill. There is a fearlessness to this song. Outstanding display of both lead and harmony vocals.
Words and Music: Queen
Album: The Miracle
Album Release: 1989
9) Too Much Love Will Kill You - It is hard to believe that Freddie Mercury didn't compose this song. Too Much Love Will Kill You was written by Brian May, Frank Musker and Elizabeth Lamers. There is a long story behind the history of the song, but it seems to define the end of Freddie Mercury's life and yet that is not what the song is about. Mercury sings with tremendous conviction and once again, he interprets a song as though he owns it. Mercury's voice is an instrument. Queen created some of the crescendo moments in the rock era. Their songs are all over the place and that is only one of the many reasons generation after generation discovers their music. There is a chronological terrain over which much of Queen's story moves and as they scouted their terrain, they ended up laying down their markers on the trail of rock music's history.
Words and Music: Brian May, Frank Musker, Elizabeth Lamers
Album: Made in Heaven
Album Release: 1995
8) Long Away - This is a song that seemingly reflects a sunny, light breeze of a day. It's a near surreal trip through episodes of life and it is one of the most captivating of Queen's songs. It is a dreamy trip of a song that moves you through the mood of moments. Long Away has a shyness of heart to it that takes you away as you travel any which way on a lovely scenic drive contemplating life. Brian May wrote the song and he sings the lead vocal, so it is another detour on the Queen road. May has a touching voice. Clearly, we hear the influence of the Beatles (this easily could have appeared on Rubber Soul) and the American band, the Byrds. It's not a hippie trip, but it is a pastel colored song with some deep thoughts.
Music and Lyrics: Brian May
Album: A Day at the Races
Album Release: 1976
7) Another One Bites the Dust - Another One Bites the Dust was an ever present music cue in your ears when it came on the radio back in 1980. The song was blasting all over the world for months on end. Another One Bites the Dust was written by bassist, John Deacon and the song provides one of his most memorable bass lines. As always, the rock singer with the greatest range in the history of recorded rock music, Freddie Mercury delivers another commanding vocal performance. Another One Bites the Dust is Queen's biggest selling North American single. Deacon plays almost all of the instruments on the recorded track. His bass line provides nearly 110 beats per minute, so if you ever find yourself having to save someone's life, this is the song to play to get a heart going again (or Stayin' Alive by the Bee Gees). Another One Bites the Dust is the lyrical and musical rendering of another classic. Machine guns ready to go. Let's go.
Music and Lyrics: John Deacon
Album: The Game
Album Release: 1980
6) Mother Love - Freddie Mercury and Brian May co-wrote this song together and it was the last song Mercury would ever record. The song was recorded between May 13-May 16, 1991 and it is certainly one of the most personal songs Queen ever recorded. The song features Mercury on lead vocals, but Mercury who would be dead six months later was too tired to finish singing the song, so May took over the final stage of the lyrical content. Brian has a lovely voice and it is fitting that two of Queen's protectors would in some way share in this final battle. There is some gorgeous guitar work here by May. This song is certainly not about either of their biological mothers even though the song would be dedicated to both of their moms in different concerts over the years. Not that any one could hear this, but this song includes (close to the end of the song) a few seconds of every Queen song - all speeded up.Album Release: 1980
Words and Music: Freddie Mercury and Brian May
Album: Made in Heaven
Album Release: 1995
5) We Are the Champions - Mercury penned this track for the band's album News of the World. It is a separate track from We Will Rock You (see number four). We Will Rock You was written by Brian May, so at the time one had nothing to do with the other. Today, these two tracks are almost always played in conjunction with one another making some people think they are the same song. The one thing they share is the common bond of making sure your audience sings along. Imagine the royalty checks the band collected on these two tracks alone? They have been played thousands of times and most likely tens of thousands of times at sporting events all over the world. These two songs were the emotional high points of any Queen concert as audiences sang along and fully participated. Mercury was a highly accomplished pianist and he integrated a lot of jazz chords into the song. He also composed a song that is demanding for a lead vocalist, but obviously he knew what he was capable of and thankfully, so do we. He was able to hit high notes; and on We Are the Champions he hits a C5 in both a belted rock and falsetto. We Are The Champions and We Will Rock You are two intertwined strands to the Queen story even though they are stand-alone musical achievements. Mercury said of We Are the Champions - "it was the most egotistical and arrogant song I ever wrote." Arrogance never sounded so good.
Music and Lyrics: Freddie Mercury
Album: News of the World
Album Release: 1977
4) We Will Rock You - We Will Rock You is the mighty anthem that was born when Brian May dreamt it up and then stomped his foot. May, of course is a superb guitarist and guitarists always get lots of love from rock fans. May also wrote many other notable songs for Queen and he was as good of a songwriter as Mercury. Few people living on planet earth have never heard this track. It is a gigantic explosion of rock. It was the perfect theme for the 1970's arena rock soundtrack. It also brought home the idea of audience participation. It was released as a double A side with We Are the Champions; and it has long been Queen's most sought after two song mantra in sporting events and advertisements. The song largely features clapping and stomping and these are the two elements that keep the beat. The studio's engineers and deck staff joined in on the stomps and hand claps. The only instrument used on the track is the electric guitar. Brian May does close the song out with an extended guitar farewell. Linda Ronstadt (Linda, like Freddie had a magnificent voice and could sing rock, pop, country, opera, the standards and her ancestral Mexican music) recorded this song as a children's lullaby in 1996 and her interpretation gives it a twist like no cover ever. The classic 1980's comedy, Cheers paid tribute to this song in one of their more famous show opens. Check out those tributes, since they are worthy and respectful in their own separate ways (included in the post). Sing it!
Music and Lyrics: Brian May
Album: News of the World
Album Release: 1977
3) Somebody to Love - This song nearly breaks the heart. With all of the magnificent songs released over Queen's career, Somebody to Love is the one displaying the most of the vocal versatility of Freddie Mercury. His vocals, phrasing and passion on this track make it perhaps the single finest example of Mercury's talent. By saying this, I am delivering compliment upon compliment, since Mercury's vocal talents were displayed throughout the career of the band. The song is a gem for his voice alone. Mercury was blessed with so much talent, and this vocal is a testament to that talent. Mercury sang with conviction, heart and soul. Somebody to Love is a highly complex and multi-layered vocal arrangement and it is a complicated melody. It is a tour de force of multi-part harmonies. Queen knew how to write and play for their stacked vocals. No other band could do this so well. The Gospel sounding choir was not a 100 person group, but it was Freddie Mercury, Brian May and Roger Taylor sounding like a 100 person choir. Somebody to Love is about faith, desperation and soul-searching. Mercury is examining love or lack thereof, and the role of God in his life. Mercury's great range is on full display as he goes from an F2 to an A6/A4 and everything in between. No other vocalist in the rock era could do this with his voice. His range, depth and versatility lend itself to a host of vocal gymnastics and yet he sounds effortless, as always. His piano work is among the best of his career and May's guitar solo work is quite memorable. This may be Freddie Mercury's greatest musical achievement, but it is also the single finest achievement in a vocal recording during the rock era. His lung capacity and his ability to hold his breath is simply phenomenal. Freddie Mercury thought this was the best song he ever wrote.
Music and Lyrics: Freddie Mercury
Album: A Day at the Races
Album Release: 1976
2) Under Pressure - Under Pressure is a wonderful piece of musical architecture and if it weren't for Bohemian Rhapsody it would certainly qualify as the single greatest rock song in Queen's career, and of course that is saying something. It is not even arguable to say it is one of the grandest rock songs of all-time. Queen collaborated with David Bowie on this track and after nearly forty years you have to ask yourself, wouldn't it have been wonderful if these two artists recorded more than one track? The bass line (John Deacon's bass work is always worthy of a whole host of accolades) is one of the most famous bass lines in all of popular music. Let's not forget or perhaps, we should forget that Vanilla Ice sampled Under Pressure and then attempted not to give the five Brits credit. Bowie, of course is one of rock's greatest singers, but it is Mercury who takes this track into the outer reaches of the musical universe. This was an era full of talented people. People who could write lyrics and melodies. People who could arrange music. People who could play music and people who could sing. People singing without auto-tune and various studio tools. The distinctiveness of this song is highlighted by the fact that it appears on what is the least worthy Queen album recorded. Hot Space was a huge misfire. They were a rock band. Club crowd? Dance elements? The album was a dud, but it gifted us with Under Pressure. Under Pressure rises like the sun off of a beautiful lake in an isolated region anywhere on the planet. There is a spring in the step of this song that makes you feel good, but then as it concludes there is a tinge of sadness in the air. It is almost tangible the way both Bowie and Mercury change the spin of their voices. Under Pressure is a highly undervalued, under appreciated and underrated piece of pop/rock music. The songwriting credits are given to all four members of Queen and David Bowie, but the primary writers were Freddie Mercury and David Bowie. Mercury also adds the lovely piano and Hammond organ pieces that are strikingly presented throughout the piece. Under Pressure is one of their musical summits.
Music and Lyrics: Queen and David Bowie
Album: Hot Space
Album Release: 1982
1) Bohemian Rhapsody - Surprise. Surprise. All these decades after its original release, Bohemian Rhapsody is as catastrophically unique as it was the first time one heard it. At this stage of reflection, it is quite obviously one of the most eminently mighty pieces of popular music of the 20th century. It is in the same league as George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and the B side of Abbey Road by the Beatles. It is a three act play reaching into the vast skies of musicality. It is a defining frame of musicianship, songwriting, soaring lead vocal and some of the finest harmony singing ever put on a recording. Bohemian Rhapsody remains a rich patchwork of celebrated notability in a business that rarely delivers originality. It is complex, abundant, misunderstood (no one actually knows what it is about and that's what Mercury intended) and in some bizarre way, ever-changing. It could have been a novelty song, but its sheer force of mad genius catapults it into the stratosphere of timelessness. The word brilliant is used way too often, since there are few moments of brilliance in any arena and certainly very little in popular music, but Bohemian Rhapsody is brilliant. The first act is Mercury's rhetorical overture and it sets the stage as the windup before the real pitch. Oh, and the song has no chorus. That's nearly unheard of in popular music.
Brian May said "Freddie Mercury was a very complex person. He was flippant and funny on the surface, but he concealed insecurities and problems in squaring up his life with his childhood. He never explained the lyrics, but I think he put a lot of himself into that song."
It has become the most streamed song in history with 1.6 billion streams and counting. Obviously, this will continue to grow as new audiences discover Queen's music year in, year out. Bohemian Rhapsody was gigantic at the time of its release, but let's not forget how much pop culture love was bestowed upon this mansion of a song with the 1992 release of the film, Wayne's World. That now infamous moment in film history may have done more for Bohemian Rhapsody than any other element in the song's storied success. Smartly, Mike Myers wanted the incomparable Queen song while the studio wanted him to use an act that was more contemporary in 1992. Myers rejected a Guns N' Roses song and opted for a classic among classics, for Bohemian Rhapsody is a giant among giants. No other song in the rock era can lay claim to as much creativity and originality as Bohemian Rhapsody. Not even A Day in the Life by the Beatles can one-up the wildly off the wall and yet on the wall song as Freddie Mercury's opus that delivers a ballad, a mini-opera and hard driving rock 'n' roll. It took Queen three weeks and an unprecedented 180 vocal overdubs to create this song. It's a piano ballad, a pseudo opera and a hard rock collage.
It is a near six minutes in recorded length and Mercury's vocal performance is the single most revered performance of his distinguished contribution to rock music. It is amazing that they were able to record this song, since at the time they only had access to 24 track analog tape, so those 180 separate overdubs are even more outstanding when you think of the limited technology they were dealing with in 1975. Roger Taylor's falsetto still sends a chill up the spine even though it is Mercury's four octave range voice that covers the entire spectrum of vocal work. May's rocket propelled guitar work is on full display. Bohemian Rhapsody is one of the most intricate compositions in all of rock music's history. It is a masterpiece that no other artist could have pulled off or would have pulled off. It's a symphonic rock/pop song that still holds sway with contemporary audiences all these years later. Nearly every university/college marching band (and I do mean literally nearly every one of them) includes Queen in their performance tributes. Queen has been among these play lists for years. Those intricate vocal harmonies gifted us with this extraordinary piece of music. The original recording of Bohemian Rhapsody is too monumental a presence on the global map of music to not be in the number one position.
Any way the wind blows...
Music and Lyrics: Freddie Mercury
Album: A Night at the Opera
Album Release: 1975
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| Queen - Nearer to the End |
Freddie Mercury died today. Sad.
Mercury was a legend in his own time; and Queen had aristocratic appeal. Unfortunately, we will not see their likes again. Mercury's final live concert took place on August 9, 1986 at Knebworth Park in the U.K.
It is still sad. He had been blessed with a great deal of musical talent. No one sang like Mercury. He could hit a note, hold a note, hug the note, straighten it out, lay it down, walk with it, bring it to a fork in a road, explain it or not, twist it to perfection. He is and most likely will remain one of the most engaging and unique performers in the history of music.
"The best virtuoso rock 'n' roll singer of all time. He could sing anything in any style. He could change his style from line to line, and God, that's an art and he was brilliant at it."
Roger Daltrey
Founding Member and Lead Vocalist
The Who
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