Queen - The 50 Greatest Tracks

Queen 50 Greatest Tracks

And then the next 50 Greatest

It is the fiftieth anniversary of the formation of classic Queen with the addition of John Deacon on bass, and so, in honour of that milestone, I shall select what I consider to be the fifty best Queen songs. And then some more. Because too much of a good thing is not only marvellous, it defines Queen perfectly, a band that enjoined us to enjoy life and have fun to the maximum. I can’t say that I ever entirely approved of the hedonism associated with Queen, I think it has consequences for self and others. I’ve never been a party animal and, I have no doubt, would have ran for cover at the typical Queen party. Hedonism strikes me as Hell. But the determination to party hard intrigued me. And I think the band worked hard for their pleasures, displaying a dedication to their art and craft that far exceeded most others. They were meticulous in the studio and in concert, preparing, planning, and designing to the nth degree, taking time to ensure the realization of their vision. They were creative, imaginative, and dedicated. It shows. I could hear it immediately. The interesting thing for me is the care and attention to detail, the painstaking efforts taken to make the complex and unfamiliar easy for the audience to assimilate immediately. The band worked hard so that their fans didn’t need to. It was very easy to like Queen. You could simply love the surfaces and be royally entertained. But the band had real depths, and that’s where you’ll find the essence.

There’s a joke doing the rounds: what do you get if you cross a graphic designer, an astrophysicist, a dentist and an electrical engineer?

Either an aesthetically pleasing washing machine that doubles as a sauna or a rocket ship on its way to Mars, a satellite that is out of control, or a sex machine like an atom bomb about to ‘oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, explode.’

Whilst the band Queen were formed in 1970, the classic line-up which lasted until the death of Freddie Mercury was only finalized in 1971 with the addition of John Deacon on bass. John Deacon always stood out in this band of odds and eccentrics by being so quiet and normal. He seemed a steady pair of hands. But he may well be the oddest one of them all. Whilst the other three were strong characters, argumentative with it, there seemed to be little fuss around Deacon. But he was more than capable. In fact, in terms of talent, he was on a par with the other three super talented members. I read that Brian May once told him in jest that he had to learn the 12-string if he wanted to play on a particular track on the Sheer Heart Attack album. Deacon returned to the studio three days later having mastered the instrument. He has been called Queen’s ‘secret weapon.’ His incredible bass lines powered the band. He also wrote several classics, many of them enormous smash hits. Queen are the only band each of whose members wrote #1 hit records. Three of the four members were also powerful singers, making for great difference on record as each took turn on lead, making also for a great choir. Listen to A Night of the Opera, three different lead singers on the opening five tracks. John Deacon was the odd one out: he wasn’t a singer. Brian May tells the story of Deacon trying to coach Freddie Mercury as how to sing ‘Another One Bites the Dust’ without singing a note himself.

It seems that these days poor Deacy is lost in his grief. He quit the band in 1997, retired into his private life, and has maintained his silence ever since. In a recent interview, Roger Taylor said that Freddie Mercury’s death hit like a hammer blow and John Deacon never recovered. So it is fitting to celebrate the fifty years of the classic Queen line-up which was completed when he joined the band in 1971.

It seems that in the aftermath of Smile’s collapse, a number of names were touted for the new band, including ‘Rich Kids’ (which is what the members of Queen were to become) and ‘Build Your Own Boat,’ which Queen most certainly did, sailing it by sheer talent, power, and energy. But the name ‘Queen’ was decided upon, a fittingly ambiguous, intriguing, and regal moniker. The new – and final – line-up made its debut at Surry College: rock history was about to be made. Two years later came the debut album Queen, and the rest is history. I’ll sprint through that fifty year history by selecting what I consider to be the fifty tracks which showcase Queen at their best. It’s all very arbitrary, of course. That classic line-up was only in existence for twenty years, but twenty is much too small a number for a band whose Greatest Hits has spent more than 900 weeks in the UK charts, becoming the all-time best-selling album in the UK. I once someone tell a joke: what is the greatest Queen song? All 700 of them! The humour was lost on many, who insisted on pointing out that Queen only made about 150 songs (14 albums, excluding the soundtrack to ‘Flash Gordon’). I think the tendency to overstatement and excess is all about the flair, panache, and imagination which define the band. It appals some, but appeals to many. It is perhaps this quality, backed by sheer talent, hard work, and dedication, that explains the success Queen had. Queen consisted of four very differently talented individuals, each with a unique musical vision and the character and will to impose it. Whilst in the early stages, the Mercury-May axis functioned like Lennon and McCartney, in time Taylor and Deacon emerged as strong song writers in their own right. So much so that the band seemed often to be wrestling between contrary poles and pulls, from hard rock to dance, pop, and funk. When the diverse talents complemented one another the result was musical dynamite. To this day Queen remain the only band in history to have achieved a #1 hit single written by each of its members. That makes for a very powerful unit indeed. Freddie Mercury is the idiosyncratic opera-fanatic full of big hooks and refined lines; May is the hard rocker; Taylor rocks hard too, but with something of a flair for speed and sci-fi; and then there is Deacon powering it all on bass, ensuring that Queen always had one foot in the pop charts, another on the dance floor. Queen became the powerhouse they are on account of both their similarities and differences – a complementary diversity.

I recently bought an old copy of Record Collector from October 2006 in which the great and the good from the music industry select their favourite Queen tracks. The article presents a list of the fifty best Queen songs with a brief rationale from different artists. Some of the reasons were more cogent than others. I have no idea why they bothered asking Ian Anderson’s opinion, let alone printed it. He doesn’t like Elvis, either, calling him ‘showbizz.’ Like that says anything. I have no doubt that he has impeccably good taste. And is decidedly uninteresting for that reason. I know that critical list well; music critics never tire of repeating it.

There are a number of reasons why Queen are my favourite band. The simplest reason is the one that drew me to them in the first place – they write incredibly catchy, infectious, and good songs. They have a great pop sensibility but they also rock hard. I liked their singularity. There was something ‘different’ about them. They stood out in their determination to do their own thing, but aimed direct for the mainstream rather than the fringes. They took risks, but backed their frequent outrages with sheer talent and musical substance. Queen walked the tightrope between good and bad taste and, it may be said, frequently fell off it. But they always retained the capacity to come back with more than a few classic songs.

I mention here a little St Helens connection with Queen, given that my home town played a little role in the rise of the band to global success. The gigs that Queen did in the early years of the band were not big. In fact, they played small theatres and colleges. As a Queen fan in St Helens, I had heard many stories of Queen playing gigs in St Helens. I thought people were pulling my leg but, the more I investigated the story, the more it became clear it was true. And, of course, everyone old enough claimed to have been at these gigs. The claims related to St Helens College of Technology, which we all knew at the Tech. College, and Cindys, or whatever it may have been called before Cindys (Plaza?) I never once ventured into the place, so have no idea. From what I read, I had a lucky escape: ‘rough and ready, and that’s just the women.’

https://www.sthelensstar.co.uk/news/18837892.remember-cindys-st-helens-big-night/

But I found more than enough evidence in my researches to indicate that the stories were indeed true, Queen, the biggest and best stadium band in the world, had played in the unlikeliest of venues in my home town of St Helens in their early days. Ken Testi of Ibex/Wreckage (Freddie Mercury’s first band) takes up the tale:

‘I’d become the social secretary of the college I was at in St Helens, in the north west, and I was booking Queen in for every support slot I could. We booked them into the college not once but several times, and we were able to do that because right from the off the audience really loved the band.’ (Ken Testi, Ibex/Wreckage)

One final note, I am picking the very best songs here, having to leave out many songs that I love, songs which go a long way to explaining why Queen are my favourite band – the sheer variety of songs, all of which offered something I couldn’t quite find anywhere else. Take “She Makes Me” or “In the Lap of the Gods” from the “Sheer Heart Attack” album. There are many more. I used to sing “Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon” in class at school, a particular favourite. As was “Seaside Rendezvous.” These were the kind of tracks which made Queen stand out from the crowd for me. If I was picking particular favourites, to suit my own quirky nature, then these would be in ahead of “Bohemian Rhapsody.” You can say what you like about Queen – and the critics never let up saying it, as if in need to convince themselves – but Queen were never boring; they were always optimistic and life-affirming, and often ‘peculiar’ in a way that put a smile on your face. And they were exciting, too, and wrote great songs. Memorable.

These are my selections for the 50 best Queen songs. These selections could easily change. My initial list ran to over 70. I have put the 28 tracks I had to cut below the top 50. Feel free to chop and change as you please. I could have happily included “The Prophet’s Song,” which was Brian May’s own “Bohemian Rhapsody,” but cut for the reason that the very ambitious vocal harmonizing in the middle doesn’t quite come off and goes on for too long. That said, I loved this track from the moment I heard it, it is incredibly powerful.

Selecting the best Queen tracks is something of an old pastime for me. The photo is of a sheet of paper in my old sixth form folder from the early 1980s. I was forever ranking Queen songs at this time. Minor changes of position were events of huge significance. Which just goes to show that I haven't changed much.

One final note. I have seen many Queen Top 50s and Top 100s, plenty of which are packed with songs that have not made my list. When I see ‘Body Language,’ ‘Hitman,’ ‘Cool Cat,’ and ‘Calling All Girls’ riding high, the point is made loud and clear that list-making can never be purely objective and pretensions of compiling a definitive list have to be shed. This is my personal selection, with an attempt to be judicious on my part. I have seen criticisms that such lists tend to be packed with greatest hits. To which I simply say: ‘of course.’ Many of Queen’s greatest songs were big hit records for a very good reason – they were damned good songs and it would be churlish to exclude them.

"My Fairy King" (1973 Queen 1)

Quirky and complex, fairy tale lyrics set to intricate piano, guitar, and vocals. The song goes fast and slow, hard and soft. Classic Queen dynamics, then. I rate the song very highly, hence I place it ahead of the much more heralded ‘Keep Yourself Alive.’ ‘Alive’ is an obvious single choice, given that it traverses familiar rock territory. ‘My Fairy King’ is in another orbit when it comes to the musical imagination.

“Liar” (1973 Queen 1)

Grand, ambitious, and dramatic, the band’s style was present fully formed right at the very start. The pop sensibilities became more apparent over the years, but this was a memorable statement of the band’s rock credentials, as well as its flair and panache and tendency for theatre, play, spectacle, impact, comedy, tragedy, the lot. The band stood out immediately.

"Father to Son” (1974 Queen II)

Heavy and anthemic, another of those big, ambitious rock songs in which Queen succeed in making ‘prog’ pop. Whilst this is hard rock rather than pop, it has the great hook that characterises all the great Queen songs. Brian May’s guitar is so loud it blows everything away, before returning to the calmness of Freddie’s advice.

“White Queen” (1974 Queen II)

The version delivered live at the Hammersmith Odeon in 1975 brings out the incredible musicality of this song, with Freddie’s piano even more prominent. That’s the thing that always struck me about this band, the nerve to be ‘different,’ the quirkiness, the humour but, sustaining it all, the sheer musical intelligence. To take the risks that this band did with taste, going hell-for-leather for good entertaining pop, the members absolutely knew that they were good and didn’t need to care what critics thought. This is an ethereal rock ballad of such refined quality that the band didn’t need critics – the quality of the music was the best form of self-promotion.

"Seven Seas of Rhye" (1974 Queen II)

The perfect realisation of the blend of pop and rock. This song is quick, direct, and rocks as hard as hell. It’s an absolute torrent, ending with a seaside sing-a-long to amuse one and all. That little touch at the end goes a long way to explaining why Queen were by far and away my favourite band from the first, and remain so – they could rock as hard as anyone and then put a smile on your face with an amusing touch or three. Never boring. They took their music very seriously – with critics endlessly complaining about overproduction and overdubs – but then introduced a dash of humour to send themselves, and all who take things too seriously, up. ‘It’s just a b*££%y record,’ Fred would say in concert (after working as hard as hell to get the sound right).

"Brighton Rock" (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

Begins in a fairground, takes us on a Helter Skelter ride of hard rock guitar, with Brian May clearly invoking the spirit of Hendrix. May would incorporate – and expand – his work here as a guitar showcase in the Queen concerts. It is classic Brian May guitar, with that triple echo sound. Superb opener to what is most probably Queen’s best album, Sheer Heart Attack. ‘Brighton Rock’ makes it crystal clear how much of the Queen sound is down to the distinctive guitar sound of Brian May. One of those numbers that made Queen concerts just so damned thrilling. In the 1980s, those new to the band tended to forget that Queen rocked as hard as anyone and, live, could blow ‘em all away. I knew them first as a rock band with an outsized imagination. Since they had the talent to back it up, they rarely overreached themselves.

"Killer Queen" (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

This was the first Queen single I bought. In fact, this is where my love affair with Queen begins. I was always the Elvis fan. I only ever wanted Elvis records. No other artist ever got a look in. I remember when it was my birthday in 1973. My mum sent my dad out with me to buy a present, an Elvis record of my choice. Unfortunately, I had every Elvis record in the shops. My dad, in desperation, tried to tempt me with records by all the latest and best bands. I was quite tempted by Slade, I must admit. But I insisted on Elvis and went home empty handed. My poor dad caught hell off my mum and, to make amends, my mum took me to the shops later in the week and bought two Elvis records for me. Things changed in 1974. There was a new commercial radio station on Merseyside, Liverpool’s Radio City, and it would play ‘Killer Queen’ over and again. ‘It’s that record again,’ I would say to my mum, who had noted how much she liked the song. So I kept nagging away at her to buy the single, which reached #2 in the UK charts. This was the breakthrough. It is perfectly crafted pop, tempering the rock down so as to be generally accessible. It is quintessential Queen, with all of the quirkiness and cleverness associated with the band’s trademark style. As to what the song was about – a high class call girl – we all pretended not to notice. We’d do that quite often with Queen songs. But notice all the same. Which made things all the more entertaining. One of the very great Queen songs this one. Just a perfect case.

“Tenement Funster” (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

A very personal choice this one. I remember praising it in conversation with fellow Queen fans at school, and one looked at me rather quizzically, ‘you like that one?’ I’m still not sure what he was driving at. It seemed an odd choice, low, gritty, and groovy, with drummer Roger Taylor on drums. There are many highlights on the Sheer Heart Attack album; this is one of them, especially when heard as a trilogy with ‘Flick of the Wrist’ and ‘Lily of the Valley.’ Sequeud together, these tracks show that the band had the intelligence and musicality to live up to their enormous ambition, running so many different styles together as one in the manner of The Beatles’ Abbey Road. This band had the smarts to do it.

"Flick of the Wrist" (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

‘Tenement Funster’ runs directly into ‘Flick of the Wrist’ via dramatic, flowing piano. I remember this one most of all as the B-side of ‘Killer Queen,’ the first Queen record I bought (which I still have). This was tougher, harder, a rock song with a hard lyrical edge. I remember its hard grinding sound and the malice in the vocal. It turns out that the song was, like ‘Death on Two Legs,’ aimed at a former manager. It was full of threat and aggression. I loved it. This is one of the tracks in which the band reveals its inherent rock power, with the visceral qualities of both vocal and guitar being incendiary. I remember the older boys at school trying to impress on me the salacious nature of the lyrics – ‘dislocate your spine,’ ‘the beast within him rise,’ ‘it’s a rip-off,’ ‘you’ve been had,’ ‘prostitute yourself,’ ‘castrate your human pride,’ ‘sacrifice,’ ‘let me squeeze you till you’ve dried,’ ‘seduce you with his money make machine.’ This was pure vitriol! On the A side we had the cute, catchy, clever pop of ‘Killer Queen,’ on the B side we had the vicious, venomous and no less clever rock of ‘Flick of the Wrist.’ I also felt I was being initiated into an unknown, dangerous, and thrilling world. To those who persist in claiming that Queen are mere ‘pop,’ this band could rock the house like no one, with real visceral power, with no need to go to 11 (which they could, if need be).

"Now I'm Here" (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

Another classic rocker, and a song which became a mainstay in live performer, yet another Queen showstopper (they had a few). For a long while, this is the song which would open a Queen concert. Like Richard Barbieri of Porcupine Tree (I’ve never heard of him or them, either) said, ‘Although Freddie camped it up, and much of their material was delicate, when Queen rocked out they easily rivalled Zeppelin, Sabbath, and Purple.’ That’s how they struck me from the first, a thrilling rock band with panache, flair, and imagination. I also remember ‘Now I’m Here’ as a single aiming for the top ten at the same time as Elvis’ new single ‘Promised Land.’ Queen hit UK #11, Elvis hit UK #9. The King was still just about on top of Queen, then. But it was thrilling watching this band on the rise. (It wasn’t thrilling to see Elvis on the wane).

"In the Lap of the Gods... Revisited" (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

This song makes it plain how much a shared love of opera goes a long way to explaining the attraction to Queen. Freddie Mercury loved opera and incorporated all the big hooks we know and love into many of his songs. He unashamedly went for the big sing-a-longs, and won mass appeal for his efforts. I fell for it hook, line, and sinker, as we were meant to. Melodramatic, anthemic, and irresistible, I loved it when Queen reintroduced this track in their concerts of 1986.

"You're My Best Friend" (1975 A Night at the Opera)

This is just great clean pop, pure and simple. It also makes clear the extent to which the Queen sound incorporated vocal harmonies on a par with The Beach Boys. This song is just seemingly effortlessly in its brilliance that it is easy to overlook its qualities. I think it easily rivals the bigger hit on the album, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody,’ whose unique qualities are rather obvious. ‘You’re My Best Friend’ is half the length but integrates incredible three- and four-part vocal and guitar harmonies. It’s just so easy on the ears that you are too busy enjoying the song to appreciate its musical qualities. The song was written by bassist John Deacon, whose sensibilities were more soul and pop than rock. Deacon added another killer dimension to the band. To this day, Queen are the only band whose members have each written a #1 song. This didn’t hit #1, but it should have done. Had this been #1 for a million weeks and ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ the song which stalled outside the top ten, no one would have been surprised. As it is, ‘Rhapsody’ was the first single, people bought the album, and ‘Best Friend’ was relegated to follow up single. It has obvious #1 potential. ‘Rhapsody’ stole its thunder. It remains a huge favourite.

"Love of My Life" (1975 A Night at the Opera)

Delicate love song. The studio version has a combination of harp and piano, the live version is accompanied by acoustic guitar – both versions are quite lovely. The band that could rock as hard and as loud as anyone could also pare their sound down to a sparse and gentle tone – and be even more compelling, if such a thing could be possible. For those who consider Queen to be overblown and pompous, they could be, but don’t think they weren’t aware of how far they were going over the top. And remember that they could do refined, low-key, and understated as well as anyone and better than the vast majority. A quiet, understated masterpiece. A gem, in fact, in studio and in live performance.

"Bohemian Rhapsody" (1975 A Night at the Opera)

What can one say? Everyone knows this song, with over-familiarity leading many to overlook its qualities. The way to appreciate this song, so vast in so many ways, is to imagine yourself hearing it for the first time. Yes, mind-blowing, as in the ‘what the heck is that?’ kind of way. I remember hearing it for the first time. My reaction was that this quirky band that I first took an interest in with the single ‘Killer Queen’ have proved – once and for all time – that they are indeed the best. That was it for me. I was no longer watching, seeing if the band were as good as I thought they might be, seeking validation for my heretical deviation from absolute devotion to Elvis. The King was now having to share space with Queen. I never looked back. I never once doubted Queen were the best. I frequently had to defend them in the midst of their many oddities and eccentricities. But I knew they would always deliver.

"The Prophet's Song" (1975 A Night at the Opera)

I need – at least – four tracks from the classic A Night at the Opera album. I’m spoiled for choice, to be honest, with a range of songs which are equally good and equally sublime. Brian May’s ‘The Prophet’s Song’ gets the nod for a number of reasons. First of all, I probably played this song most of all when I first bought the album. It made a huge impression on me, the heavy guitar and even heavier lyrics prophesying doom and disaster and even worse. A Night at the Opera was the first Queen album I bought, and ‘The Prophet’s Song’ was the first song I heard on it. I bought the album on holiday in the Lake District. The nice middle aged lady in the shop looked at the record and thought she could see a scratch. She offered me a 50p reduction if I wasn’t happy, and then put the song on to play to see if there was any damage. Heavens! This was not the Queen of the pop hits! This was loud and heavy, and then we came to the ‘ambitious’ vocal harmonies in the middle section. This song is bonkers, barking mad! I loved it, of course. The poor lady in the shop was trying to hum along as best she could. But I don’t think she was quite with it. Thus ended my first experience with an older woman as a teenage boy. I thought it all went rather well; I got a great album with 50pence knocked off the price.

"Good Company" (1975 A Night at the Opera)

More quirkiness from ‘A Night at the Opera.’ I could have gone for another May track here in ’39,’ or gone hardcore with ‘Death on Two Legs.’ There are always fine margins when it comes to lists, dependent on nothing more scientific than tastes, moods, and one’s own personal foibles. So why this one? I loved the way Queen would balance moods and shades on an album, going from hard to soft, serious to light, straight to strange and odd. This is one of those which made Queen albums a palace of varieties. Odd, quirky, different. And brilliant. This track stood out for a number of reasons, the George Formby influence and the jazz band orchestration played through guitar.

'The horn lines on "Good Company" were done on four kinds of guitars. I was very keen in those days on recreating that sort of atmosphere. I mainly got the sound with small amplifiers. I used John Deacon's little amplifier and a volume pedal. For the trombone and trumpet sounds. I would record every note individually: Do it and then drop in. Incredibly painstaking! It took ages and ages. I listened to a lot of traditional jazz music when I was young, so I tried to get the phrasing as it would be if it were played by that instrument.

— Brian May, 1982

'Yes, it's all guitar all those instruments. That was a little fetish of mine. I used to listen to Traditional Jazz quite a lot, in particular, the twenties revival stuff which wasn’t actually Traditional Jazz but more arranged stuff like The Temperance Seven who were recreating something which was popular in the twenties, sort of dance tunes really. I was very impressed by the way those arrangements were done, you know, the nice smooth sound and those lovely changes between chords. Because they were much more rich in chords than most modern songs are. So many chord changes in a short time, lots of intermingling parts. So I wanted to do one of those things and the song just happened to come out while I was plunking away at the ukulele and the song itself was no trouble to write at all. But actually doing the arrangements for the wind section, as it was supposed to be. There’s a guitar trumpet and a guitar clarinet and a guitar trombone and a sort of extra thing, I don’t really know what it was supposed to be (chuckles) on the top. I spent a lot of time doing those and to get the effect of the instruments I was doing one note at a time, with a pedal and building them up. So you can imagine how long it took. We experimented with the mikes and various little tiny amplifiers to get just the right sound. So I actually made a study of the kind of thing that those instruments could play so it would sound like those and get the authentic flavour. It was a bit of fun but, it was a serious serious bit of work in that a lot of time went into it.

— Brian May, 1983

All that multi-layered tracks through the guitar is just mad (genius).

And then there are the lyrics:

All through the years, in the end, it appears There was never really anyone but me

Now I'm old, I puff my pipe But no one's there to see I ponder on the lesson of my life's insanity Take care of those you call your own And keep good company

So that’ll be me, then. What do you think I’m doing here? All through the years …. I may well have just been talking to myself. I always knew Queen were singing for the odds amongst us. My kind of company, then. I always got the impression that Queen fans were creative, imaginative, quirky, and had an impeccably sane view of life. Just like me in my splendid isolation. Remarkable!

"You Take My Breath Away" (1976 A Day at the Races)

‘Tie Your Mother Down’ is the great barnstorming opener to A Day at the Races, and would be an obvious – and most acceptable – selection. In fact, most people would select it ahead of my selection, this beautifully understated, quiet, reflective piano ballad. Freddie had a very fine touch on the piano, and could be incredibly restrained with his vocals. One of the very finest Queen ballads, and there were many fine Queen ballads. Again, it is not merely the variety of songs on a Queen album that impressed, but their sheer quality. Whatever the style, Queen delivered a perfect case.

"Long Away" (1976 A Day at the Races)

This is definitely an overlooked classic. I heard Brian May in interview talk of the rows that there were sometimes in the band over single selection, with Brian thinking that ‘Long Away’ could have made a great single release. I’m not sure the great public would have accommodated the switch from Freddie to Brian on vocal so well as to have made for a big hit. Which is a shame, because this is such a good gentle rocker. As it is, it is a great album track in the best sense of the word, with hidden qualities that reveal themselves with each play, as against the way that the obvious qualities of singles can tend to fade after their first play.

"The Millionaire Waltz" (1976 A Day at the Races)

Pure Freddie, pure genius. If I had to simplify, I’d say that Brian May and Roger Taylor rocked hard, Freddie Mercury had the quirkiness and imagination, and John Deacon had the pop and soul sensibility. That’s a huge simplification, of course, seeing as all members had musical intelligence and Freddie had a number of great rockers to his name (I really wanted to choose ‘Great King Rat,’ but decided to squeeze ‘One Vision’ in at the last minute). How can one describe ‘The Millionaire Waltz’? You can’t really, you just have to listen. To say something like Gilbert and Sullivan with hard rock is more off-putting than appealing. It shouldn’t work, and it doesn’t for nearly all those who attempt it; but Queen make it work. As the scarves held by fans in the concerts of 1984/5 stated, “Queen Works.” It takes some incredible imagination to conceive of something like this, it takes an even greater flair and confidence to pull it off. Quirky, camp, and light-hearted, the track takes flight on the back of heavyweight musicality.

"Somebody to Love" (1976 A Day at the Races)

If I was pushed hard to name the greatest ever Queen song, I would still try to evade being pinned down and break the bands music down into different categories – rockers, ballads, electric, acoustic, soul/disco, blues etc. But if I still had to select just one … it might well be ‘Somebody to Love.’ I remember the band being in the shadow of ‘A Night at the Opera’ and ‘Bohemian Rhapsody,’ with critics – predictably – claiming that the band were copying themselves, even parodying themselves with the next album and singles. At school, I made the bold claim that ‘A Day at the Races’ was the best Queen album of all, better than ‘A Night at the Opera,’ and that ‘Somebody to Love’ is actually a better song than ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’ Most within earshot pulled their faces (admittedly, most of them were punk rockers), but one person turned to me and made a point of agreeing. I’m not sure what that proves either way. But ‘Somebody to Love’ is a truly great song, big, infectious, with immensely powerful vocal harmonies building to a giant crescendo. The song incorporates those great hooks from opera again within a great soul sensibility. I think because of Queen’s popularity and because of their determination to entertain, thrill, and please a crowd, there is a tendency to miss just how musically intelligent and demanding many of their songs are. As Geoff Tate of Queensryche said, this is ‘a really hard song to sing.’ Whilst Queen made thrilling hard rock and great pop, ‘there was so much else to them.’ It was that ‘much else’ that distinguished them.

"Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy" (1976 A Day at the Races)

As camp and quirky as hell, and utterly irresistible. I remember this as being a huge favourite back in the seventies, in the tradition of ‘Killer Queen.’ It was a single release and performed – and performed well - in concert. But it seemed to fade from view some time in the 1980s. The song is the perfect realisation of that 1920s/30s vaudevillian side of the band, apparent on ‘Bring Back that Leroy Brown,’ ‘Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon,’ and ‘Seaside Rendezvous.’ This is the kind of song which determined the appeal of the band for me in the 1970s. Alongside the hard rock was this quirky, imaginative and very different sound.

"We Will Rock You" (1977 News of the World)

Basic, raw, and direct. The remarkable thing about Queen is that they were blessed with a huge musical imagination and the musical ability to take it to the nth degree, but could also strip right down to hardly anything at all – and still move the masses. There is hardly anything to this song – hand-clapping and foot-stomping replace drums in hammering out the basic beat, with Brian May’s guitar only appearing at the end to bring the song to a close. Queen could so all that ‘Figaro’ and ‘Galileo’ stuff, but also throw it all away to go direct to the gut. I loved it when critics would try to deflate the band’s pretensions by claiming that ‘bringing opera to the masses’ reduces to repetitive chants in a sports’ stadium. The appeal, as John Cale has said, is ‘ubiquitous.’ You can thump it out at sporting events, you can thump it out anywhere. It’s basic. It connects directly with something inherent in all of us. It can stand for anything we want to stand for.

All that said, my favourite version of the song is the live version, which I first heard on 1979’s Live Killers, and with which the band would open their shows. It’s fast, loud, and thrilling. You can see it paired with ‘The Hero’ opening the Milton Keynes concert and it’s the greatest opening to a concert I’ve ever seen. The song comes over as a massive promise, which the band redeems within three minutes.

"We Are the Champions" (1977 News of the World)

‘It’s a playground skit!’ the critics continually shouted, as if we couldn’t hear the obvious. ‘Ne ne ne-ne neh.’ Yes, and it is also big and grand and dramatic, a loud and powerful statement of facing and beating impossible odds – this is Queen’s Impossible Dream for the masses. That’s what I love about the band – they are unashamed and unabashed populists, appealing to each and all, the ‘ordinary’ folk, and not just the exalted hero. This is the national anthem of underdogs everywhere – that’s all of us, as the band made clear umpteen times, in response to the typically uncomprehending critics who neurotically honed in on the reference to ‘losers.’ It’s not an attack on losers, it is an invitation to becoming the winners we all can be.

"All Dead, All Dead" (1977 News of the World)

Having to select just fifty songs was an impossibly hard discipline for me. This song is an unusual choice. I was desperate to include ‘My Melancholy Blues’ too. Personally, I prefer both to ‘We Will Rock You,’ but thought it best to balance subjectivity and objectivity rather than disappear in my own private world. I insist on Queen’s quirkiness being represented, because it was this quality that always struck me about the band, distinguishing it from the others. ‘All Dead, All Dead’ is a strange, almost medieval, sounding song, written and sung by Brian May. It is a piano ballad with the strangest of guitar harmonies. No wonder the band made such a great thing of declaring ‘no synthesizers!’ on their album sleeves. It wasn’t an attack on synthesizers, which they came in time (1980) to use, but an attempt to make it clear that those incredibly weird guitar sounds were just that – unbelievably strange guitar sounds unique to Brian May. The song is a spare, piano based track which builds to a classic demonstration of Queen’s trademark guitar orchestration. Perhaps the best guitar orchestration of Brian May’s career. Just incredible, an album track that is hardly known by the wider public. Queen were an amazing band. It was tracks like this that cemented their reputation and made their seventies albums something special. In the 1980s, I would say, the band focused more upon killer singles rather than, in the seventies, killer albums. I’m simplifying, but not by much. A choice from leftfield, this, to make the point that Queen albums were packed with an incredible array of music, all of the highest quality.

"Spread Your Wings" (1977 News of the World)

I’m still surprised at how little known this bona fide Queen classic is. It’s a huge fan favourite, but only a modest sized hit at UK #34. It’s one of those immense seventies tracks that the old fans love but which tended to get overlooked in the aftermath of the band’s expanded popularity in the 1980s. Written by John Deacon, it combines a poignant lyric about someone on the wrong side of life’s travails with incredibly emotional vocals and guitar. I remember when Alexis Korner presented a series on ‘Guitar Greats’ on Radio 1 in 1983. The show featured twenty of the world’s best guitar players, and I was pleased to see that Brian May was counted among that company. The superb guitar that plays out ‘Spread Your Wings’ was offered as an example of May’s greatness. I realised that I had never quite appreciated the range and quality of May’s guitar work in the Queen songs. To me, the song had ended and was now just playing out. Wrong. The guitar part brings the song to a beautiful heart-rending conclusion. As for its huge popularity among fans, I think the lyrics struck a chord. They certainly resonated with me. I’ve known a few Queen fans over the years; you get to know their oddities and eccentricities. The message of the song resonates with those who are a bit on the outside, marginalised, on the fringes of things, refusing resignation to obscurity by forever dreaming of making something fantastic of their lives. It seems no more than a dream, of course, but is reassuring for all that. It’s better than giving up and accepting the hard facts of an unalterable reality. Freddie’s emotional plea urges the protagonist to ‘Spread your wings and fly away,’ but the underlying sadness throughout suggests that most people won’t have what it takes to go after chase their elusive dreams. Experience has knocked the ambition out of them: ‘Since he was small had no luck at all, nothing came easy to him.’ I think more than a few of us knew the feeling. ‘Now it was time he’d made up his mind, this could be my last chance.’ The protagonist seems doomed to be sweeping up the floor forever in the last chance saloon. His boss knocks him down once more: ‘Now listen boy, you’re always dreaming you’ve got no real ambition you won’t get very far.’ The song pans out with Brian May’s superb guitar part, the mood being one of sad resignation rather than active hope. Definitely one of the band’s elite group of songs.

"Bicycle Race" (1978 Jazz)

‘Bicycle Race’ and ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ were a double A side, or partners in crime, which way you prefer to see them. I'll plead guilty. ‘Bicycle Race’ is peak Queen in that it rocks hard and is as camp as hell. It is equally clever and ludicrous, with nonsense tongue-twisting lyrics delivered in the manner of Gilbert and Sullivan to put a smile on your face. I think you need to be a particular – peculiar – type of person to appreciate a song such as this, with its incredible musical and vocal dynamics, the endless up and down round and round.

It’s probably wise not to comment on the video and the promotional poster that went with the Jazz album, except to issue the obligatory disclaimer and make it clear that sexism is wrong in all its forms. Like every Queen fan at school, I had my poster confiscated by my mum before I even got a chance to see it. That only served to make the whole thing even more intriguing. As for the video, I shall pass in silence and instead quote someone called Zacky Vengeance from Avenged Sevenfold (never heard of him or his band): ‘It’s very cool that they organised a women’s nude bicycle race to promote it.’ Would they do the same thing again? ‘Probably not,’ Brian May now says. It made the band very interesting at the time. And, might I add, detracted from what a great, funny, and clever song ‘Bicycle Race’ actually is. I wouldn’t mind having this at my funeral. ‘I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bike; I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride it where I like.’ I have never been able to ride a bicycle, mind, but having another disastrous attempt beats being dead any day. It ain’t no sin to be glad your alive. Catch it while it passes. People take too much far too seriously.

"Dead on Time" (1978 Jazz)

Lightning fast riffing from Brian May on guitar. The song ends with a thunderbolt, the song being recorded in a thunderstorm. May thought highly of the song. ‘Dead on Time’ ‘was something I was quite pleased with, but really nobody else was. It's something which nobody ever mentions very much. Fat Bottomed Girls I thought was okay, but fairly banal. I thought people would be much more interested in Dead on Time, but it didn't really get that much airplay.’ People know and love ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ – and it makes most top 50s – but Brian thought ‘Dead on Time’ had much the greater hit potential. And he should know, seeing as he wrote both. This is a fast-paced counterpart to ‘Keep Yourself Alive.’ This has hit record and show-stopper written all over it. Just a killer riff.

"Leaving Home Ain't Easy" (1978 Jazz)

This may be considered another leftfield choice on the part of yours truly, a gentle, wispy ballad sung by Brian May. It’s very moving, and easily overlooked among the louder and more brash material that characterised a Queen album. This song is quality.

"Don't Stop Me Now" (1978 Jazz)

This was probably my absolute favourite Queen track from the very first time I heard it. It was just so damned exciting, with Freddie pounding away on piano as his vocals soared into the stratosphere. I think the song contains Freddie’s design for life: fun to the factor of any number you pluck out of a hat, and then some more. The song is a powerful piano-driven rocker in which Brian May’s guitar enters only with the soaraway solo. This is Freddie as Mr Fahrenheit, ‘a sex machine ready to explode.’ At the age of thirteen, I was inclined to believe every word. Come to think of it, I’m still a believer. ‘If you want to have a good time, just give me a call.’ I think. Let’s be blunt, this song contains multiple climaxes, until it finally sinks into happy exhaustion. Another song to be played at my funeral, then. ‘Don’t stop me now, I’m having a good time, I don’t want to stop at all.’

"Play the Game" (1980 The Game)

‘Play the Game’ is such an incredible song that I am always staggered at how often it gets overlooked. People rave about songs like ‘I Want to Break Free,’ but ‘Play the Game’ is infinitely superior. In fact, I think its sophistication possibly leads to it being overlooked. It’s qualities are much less obvious than other Queen song. But qualities it has in abundance. It was also something of a departure for the band, being the first Queen song to feature a synthesizer. The controversy over that event possibly detracted from the song. As a song, ‘Play the Game’ is actually quintessential Queen. It is one of those signature songs that sum up the band’s trademark style and key qualities. These songs are characterised by having a distinctive melody line that suddenly takes a gravity defying leap, ascending in quick steps and/or soaring suddenly to a high note to leave you breathless. Such songs are playful and theatrical in the way that they build until the moment comes when the melody line makes a huge vertiginous leap or swoop. In songs such as these, you either soar or plummet and hold on as best you can. And for all the thrill of the ride, the dynamics are incredibly subtle. It is a giddy experience. ‘Play the Game’ delivers a masterclass in the quintessential Queen song. It wasn’t a big hit, peaking at UK #14. It was, perhaps, a little too subtle to make a bigger impact.

"Another One Bites the Dust" (1980 The Game)

This is such an obvious choice that it seems redundant to offer reasons. This is one that even non-Queen fans could understand. It has a bass-line taken from Chic, but a hard edge coming from rock. It’s appeal is direct and dirty. I have to admit that ‘Dragon Attack’ from The Game probably appealed to me more, being more intricate and complicated. But there is a virtue in directness here.

"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" (1980 The Game)

And so Elvis, via Queen-style rockabilly, inspires John Lennon to return to the studio to record for the final time. Or so the story goes. As a huge Elvis fan, I absolutely loved this one. I loved the video too. Pastiche doesn’t get more real than this. By Queen’s standards, the song is simple and straightforward, which is its virtue. It doesn’t do to get complicated with rockabilly – the hard part is keeping it simple. That’s not easy. On this kind of song, it is easy to sound fake. Queen contrived a perfect slice of rockabilly, down to Brian May’s superb guitar solo. ‘Ready Freddie?!’

"Save Me" (1980 The Game)

Each to their own, but I always thought this the best song on The Game (and there were many great contenders for that title on this album). It has that great poignancy of the ballad section of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody,’ but with lyrics decidedly more meaningful. I remember the single fondly, coming out as it did when I was having a dedidedly miserable time at school. I felt like I was in need of being saved. The video, with its bleak imagery holding out the promise of liberation, struck a real chord. The song was released six months for the album came out, and received something of a big launch as I remember. It only hit UK #11 for all that, which I felt most disappointing. Whilst The Game would take Queen in new directions musically, ‘Save Me’ in many ways was the culmination of the classic seventies Queen. I think it’s a marvellous song, containing everything the band stood for in their seventies ballads like ‘Spread Your Wings.’

Staying Power (Live at Milton Keynes Bowl, June 1982)

And now we enter the hot waters of Hot Space and get controversial. I don’t think any Queen album has generated as much heated debate as Hot Space. It all felt like a detour into disco when disco had long since ceased to mean anything other than repetitive beats and bad taste. I didn’t actually see the danger myself. I had complete faith in the band. I felt they knew what they were doing and take the new ground by storm. It didn’t quite happen that way. It’s no coincidence that Queen’s popularity took a dent in the early 1980s and that, with The Works, they felt the need to go back to basics. The music on the album represented a shift away from the rock of May and Taylor towards the more soul, funk, disco sound favoured by Mercury and Deacon. And many people – including band members – didn’t care for it. I found it all very intriguing. I wasn’t as outraged as others – this was the new Queen album after all. But I remember feeling a little disappointed at the patchy and erratic nature of the new album. The issues started with ‘Staying Power.’ For some reason, I had been slow off the mark in buying the album, so I heard ‘Staying Power’ being performed live before I had heard it on the album. Live, the song was hot as hell and rocked at a furious pace. I thought it one of the best things Queen had done, and looked forward to hearing the new ground they were breaking on disc. When I bought the album, Brian May’s guitar was toned down in place of synthesizers and horns, and the beat was much more sedate. I didn’t take to the album version, and that opening disappointment coloured my take on the album. Live at the Milton Keynes Bowl has the band in peak performance. Had Queen gone harder and hotter on Hot Space, the album would have been better remembered. Which is to say I prefer to hear May’s guitar rather than wimpy horns and synths, and Roger Taylor playing drums the way he wants to play them.

Back Chat (1982 Hot Space)

I’m sticking my neck out here. I know it and I don’t care. The songs on Hot Space have few advocates. The singles bombed, as did the album, and, in the opinion of most, deserved to. ‘Backchat’ was the fourth and final single release from Hot Space and, naively, I felt that it would redeem the entire album by becoming a huge smash hit in the manner of ‘Another One Bites the Dust.’ I don’t think my hopes here were entirely misplaced. Like ‘Bites,’ ‘Backchat’ was written by John Deacon and exhibits a heavy funk, disco, R&B influence. Lyrically, the song is typical Queen in involving clever or impertinent replies. I’m always left wondering what these songs would have sounded like had the band recorded them in the studio as they performed them live, merging hard rock with funk and disco to create a beefier sound delivered at a quicker tempo. I liked the greater prominence of Brian May’s guitar on this. I still think it’s the great lost single. Deacon would return to compose further Queen classic hits. This is the one that got away, peaking at a miserable UK #40. It was perhaps not a good idea to try to squeeze another single from an album which had already received a ‘mixed’ reception. It might have been better to have put this track out ahead of Mercury’s ‘Body Language’ – pure indulgence – and the pleasant, but non-too remarkable ‘Las Palabras de Amour.’ I think ‘Back Chat’ is a cracking song with a hot sound. I’d just have gone a tad harder and heavier. But I’m just an older rocker, so what do I know. I want both feet down on the disco floor, no holding back.

Under Pressure (1982 Hot Space)

Another killer riff on the bass, another huge smash for Queen. If ever an album raised such high hopes only to dash them, then it was Hot Space. The album promised so much after The Game. ‘Under Pressure’ is by far and away the best thing on the album, which is hardly a criticism. It is such a great song that it would be the best thing on most artists’ albums. The song is structured around one of the greatest bass lines in pop history. Freddie Mercury organised the arrangements, and the song takes flight on his soaring vocals. Again, the dynamics are quintessential Queen, so subtle that they tend to get overlooked by the more obvious sound and vision with which they sold their songs.

Radio Ga Ga (1984 The Works)

This single felt like the Queen comeback, going straight to #4 and then staying at #2 for an eternity. It seemed like Queen had been away for an eternity after the flop of Hot Space. With 1984’s The Works, you get the distinct impression of a band, knowing that it has lost its way, regathering its forces to make a statement of its identity. ‘Radio Ga-Ga’ is such a well-crafted song – and video – that it seems designed to bring the band back to centre stage. It was delivered direct to the crowd. It has immediate visual impact, of course. But there is a substantial song to hold the attention. I bought the single and the album; I was glad to have the band back from the brink.

Hammer to Fall (1984 The Works)

I thought The Works to be a solid album rather than a great album. I think this was a case of the band re-grouping. The album contains a number of standout tracks, stretching to four singles, which is quite something seeing as there are only eight tracks on the album with a short acoustic number bringing proceedings to a close. The much maligned Hot Space contained eleven numbers. Just remove the three tracks you least like on Hot Space and then play the album back to back with The Works. The differences are not so great as critics imply. In interview, I remember Brian May describing The Works as the ‘definitive’ Queen album. There was more guitar and less funk and disco. I could have made four selections from the album, but I’m making just the two. I’ve never quite seen ‘I Want to Be Free’ as the classic most others see it as. We all love the video, of course (apart from the Americans, that is). I did like ‘It’s a Hard Life,’ but am inclined to see it as a lesser version of ‘Play the Game’ (which isn’t half bad at all). By far and away the best song on the album, however, and one of the greatest songs Queen ever did, is ‘Hammer to Fall.’ On this track, Brian May’s guitar returns with a vengeance. This is May unleashed, and every rock fan’s dream of heaven is realized as a result. I wonder how many people have played air guitar to this one? Or at any one moment? That the sound of May the heavy metal axeman entered the charts and then took centre stage at Wembley for Live Aid is the stuff of every rock fan’s fantasy. It was a reminder that, as Queen cemented their place among pop royalty, the origin and root of this band was rock (if rock delivered with flair and panache and no little camp).

A Kind of Magic (1986 A Kind of Magic)

Now this one really is magical. Like ‘Radio Ga Ga,’ ‘A Kind of Magic’ was written by drummer Roger Taylor, giving expression to his utopian vision of a world transformed for the better. It might take some real magic to effect such a transformation. Failing that, we can fall back on yet another Queen classic, laden with hooks so great as to draw one and all into its net. I love the bass line here, too. As much as the song is driven by May and Taylor, I can’t help but hear a little funk and disco in Deacon’s bass line (try Donna Summer’s ‘Try Me’ and see if you can hear it too). Then there is Mr Mercury’s vocals performing the alchemy. Magic song, I’d put it in my Queen top ten (I think. The competition is stiff. I feel another list coming on.)

Who Wants to Live Forever (1986 A Kind of Magic)

Queen were a rock band who delivered choice ballads at every stage of their career. Some of the ballads were theatrical, others simple, others still emotional and poignant. Beyond the show and the spectacle, they could be serious. This is Queen at their most serious. It’s a beautifully crafted song, superbly arranged, and perfectly delivered. There is a harrowing beauty, a solemnity, and a resignation to the song, making it something distinctive in the Queen catalogue. There’s nothing glib or facile about the song. ‘The first time I heard this song, it made me cry,’ says Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson. It takes something to melt hard-as-nails iron.

The Miracle (1989 The Miracle)

There was a bit of a Beatles’ revivalism going on in the late 1980s. I’d class ‘The Miracle’ with the likes of ‘Sowing the Seeds of Love’ by Tears for Fears. It has that same ‘I am the Walrus’ sound and ‘All You Need is Love’ lyricism going on. Which is no bad thing. Beyond that, there is the sheer optimism of the message, the hope for the better world that is within human reach, as a result of human effort, so long as human beings choose reason over stupidity. This was the fifth and final single from the album of the same name, and didn’t make too much of an impact (UK #21). The song sums up the band for me, joyful, optimistic, and idealistic as well as entertaining, funny, camp, and quality.

“Breakthru" (1989 The Miracle)

Queen’s innate creativity, musical dexterity, and sheer energy are all on full show in this track. "Breakthru" is a combination of two songs: "A New Life Is Born," a glorious acapella section written by Freddie Mercury, and "Breakthru", the boisterous main body written by Roger Taylor with input by the others in the key change. “Breakthru” was the second single from The Miracle, entering the charts on July 1, 1989 and peaking at UK #7. The video for the single was memorable, the band performing atop a private steam train known as "The Miracle Express".

The song is a favourite of Brian May’s, who describes it as ‘full of energy,’ ‘the track, speaking lyrically, is about breaking through to the next part of your life.’ The chance would be a fine thing. I look upon “Breakthru” as my perpetual declaration of intent, the national anthem of my perennially underperforming self as I carry on promising myself – and others - that this time, more than any other time, I will at long last break through the barriers that have constantly kept me from shooting to the full heights of my immense potential. Or at least make myself useful to others and to society in some way. The song came out in the summer of 1989. I had graduated the previous year with top honours, threatening to unleash myself on the world once I had had a ‘sabbatical’ … I was now another year on and had done absolutely nothing with my degree. The song helped me to look upon the world with renewed purpose and vitality. It contained a promise if not exactly a plan. But that was something more than I had at the time. The video of the band performing on the train reminded me all the world of the lyrics to “Don’t Stop Me Now,” and I took the opportunity to redeem the commitments I had made as I became a teenager in 1978 to be the ‘shooting star leaping through the sky,’ the ‘tiger defying the laws of gravity,’ the ‘racing car passing by,’ the ‘rocket ship on my way to Mars,’ the ‘satellite’ that is ‘out of control’ and last but not least the ‘sex machine ready to reload like an atom bomb about to Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, explode.’ I didn’t quite know what any of that meant back in 1978 and, come to think of it, I wasn’t much to the wiser in 1989 either. I did so much want to explode on the world with all the vigour of ‘Mr Fahrenheit’ himself. I thought it time to redeem some old promises and start to fulfil some of my potential. It’s still time. Over thirty years on, and I’m still riding the wild wind in my inner world, but not the outer. Classic Queen, from the ethereal choral introduction to the pumping beat and finally to the thrilling explosion. Whilst that might describe a lot of things, it describes nothing more perfectly than the perfect Queen song. ‘Somehow I have to make this final breakthrough … NOW!’ Don’t stop me now! Then the train comes crashing through the wall. And on and on the express goes through one tunnel after another. And another wall with the word “NOW” spelled out in capital letters. This is a much livelier variant of the aphorism carpe diem. The song has not one but two great solos, the first played by John Deacon on bass, the second by Brian May on lead guitar. If you really listen to this song you suddenly appreciate the extent to which John Deacon drove the band, that pulsing bass line of his absolutely rocks. Brian May gets all the attention, not surprisingly given his thunderous guitar. But just lend an ear to that Deacon guy on bass. This express train wasn’t sped forwards by fuel; John Deacon powered it forward with that insistent bass line.

And it is worth presenting the important context in which this song was made. Freddie Mercury had been told some short time before this that he had AIDS, which was then a death sentence. He maybe thought that he had no more than a few years left to live. He came back with this! Freddie was terminally ill at this point, and yet his performance exudes an irrepressible energy. And it is good to see Mr. Fahrenheit at his upbeat and joyous best. I love the enjoyment among the band members in this video. I strongly suspect that they all knew that this would probably be the last time they could do this, before the effects of Freddie’s illness would start to show on his face and body. For a man that was facing the end, this is just so inspiring. Come on folks! You too can ‘breakthru.’ This is Queen at their thrilling, life affirming, best. We need this song and video to breakthrough the various walls being built around us in the age of fear and constraint. Freddie knew he was dying and gave us this! Stop whining, get on that express train!

Remember, as May says, ‘you don’t pass the same way twice in your life.’

I Want It All (1989 The Miracle)

Here we are, at the end of the 1980s, with Queen at the height of their pop success – and they can still rock as hard as they ever could, which means harder than most others. Again, power is about much more than loudness. Any idiot band can just turn up the volume. It takes real quality to turn it up and keep control. That’s the difference between men and boys. Ferocious guitar and vocals, and harmonies other bands can only dream of under the influence of something – there is only the one band that could have conceived a song as ambitious as this, let alone pulled it off. I loved the song the moment it came out. It had been recorded in 1988, the year I graduated, and it summed up my take on the world I now saw standing in front of me. Anything seemed possible. But you have to take it. I don’t remember it being a huge hit, so I am pleased to read that it peaked at UK #3. I think my memory is coloured by disappointment at the single not owning the #1 spot forever, as it deserved. The song is a declaration of intent, of what and by whom who knows. It has that anthemic quality that characterises many of the Queen songs. It’s not hard to see why I loved them as a puny little boy getting bullied at school. But look who’s still standing, and standing tall, now. It was good to have Queen with their large claims, and even larger talents, in my corner. But, as Kenneth Connor said in Carry on Behind, I don’t want it all, I just want a little bit. Aim high and take it from there. Oh, and to repeat, this is loud and hard, one that brings out the teenage boy in all of us. So this was Fred knowing he had AIDS and was facing his final years. It’s got the great Queen choir on there, too, at full tilt. I love it when drums and guitar cut loose and go hell-for-leather in pursuit of who knows what. Awesome! ‘Gotta find me a future, move out of my way.’

"Innuendo" (1991 Innuendo)

Just how unbelievably good is this track?!! This is such an unusual track, and for many reasons. First of all, it is long and ambitious, like ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’ In many ways, it sounds like an attempt by the band to finish with a new ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’ The remarkable thing is that they very nearly did it. The song is long, complex and dark, has unusual dynamics, and at 6 minutes 31 seconds is the longest #1 hit single since ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ itself (and is forty five seconds longer if memory serves). The song boasts a flamenco guitar middle section, performed by Steve Howe of Yes and Brian May, an operatic interlude in which comes into his own, and sections of hard rock. Here is Queen at the end harking back to the Queen of early days, going out as they came in – hugely ambitious. Freddie Mercury would be dead just ten months after the song was released. I think the impact of the song rather got clouded in the shock surrounding Freddie Mercury’s death, with the song fading from view. It is an epic song which addresses the inability of humankind to live harmoniously with one another, entertaining hopes that the day of peace and unity may yet come. It’s all in here, rock, opera, balladry, flamenco. The deeper you delve into this band, the more you come to appreciate the sheer uniqueness of its musical profile. All comparisons are invidious. So all I will say is that I am sure the band decided to go out with an attempt to top “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Impossible, of course. Such over-sized ambition is madness. But the truly crazy thing is – they might well have pulled it off. You will rarely hear a song that combines so many different styles, taking us in a continuous flow from one to another in one seamless whole. People rave about Steve Howe’s superb solo on Spanish guitar, but miss a) that Brian May played on that and b) May’s second solo on electric guitar is electrifying. Brian May played with Steve Howe on the flamenco section:

"The Spanish motif is suggested from the start; those little rifts at the beginning are sort of Bolero-esque. It seemed like the natural thing to explore those ideas on an acoustic guitar, and it just gradually evolved. Steve Howe helped out and did a fantastic job. We love all that stuff - it's like a little fantasyland adventure." (Brian May, The Life Of Brian, Guitar World magazine, August 1991). Then there are the lyrics … Innuendo is a masterpiece on all levels. In the tribute concert to Freddie Mercury in 1992, Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin took on the lead vocals. Only a genuine heavyweight could handle this. The song, indeed, savours a little of Led Zeppelin’s Kashmir in parts – as Plant made clear in his performance - and thus takes Queen back to their prog rock roots in the early seventies. ‘As it began …’

"These Are the Days of Our Lives" (1991 Innuendo)

This is just a beautiful and poignant ballad, with Freddie Mercury taking the opportunity to say goodbye to all those he kept royally entertained over the years. And we all said goodbye in return. It’s a beautiful song. I don’t have much more to say than that. I said goodbye to my youth the day the video was released, but not to my youthful ideals. Those ideals burn as bright as ever, and I can hear them in these songs.

"Bijou" (1991 Innuendo)

This song has received little attention, if any, since its release on Innuendo. The original version on that album was short, with re-releases adding Brian May’s simply spine-tingling, heart wrenching guitar work. I think it is a jewel of a song, a hidden gem, crystalline in its perfection. The guitar sounds like it will be weeping for all eternity. Freddie’s vocal attempts to put all sadness to rest, but the sorrows return with the guitar. One of the saddest sounds you will ever hear. It is the sound of goodbye.

"The Show Must Go On" (1991 Innuendo)

What? Without Fred? It has all been a bit boring since Fred left us, his assurances about the show going on notwithstanding. This, I remember distinctly, was the final Queen song before the death of Freddie Mercury was announced. I couldn’t help but speculate at the time whether the band knew the end was near, and tried to contrive a coincidence with this in the charts at the time. It doesn’t matter. I thought the song should have been a huge hit regardless. I suspect it wasn’t a much bigger hit for the reason that it is dark, deep, and foreboding. It was the final song on the final album Queen would release in Freddie Mercury’s lifetime. It is a vocally – and emotionally - demanding piece. Lyrics like ‘I’ll soon be turning round the corner now’ must have taken their toll on a singer who knew the end was near. Brian May had concerns as to whether Freddie was physically capable of singing it. May recalls; "I said, 'Fred, I don't know if this is going to be possible to sing.' And he went, 'I'll f*%*!ng do it, darling'—vodka down—and went in and killed it, completely lacerated that vocal." What a pro! And what a guitar from Brian May. Freddie Mercury was staring death in the face when he sang this song, a song that would be ridiculously hard even for a trained singer in the prime of life. Just how many show-stopping masterpieces can you have on the one album?

"Let Me Live" (1995 Made in Heaven)

There are many numbers I could have chosen from “Made in Heaven.” The remaining members of Queen did such a great job in finishing off or reworking material to make for a coherent and cogent album. I select “Let Me Live” for a number of reasons, the most important of which is that it is just such a good song. It’s light, it’s fresh, and it swings. I love the way that the piano drives this on, before the choir kicks in and each member of the band take a turn on lead vocal (except John Deacon, of course). I heard it as the band signing off together, in harmony, the Queen choir assembled for one last time. It really is an uplifting number. Most of all, it has musical and lyrical substance even apart from its context. It has that gospel/operatic feel that characterised so many of the great Queen songs, showcasing those superb vocal harmonies that raised their songs well above the pop and rock norm. It harks back to “Somebody to Love” in that respect. And it has such a joyous quality. It sums up everything the band stood for.

"You Don't Fool Me" (1995 Made in Heaven)

I’m going to go out on a limb here and state that this is one of the all-time Queen classics. I’ve never heard much mention of it in reminiscences about the band’s music, or any mention of it, in fact. You always have that gripping feeling as soon as you hear a song you love for the first time. This one had it for me. The song itself is quite simple, but it is played with such a relentless drive that it becomes simply sublime. Brian May’s solo is absolutely piercing in its intensity, turning tragedy into euphoria within three notes. The guitar doesn’t just cry, it bleeds. To me, I thought that this was the one song on the album that could stand as classic Queen at any part of the band’s career, with no need of the back story. I still think it’s a great song.

"Mother Love" (1995 Made in Heaven)

‘Mother Love’ was the final song co-written by Freddie Mercury and Brian May, and was to become Freddie’s last vocal performance. He recorded two of the three verses before having to take a rest. As May takes up the story, “Freddie at that time said 'Write me stuff... I know I don't have very long; keep writing me words, keep giving me things I will sing, then you can do what you like with it afterwards, you know; finish it off' and so I was writing on scraps of paper these lines of 'Mother Love', and every time I gave him another line he'd sing it, sing it again, and sing it again, so we had three takes for every line, and that was it... and we got the last verse and he said 'I'm not up to this, and I need to go away and have a rest, I'll come back and finish it off...' and he never came back."

The end of the song speeds through Queen’s entire career, with snippets from Freddie’s vocal improvisation at the 12 July 1986 Wembley concert, the introductions to "One Vision" and "Tie Your Mother Down,” and of Freddie singing "I think I’m Goin' Back.”

There’s only so much immensity that the human brain can compute. I listened to the album “Innuendo,” with its many standouts, from first track to last, then the standouts on “Made in Heaven.” And I found it unable to get a true measure of the music. It was just too epic, almost inhuman, unreal. Off the radar. Beyond the normal ken.

Here are 30 tracks that could easily have been included in the top fifty:

"Keep Yourself Alive" (Queen I 1973)

The first single, and opening track on the first album. This should have been the breakthrough, with Queen coming in on top and staying there. It didn’t happen, but the song became a mainstay in live performance. The band encapsulated it’s life-affirming ethos from the get-go.

"Great King Rat" (1974 Queen I)

A great rocker which, lyrically, is in the mould of ‘Flick of the Wrist,’ ‘Death on Two Legs,’ and ‘Scandal.’ The song takes a swipe at those neurotics who are obsessed with the seedy side of life. It’s an ambitious song, lasting over six minutes, of the type which Queen would come to perfect.

"The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke" (1974 Queen II)

This song was one that made the biggest impression on me when I first heard Queen II, it just bristled with life and imagination. It also has those dynamics you can hear later on, for instance, ‘Don’t Stop Me Now.’ It’s odd, for sure, but it is as catchy as hell. Freddie Mercury wrote this song after seeing a painting by the same name and an accompanying poem by Richard Dadd, the song making reference to the characters in Dadd’s poem. Mercury playing a harpsichord and singing the strangest lyrics, we are in the realm of ‘different.’ Roger Taylor called the song Queen's "biggest stereo experiment." "Where the hell did that come from?" was Roger Taylor's first thought when told Freddie Mercury brought in the song. Taylor told Mojo magazine: "It was full of these mystical references. I was always reading - Lord Of The Rings, of course, Heinlein, Asimov, CS Lewis's adult sci-fi. But I never once saw Freddie with a book. But he had all these words about this painting. Fred was like a magpie. He had this very sharp brain but he was not what you'd call a well-read man." If you are already bristling with ideas, then just take what you need from others and adapt them to your own unique vision.

“The March of the Black Queen.” (1974 Queen II)

This song is very nearly a masterpiece, if such a thing can be imagined. It has the length, complexity, and transitions of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and was a centre-piece of the stage act in 1974/1975. It was the first time that the band really got into production, said Roger Taylor, and they ‘went completely over the top.’ ‘March of the Black Queen’ is ‘very long, in about eleven different sections and the complexity of it is staggering.’ The song is introduced by Mercury on piano, starting slowly then building to a faster tempo. May adds complex guitar solos and harmonies. The vocals are similarly complex, with Freddie's vocals spanning two and a half octaves whilst the choirs and harmonies run throughout. In fact, the song plays in two different time signatures simultaneously, something which was most uncommon for popular music but singularly Queen. The song was never played in full live in concert on account of its musical and vocal complexity. This is very much the prog counterpart to Bohemian Rhapsody and, for that reason, could very easily top the list of greatest Queen songs. So why do I put it here, outside of the top fifty? Because Queen were a damned good band who made many damned good songs.

"Lily of the Valley" (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

I felt the need to cheat on this one, and consider it as part of a trilogy with ‘Flick of the Wrist’ and ‘Tenement Funster’ to squeeze three tracks for one in my top fifty. It’s a beautiful ballad, both delicate and dramatic, that would more than deserve a high placing. The song was released as a single but failed to chart. It’s not obviously a pop ballad and has a certain refined, literary character. The song is believed to be inspired by Honoré de Balzac’ s 1835 novel Lily of the Valley.

“In the Lap of the Gods” (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

With that dramatic, ear-piercing, wall-shattering opening, this song sounds like the sounds you hear as your fate is decided at the Gates of Heaven and of Hell. Side Two of Sheer Heart Attack is bookended by this introductory song and “In the Lap of the Gods Revisited.” They are not merely early intimations of the greatness that Queen would go on to achieve with “Bohemian Rhapsody,” they are full realisations of that greatness. Roger’s falsetto here is unearthly, setting the mood for the entire song. That first thirty seconds, then Freddie’s distorted vocal, panning out as resignation – and those ever-changing octaves. The fact that song segues into “Stone Cold Crazy” should make clear the obvious truth – this entire album is one continuous flow. It’s never been appraised as a concept album to the best of my knowledge. But if you go back to side one, you have the trilogy of songs in the middle – “Tenement Funster,” “Flick of the Wrist,” and “Lily of the Valley” – bookended by two great rock numbers – “Brighton Rock” and “Now I’m Here.” It’s a remarkable album. And “In the Lap of the Gods” is a remarkable opening to side two. It tends to get overlooked in favour of “Revisited,” which is indeed superb. The difference is that “In the Lap” the opener is just incredibly unique and different whilst “Revisited” is more familiar and anthemic. One is a superb opener to another world and the other is the perfect ending. The sheer other-worldly weirdness of this song is indescribable. You feel like you are about to be plunged into the depths or be taken soaring through the heavens; these are the sounds you hear whilst awaiting to hear your fate.

“She Makes Me” (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

Subtitled ‘Stormtrooper in Stilletoes’ (did Brian May have a problematic relationship with women?), this is one of the oddest songs in the Queen catalogue, which really is saying something. It sounds a little like something left over from Smile, like ‘Some Day One Day.’ It has that early seventies feel about it, with strummed acoustic guitars and drums on a repeated two chord pattern making for a hypnotic effect. It is a most unusual song for Queen, lacking the complex dynamics and tempo changes. Written by Brian May, the song lacks a guitar solo.

“Seaside Rendezvous” (1975 A Night at the Opera)

I had to have this one, as daft as it is (like me, then). I used to sing this one in class at school. My poor teachers and classmates simply gave up trying to shut me up and reconciled themselves. I think I must have been most entertaining. It’s got that 1920s, vaudevillian feel which characterises a lot of Queen songs. The musical bridge section is remarkably inventive, showing just how great the musicality of this band really was. Using just their voices, Mercury imitates woodwind instruments, including clarinet, and Taylor brass instruments, including tubas and trumpets, and even a kazoo. The pair also perform a tap dance segment, tapping thimbles on their fingers on the mixing desk. This song has an old-time feel, with vocals and sounds that could be placed easily in the 1920s and 30s ("Be My Clementine"). And who doesn’t like to go to the Seaside to relax? I do. Opening line: ‘Seaside, whenever you stroll along with me.’ And here I am now living in Llandudno, strolling along the Promenade every day. ‘So adorable.’ I’ll have this one as my signature tune. Having picked my top fifty Queen tracks, now coming to the contenders I have left out, I have to declare that ‘Seaside Rendezvous’ might be my most favourite Queen track of all. So why isn’t it in the top fifty? Pretensions of objectivity.

"Tie Your Mother Down" (1976 A Day at the Races)

Boisterous, brash, and barnstorming, this is a brilliant opening track to ‘A Day at the Races.’ It made for a great opening number in concert too. Whenever this spirits are flagging, this one is guaranteed to get you up and running again. Then there is the title, shouted out boldly and repeatedly. Freddie Mercury was asked "why tie your mother down?" The Queen frontman replied: "Well this one in fact is a track written by Brian (May) actually, I dunno why. Maybe he was in one of his vicious moods.” I remember reading that Brian May had a great riff and a working title, and Freddie encouraged him to keep it. This song is guaranteed to get any crowd bouncing on its feet.

“Get Down, Make Love” (1977 News of the World)

This was the moment I first became wary of the need to censor my taste for Queen. This song was on the ‘Live Killers’ album my mum bought me for Christmas in 1979. She suggested that all the family could listen to the record as we ate Christmas Dinner. Even I had a fairly good idea what this song might have been about, and so made excuses about the record being ‘loud.’ It is rather … salacious, but has an incredible combination of piano and guitar in slow seduction. I just didn’t fancy having to suffer all those orgasmic sounds through Christmas Dinner. If you can, find the downright direct and gritty early take of this song, a raw and raunchy jam session. ‘Oh, the piano fell down,’ Freddie shrieks. That sounds like one hell of a session.

"It’s Late" (1977 News of the World)

An immense rocker written by Brian May, coming in at over six minutes. It’s another of those ambitious Queen tracks. May conceived the song as a three-act theatrical play, with the verses being referred to as "acts" in the lyrics sheet. According to Billboard Magazine, the music of the single version "shifts gear from subdued balladry to thunderous rock'n'roll." That’s Queen in a nutshell.

"My Melancholy Blues" (1977 News of the World)

As I looked forward to hearing ‘News of the World,’ a schoolfriend told me that the last track on the album sounded like Gracie Fields’ ‘Sally.’ I thought he was putting me on, but he was adamant. Just listen to it, he said. And he was right, this is beautiful late-night bluesy ballad that savours more than a little of ‘Sally’ in part. It’s a spare blues ballad accompanied by piano and bass and is quite exquisite.

"Let Me Entertain You" (1978 Jazz)

Vibrant, brash, loud and exciting hard rocker written by Freddie Mercury. I could just as easily have chosen ‘Dead on Time’ here, with its killer riff. I could, in truth, choose almost every track of every album, so I am trying so hard to be selective and balanced. ‘Let Me Entertain You’ just about edges it here for sheer in-your-face assurance (threat) of a good time. This one is all about Freddie Mercury’s irresistibly salacious vocals, and promises of who knows what. More than Brian May’s driving guitar lead, the song is a massive statement of intent. One of the strengths of Queen is to go way over the top and know that they are doing so. Freddie knows that he is being bold in an impossibly outrageous way – listen to how he pronounces the word ‘good’ in the promise to ‘sell you some good merchandise.’ It’s a wind-up. But Freddie positively revels in his role as a salesman. This promise of a show so far over the top that the top no longer exists is as clear a statement as to what Queen are as there is. Equating performance and sexuality throughout, the song promises entertainment in all its possible forms, lights, highs, dancing, jazz, and rock and roll. And that’s the whole point, surely? So the song kind of sums up the appeal of Queen to teenagers such as myself back in the day: a source of amusement and diversion via fantasies of an oversexed existence? The band were never so dull, obvious, and predictable – the voices at the end of the song reveal what should have been obvious – the show and the spectacle are all for no more than commercial gain. This is about music for sale, something that devalues art and dehumanizes musicians. The ‘entertainment’ being sung about in so salaciously over the top a style is not about oversexed fantasies at all, but the commodification of art and music. The song is a knowing comment on the art versus commerce conflict that lies at the heart of pop music. The genius of Queen lies in the way that the band succeeded in holding both poles together to deliver musically intelligent pop that had wide appeal – making money without compromising art. Freddie’s vocal performance is incredible in the way that it expresses the war raging within pop music, affirming both sides of the divide. You can hear this in the exaggerations, you can hear him both revelling in it but also worrying at its implications. To say that the vocal performance is ‘over the top’ is merely to notice the obvious at the surface level. Look past the overt promises and you hear the self-conscious awareness of the dangers of self-destruction, of ambition consuming itself, of the music being reduced to nothing more than entertainment. Understand that, and you understand just how superficial the critics were. The critics took Queen on the simplest level, and condemned them for making dumb, loud, bombastic noise for dumb unmusical people. They missed that an important part of rock music is loud, bombastic noise, just so long as it is exciting. ‘Let Me Entertain You’ is a great thrilling noise, something that makes it so much better than all those thoroughly boring rock songs with pretensions of being great music. But it is so much more than that. If you look beyond the thrill of the surface, you will hear the extent to which Queen were their own best critics; they knew exactly what they were doing and where they stood in the balance to be struck between art and commerce, music and entertainment. The voices with which the song closes shatter the illusion, bringing the over-the-top show into confrontation with the backstage. The moral is: look past the show and see if there is any substance to the entertainment. The lyrics are sharp, full of Freddie’s great rhymes, telling a story of showbiz from within the belly of the beast. And it has this fantastic loud driving guitar. The song can hold the attention for the sheer excitement of its sound, it is indeed a ‘tour de force.’ But it is so much more than that. It depends on whether you are able to look beyond the overt show. That’s one for people. You will hear people to this day praise Freddie Mercury as a ‘great showman.’ He was. He may have been the greatest showman who ever existed, certainly in rock and pop music. But that was just the overt bit, the entertaining bit. Look under the entertainment and you will see great intelligence and purpose. But, yes, for sheer entertainment value, this song is an absolute cracker and became a staple of the live show for a few years after 1978.

“Dreamer’s Ball” (1978 Jazz)

I have read that this is Brian May’s tribute to Elvis, who had died the previous year. For the life of me, it sounds more like an invitation to Freddie to camp it up as only he could. But maybe the reference is to Elvis lazing his way through those inane Hollywood movies. Either way, Freddie revels in the licence the song gives him. For Freddie’s vaudevillian routine, Brian gives us an old-time blues number, turning brass into guitar in a nostalgic jaunt in the manner of ‘Good Company.’ The effect is quite enchanting. The song is an invitation to share your reveries in a dreamscape with your imaginary friend. Brian May has a number of songs in this genre. ‘All through the years in the end it appears, there was never really anyone but me.’ I know he suffered from deep depression over the years. Maybe music was his escape. I guess we all live in the land in make-believe. Queen can keep the sad and lonely souls out there alive, in hope and in dreams, easing the pain. Your life might be bad, but Queen are always on hand to turn your reality into opulent fantasy! It was songs like this that confirmed to me that Queen were the best band around. They could rock the house like no other, be outrageous, and score huge hit records. But I loved these quirky numbers for quirky people.

"Dragon Attack" (1980 The Game)

Although Queen’s turn to disco/funk/soul is associated with Freddie Mercury and John Deacon, Brian May had a bit of a stab at it. I just wish he’d have had more of a stab at it, because his approach – exemplified by this track – is chunkier, meatier, and harder. I like to hear May’s guitar over a Queen song. Hot Space could have been saved by more May guitar and less synths and horns. I always considered ‘Dragon Attack’ a counterpart to ‘Another One Bites the Dust.’ It seems that the track evolved from a jam session, with May improvising around the basic loop of drums and bass. I could listen to this one on a loop for a very long time. I think it has a more enduring musical quality than ‘Dust.’

"Sail Away Sweet Sister" (1980 The Game)

Another sad Brian May ballad which, like ‘All Dead, All Dead,’ has a little medieval tinge. This has a bigger, more dramatic punch. It always sounded like a single release to me, having a more obviously commercial appeal than the more austere ‘Save Me.’ The song has a great big hook, the kind that defined all the Queen classics, before playing out with beautifully sombre instrumentation. Classic.

"The Hero" (1980 Flash)

I’m going to go big on this one. In fact, I am going to go HUGE. Because as hugeness goes, this is the Mount Olympus of songs. We could, of course, be a bit more level headed and say bombastic, preposterous, and ludicrous. We could just as well abandon Queen for the safe, tempered, and tasteful. But life wouldn’t be anything like as exciting. “The Hero” is an invitation into immensity, as ludicrous and as noble as that. This track is peak Queen, and yet is hardly known. It is from the “Flash” movie and soundtrack album, which tends to get overlooked in the Queen retrospectives as not a ‘proper’ album. It’s a lost classic, a very vigorous update of “Seven Seas of Rhye” in being an immense blast of electric guitar and electrifying words. It is a huge burst of energy, a release from constraint, as big and as ecstatic an explosion of upward motion as Mr. Fahrenheit himself promised in “Don’t Stop Me Now.” It’s inspiring and unstoppable and encapsulates perfectly in two minutes everything heroic about Queen. Which is to say that it is a little over-the-top, exaggerated, and preposterous. But that’s what we loved about the band from the first. I mean, Freddie, he isn’t to be taken seriously, is he?

Lift your head to the stars

And the World’s for your taking

(All you have to do is save the world)

Brian May is on electrifying form on this, coming in loud and quick and just letting rip from there. Ming the Merciless himself is sent packing, with Flash himself being made redundant as Freddie goes at it in full heroic mode, invoking us all to become the heroes we are capable of being. This made for a superb ending, a battle hymn call to a heroism much greater than cartoon stories of good and evil. This is how it all ends. Actually, this ought to be how it all begins – flailing guitars, soaring strings, surging synths, and rampant passions, a sustained yell at the end of the universe, all colliding before all that remains weave together for one final epic epic burst of energy. Of course, it all ends in one almighty bang. In fact, being Queen, it ends with a lot of bangs.

In truth, it doesn’t end at all, but invites us all to become heroes in the continuation. It’s this bit that really speaks to all that Sammy’s that populate the Queendom.

So you feel like it’s end of story

Find it all pretty satisfactory

Well I tell you my friend

This might seem like the end

But the continuation is

Yours for the making………

(Yes you’re the hero)

I love that call to heroism. The diehard Queen fans among us have always known that Queen spoke to the odds out there, encouraging us to defy the odds that were often accumulating against us, beckoning us on a journey. And in this story, “Flash” simply becomes an irrelevance, a big American dope so stupid that he has to have his name written in huge letters across his stupid T-shirt. Queen’s take on this is that being a hero is a job for everyone, and a job for life. A simple idea, maybe, and a bombastic claim to boot, but it is a noble ideal all the same. It’s one I’ve always taken to heart, especially when tackling some terribly ‘important’ project that has incited my interest and captured my attention, working far too long on something of seemingly no importance whatsoever, but carrying on in the belief that I’m within sight of the end. Ludicrous, of course. But put on this track and inject a little heroism into proceedings, and you never know, great things may manifest themselves. You’ll feel like a hero, regardless. (Yes you’re a hero)

I think it’s safe to say that I kinda like this song. But the real clincher for me is its live performance. Whilst the song makes for a fantastically vibrant close to the “Flash” album, it also makes for a stunning opener live in concert. I can in all honesty say that I have never seen or heard a better opening to a concert than that of Queen at the Milton Keynes Bowl in 1982. So I shall clinch a high ranking here by cheating slightly and counting the “Flash,” “The Hero,” and “We Will Rock You” entrance at the Milton Keynes Bowl as one. It’s the greatest opening to a live concert by anyone ever. It’s absolutely unreal! We go from the pulsating throb of “Flash” into Brian May’s thunderous riffing, and then Freddie Mercury explodes onto stage as if shot out of a cannon, launching into “The Hero.” I’ve never seen anyone do anything like that, anything like as exciting and as powerful, without gimmicks, just relying on natural human power and charisma. Inhuman. Freddie Mercury was the greatest front man of all time, no question; there is no-one who even comes close (see if you can name them, or name one). There’s no doubt about, I’m not gonna lie, Queen were the best live band there ever was. They build the anticipation and then come straight out of the traps and bang into your face, no messing about. This, boys and girls and all other beings and bodies in between and beyond, this is how a rock concert should open – with a sustained explosion! In the opening at the Milton Keynes Bowl in 1982 Queen gave us a 1-2-3 of such force that they could have ended the concert there and then and everyone would have gone home in ecstasy. The Queen motto on concerts is to deafen and blind the audience at the beginning, capture people immediately, and then take them with you through the rest of the concert. That’s shorthand for astonish, amaze, stupefy, daze, stun, shock, and overwhelm. Queen remained a huge live draw until the very end, packing out Wembley Stadium, with extra big stadium gigs having to be added to cater for demand. The reason is simple – people knew Queen delivered in concert. And this 1-2-3 power punch of “Flash,” “The Hero,” and “We Will Rock You” is just simply awesome, an opening salvo that leaves nothing standing in its way. Pure Pulsating Everlasting Electrical Energy. I’d better stop there, I’m getting a bit carried away. So much so someone might ask why a song this good doesn’t make my top fifty. The simple answer to that question is that I am here waxing lyrical about the live performance of the song as part of an opening trilogy with “Flash” and “We Will Rock You.” It’s the greatest opening to any concert by anyone I have ever seen. So much so I can’t even think of its nearest rival. Most acts open tentatively and find their feet as they go. Queen didn’t hit the ground running, they hit it racing, like Mister Fahrenheit, ‘travelling at the speed of light.’ As Freddie says in that song, ‘I wanna make a supersonic man out of you.’ And here, he wants you to find the hero in yourself. Forget Flash the singular hero, Queen are singing about all of us.

So let’s end with a bit of Queen’s “Flash”

He's for every one of us

Stand for every one of us

He'll save with a mighty hand (he'll save with a mighty hand)

He'll save with a mighty hand (he'll save with a mighty hand)

He saved with a mighty hand (save us)

Every man every woman every child (man, woman, child)

He's the mighty (mighty)

[Outro]

Flash!

A-ah!!!

But it’s “The Hero” at the end of the album that makes the moral clear:

So, you feel like it's the end of the story?

Find it all pretty satisfactory?

Well, I tell you, my friend

This might seem like the end

But the continuation is yours for the making

(Yes, you're a hero)

"Dancer" (1982 Hot Space)

This is what happens when Brian May makes his contribution to Queen’s disco/funk turn – more guitar. I much, much preferred this to the horn and synth-based opener to Hot Space, ‘Staying Power,’ just as the live performance of the latter, with May’s red hot guitar work, is much better than the studio version. I was never quite convinced by the squidgy synths on these new sounds nor the mechanical drumming. Had Queen played their real instruments and trusted their talents, I think they could have pulled Hot Space. But I guess I’m just an inveterate rocker. To prove my point, it’s the guitar work on this that really allows this track to take off. It’s just my view, of course. I was actually looking forward to Hot Space, having heard that the band were experimenting with new sounds. My hope was that, after the success of The Game, the band would be emboldened to fashion their own distinctive version of disco/funk/soul, rather than (lamely) copy. The heavy fusion of hard rock and dance on ‘Dancer’ is exactly what I had in mind, continuing where ‘Dragon Attack’ left off, and using their rock chops to go hard, fast, and deep. It didn’t quite happen that way. But here and there there are hints and this is one of them.

"Las Palabras de Amor (The Words of Love)" (1982 Hot Space)

I used to see this track as the one that saved the day on the shrinking ship that was Hot Space, a lush Queen ballad that gave us something familiar among the incredibly unfamiliar disco/funk/pop. It struck me as being in the vein of ‘Sail Away Sweet Sister,’ with more substantial orchestration and Freddie on vocals. It’s a deeply romantic ballad, settling our nerves after the unnerving experience of ‘Body Language.’ That it was a much bigger hit than ‘Body Language’ indicates that the public appreciated the reassurance of a familiar sound. It wasn’t a massive hit, at UK #17, but my mum loved it. It kept Queen in her good books whilst Freddie continued his explorations in the ‘hot’ underworld of dance and high energy.

"It's a Hard Life" (1984 The Works)

‘One Of Freddie Mercury’s Most Beautiful Songs,’ said Brian May in an interview, declaring the song to be one of his absolute favourites of Freddie’s. I remember when it came out as a single in July 1984, discussing it with fellow Queen fans in the Glassblowers pub in St Helens. We all agreed that this was a great song. I’d just hit grade ‘A’ distinction in my A levels and was off to study history in Sheffield. Queen had a #2 album with The Works. All was well in the world. As it happened, I quit the course in Sheffield and returned, only to find friends all gone and potential future partners, thinking me gone, gone with them. In no time, I went from flying high to flying low. The odd thing is, I went from adoring this song when I was happy – I bought the single even though I already had it on the album – to shying away from it when life really did get hard. This could easily be right up there with the very best of Queen. The dramatic opening lyric and melody is taken from "Vesti la giubba," an aria in Ruggero Leoncavallo's 1892 opera Pagliacci, the line "Ridi, Pagliaccio, sul tuo amore infranto!" (Laugh, clown, at your broken love!). It also sounds like the way ‘In the Lap of the Gods’ opens on Sheer Heart Attack. As a single, the song hit UK #6. In his commentary on the Greatest Hits 2 DVD, Brian May wrote: “To my mind this is one of the most beautiful songs that Freddie [Mercury] ever wrote. It’s straight from the heart, and he really opened up during the creation of it, I sat with him for hours and hours and hours just trying pull it away and get the most out of it. It’s one of his loveliest songs.” It’s a top song. So why haven’t I placed it in Queen’s Top Fifty? Simply, I think it is in the mould of ‘Play the Game,’ just a little less innovative. The margins are fine, here, of course. If someone was to tell me that ‘It’s a Hard Life’ is a magnificent track that should be in the Top Ten, I really wouldn’t disagree. After all, I rate ‘Play the Game’ very highly indeed. Musically, ‘It’s a Hard Life’ is something of a sequel to ‘Play the Game,’ taking the story on into tragedy, replacing synthesizers with Freddie’s piano, and adding the band's trademark layered harmonies. The song, in fact, returns to Queen’s early ethos of ‘no synthesizers,’ giving us more of the traditional Queen sound. In other words … I could very easily place this in the top fifty instead of ‘Play the Game,’ an observation that renders the whole notion of a list redundant. A musical appreciation always exposes the conceit of ranking and rating. But it’s fun to do. And fans always love talking about their favourite songs.

“Machines” (1984 The Works)

I don’t think I’m the only one who raves about this song. It’s a song which references RAM, hardware, software, and the computer technology, without which I wouldn’t be writing this and you wouldn’t be reading it. It’s an incredibly clever and cute track. The ‘bites and megachips for tea’ line always makes me laugh. Any song that makes reference to “Random Access Memory” is unusual to say the least. Such clever, clever blokes these Queen members. I mean, has anyone actually sat down and read the lyrics to this song. They are incredible.

It's software, it's hardware It's heartbeat, it's time-share It's midwife's, a disk drive Its sex-life is quantized It's self-perpetuating, a parahumanoidarianised

“It’s self-perpetuating, a parahumanoidarianised.” !!! Incredible! They coined a word of nine syllables and fitted it into a rock song! I think we should start a campaign to get it into common parlance. Let me figure out what it means first.

Driving the lyrics is the incredible music. The song is just masterful in musical composition and execution. The song takes ‘mindblowing’ onto another level or more. I know that ‘Radio Ga Ga’ takes all the futuristic plaudits on this album, and I placed it in the top fifty Queen tracks. I just have a sneaking feeling that this might be the heavyweight contender. Brain May really lets rip on this track, as if exorcising all the pent up frustration that had built in the making of Hot Space. He goes not so much off the scale as off the planet with thunderous power riffs. Freddie's voice is in overdrive, belting out "humans!" at its peak. The end of the song calms down as it transitions into melodic prophecy, “Living in a new world / Thinking in the past (humans) / Living in a new world / How you gonna last? (humans).” The ending is haunting and daunting but beautiful all the same. This is an incredibly original song on any number of levels. It wasn’t common to hear synth loops like this back in 1984, so Queen, now one of the old guard, were still running ahead of their time. This is perhaps the heaviest use of synthesizers in a Queen song, and it worked superbly well with the heavy rock guitars.

In short, I rate the song very highly.

“Keep Passing the Open Windows” (1984 The Game)

I always thought this a great track, with another of those superbly dramatic openings by Freddie on piano, before taking off on Deacon’s relentlessly driving bass and May’s thunderous guitar. It’s an anti-suicide song, the title coming from a phrase in the John Irving novel The Hotel New Hampshire, published in 1981. The catchphrase refers to a street performer called “The King of Mice” who committed suicide by jumping from an open window. The phrase “keep passing the open windows” is the Berry family’s way of telling one another “to carry on when the going gets tough. I think it’s a top track. The only reason I don’t place it higher is that it savours more than a little of Joe Jackson’s slicker ‘Steppin’ Out.’ It was impossible not to hear the influence back in 1984, given that Jackson’s great, great song was all over the radio. So that always cast a little shadow for me. But you should really overlook that influence. Once you realize that the baseline is a faster version of the irresistible “A Kind of Magic” baseline, then you know you are in the presence of a classic.

"One Vision" (1986 A Kind of Magic)

I left this out of the top fifty, for the reason that it is a little too obvious and maybe a little too contrived. I listened again, and was immediately taken by the great guitar riff. OK, it’s obvious and in-your-face; but it’s irresistible all the same. Then there is the dream of world peace: ‘A glimpse of hope and unity, and visions of one sweet union.’ It reminds me of Dante, and the fact that Dante’s dream lies deep in the heart of all people. ‘One Vision’ is the first song to be released credited to the entire band. It was also clearly inspired by the band’s show-stealing performance at Live Aid. Other than that, we have Brian May’s distinctive guitar sound and Freddie Mercury’s powerhouse vocal. In terms of its construction, the song is rather obvious, lacking the nuance, intelligence, and dynamics of a typical Queen song (it savours a little of The Rolling Stones in that respect, ‘Start Me Up,’ basic). But the musical qualities of the band members transcend any limitations in that regard.

"The Invisible Man" (1989 The Miracle)

It sounds as daft as a brush, but has really intriguing lyrics about seeing people as they really are, beyond their public façade and veiled emotions. If I read correctly, the ‘invisible man’ becomes ‘invisible’ after being rejected by a girl he likes, only for him to become the only thing she can think about. She can't get him out of her head, but can’t get him back. He's her "Meanest thought" and her "Darkest fear." It’s about ‘invisible’ people, the people you don’t see and don’t here in the normal course of things, but maybe miss when they are gone. Typical quirky Queen, then, seemingly slight exteriors concealing an incredibly serious and substantial interior. The beat and bass line driving this one on are irresistible. The song was also the inspiration for the theme song of the Nickelodeon cartoon "Danny Phantom". After show creator Butch Hartman got the go-ahead to create "Danny Phantom," he went to his composer, Guy Moon, and told him, "I don't care what music you use, just give me a bass line like this,” and played ‘The Invisible Man.’ It has a killer bass line driving it on and is incredibly catchy. Written by drummer Roger Taylor, this track has real oomph. It should have resulted in the continuation of Taylor’s classic hits for the band, building on ‘Radio Ga Ga’ and ‘A Kind of Magic.’ Maybe people really did make the mistake of thinking it daft. It hit a respectable UK #12. I thought it a #1 smash for sure. Occasionally, this band were too subtle for their own good, inviting people to believe they were as dumb and crude as they sometimes played.

"Scandal" (1989 The Miracle)

Seriously good song on muck-raking media journalism. It didn’t do much as a single, peaking at UK #25, but the release was worthwhile in giving us a great video, allowing Freddie to make his point against those who had made, and would go on to make, his life a misery. Great performance from Fred, a plea that, sadly, would fall on deaf ears. That said, the song was written by Brian May and draws on the problems he had been having with the British Press over his personal relationships. In an interview with the video magazine Hard 'N' Heavy (1989, Volume 3), May confirmed it was the antics of the British tabloid press which inspired this song: "It's something which has affected us, individually, as members of the group recently. It's very strange, 'cause we were fairly famous for a long time in England, you know the last 15 years or whatever, but we didn't become a prey to these kind of scummy papers until recently. And it's not related to what you are doing, you know. They are not interested what music you play, or anything. They just want the dirt, and if they can't find any they'll invent it if they choose to pick on you. So we were all going through a lot of changes in our lives and suddenly it became a big problem, you know, in a similar way... you've heard about what they did to Elton, you know? These stories about Elton, and everything, which he sued them for and got a million quid (NB. slang for pound) off 'em. You know, great. Well they did very similar things to me particularly, and to a certain extent to Roger, and Freddie also had been through it a little while before. But this thing is total... you know, steam in and destroy someone's life. They really are the scum of the earth. You can't exaggerate it too much."

Beyond that, the music is bang on the money.

“Don’t Try so Hard” (1991 Innuendo)

A delicate, reflective, introspective ballad, with a hint of tragedy. It has that old message that runs throughout the Queen career, a message for all those in some way different. ‘If you’re searching out for something, don’t try so hard.’ ‘It’s only fools who make these rules.’ ‘Screaming out your bloody orders, polish all your shiny buttons, but you never had to try to stand out from the crowd.’ Such pain, power, and poignancy in that voice. Then there is the guitar that bleeds. This is a contender for Freddie’s greatest vocal performance, and Brian May is not too far behind on guitar. The voice of a dying man, capable of lifting you up whenever you are down. A masterpiece.

"A Winter's Tale" (1995 Made in Heaven)

A poignant, peaceful look at Winter, written by Freddie Mercury just a couple of weeks before he died. The words came to him as he looked through the window at Queen's recording studio on Lake Geneva, Switzerland. He realized that time was running out for him, so wrote the song and recorded his vocals and keyboard parts live in one take, leaving the other band members to complete the song. The song is written in a 6/8 time signature, like "Somebody to Love" and "We Are The Champions."

Guitarist Brian May recalled to Mojo:

"Freddie wrote the song in Montreux, in a little house on the lake that we called The Duck House. The extraordinary thing is he's talking about life and its beauty at a time when he knows he hasn't got very long to go, yet there's no wallowing in emotion, it's just absolutely purely observed. So that's the way I wanted my solo to be. It was one of those things where I could hear it in my head, long before I actually got to play it. And when I recorded it, at my home studio, in my head I was there with Freddie in Montreux in those moments, even though this was happening long after he was gone."

The song was a UK #6 and made my initial top fifty. I had a tough choice to make here. I wanted the quicker numbers ‘Let Me Live’ and ‘You Don’t Fool Me’ to show a band that was still alive and kicking, with ‘Mother Love’ bringing it all to an end. It’s all very arbitrary, of course. ‘A Winter’s Tale’ is an absolute beauty of a song. But what can you do when you have to select only fifty from a band that has well over one hundred great songs?

"Heaven for Everyone" (1995 Made in Heaven)

‘Heaven for Everyone’ is a medium-tempo rock ballad which contains a heartfelt plea at its heart. The gentle groove of the song is as catchy as the simple lyric is deep. The instrumentation is softly tempered, allowing the song to gather and release energy as it progresses, roaring in the middle section before settling back down to reassure us all that all is well.

I always loved the original of this by The Cross featuring Freddie Mercury on vocals, although it seems I was one of the few judging by its peak position at a miserable UK #84 in 1988. I thought it a great song with a message for our troubled times in 1988, and so was pleased when Queen re-recorded it for Made in Heaven in 1995.

So that’s my favourite band, then: creative, imaginative, and idealistic, always optimistic and life-affirming, and usually most reasonable. The song, Taylor notes, "had some good stuff about love and dignity; the usual antiwar thing." Most reasonable, then.

The song is reassuring, hopeful, and eminently reasonable, at least to the extent of its simple message that, indeed, we could have Heaven on Earth if only we could all find a way of being eminently reasonable. All we are saying is …

Sometimes, we just need the reminder that a sweet and simple lyric can bring, that peace and unity might indeed be within our reach, all evidence to the contrary. I think left us with a quietly reassuring image here, making it clear that simple goodness and kindness is to be extended to embrace one and all.

I would, in the normal course of things, be quick to rip such banalities and generalities apart, for the reason that they tend to conceal the difficult questions concerning the institutional, systemic, and, indeed, natural obstacles standing in the way of peace and unity. The idea that all you have to do to have peace is to want peace is one of those inanities I gladly leave to pop singers. I don’t suffer it anywhere else. But I daren’t tear such simple minded idealism apart for the very reason it is also my root. It’s not enough in itself, but it is essence on which we body forth an inherent truth. Extending the simple gifts of love and affection quietly to all around us ought to be all that we need. Recognising that that love and kindness extends to everyone ought to be all it takes to achieve peace and unity. It isn’t, but my word the statement in this song is a beautiful one and I endorse it without reservation.

The song’s gentle tone and texture, building to the crescendo of the guitar solo, perfectly conveys its core idea of simple love, peace, and unity, settling back down into a tranquil calm. The angel is in the details, and those intelligent intermediaries are everywhere, offering guidance and assistance, should we care to look. It’s a song of hope and reassurance and, sometimes, that’s exactly what we need, all of us. It strikes just the right note, and I’m very glad that Queen re-recorded the original for their final album with Freddie. And I love the little Elvis impersonation at the end, the ‘for everyone’ sung as a crucial rider and reminder.

The song is accompanied by a memorable video full of striking images, opening with images of the graffiti messages left in tribute to Freddie Mercury outside his home, Garden Lodge, Kensington in London, before going on to show footage of Georges Méliès’ silent films A Trip to the Moon (Le Voyage dans la Lune, 1902), The Impossible Voyage (Le Voyage à travers l'impossible,1904), and The Eclipse, or the Courtship of the Sun and Moon (L'éclipse du soleil en pleine lune, 1907).

The song was the first single off the Made in Heaven album, and I’m happy to record that the track hit UK #2 in 1995.

“Too Much Love Will Kill You” (1995 Made in Heaven)

I could never quite take to this one, despite its obvious qualities. The message and its meaning are too raw and too true for comfort. I have tended to prefer Brian May’s more softly sung version to Freddie’s emotional rollercoaster - full-on power pouring straight from the heart. You can place this one where you like. If you put it at the top of the tree, I wouldn’t offer an argument against. Freddie’s voice is so powerful that it gives you goosebumps. I once heard Dave Clark describe Freddie Mercury as the Piaf of his generation. This song proves it. It’s a beautiful song, written by Brian May, invested with deep meaning by Freddie Mercury’s vocal.

Although it is often thought written as a tribute to Freddie Mercury, the song was actually first recorded by Queen some time around 1988, to be included The Miracle album in 1989, being left off as a result of legal disputes (the song was co-written with Frank Musker and Elizabeth Lamers). Brian May included the song on his solo album Back to the Light, peaking at UK #5 when issued as a single. The Queen version with Freddie on lead vocal hit UK #15 when released in 1995. It also earned the Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically in 1996. The song is actually about May’s struggle with depression, although it has acquired new meaning in the aftermath of Freddie Mercury’s death. I think we can appreciate the universal significance of the song that May intended. He told The Radio Times in 2004 that this song has saved his life a few times over the years. "You get a glimmer of hope from a song when you realize someone else felt the same despair. My own music doesn't necessarily speak to me. When I wrote “Too Much Love Will Kill You” I thought I was going to die being utterly depressed. I'm proud it's helped others who realize 'He made it out.'" Queen’s music saves, it really does.

“Let Me in Your Heart Again.” (2014 Queen Forever)

This is a song that tends to get missed, for the reason that it was an unfinished track left over from The Works in 1984, which the band returned to finish only in 2014 for the Queen Forever album. I have no idea why this wasn’t finished for the 1984 album, which was short on classic Queen ballads, and short on tracks in general. In a September 2014 interview, Brian May revealed that several versions of the lyrics were written but that the band still found it impossible to finish the track. For Queen Forever, May wove parts from the different versions together before fleshing out the music with Roger Taylor. It turned out to be something ‘rather joyful,’ declared Taylor. May expressed the hope that ‘that Freddie's powerful voice can inspire the world yet again.’

That rather excellent 30 tracks leaves me having to select another 20 tracks to make for a Top 100. All the songs here are excellent and worthy of being heard. Think of them as an alternate Top 50.

I’ll just speed through these, otherwise I’ll end up writing too much and block up my blog (again).

“Ogre Battle” (1974 Queen II)

“‘Ogre Battle’ is perhaps Queen’s finest moment. Queen were an incredible heavy metal band. I saw them on their first ever tour, at Birmingham Town Hall. They just blew me away.” (Rob Halford, Judas Priest).

“Some Day, One Day” (1974 Queen II)

Gentle, wistful, folk inflected rock ballad, written and sung by Brian May.

"Stone Cold Crazy" (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

‘One of the fastest songs I’ve ever heard,’ a heavy rock fan told me, shaking his head in disbelief, in sixth form college. He should know, too, since he played drums in a heavy rock band. This song rocks hard and loud. “Stone Cold Crazy was one of Freddie’s frenetic ideas,” May said in 2014. “But the original was much slower.” The original actually went back to 1970, when it was the first song that Queen (minus John Deacon) played. I love the way Freddie hams it up on this live in concert, really selling the song for all it is worth. As a song, it is pretty basic for Queen, just loud and fast, but very exciting all the same. Sometimes, a burst of visceral energy is all that we need.

“Misfire.” (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

I’ve said it before and someone will no doubt say it again, but that John Deacon knew how to write incredibly catchy pop songs. It stands out as something of an anomaly on an album packed with hard rockers. This track needs a good home, like the top of the charts.

“Death on Two Legs” (1975 A Night at the Opera)

Brutal and vicious. I think Fred and the band knew how to nurture a grudge. This hits as hard as a sledgehammer.

“Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon” (1975 A Night at the Opera)

Good but slight, it’s really a linking song on the album and, as such, has real value in itself. It lightens the mood in between two heavyweight songs and performances. It’s a real shame that this great song tends to get overlooked on account of its short length, just one minute and seven seconds and a mere eighty seven words. It’s a little gem that is bursting with ideas and imagination. I would just need to recall it to memory and it would make me smile. In fact, this is another of those songs I would sing in class to entertain/annoy fellow pupils/inmates. I think the teacher may have been as bored with Geometrical and Engineering Drawing as the rest of us were, judging by the fact he never told me to shut up. The song is short, sweet, and absurd in a very cheery way. It’s clever, too, packed with little gimmicks and effects. The megaphone effect on the lead vocals was achieved by the vocals being fed through a pair of headphones placed inside a metal can in another studio. The sound was picked up by another microphone to generate the megaphone effect that was wanted. These guys were not only great musicians, they were technically clever and creative. Despite its short length, the song closes with the classic and unique Brian May "red special" guitar sound.

Freddie Mercury described the song in an interview to Record Mirror in 1976. "That's the way the mood takes me. Y'know... that's just one aspect of me, and I can really change. Everything on 'Sunday Afternoon' is something that... I'm really, I'm really sort of, I really... well, I love doing the vaudeville side of things. It's quite a sort of test... I love writing things like that and I'm sure I'm going to do more than that... It's quite a challenge."

He did indeed go on to do a lot more in this style, with this short interlude on A Night at the Opera reaching full flowering with “Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy” on the next album.

“39” (1975 A Night at the Opera)

This can be described as utopian electro-folk (whatever that is), a tale of a trip into a future world. ‘Radio Ga Ga’ played on acoustic guitar.

“White Man” (1976 A Day at the Races)

A crunching hard rocker based on a ‘Red Indian’ beat, beefing up a very artistic and polished album.

"Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)" (1976 A Day at the Races)

A tender but ultimately big ballad building to a great crescendo. It ends in a great Queen sing-a-long, made for the big stadiums. Queen made no bones about it, they were crowd pleasers aiming to be big, big, big.

“Fight from the Inside.” (1977 News of the World)

A gritty hard rocker written and sung by Roger Taylor. Thumping drum beat, grumbling bass, and guitar sounds from another planet. This has a great insistent groove. I rarely (never) see this song mentioned in any ‘best of’ lists. I loved this back in my teenage days, taking it as an opportunity to play tough on the air guitar.

"Mustapha" (1978 Jazz)

This track always skipped on my copy of Jazz. I took the album round to a friend’s house for him to check. The song, of course, has an unaccompanied vocal opening before a thunderous heavy metal guitar comes crashing in at a moment’s notice. The record player in my friend’s house had speakers throughout the downstairs, which could be switched off and on accordingly. This day they were all on. When the guitar came thundering in we heard a crash in the kitchen and my friend’s mother shouting ‘what the hell is that!!?’ This is a loud and lively high-tempo rock song. As for the lyrics, it was most unusual for Western pop artists to be singing a song in which the names “Mustapha” and “Ibrahim” are repeated throughout. We thought nothing of it at the time. This was Queen after all. We all knew by now that this band was ‘different,’ and different in so many curious ways, all of them very entertaining.

"Jealousy" (1978 Jazz)

Warm, romantic ballad, more sinewy, less ethereal than ‘Take my Breath Away.’ I read that in Russia this was the A-side in a single which had ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ on the flip. It has the trademark Queen harmonies, but Brian’s guitar sounds like a sitar and John’s bass is right up in the mix, making for an unusual sound. Quietly seductive pop ballad.

"Fat Bottomed Girls" (1978 Jazz)

What can I say? Or, rather, ‘plead’? Guilty, probably. Or not, given the low placing of this perennial favourite. Even I knew, at the tender age of thirteen, that there was decidedly dubious and, most probably, illicit about this song at the time it was released, or should I say unleashed. I watched Queen perform it on Top of the Pops. I have memories of Freddie Mercury strutting around in black leather pants and braces, singing about things I had zero experience of. My mother was watching too. ‘There has to be something wrong with you to get on these days,’ she said, as she frowned at the television. I remember thinking, ‘I rather like this.’ But I thought it best not to offer argument, lest the channel be switched. Playing safe, I’d class the song in the category of honest, if tasteless, vulgarity. Along with all the high-blown ‘figaros’ and ‘galileos,’ the band has always celebrated the enjoyment of bodily pleasures. Or just went direct when it came to entertainment and amusement. There is a hedonism at the heart of the band. If a happy hedonism it is (more on this later). Musically, the song is brash, as directly in-the-face as its lyrics. Brian May’s guitar riff is as sensually curvaceous as the flesh the song sings the praises of. I’m just less than sure that the defence of it being tongue-in-cheek quite works with riffs and words as risqué, frankly, as blatant, as this. ‘I’m sure even 70-year old women sing along to it,’ claims Ruyter Suys of the band ‘Nashville Pussy.’ I’m just not sure that what they think they are singing along to. The song rocks and is incredibly catchy. And yet, when you think about it, Suys goes on to say, ‘what a strange thing to be singing about.’ Maybe only Freddie Mercury could get away with singing and performing a song like this.

The song is routinely placed highly in Queen reviews and ratings. (It makes the 2006 Record Collector top 50). As the recently discovered notes from my sixth form folder indicate, the song used to be right up there with my most favourite Queen tracks, hovering around the top twenty. Part of that can be attributed to memories growing up as a Queen fan. Following your favourite band is like supporting your favourite football team. I would cheer on each new single from the band, getting particularly excited by the ones that hit the top ten (lots stalled at #2, oh the frustration!). I remember its appearance on Top of the Pops. It made an impression that stayed with me, so giving this a high rating became habitual. I tend not to be as keen on the song as I used to be, and many still are. So I should maybe spend some time explaining why it came to drop out of my top fifty over time. I find its appeal rather obvious for a Queen song, now that the shock has worn off and the joke worn thin.

It was the seventies and casual sexism was the norm. The poster which was issued with the Jazz album featured a number of naked ladies on bicycles. The easiest thing to say that it isn’t acceptable by today’s standards and that things have changed for the better. It wasn’t acceptable then, actually, at least not in certain quarters. There were bans and cover-ups in the US, and confiscations by irate mothers in the UK. Always, I took the good and the appealing and tried to avoid becoming implicated in more complicated issues by feigning deafness, dumbness, and blindness. ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ is a rather blatant, if superbly constructed, piece of rock which could work well as irony, not least given that the singer could hardly be expected to be particularly interested in the subject matter. But that’s too pat an explanation. The attempts to sanitize it as a bit of fun are not quite true to the song’s meaning. either. I am sure the song is not what it is taken to be.

I always knew there was something ‘dubious’ about the song. You could feel the tension as soon as it came on. I was drawn to the curvaceous guitar riff and thumping beat in the first instance, and drew a discrete veil over the lyrics. One of those Queen ladies comments, ‘Always loved this song.. felt like it was the story of my life!!’ That’s how the song has been appropriated by female fans. Which begs the question as to what that story is. ‘Back when people still had a sense of humour about sexuality,’ someone comments. The problem is that the song doesn’t sound remotely humorous. It’s got a definite edge to it. The sound of the music and the vocal delivery sound threatening and not joyous at all. Compare the song to ‘Big Girl (You are Beautiful)’ by that nth rate Mercury wannabe and copyist Mica. Mica’s song is an attempt to be joyous and celebratory, mimicking what ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ is taken to be, but isn’t. The result is something that is perfectly naff and inauthentic. ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ is coming from another universe entirely. The riffing is incredibly loud and aggressive, pounded out by what can only be described as Roger Taylor’s war drum beat. It was that sound that attracted me in the first place. And, for all the ‘fun’ references to physical shape, the lyrics tell another story entirely. In retrospect, I was wise to keep quiet at the time, enjoying the rocking drums and guitar, and allowing the song to be sanitised as a bit of outrageous but harmless fun. But my initial instincts were spot on – the song is well-dodgy. We all knew it. On TV and radio, the song made for very uncomfortable viewing and listening. What can I say? This band was not boring and frequently had you equally thrilled and worried. The phrase ‘guilty pleasure’ could have been invented for a song such as this. I must admit, I do still like it. But I have dropped it down the list to preserve my reputation for upholding all things decent and holy.

"If You Can’t Beat Them" (1978 Jazz)

Up tempo pop-rock with Brian May in his element with his guitar solo of over two minutes. I remember that the outro was played by Alexis Korner when he featured Brian May on his show ‘Guitar Greats.’

“Cool Cat” (1982 Hot Space)

I get the feeling that I could have placed almost anything from Hot Space into this slot. Many of the songs on that album were so very different that even Queen fans, who were drawn to the band for being so different in the first place, baulked at them. I rather like revisiting the album and letting it carry on growing on me (nearly forty years on!). I thought I’d go for a song that is ‘unusual.’ This song is so chill. With its gentle, breezy nature, I could listen to it on a loop for an hour. It’s a great tune to chill to.

The curious thing about this obscure little number is that it could very easily have ended up as one of the more famous Queen songs. The song has an interesting history. The song was recorded early in Montreux, before the Hot Space sessions, and featured none other than David Bowie on vocals. Whilst everyone knows the much vaunted Queen and Bowie collaboration “Under Pressure,” few know of Bowie’s involvement in “Cool Cat.” It seems an unlikely collaboration, until you remember that Bowie himself was experimenting with dance around this time, culminating in his 1983 album, Let’s Dance, which proved to be Bowie’s commercial peak. So, for all the controversy the dance turn caused for Queen, I don’t think the creative instincts of the band – or certain band members – were far off.

Freddie sings in a falsetto throughout, accompanied by Bowie’s low vocals and half-spoken vocals in the background, giving the song a slow and funky feel. Unfortunately, Bowie was dissatisfied with his contribution to the song and, just one day before Hot Space was slated for release, requested that his vocals be removed from the song. He stated simply that he just “didn’t like what he did.” Bowie was pretty precious when it came to exercising quality control. He even grumbled a little over “Under Pressure,” so we should be grateful he allowed that classic to see the light of day.

And so “Cool Cat” was buried on the back of the Hot Space album, the released version being unheralded and the unreleased collaboration with Bowie going unheard.

Brian May explains the controversy with Bowie:

“David just did a backing track. I don’t think anyone thought any more about it, except that it was a nice ornamentation. We just sent him a courtesy note telling him that we had used it and he said, ‘I want it taken off, because I’m not satisfied with it.'”

That’s Bowie’s prerogative, they are his vocals and his priority is his own career, profile, and image. Personally, I’m inclined to shy away from people who take themselves and their ‘art’ far too seriously and wonder why they are so concerned to protect their reputation. Such people tend to be more concerned with keeping the critics sweet than taking risks and playing for the people. But that may just mean that I am as tasteless as the singers and bands I love most of all.

It’s a shame that Bowie objected to the use of his vocals on “Cool Cat,” because they work well indeed, adding a stylish texture and weight to the song as Freddie’s falsetto breezes on by. The backing vocals were later replicated by John Deacon employing a heavier bass line, which also works well. It just would have been nice to have had Bowie’s presence on vocals, ensuring a wide audience for the song and, I am sure, a greater appreciation of its charms. Freddie Mercury and David Bowie work well together, their vocal exchanges being perfectly timed.

Whether you prefer the released or the unreleased version depends on what mood you are in. Freddie Mercury is as light as a feather on this, his voice pristine pure and perfectly prime. That vocal and the spare guitar and minimal bass does it for me. Bowie’s intermittent backup vocals add a haunting dimension to the easy beat. I think it’s cool either way. I can see why Bowie wanted his vocal removed, seeing as what he does needs to be properly worked out. I take it as an opportunity to hear two great vocalists working out in the studio. Fred’s vocal is angelic. Bowie’s rap in the middle is … an interpolation (I like hiding behind long words). It needs more work, but is fascinating all the same.

This is such a sumptuous track, so dreamy and delightful, taking you to a calmer and lovelier place, somewhere soft and gentle. Just switch the noise off, turn this on, and drift away. Accompanying Freddie’s falsetto is a spare guitar riff and bass. The instrumentation is bare and tight but perfect, clean, and precise. The result is something an easy going number that is perfect to unwind to.

The song that was released on Hot Space is itself a collaboration between Freddie Mercury and John Deacon. In fact, all instruments on the track are played by Deacon including drums, guitars, and synths, giving the music a tight simplicity which allows Freddie to cruise.

Cool cat

Tapping on the toe with a new hat

Just cruising

Let’s just slow down and meander, take it easy. It’s delightful way to mess with the beat of your heart. And who doesn’t want to be a ‘cool cat?’ (Queen fans were never cool by the standards of the day; we stood out, looked faintly ridiculous, and we knew it. But we were having such a good time that we never budged. We were happy with our eccentricities and idiosyncrasies. Which makes us the coolest cats of all. Possibly.)

“I Want to Break Free” (1984, The Works)

It would be heresy to exclude this from the Top 100. I remember when I learned that it was released as a single. My reaction was incredulous; I thought it the weakest song on the album. People love it, though. I like it; I just don’t seem to like it as much as others do. It was a massive worldwide hit, #1 in six countries, UK #3. It’s catchy, it’s cute. I still think it is nip and tuck between this and ‘Need Your Loving Tonight.’ To be on the safe side, I’ll give this one the nod, given the weight of popular opinion in its favour. And it comes with that wonderful video, Nijinsky and Coronation Street. And it’s worth adding just to worry the brave soldiers from the good ol’ USA. I still prefer ‘Need Your Loving Tonight,’ though.

“Gimme the Prize” (1986 A Kind of Magic)

I thought the A Kind of Magic album a little patchy, and more than a little disappointing, too. I already had the singles ‘One Vision’ and ‘A Kind of Magic,’ and learned that these were the standout tracks bar one (‘Who Wants to Live Forever’). I wasn’t convinced by the pop and ballads, and found the rock clunky. I loved ‘Gimme the Prize’ for being so loud and guitar heavy. This sounded like a return to the early Queen, the Prog Rock Queen. Absolutely and awesomely hard and heavy. It made ‘Pain is so Close to Pleasure’ sound even more wimpy. It even has bagpipe guitars halfway through. ‘It’s better to burn out than to fade away. There can be only one.’ I don’t think Freddie cared for it too much, given its vocal demands – he doesn’t so much sing as scream at the top of his register. And John Deacon didn’t like it either. OK, we see the split between the loud, hard rock of the May-Taylor axis, and the disco/soul/funk groove of Mercury/Deacon. When the split was avoided and the multiple talents merged, we have a band like no other. As for this song, it is awesomeness overload.

"Ride the Wild Wind" (1991 Innuendo)

This sounds a lot like Roger Taylor singing about his love of mechanical objects. With its great driving beat, it beats David Essex’s ‘Silver Dream Machine’ into a cocked-hat. The song hit #1 in Poland owing to the radio airplay chart.

This fast-paced song encourages us to embrace the thrill and danger of life lived ‘on the razor’s edge’ – ‘Push the envelope don't sit on the fence.’ The beating drums and rhythmic bass line create the sensation of speed and engine's roar, with May’s guitar solo heightening the sense of high velocity whilst adding a heavier sound. I don’t care for cars, motorbikes, unnatural speed, and mechanical toys, hence ‘I’m in Love with My Car’ is nowhere to be found in my lists. But I like ‘Ride the Wild Wind.’

"I Was Born to Love You" (1995 Made in Heaven)

The song had been originally recorded and released on Freddie Mercury’s solo album ‘Mr Bad Guy.’ That version was dominated by synthesizers. It was a sound that had a certain popularity at the time. I didn’t care for it, but it worked on this track. It was really Freddie cleaving to his ‘Hot Space’ idea. Unfortunately, Mr Bad Guy suffered the same ignominy as Hot Space. I’m not keen on synthesizers, computerised beats, and dance clubs, least of all when I know that Queen was a band composed of great musicians who could play ‘real’ musical instruments. ‘No synthesizers!’ (OK, that was to explain the magical sounds emerging from the band, but you know the point I’m making). There’s a good song here, all the same, and Queen retrieved it for the band to deliver a vibrant hard rocking version.

“All God’s People” (1991 Innuendo)

Apart from the title track, this was the first track I heard from the Innuendo album. My first thoughts were of the gospel choir on “Somebody to Love.” It sounded like classic Queen of the seventies. But the overtly religious message, sang as the plea of a dying man, give it a distinctly unique flavour. I’ve never remotely seen Queen as a religious band. On the contrary, I detect an explicit rejection of rules and constraints on individuals hell bent on having a good time. Spiritual, possibly, humanist, certainly, but not religious. But references to God do crop up here and there in the tracks. And I always think of “Is This the World We Created?” as a damnation of human conceit and arrogance.

Is this the world we created?

We made it on our own

Is this the world we devastated, right to the bone?

If there's a God in the sky, looking down

What can he think of what we've done

To the world that He created?

Self-made man and his undoing. The self-destruction of the humanist ethic? Or a demand that humans get better at being human? As God surely intended. If there is a God. If there is a God.

Either way, “All God’s People” is a quite remarkable song, both vocally and lyrically. Freddie sings with real power, and the harmonious blending of different vocal parts is truly incredible. Musically, the song is quintessential Queen, with Roger’s precision drumming, Brian’s intermittent guitar riffs, and John’s understated but insistent bass backing Freddie’s incredibly forceful vocals perfectly. The harmonies are warmly mysterious and compelling.

The song was actually an old one, written by Freddie and Mike Moran for Barcelona and entitled “Africa at Night.” It fits the musical atmosphere of that album well. Freddie obviously retained a liking for it, retrieved it, and reworked it for Innuendo.

As for the lyrics, they are inclusive – ‘we’re all God’s people’ – and exude a generosity of spirit. To those who equate religion with rules and regulations and say that the humanist ethos of Queen runs in a contrary direction (and I have heard Roger Taylor more than a few times say that he loathes the ‘overly religious’), then these lyrics do come with certain rules and injunctions, urging people to ‘give freely’ and ‘make welcome inside your homes.’ ‘Open your eyes’, ‘rule with your heart,’ ‘live with your conscience’: ‘Don't turn your back on the lesson of the Lord.’

Gotta face up

Better grow up

Gotta stand tall and be strong

It sounds religious to me, albeit relating the rules and injunctions to the living God, preparing to receive God’s unconditional love, mercy, and grace. Or it could simply be that Freddie was taking one last chance to be Aretha Franklin (his great ambition, I heard Brian May say in an interview). Gospel is the root of Aretha’s music, for sure. I really don’t know, knowing only Freddie’s songs and lyrics. Words like "Let us be thankful, He's so incredible" seem overtly religious to me. And then we have “My life has been saved” on the Made in Heaven album.

Putting all speculation to one side, this is a powerful song with a real emotional pull concerning one’s relationship with the living and loving God. It is about the universal Love that embraces and unites all people, and the need to tend to the relations between all people on Earth. The song urges us to help one another since we really are all one people with the God of Love. I’ll leave the proper formulation of that ethic to other work. Humanists think it possible without the need to invoke God; I am nowhere near so sure of that. Things that are equal to the one thing – God – are equal to one another. We are all God’s people, at one with God and hence with one another.

Just a joyous song affirming the unity of each and all in the Love embrace of the universe.

“Love Kills” (2014 Queen Forever)

The idea of the song was presented to Freddie by Giorgio Moroder for inclusion in the soundtrack for his new edit and restoration of Fritz Lang's Metropolis, which Freddie proceeded to rework in his own fashion. The result was a high energy slice of synthpop, which peaked at UK #10 when issued as a single. Although credited as a Freddie Mercury solo track, “Love Kills” was recorded during The Works sessions, with all four members of Queen working on it. The song had been considered for inclusion on The Works, but wasn’t used. It would be interesting to know the reasons why. My first impression of The Works was that it was short on material, with eight main songs plus a short acoustic at the close. ‘Let Me Into Your Heart Again’ was another song that could have made the album, had the band been able to finish it. The inclusion of both tracks would have made for a very substantial album indeed.

Twenty years later, the stripped down version of the song was reworked by Brian May and Roger Taylor and issued as a rock ballad on the 2014 album Queen Forever. I love both versions of the song and don’t see the need to choose one over the other, other than to say that the synth/dance high energy version is the Mercury/Deacon Queen that came to the fore on Hot Space and the rock ballad version is the May/Taylor Queen. Sometimes, the band was at war within itself. I get the distinct impression that Hot Space and The Works represent a swinging from one pole to another. When both hands held both poles firmly in their grip, the result was magic. People know the high energy version of “Love Kills,” but not the slowed down rock ballad version. The reworking was flagged up to promote the new Queen Forever album of 2014. The obvious thing to say is that the Queen version of “Love Kills” “kills” the dance original. It doesn’t. There’s no real comparison to be made, they are very different songs and very good in what they are. That said, I’ll bet that few people could have guessed that a seemingly ephemeral piece of synthpop could have proven to have so much rock substance.

Just missing out:

“Son and Daughter” (1973 Queen I)

A bit Hendrix. Find the concert medley, if you can, which incorporates the guitar solo from “Brighton Rock.”

“Funny How Love Is” (1974 Queen II)

Rather infectious in its insistent refrain.

"Dear Friends" (1974 Sheer Heart Attack)

A nice, simple, soothing piano ballad which lasts just over a minute. For some reason, it always sounded Welsh to me, particularly when the choir enters. It is short and sweet, like a poem accompanied by piano and vocal harmonies.

“I’m in Love with My Car” (1975 A Night at the Opera).

Very many people love this one, and refuse to go near any list that doesn’t place it high. It was once a staple of Queen concerts. For my part, I really don’t like cars at all, and imagine the song being sung about something else. The lyrics do indeed seem open invitations to alternate explanations. Some such thing has been suggested. It would make more sense of the emotional charge and the heat it generates in the song’s performance. Cars leave me cold in a way that substitutes don’t. Brian May says that we all know the truth, though: Roger Taylor really was singing about his car.

“Sweet Lady” (1975 A Night at the Opera)

I remember my mother sent a request for a Queen song on Radio Wales, and Richard Rees played this one. It’s a hard rocker about a lady who treated the writer ‘like a dog.’ I’ve never rated it quite as highly as others, but that might be my problem. It’s a good rocker with a hard driving beat. It also has May’s stacked guitar harmonies. The fact that the verse, chorus, and outro are all in different time signatures is also incredibly cool. The end is a great rock-out it has to be said. Few bands could rock as hard as Queen.

"You and I" (1976 A Day at the Races)

This is quite a light and breezy pop song, easily overlooked among the heavyweights on ‘A Day at the Races.’ It has all the qualities of a classic pop song, it’s direct, catchy, and mood lifting. Written by John Deacon, it is easy to see this as a follow-up to ‘You’re My Best Friend.’ Deacon had a great pop sensibility.

“Need Your loving tonight” (1980 The Game)

John Deacon really knew how to write a great pop tune. This song tends to get overlooked, not least because it is light and breezy on a side containing heavyweights (side 1 of The Game). It’s classic, catchy, in-your-face pop. I always play it against Deacon’s much better known ‘I Want to Break Free.’ The latter is considered a classic. I prefer this song, for its much greater vitality.

“Rock It” (1980 The Game)

This was a big favourite of an old friend’s from school. He had The Game before I did and was happy to describe the merits of each track. This was a rock track with synthesizers! That was a big deal for old Queen fans which, incredibly, we already were at the tender age of fifteen in 1980.

“Flash” (1980 Flash)

This should be the number one, really. We all smiled when we heard that Queen were working on the soundtrack to the movie “Flash Gordon.” We were still smiling when we heard it. A band that was known for going over the top were invited to go over the top. Just remember to do all the dialogue when you sing along. In fact, you don’t need to do the singing, just the ‘a-ah’ will do. I can’t really say much more than with “Flash” Queen took the hyper-reality of a camp sci-fi classic to a different dimension entirely. For the two minutes that it plays, it’s the greatest song ever. Love the way the bass line throbs throughout.

“Body Language” (1982 Hot Space)

I hated this with a passion at the time. I took a dislike to it as soon as I heard it. It didn’t sound like Queen, it didn’t even sound like a song. I felt immediately it would ruin the reputation of the band and, sure enough, it caused all manner of rancour and acrimony. But was it really so bad? Maybe Freddie was onto something, just continuing being daring and different, in a way that distinguished the band in the seventies. Listening to it now, and I immediately pick up on that incredible bass line. The bass line alone here nails it. The rest is Freddie hamming it up as only he could. I now see it as a counterpart with synthesizers and a beat to ‘Get Down, Make Love.’ Had it gone huge – and it could have done – people would have been praising Freddie’s genius for experimentation. As it is, people ran for cover. I have a feeling that all the flesh, kinkiness, and S&M on display in the video might have had something to do with it. This made ‘Bicycle Race’ seem pure and innocent in comparison. ‘They were very open-minded, Queen audiences, so we felt less constrained.’ (Brian May). Here, we seemed to have found the limits of that open-mindedness.

Freddie Mercury was extremely agitated by the public rejection of “Body Language.” “I’m extremely upset — outraged, in fact,” he said. “I just think they could have given it a chance. I mean, I know ‘Body Language’ was the first one of its kind from us, but it met with such disapproval in England. God!”

Mercury declared that the poor reaction to “Body Language” wasn’t going to cause him to return to what the public considered to be the more authentically Queen sound. “If they think that because of that situation, I’m going to send leave back and come out with a rehash of ‘[Bohemian] Rhapsody,’ they’re mistaken,” he said. “There’s no way I’m going to see that. But I’m glad that the Americans have seen that side of it.”

Freddie Mercury admitted that Hot Space was a “big risk,” but regretted that the British public just “totally ignored it.” “It was obviously not their cup of tea,” he said, “so they just rejected it totally.”

The fact remains, however, that the next album, The Works, was an explicit attempt by the band to return to a more familiar sound, one that resonated more strongly with the public than Hot Space had done.

Some people like it, though. Although it reached only #25 in the UK, which is a poor performance for a Queen single in the UK, it did hit US #11 (and #3 in Canada). That suggests that Queen’s forays into dance were not as misguided as critics can now say in retrospect. The song has been damned for its poor UK performance. But the instincts of Freddie Mercury and John Deacon here may not have been as far off as critics allege. And that strong US performance was gained without the benefit of a video, which was deemed unsuitable for a television audience on account of its plentiful skin and sweat, not to mention its unmistakeable erotic undertones. And that baseline definitely gets hold of you. It was Queen’s fifth biggest hit in the U.S. That’s not to be sniffed at. The fact that the video was banned might have helped people focus on the dance groove, ignoring any other implications. In the U.K., it worried the life out of me, seeing as I was known to be a huge Queen fan. I rather cringed when it came on the TV with all the family members watching. What was one to say? I said nothing and played it cool..

“Calling All Girls” (1982 Hot Space)

This made my initial selection for the top 100. As the years go by, and the controversy over the dance and disco turn dies down, I’ve come to revisit Hot Space, seeing it in new light. It’s like having a new Queen album always available. I thought I’d go for a song that is ‘unusual’ – ‘Calling All Girls.’ I never appreciated this track back in the day, it always sounded like an attempt to follow Nick Heywood and Haircut 100 (badly). But it’s an intriguing song for all that. It’s worth watching the video which accompanied the single, revealing a band on a mission to spread the message of love throughout the world, in resistance to a dystopian future. In that respect, it anticipates ‘Radio Ga Ga’ and the Highlander tracks on ‘A Kind of Magic.’ It’s an odd one, for sure. Roger Taylor scowls through the video, Brian May smiles, both thinking it truly embarrassing. Taylor, who wrote the song, protested that the song had nothing to do with robots. So video and song are out of kilter. I’ll declare that I have a soft spot for it. The song hit #60 in the US and #6 in Poland. The Poles have good taste.

“Put out the Fire” (1982 Hot Space)

Many of the old rockers among Queen fans clung to this as the only saving grace on Hot Space. I made the defence myself to a rock fan who enquired whether Hot Space was any good. I wasn’t quite convinced. It’s OK, needs a little more power.‘ Tear it Up’ is better, harder and louder.

“Tear it Up” (1984 The Works)

Hard and loud, and all the harder and louder to blow away the memory of the synths and horns on Hot Space. It seemed like Brian May’s blunt statement of hard rock intent. Which might explain why the song is curiously unimaginative and unintelligent for a Queen song. It was performed live in concert, but without much by way of excitement. It’s a bit of a blunderbuss, to be honest. OK if you like it hard and loud.

“Man on the Prowl” (1984 The Works)

I loved this one at the time and played it over and again. It’s obviously an attempt to recall the spirit of ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love.’ I think it’s harder, more musically complex, but a little more contrived for all that.

“Friends will be Friends” (1986 A Kind of Magic)

I bought the single, even though I had the album. It’s anthemic in the typical Queen manner. If it didn’t break any new ground, it was good for bringing all the fans together in celebration of the traditional Queen sound.

“Don’t Lose Your Head” (1986 A Kind of Magic)

More Roger Taylor sci-fi rock. A dark and brooding number written for the movie Highlander. Ethereal electronica to a great driving rhythm. And it offers sound advice for life.

"One Year of Love" (1986 A Kind of Magic)

I get the feeling that this is a really great soul ballad which could have been a bona fide Queen classic. I think Freddie strains too much on the vocal. With the combination of saxophone and strings and saxophone, this is one of the most romantic songs in the Queen catalogue. John Deacon and Freddie Mercury show themselves to be the heart and soul of Queen. It’s a beautiful song, that’s for sure. Just listen to the way the strings sweep you away at the end. It might just be me who thinks a slightly different vocal approach from Freddie would have made this better. I’ll leave that one for others to decide.

“Headlong” (1991 Innuendo)

It’s a cracking rocker, very catchy, and made UK #14 when issued as a single.

“I Can’t Live with You” (1991 Innuendo)

Great pop rock, Queen’s sensibilities working in peak condition right at the end.

“No One But You.”

"No-One But You (Only the Good Die Young)" was recorded and released in 1997, after the death of Freddie Mercury, and is written in tribute to Fred. The song was the last recording to feature John Deacon on bass, and so is a final swansong to the old band. Predictably, it’s an emotional ballad, and a very good one. Heartfelt and genuinely moving.

And now, I should set about ranking these tracks from #100 to #1 ….

I don’t think such rankings serve much purpose, to be honest. If people were honest, they would have to admit that all they are doing is listing their favourites. Which begs the question as to why anyone should care. I guess we are all just amusing ourselves.

My favourite Queen track?

Any one from ‘Don’t Stop Me Now,’ ‘Seaside Rendezvous,’ 'Spread Your Wings,' ‘A Kind of ..’ madness, I’m off again. I’m sure you can find more tracks worthy of being heard. I mean, how could one not pick “Flash"? I'll leave it to others to find the great missing track here. On reflection, it might have been easier to pick the handful of songs that may not be up to Queen's incredibly high - or entertaining - standards.

Freddie would often state, openly, that the songs he wrote were merely disposable pop music, for people to enjoy for the moment and then discard. I don’t buy that for one moment. The songs are not merely beautifully conceived and well-crafted – and I mean the ‘flippant’ and humorous and quirky ones as well as the more obviously serious one – they are expertly delivered. Queen were often criticised for over-production. I’m going to use the words professional, meticulous, and pain-staking instead. They took their business very seriously, and it showed. And they put it on for the benighted masses. There’s a certain nobility in that. And they didn’t give a damn what the critics said. They carried on with single-minded determination.

Today, as I spend time idling over Queen song lists, as I did throughout my teenage years, I’ll take the opportunity to remind the world that Queen were embarked on a rather noble mission. It doesn’t seem that way, of course. They wanted fame and fortune through writing and performing pop songs, which seems most ignoble indeed. For all that, though, there is indeed something noble about reaching out to the ‘masses’ to affirm life, community, and a sense of belonging. It’ll take more than pop music to achieve peace and unity on the planet, of course. But as humanity keeps stumbling forwards in that direction, I can think of no better soundtrack to be playing to keep us royally entertained along the way.

Hold on, I’ve missed out ‘Who Needs You?’ and ‘Hitman.’ I’ve also missed ‘God Save the Queen,’ and ‘Thank God it’s Christmas.’ (The latter omission is criminal given my love of Christmas). I’ve missed ‘My Life has been Saved,’ too. Some people love ‘Action this Day.’ Beyond that there are issues over the placings. I really think that ‘Machines’ from The Works is worthy contender for the top fifty, as a song which romanticizes computer stuff like RAM, Hardware, Software, and Disk Drive, without all of which it would not have been possible to post lists like this, we would all be back to pen and paper, which is where I was in 1983/4. And I strongly suspect that ‘The March of the Black Queen’ really belongs in the top fifty. I have a feeling that ‘It’s a Hard Life’ belongs in the top fifty also. I know I loved it in 1984 and bought the single, even though I already had it on album. It’s not my fault this band is so damned good. I dread having to rank these songs in a Top 100. It’s that feeling you get when you think you have found the greatest Queen song, only to find another great song from them, only to find another great song from them, only to find another great song from them......

I’ve also missed “I’m Going Slightly Mad,” one of the deepest, darkest slices of humour in the history of the band. On the surface, it is witty and raises a smile. But it has layers, intimating what was in store for Freddie as his illness progressed. It’s a top fifty contender, for sure. Trying to stake down Queen’s songbook precisely is akin to driving nails into the sand in an attempt to define the sea. The point applies to music, life, and reality in general. It’s a madness, but it passes the time with one’s memories, and maybe in the company of fellow idlers and eccentrics. You can meet at the dreamer’s ball.

I should also add that I love “Nevermore” from Queen II, another of those short tracks that lightened the mood, calmed the passions, and served as links between some heavyweight songs. I should also make mention of “Coming Soon” from The Game. It’s not a particularly brilliant song, but it’s entertaining. It’s another that I remember singing in class at school, the title at least. I was an endless source of mirth and merriment in the days I didn’t take examinations seriously at all. One day, who knows, I might even arrive.

I shall quit here by saying that whenever you listen to a Queen song, remember that the band was composed by four very different, strong, and uniquely talented characters. And none of them po-faced and boring, restrained by impeccably good taste. In the words of Roger Taylor, the greatest rock’n’roll treads a very fine line between genius and ridiculousness. Queen trod that line longer than most and better than all.

Queen comprised four supremely talented, highly intelligent individuals. What do you get when you join an astrophysicist, an electrical engineer, a graphic designer, and a dentist/biologist? Another way of putting the same question is to ask ‘how do nerds and geeks meet and attract girls?’ The four members of Queen were meticulous in laying firm foundations and mapping their musical landscape with precision. I have heard critics lambast Queen for overproduction and for overdubbing. I don’t care for such criticism but can see its point. If you listen to any member of Queen discussing how they crafted their songs and albums, at times it seems you are listening to the brains at work in a high-tech company or precision engineering. The members of Queen knew what they were doing when it came to the technology of sound and sound production. They knew all about complexity and connection, then, but they also knew about performance and presentation. They could implement the design like no other.

The band seized the public imagination back in 1975 with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and never let go. Fifty years on, there are no signs of the band losing its grip on popular culture. I bought the August 1999 copy of Mojo magazine, which had Queen on the front cover with the question mark ‘the second greatest band of all time.’ It transpires that, as people conducted polls and compiled lists in the countdown to the Millennium, Queen took the music journalists at Mojo by surprise by being voted the second greatest band of all time, and the fourth greatest act (behind The Beatles, Elvis, and Sinatra, of course, this is Mojo after all). The editorial began by arguing that if there was ever a band that critics would be likely to vote the worst band of all time then it would be Queen. So how did they end up so high? Who cares what critics and music journalists think? The answer strikes me as so obvious that those still asking such questions are only demonstrating their own cluelessness. The people who have to ask questions as blinkered as this lack the vision to comprehend the answers. I could have told these clever critics the answers they were seeking, not that they would have understood. The polls that take place routinely in the music mags tend to be conducted among males of a certain age, the kind of people who buy these mags (me), and who take it all far too seriously (me). The same names, the same songs, and the same albums are ranked and recorded, written in stone for all time. Queen fans tend not to bother with comparisons, simply assuming the obvious – that Queen are the best. They tend to ignore comparisons, too, for the reason that Queen have been typically on the receiving end of them. Everyone is better than Queen according to the critics. And many people were stupid enough to believe them. Part of the immense reaction to Queen’s show stealing, show stopping performance on Live Aid can be attributed to the revelation on the part of the great public that critics talk absolute rot and Queen were, incomparably, the best band of all. They were all on there, McCartney, Led Zep, Dylan, you name them – Queen trounced the lot (apart from Status Quo and The Who, who I thought a very good second).

But, going from memory, I think Mojo hinted at something else going on – the women’s vote. Women tend not to bother too much with polls, and so results tend to reflect the obsessions of certain males of a certain age. Queen always were an odd act, with all that ambiguity between male and female and whatever lies between and beyond the familiar identities. When we get a bigger and more representative poll – when the odd, the excluded, and the eccentric turn up to swamp the same old males – we get different results. I could have told all concerned that Queen have a large female following, and women of all ages. My mum eventually became a huge fan (although that might have had something to do with my daily brainwashing). And she was far from being alone among family and friends. Blind eyes were turned to certain eccentricities and outrages associated with the band (I didn’t know where to put my face when the video to ‘Body Language’ was shown on TV). I’ll probably get hammered for advancing this viewpoint, but by this stage I really don’t care. The only thing worse than censorship is the self-censorship that an age of cultural coercion imposes on people. There are people in this world who will neurotically nag a particular view to death until they bully others into either compliance or silence (their own ideologically sound one, of course). And then there are people who will tell the unvarnished truth, and risk catching hell for it. I don’t need to argue a case here, merely state a fact: I have met and spoken with more than a few ladies who declared a love for Queen in general and songs like ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ in particular. Grossly sexist, of course, and something we should immediately express disapproval of. I think they took it as a celebration of their good selves. You could argue that I have been in the company of the wrong kind of women. Seeing as a number were family members, there’s not a lot I could do about it. All I can say is that it came as no surprise to me to see Queen ranked so highly once the votes of women came to be counted. Condemn it as vulgar bad taste for stupid trashy people all you like. That’s a superficial view common among patronising middle-brows who lack the nerve for anything other than impeccably good and ideologically approved taste. I’ve known a lot of Queen fans over the years, going back to my school days. I met a few more in the De La Salle sixth form college, and then more at St Helens College and, after that, university. Queen fans always struck me as quirky, funny, open-minded with a highly developed sense of the ridiculous, a little off-beat and laid back, non-censorious and non-judgemental. And not unintelligent at all, quite the opposite in fact. It is worth remembering that this is a band that consists of an astrophysicist (PhD), an electrical engineer (first class honours), a dentist/biologist (BSc), and an opera loving one-off who studied fine arts.

As for the title ‘second greatest band of all time,’ Mojo set about testing that claim, grudgingly accepting that a case could just about be made on the basis of a meagre few songs. I found it a miserable and churlish article that seemed offended and challenged by the popular vote. It missed a huge opportunity to understand the appeal and truly appreciate the legacy of a great band. But who, in an age of democracy, really respects the popular voice?

And if you want my not inconsiderable opinion, I think Queen were the greatest band of all. It’s not just the hit records and the albums, it’s the concerts, top quality performances at every stage of their career. There were and are none that could compare. I hope the band go on for fifty more years at the top, and another fifty after that.

What do you get when you join a graphic designer, an astrophysicist, a dentist, and an electrical engineer?

Quite simply, the greatest band that ever existed.

Just don’t try so hard. And don’t stop me now.