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Bohemian Rhapsody

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Musical Recordings and
compositions

   "Bohemian Rhapsody"
   "Bohemian Rhapsody" cover
   Single by Queen
   from the album A Night at the Opera
   B-side(s) I'm in Love With My Car
   Released October 31, 1975
   Format 1975: Vinyl record (7")
   1991: CD, Vinyl record (7")
   1992: CD
   Recorded 1975:
   Rockfield Studio 1
   Roundhouse
   SARM (East)
   Scorpion
   Wessex
   Genre Rock
   Hard rock
   Progressive rock
   Length 05:55
   Label EMI (1975)
   Elektra (1975)
   Parlophone (1991)
   Hollywood (1992)
   Writer(s) Freddie Mercury
   Producer(s) Roy Thomas Baker
   Queen
   Chart positions
     * #1 (Australia; Belgium; Canada; Ireland; Netherlands; New Zealand;
       Spain; UK: platinum)
     * #2 (South Africa)
     * #4 (Norway; Sweden; Switzerland)
     * #7 (Germany)
     * #9 (US: gold)
     * #48 (Japan)

   1991/1992 reissue:
     * #1 (Ireland; UK: platinum)
     * #2 (Netherlands; US: platinum)
     * #5 (Australia)
     * #8 (Austria)
     * #16 (Germany)

   Queen singles chronology
   Now I'm Here
   (1975) Bohemian Rhapsody
   (1975) You're My Best Friend
   (1976)
     __________________________________________________________________
     __________________________________________________________________
     __________________________________________________________________

   The Show Must Go On
   (1991) Bohemian Rhapsody/ These Are The Days Of Our Lives
   (1991) Heaven for Everyone
   (1995)

   "Bohemian Rhapsody" is a song written by Freddie Mercury, originally
   recorded by the band Queen for their 1975 album A Night at the Opera.
   The song is a rock opera song and has a very unusual musical structure
   for a piece of popular music. Its three different sections have no
   chorus but both a cappella and heavy metal arrangements. Despite this,
   it was released as a single and became a huge commercial success,
   marking a decisive point in Queen's career and setting them on the way
   to become one of the world's biggest bands. The single was accompanied
   by what is generally cited as a groundbreaking " promotional video",
   which helped establish the visual language of the modern music video.
   The song was included in all Queen's subsequent live concert
   performances, and still enjoys great popularity all over the world.

Origins and name

   Very little has been said about the song's title. According to what
   Brian May told a magazine and published in his website, Mercury came up
   with it later in the recording process. As confirmed in a 2004 BBC
   Documentary about the song, which included the aforementioned demo and
   interviews with producer Roy Thomas Baker, early tapes from Mercury
   rehearsing the piano parts were simply labelled "Fred's thing".

   The title's meaning can be taken as a song irregular in form about
   someone who doesn't follow the rules of society. The reason for this is
   that the textbook definition of Bohemian is 'a person, as an artist or
   writer, who lives and acts free of regard for conventional rules and
   practices' and the definition of rhapsody is 'an instrumental
   composition irregular in form and suggestive of improvisation'.

   Mercury composed the song on an upright piano he had in his London
   flat. According to Reinhold Mack in a 2000 interview about The Game,
   when he asked Freddie how he had written the song, he described the
   process as having a germinal idea, polishing it, then adding and taking
   out bits until it was exactly as he wanted it.

   According to what Mercury said in an early 1976 interview, this had
   simply been one of the pieces he'd got in his songwriting batch for the
   album, and he had been tempted to drop it at some early stages, until
   he realised that the track could have some potential.

Recording

   The song was recorded over three weeks by the band and producer Roy
   Thomas Baker. Recording began at Rockfield Studio 1 near Monmouth on
   August 24, 1975, after a 3-week rehearsal period in Herefordshire.
   During the making of the track, a further four studios -- Roundhouse,
   SARM (East), Scorpion, and Wessex -- were used. According to some band
   members, Mercury had worked out the entire song in his head and
   directed the band through the song.

   May, Mercury, and Taylor sang their vocal parts continually for ten to
   twelve hours a day, resulting in 180 separate overdubs. Since the
   studios of the time only offered 24-track analogue tape, it was
   necessary for May, Mercury and Taylor to overdub themselves many times,
   and "bounce" these down to successive submixes. In the end, eighth
   generation tapes were being used. The tapes had passed over the
   recording heads so many times the normally opaque tapes could be seen
   through, as the oxide layer was beginning to wear off. The various
   sections of tape containing the desired submixes would have to be cut
   with razor blades and reassembled together in the correct sequence
   using adhesive tape, a process known as splicing.

   A backing track of the grand piano (Mercury), bass guitar (Deacon) and
   drums (Taylor) was recorded first. The band used many instruments to
   produce the song, including a Fender Precision Electric Bass, May's Red
   Special electric guitar, Ludwig Drums, timpani and a Paiste Gong.
   Mercury used a Bechstein "Concert" Grand Piano, the same he'd later
   play in both the promotional video and the UK Tour.

   When it was finished it was the most expensive single ever made and
   remains one of the most elaborate recordings in music history.

Release

   When Mercury wanted to release the single in 1975, it had been
   suggested to him that, at 5 minutes and 56 seconds, it was far too long
   and would thus never be a hit. But Mercury had a plan. He gave a copy
   of the single to friend and London DJ Kenny Everett, informing him that
   it was for him personally, and that he must never play it on air,
   expecting him to do the opposite ( reverse psychology). Mercury's plan
   worked, as Everett did just the opposite, teasing his listeners by
   playing bits and pieces of the song throughout his show. Ultimately,
   Everett would go on to play the song as many as fourteen times in a
   single day. From then on, every major radio station played the song in
   full. The track proved popular and was released with "I'm In Love With
   My Car" as the B-side.

Song structure

   The song is composed of six distinct sections - introduction, ballad,
   guitar solo, opera, rock, and an outro.

Introduction (0:00-0:48)

   The song begins with close four-part harmony a cappella introduction in
   B-flat, which is entirely multitrack recordings of Mercury. The lyrics
   question whether life is "real" or "just fantasy" before concluding
   that there can be "no escape from reality." After 15 seconds, the grand
   piano enters, and Mercury's solo voice alternates with the chorus. The
   narrator introduces himself as "just a poor boy" but declares that he
   "need[s] no sympathy" because nothing matters: chromatic side-slipping
   on "easy come, easy go" highlight the dream-like atmosphere. The end of
   this section is marked by the bass entrance and the familiar
   cross-handed piano vamp in B-flat.

Ballad (0:48-2:36)

   The grand piano continues the 2-bar vamp in B-flat. Deacon's bass
   guitar enters playing the first note, and the vocals change from
   harmony to an impassioned solo performance by Mercury. The narrator
   explains that he has "just killed a man," and with that act thrown his
   life away. The chromatic bass line at the end of brings about a
   modulation to E-flat. Here Taylor's drums enter (1:19), and the
   narrator makes the first of several invocations to his "mama" in the
   new key, reusing the original theme. The narrator explains his regret
   over "mak[ing] you cry" and urging mama to "carry on" as if "nothing
   really matters." A truncated phrase connects to a repeat of the vamp in
   B-flat. As the ballad proceeds into its second verse, the narrator
   shows how tired and beat down he is by his actions (as May enters on
   guitar and mimics the upper range of the piano 1:50). May sends
   "shivers down my spine" by scratching the strings on the other side of
   the bridge. The narrator bids the world goodbye and prepares to "face
   the truth" admitting "I don't want to die / I sometimes wish I'd never
   been born at all." Another chromatic bass descent brings a modulation
   to the key of A, and the "Opera" section.

Guitar solo (2:36-3:02)

   As Mercury sings the rising line "I sometimes wish I'd never been born
   at all," the band builds in intensity, leading up to the song's first
   highlight: a guitar solo by May that serves as the segue from ballad to
   opera. May's solo continues to build intensity, but, once the bass line
   completes its descent establishing the new key, the entire band cuts
   out abruptly at 3:02 except for quiet A Major quaver chords on the
   piano: the "opera" has begun. In live performances, the stage would go
   dark and all the members of the band would walk offstage and allow the
   entire opera section to play from the recording.

Opera (3:02-4:07)


   Bohemian Rhapsody

   Every time Freddie came up with another 'Galileo', I would add another
   piece of tape to the reel... That section alone took about three weeks
  to record, which in 1975 was the average time spent on a whole album. –
                              Roy Thomas Baker


   Bohemian Rhapsody

   A rapid series of rhythmic and harmonic changes (E flat major to F
   minor to A major, among others) introduces a pseudo-operatic
   midsection, which contains the bulk of the elaborate vocal
   multitracking, depicting the narrator's "descent into hell". While the
   underlying pulse of the song is maintained, the dynamics vary greatly
   from bar to bar, from a single Mercury voice and solo piano, to a
   multi-voice choir. The choir effect was created by having May, Mercury,
   and Taylor sing their vocal parts continually for ten to twelve hours a
   day, resulting in 180 separate overdubs. The band used the bell effect
   for lyrics "Magnifico" and "Let me go". Also, on "Let him go", Taylor
   singing the top section carries his note on further after the rest of
   the "choir" have stopped singing. Lyrical references in this passage
   include Scaramouche, the fandango, Galileo, Figaro, " Bismillah," and
   Beelzebub, as rival factions fight over the narrator's soul. The
   introduction is recalled with the chromatic inflection on "I'm just a
   poor boy...easy come, easy go." The section concludes with a full
   choral treatment of the lyric, "Beelzebub has a devil put aside for
   me!" in which Taylor famously hits a Bb, almost 2 octaves above middle
   C.

Hard rock (4:07-4:55)

   The operatic section leads (with the voices singing "for me" on a block
   B-flat major chord, topped by a sustained high B-flat falsetto from
   Taylor) into an aggressive hard rock musical interlude with a guitar
   riff that was written by Mercury. During group singalongs (including
   the famous scene in the film Wayne's World), it is traditional to
   headbang during this passage. At 4:14, a double-tracked Mercury sings
   angry lyrics addressed to an unspecified "you," accusing him/her of
   betrayal and abuse and insisting "can't do this to me, baby." There
   follows three ascending guitar runs, which May described as something
   he had to "battle with" when performing the song live. The third guitar
   run is then imitated by Mercury on the piano.

Outro Ballad (4:55-5:56)

   After Mercury plays ascending octaves of notes from the B flat
   mixolydian scale, the song then returns to the tempo and form of the
   introduction. A guitar accompanies the chorus' "ooh yeah, ooh yeah", to
   give the effect of trumpets. This effect was achieved by playing the
   guitar through an amp designed by Deacon, affectionately nicknamed the
   " Deacy Amp". The song progressively becomes quieter while Mercury
   again sings "nothing really matters to me..." The final line, "any way
   the wind blows," is followed by the barely audible sound of a gong.

   Note that an academic paper has been written on the song (McLeod K.
   2001, Bohemian rhapsodies: operatic influences on rock music, Popular
   Music, vol 20/2, pp 189-203).

Lyrics

   From the time "Bohemian Rhapsody" was released to the public, there has
   been speculation as to the meaning behind the song's lyrics. Some
   believe the lyrics were inspired by author Albert Camus, given the
   similarities to Camus's novel The Stranger. Still others believe the
   lyrics were only written to fit with the music, and don't have any
   meaning at all. As evidence, DJ Everett quoted Mercury as claiming the
   lyrics were simply "random rhyming nonsense."

   Mercury was famously evasive when asked about the song's meaning.
   Unlike the other members of Queen, who often talked about the
   inspiration behind the songs they had written, Mercury disliked too
   much analysis into his material, and preferred listeners to construct
   their own personal interpretations. Following the single's release,
   Mercury was quoted as saying, "It's one of those songs which has such a
   fantasy feel about it." "I think people should just listen to it, think
   about it, and then make up their own minds as to what it says to them."
   "'Bohemian Rhapsody' didn't just come out of thin air. I did a bit of
   research although it was tongue-in-cheek and mock opera. Why not?"

Promotional video

   The video for the single was directed by Bruce Gowers, using ideas from
   the band members themselves. It was created to allow the band to be on
   tour and appear "live" on the BBC's Top of the Pops. Shot in just over
   four hours on the band's rehearsal stage, it cost £4500 to produce,
   using an outside broadcast truck owned by one of the band's managers.

   All the special effects were done during the recording. The effect of
   having the face zooming away was accomplished by simply pointing the
   camera at a monitor, thus giving visual feedback, a visual glare which
   is analogous to audio feedback. In the original version of the video an
   apparent editing glitch led to the piano part briefly being
   double-tracked out of sync with itself, but this was corrected in later
   releases.

   The "Bohemian Rhapsody" video is often cited as "the first ever music
   promo video." This assertion is incorrect. Many bands (including Queen)
   had made promotional clips to accompany their single releases.

   However, it wasn't until after the success of the "Bohemian Rhapsody"
   video that it became regular practice for record companies to produce
   promo videos for their artists' single releases. These videos could
   then be shown on TV music shows such as the BBC's Top of The Pops,
   without the need for the artist to appear in person. A promo video also
   allowed the artist to have their music broadcast and accompanied by
   their own choice of visuals, rather than dancers such as Pan's People
   performing a routine to the song. The video has been widely hailed as
   the first true pop promo, launching the MTV age.

   The famous image of Mercury with his hands crossed over his chest was
   originally from the Queen II album cover, and was shot by rock
   photographer Mick Rock, inspired by a 1932 photograph of Marlene
   Dietrich smoking a cigarette with her hands held up and the exact same
   lighting.

Popularity

   In 1977, only two years after its release, "Bohemian Rhapsody" was
   named 'The Best Single Of The Last 25 Years' by BPI.

   "Bohemian Rhapsody" is the only single to have been UK Christmas Number
   1 twice (in a single recording), first in 1975/1976, and then in
   1991/1992 (as a double-A single with " These Are The Days Of Our
   Lives") following the death of Mercury. The song stayed at number one
   on the British charts for nine weeks – the longest stay since 1957, and
   another five weeks during 1991-1992. It has the fourth longest total of
   weeks at #1 on the UK singles chart. It is also the only UK single ever
   to sell a million copies on two separate occasions and is placed third
   in the official list of the best-selling singles in the United Kingdom.

   The song consistently ranks highly in media reader polls of "the best
   singles of all-time". In 2002, it came first in the Guinness Hit
   Singles poll of the greatest UK singles of all-time, as well as 10th in
   a BBC World Service poll to find the world's favourite song. In 2000 it
   came second to " Imagine" by John Lennon in a Channel 4 television poll
   of The 100 Best Number 1s. It has been in the top 5 of the Dutch annual
   "Top 100 Aller Tijden" ("All-Time Top 100 Singles") since 1977,
   reaching #1 eight times.; in the annual "Top 2000" (maintained since
   1999) it has, until 2005, been #1 every year. In 2005, it went down one
   place to #2. For popularity comparence: the 2005 edition of the top
   2000 was listened to by more then 60% of the total Dutch populace.

   The song enjoyed renewed popularity in 1992 as part of the soundtrack
   to the film Wayne's World. In connection with this, a new video was
   released, intercutting excerpts from the film with footage from the
   original Queen video, along with some live footage of the band. The
   final scene of the video was notable, where a 1974 photo of the band
   members (from the cover of the Queen II album) "morphs" into an
   identically-posed 1985 photo. This re-release hit #2 in the US in 1992,
   sixteen years after the original 1976 US release peaked at #9.

   As of 2004 "Bohemian Rhapsody" is the second most played song on
   British radio.
   Preceded by:
   Billy Connolly
   D.I.V.O.R.C.E. UK number one single
   1975 Succeeded by:
   ABBA
   Mamma Mia
   Preceded by:
   George Michael and Elton John
   Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me UK number one single
   1991 Succeeded by:
   Wet Wet Wet
   Goodnight Girl
   Preceded by:
   Mud
   Lonely This Christmas UK Christmas Number One single
   1975 Succeeded by:
   Johnny Mathis
   When A Child Is Born
   Preceded by:
   Cliff Richard
   Saviour's Day UK Christmas Number One single
   1991 Succeeded by:
   Whitney Houston
   I Will Always Love You

Live performances

   The a capella introduction was too complex to perform onstage, and
   though some claim that the band did attempt it at least a few times
   early on, no live recordings of the introduction exist. In lieu of the
   a capella segment, Freddie Mercury would try various ways of
   introducing the song. When the song " Mustapha" became a live favorite,
   Mercury would often sub in that song's a capella opening, which was
   much easier to reproduce live as it was only one voice. During the Hot
   Space tour, and occasionally at other times, Mercury would do a piano
   improvisation (generally the introduction to " Death on Two Legs") that
   would end with the first notes of the song. More often than not,
   though, the preceding song would end, and Mercury would simply sit down
   at the piano, maybe say a quick word to the audience, and start
   pounding out the opening notes of the ballad.

   The operatic, middle section of the song proved to be a problem for the
   band initially. Because of the extensive multi-tracking, there was no
   way they could sing it on stage. The band did not have enough of a
   break between the " Sheer Heart Attack" and " A Night at the Opera"
   tours to find a way to make it work live, so they simply split the song
   up into three sections that were played throughout the night. The
   opening and closing ballads were played as part of a medley, with "
   Killer Queen" and " March of the Black Queen" taking the place of the
   operatic and hard rock sections, respectively. Those two sections, in
   virtually all of the gigs, were played as an introductory piece leading
   into " Ogre Battle". This approach worked well for the band, as it
   allowed them to play the entire operatic section from tape (though
   Mercury often sang the first line) before taking the stage.

   Starting with the " A Day at the Races" tour in 1976, the band adopted
   what would become their lasting way of playing the song live. The
   opening ballad would be played onstage, and after Brian May's guitar
   solo, the lights would go down, the band would leave for a quick
   costume change, and the operatic section would be played from tape. A
   blast of pyrotechnics after Roger Taylor's final "for me" would
   announce the band's return to the stage for the hard rock section and
   closing ballad. Queen would continue to play the song in this form all
   the way through the Magic Tour of 1986.

   On April 20, 1992, Elton John and Axl Rose performed the song with the
   surviving members of Queen for The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert.

   On the 2005/2006 Queen + Paul Rodgers tours, a live performance
   recording of Mercury (from the famous Wembley show of 1986) would play
   on video screens doing the vocals and piano for the first segment,
   while the other musicians played along and Paul Rodgers sat out. The
   middle operatic section was left to the studio tape, with a video
   tribute to Freddie Mercury being played on a screen behind the stage.
   The band went backstage, and the arena would be completely dark. When
   the hard rock section kicked in, the lights came back up to the full
   band onstage, including Rodgers, who took lead vocals for the hard rock
   section. The taped Mercury and Rodgers made the closing into a duet,
   with Rodgers allowing the audience to sing the final "Nothing really
   matters to me" while the taped Mercury took a bow for the crowd.
   Rodgers would then repeat the line, and the final line was delivered
   with one last shot of Freddie Mercury smiling at the audience before
   the arena went black.

Selected cover versions

     * Fuzzbox - 12" singles What's The Point (1987) and Self! (1989).
       This a cappella version was one of the first covers of "Bohemian
       Rhapsody".
     * Bad News - album Bad News (1987). This spoof rock band (created for
       the UK Channel 4 TV series The Comic Strip Presents...) also
       released Bohemian Rhapsody as a single. It reached number 44 in the
       UK Singles Chart. The cover version was produced by Brian May. John
       Deacon, known for his reluctance to sing, provided some backing
       vocals.
     * "Weird Al" Yankovic - album Alapalooza (1993). A high-speed polka
       version of the song, renamed " Bohemian Polka".
     * Royal Philharmonic Orchestra - album Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
       Play Queen (1995).
     * The Braids - High School High soundtrack album (1996). The bay area
       duo recorded an R&B version of this song for the soundtrack to the
       Jon Lovitz movie High School High. It was produced by Third Eye
       Blind's lead singer Stephan Jenkins and was also released as a
       single.
     * Montserrat Caballé - album Friends for Life (1997). Duet with Iron
       Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson.
     * Faye Wong - concert album HK Scenic Tour 1998/1999. With the help
       of several backup vocalists, the song was covered live; it stayed
       faithful to Queen's original studio version with no cuts.
     * The California Guitar Trio does an instrumental version on the
       album Rocks the West (2000).
     * The Flaming Lips - album Killer Queen (2005). The cover was also
       performed live.
     * G4 - album G4 (2005). The band, The X Factor runners-up in the UK,
       released a version of the song as their debut single, reaching #9
       in the UK Singles Chart.
     * Mnozil Brass - DVD Seven (2005), features the Austrian brass
       ensemble, singing and playing in their own comedic style.
     * Australian gypsy-fusion band Monsieur Camembert have performed the
       song live, and a recording of it appears on their self-titled
       double album.
     * Pop-Classical vocalist Russell Watson covers "Bohemian Rhapsody" on
       his third album Reprise ( 2003)
     * Rolf Harris did a version in the style of "Tie Me Kangaroo Down
       Sport" complete with wobble board.
     * Panic! at the Disco will be covering the song live at all of their
       2006/2007 tour dates. The band has claimed that they will not use
       any tape to do so.

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