Most bands can only dream of having that one song that captures their essence at their best. Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd serves as a showcase for their Southern rock boogie, while “Stairway to Heaven” cemented Led Zeppelin’s place in rock history. Even now, decades later, few songs can match Nirvana’s performance of “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” For “Bohemian Rhapsody,” it’s easy to put Queen pretty high in that category, but Brian May felt that some of his songs never received the recognition they deserved.
It’s not as though “Bohemian Rhapsody” doesn’t deserve its reputation as one of the all-time great rock and roll hits. It doesn’t fit into any other genre at all, which is the main reason it works. This song has the makings of three amazing songs. Freddie Mercury’s ability to switch from a piano ballad to a lavish opera showcases his genius.
It was only fitting that they would end the album with an instrumental version of “God Save the Queen” because nothing they did on this song could match the quality of the rest of A Night at the Opera’s musical offerings. However, the remainder of the record still has some good songs, with May likely having the best selections.
May was the group’s rock and roll core. However, Mercury could get very campy with songs like “Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon.” Creating a song that is truly memorable is a recurring theme in many of his compositions. Even though he enjoyed belting out every song that Mercury had to offer, he remembered feeling let down. Some of his tracks were never chosen for release.
May stated, “You have certain babies if you wrote the song and you want them to be heard in a wide area,” in reference to a few Queen songs that many Queen fans were unaware of. This was stated in the documentary Classic Albums. And that opportunity is kind of lost forever if you miss it. Things like “Long Away” and “39” in my situation could have been singles. I kind of wish they had been.
Undoubtedly, the melody of “39,” which describes May’s trip through space, is catchy. However, it’s difficult to argue that a sombre acoustic ballad about discovering new places should take precedence over one of the all-time great hits. However, it’s not like writing hit songs required pain for every band member.
All of the band members had written hits by the time they broke up. Mercury had several of his songs, Roger Taylor contributed “Radio Gaga,” and the quiet member John Deacon penned some of the most pop-friendly songs in their catalogue, such as “I Want to Break Free” and “Another One Bites the Dust.”
The band’s rivalry among themselves may have actually encouraged them to record better songs. For example, May nearly outperformed Mercury on “Tie Your Mother Down.” Mercury perceived this as a jab at what the frontman had done on “Death on Two Legs.” Although Mercury is the celebrity that people will continue to talk about for years to come, May doesn’t need to waste time regretting his hits. He already has “We Will Rock You” under his belt.
