Three By Three: Queen Songs

The Category

When it comes to music, the three of us rarely overlap all at once. Sure, any two of us will have shared bands or performers, people that we can talk excitedly about with one of our friends, but not the other. But, the center, rounded triangle of our three-way Venn diagram is small and occupied by few bands. Queen is one of those few. If any group deserves to be dead-center at the nexus of our musical interests, it’s Queen. Tomorrow would have been Freddie Mercury’s 67th birthday had he not tragically passed away, so, to honor that, we here at Pop Modern wanted to showcase our favorite Queen songs. And, just to make things interesting, none of us were allowed to pick “Bohemian Rhapsody,” since that would have been way too easy.

The Choices

Allen

“Somebody To Love”: It’s hard to pick my three favorite Queen songs without dipping into the greatest hits fare, but it goes to show that so many of their songs are considered their best. “Somebody To Love” is one such song, and it’s iconic status among rock love ballads is clear from the first few seconds. It’s a wonderful showcase of Freddie Mercury’s vocal range, and his histrionic performance style comes through in every verse. It’s no wonder that it’s one of the most popular karaoke songs, because it really is just a blast to belt out that chorus with some friends.

“Under Pressure”: One of the few Queen songs that I’ve never learned all the lyrics to. I almost ignore the faster parts of “Under Pressure” in favor of the “dee-day-dum”s and “Let me out!”. But, it’s got such a strange mid-song tonal shift, and Brian May’s guitar solo might be my favorite part of the whole song. For just over four minutes, “Under Pressure” is a display of so much of what made Queen an incredible band.

“Mustapha”: A song off of the under-appreciated 1978 album Jazz, I discovered “Mustapha” by accident one day. After finally acquiring the entire Queen discography, I set my playlist to shuffle, and this song came out of nowhere and blew my mind. The beginning, which I mostly like because Freddie Mercury says my last name in the proper Arabic way, is an omen of how weird the rest of the track gets. Mercury is just throwing out Arabic, Persian, and gibberish words, and you’ve got May and Roger Taylor just barely keeping up with this fast-paced smattering of lyrics. It’s actually incredibly catchy, and the use of bells and an almost prayer-like tempo is so different from Queen’s usual rock style that it almost feels like a standalone song.

James

“Stone Cold Crazy”: The only adjective I can use to describe this song is “energetic.” Its speed and energy is hard to match, even in other Queen songs. Between the rapid beating of the drums and the speedy vocals, the band works its magic into one of their shortest songs while still maintaining the integral Queen sound. The lyrics are just the icing on the crazy cake, detailing the nonsensical adventures of a man and his crazy day. The song really works well to complement the longer ballads that Queen does and shows their variety within the confines of a nonsensical, frenetic song.

“Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy”: The opening verse to the song mirrors its format. Though the song could tug at heartstrings, it goes with the excitement and enthusiasm of the titular lover boy. The sporadic “oo”s are a perfect example of the Queen vocal backups that add to the feeling of the song. The jumps in the phrase “Hey, boy” add to the playfulness of the song, a song that lacks subtlety, yet still embodies emotional expectation. The harmonies are quintessential Queen characteristics, creating a typical Queen song. That is to say, it is the perfect combination of musicality and romanticism.

“Killer Queen”: I am not uniformly impressed with the ballads that Queen sings. Most of the time the slow song pace robs me of my attention. This song however is different. From a young age I loved this song, as it was my first exposure to Queen. The deviation from the normal theme of love rings well with me, showing a noticeable change that allows me to categorize the song in a completely different way. The lyrics and the heavy emphasis on electric guitar lend a bit of style to the song, and makes this one of my favorite songs.

Magellan

“I Want to Break Free”: James may not be “uniformly impressed” with Queen ballads, but God knows I’m a sucker for them. One of my favorites has to be “I Want to Break Free,” a somber song about trying to rid yourself of relationship, despite how much you still love the person. Instrumentally, it may not be Queen’s most interesting or driving songs, but Freddie Mercury’s voice soars over the whole composition, turning an otherwise run-of-the-mill rock ballad into a thing of pure beauty. The video for this song, also, is of note, as it features the members of the band in drag, a testament to the flamboyant showmanship that accompanied their musical talent.

“Don’t Stop Me Now”: I find that the fun of most hit Queen songs is their ability to encourage the listener to sing along, to join in with those phenomenal voices and feel their musical presence as you belt out your favorite lines. “Don’t Stop Me Now” is the perfect song for such an experience, since it starts off with some lilting piano notes, but then erupts into one of Queen’s most electrifying songs. The lyrics, I think, are the major selling-point here, with great pump-up verses and two separate choruses to sing along with. And it all ends with Freddie once again showing off those immaculate pipes, as the song fades out into satisfying silence.

“Hammer to Fall”: It was incredibly difficult, deciding what song deserved to be in my third slot. It still bothers me that not a single song from my favorite Queen album, The Game, even made my top three (“Another One Bites the Dust,” “Play the Game,” “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” just thinking about those songs makes me smile). Still, I settled on “Hammer to Fall,” since I wanted to highlight a second-string Queen rocker that doesn’t get as much air-time as some of their bigger songs. I actually started my love affair with this song a few months ago, when I had my music on shuffle and decided to listen to the song that I would always skip as a force of habit. What I heard blew me away. This is a song that blows your socks off. It’s like The Who’s “My Generation” in a leather jacket, backed up by a gospel choir. And I still get chills every time the band kicks in with a “What the hell we fighting for?!” a moment after Brian May’s ripping solo.

The Conclusion

Myriad Queen songs were sadly left out of this list for lack of space. Maybe you have a favorite that didn’t make the cut, or maybe you hate one of our choices with a burning passion. Mad that we excluded “Bicycle Race,” or “We Are the Champions,” or the theme to Flash Gordon? Make your displeasure known in the comments, and muster up an argument for your top Queen song. Mercury would be proud.

Frames of Preference: All The Little Lights

To be honest, I’m not all too familiar with the Passenger oeuvre. In fact, I’ve only really listened to “Let Her Go,” the breakout single from their 2012 album, All The Little Lights. Still, when I was skimming through music I’ve listened to in the hopes of finding something Frame-worthy, I couldn’t help but stop and appreciate the cover of this album. With its subdued blending of color and use of silhouettes, this cover perfectly expresses the subtle, somber beauty of “Let Her Go,” and I can only assume it does the same for the rest of the album’s offerings.