Henry’s Music Blog

I’ve already made it very clear that I am very tired of constantly hearing “Bohemian Rhapsody.” But I never said that it was a bad song. On the contrary, it really is one of the greatest songs ever written. But I just wanted to get some other Queen songs up to the forefront. So these are my choices for:

The Top 10 Best Queen Songs (That aren’t Bohemian Rhapsody)

10. Keep Yourself Alive

As most likely the most obscure song on this list, it’s not hard to see why. First of all, it’s off Queen’s first album, which is often forgotten by the public. Secondly, the song is a lot harder than the bulk of their work, with emphasis placed on guitar rather than the piano, as they would by Queen II. But that’s what makes the song so excellent. With a harder sound, an excellent Phaser Guitar part, and a drum solo, it’s sad to see this skipped over in the campy 70s Rock canon. Even if it is probably their most well known harder song, outside of…

9. Stone Cold Crazy

Off of my personal favorite Queen album, Sheer Heart Attack, “Stone Cold Crazy” invented Thrash Metal. I want you to think about that. Queen invented Thrash Metal. Without Queen, there would be no Metallica. Anyway, this song rocks. With an impossibly fast delivery in the vocals, a great guitar part from Brian May, as it usually is, and excellent drumming, the song is a triumph of early metal. Also points for being a really goofy song. It’s endearing, in a silly sort of way.

8. Now I’m Here

Off of Sheer Heart Attack, “Now I’m Here” is one of the heavier songs in the Queen catalog. Starting with a simple riff, it builds up to one of the greatest openings in music, building to the massive full band opening. And while they had primarily abandoned their Prog Rock beginnings by now, The primary Guitar riff starts out with a confusing time signature, and all instruments are bombastic. One of the highlights of a nearly perfect album.

7. You’re My Best Friend

One of my main problems with “Bohemian Rhapsody” is that it steals the spotlight away from Night at the Opera, a great album, if not as perfect as Sheer Heart Attack. And while having a full party of great songs, the best would probably be “You’re My Best Friend”. While typically Electric Piano can be annoying, here it works, as the sheer love behind the vocals gives the song the lovable silliness to the whole affair. It’s not a love song to a spouse, or even a girlfriend at the time. It’s to a best friend. That’s adorable. Almost as much as a love song to a car.

6. Don’t Stop Me Now

I have a setlist on my phone for driving around. Right next to “Bat Out of Hell” and “Radar Love”, There’s “Don’t Stop Me Now”, the centerpiece of Jazz, an album with no Jazz on it. As one of the best-known songs by Queen, it starts off with a slow beginning, until it flies into the Stratosphere. The song truly never stops soaring until the end, after you feel like you’ve been hit by a meteor with a mustache. You can’t stop the song. It’ll make you fly at 1000 MPH.

5. Under Pressure

This is proof that David Bowie can make anything perfect. Hot Space is Queen’s largely forgotten Disco album, and for good reason. Most of the album is rather average, at least compared to the rest of their output. But this song, with the single inclusion of Mr. Stardust, is widely regarded as one of the greatest songs ever written. And simply, it’s because it is. With it’s beautiful melody, and the catchy beat stolen by Vanilla Ice, the song only has one tarnish to its legacy. Here’s a hint: it’s Vanilla Ice.

4. Seven Seas of Rhye

“Seven Seas of Rhye” is actually a very weird song. With the repetitive Piano and the Proggy lyrics that could fit in with Jethro Tull riding in a Viking boat fighting serpents made of Margaret Thatcher, this is a song that shouldn’t be as amazing as it is. But somehow, among all the goofiness of the song, and really the rest of the album, the song manages to be absolutely fantastic, in every way it can be. It’s oh so wrong, it’s oh so wrong.
 

3. Somebody to Love

I’ve now found a trend. If I truly love a Queen song, it’s bound to be very silly. And it’s hard to think of a song that’s quite as silly as this. The song legitimately sounds like it’s straight out of an old Disney cartoon. If it wasn’t for the head-bustingly awesome guitar solo, and the outstanding vocal delivery by Freddie Mercury, widely regarded as the greatest male singer who ever performed, this would just be a boring old silly ballad by any generic Hard Rock band. But in the hand of the four most talented men this side of the Beatles, the song transcends the boundaries of music. It’s that good.

2. Killer Queen

I literally have no complaint about this song. This is a perfect song. A song has never better represented a band in less time than here. When you listen to this, you hear everything that Queen had ever represented in their lifespan. With its excellent piano, falsetto harmonies, and its amazing guitar solo, the song is absolutely perfect. But this list isn’t about what’s absolutely perfect. This is about my favorite Queen song, and I have to give that award to…

1. The Show Must Go On

After everyone thought that Queen had lost their edge, they released Innuendo, their final sendoff before Freddie Mercury’s tragic death from AIDS. And Innuendo is one of my favorite albums ever. For exactly one reason: this song. If “Bohemian Rhapsody” was early Queen’s Crowning Music of Awesome, this is late Queen’s masterpiece. Never before or since have synthesizers been used in a more beautiful way. You could tell that here, the band channeled their sadness and anger into pure distilled beauty. And with an absolutely beautiful vocal delivery by Mr. Mercury, I must name this the greatest Queen song ever.