When I think (or thought) of Queen, I just pictured four floating heads, singing in front of a black curtain. I’m not sure I had much more of an opinion of the band before 2007, but over the years I had discovered their work and became a much larger fan. They were no longer just known for the song in Wayne’s World.
The Backstory of Queen and Me
I don’t have any specific or pivotable memories of me listening to Queen. In the last several years, I have many memories. The lack of nostalgia probably played a huge factor in the early ranks.
Queen of Hockey
Towards the end (might even be the end credits) of The Mighty Ducks, the team sang the famous “We are the Champions”. This could have been my first time hearing a Queen song.
I was a sporty kid. I’m not sure what pushed me in that direction, but by grade school, I was playing baseball, basketball, football, and hockey. In fact, hockey was my favorite sport around 4th grade. The Mighty Ducks was a huge hit and a favorite of mine. Add to the mix that I had an NHL Sega game, I was all in on hockey.
There were no local hockey teams in Martins Ferry. The best thing I could do is rally the troops in my neighborhood and try to make our own District 5. We created the Martins Ferry Phantoms Roller Hockey team.
We were just as dysfunctional as the Mighty Ducks in the movie. We were of all ages and skills. I organized practices and even a game. We faced off, on several occasions, against some older guys from the north side of town. We didn’t win – but we had fun.
This was probably one of my first times ‘managing’ others. Queen might have not been on my mind or on my radar, but by proxy, they had a slight influence and helped mold me as a leader.
Subliminal Hell
Thanks to the wonders of my mother’s church and the Hell’s Bells documentary, I thought Queen was an evil band singing about marijuana. See, “Another One Bites the Dust” played backward says ‘Go Smoke Marijuana’. Yes, the adult me finds it just as silly as you do. But the 10-year-old year fell for it.
Years later, I decided to embrace most of these ‘backward track’ songs. In fact, I made a CD with only these types of songs. Most of the songs had backward messages and/or had the vibe of ‘trippy’ songs. When finished, I put the CD in my car and enjoyed.
I had a Dodge Neon (pink) that I purchased from my then-girlfriend (now – wife). This car had an aftermarket CD player. One day the CD player stopped ejected discs. Guess what CD was stuck in the car?
It was months and months of listening to the same album. Needless to say, I heard “Another One Bites the Dust” over 100 times. I also have stories of me going ‘mad’ – but we will talk about this when I cover Nine Inch Nails. Maybe Eric Holmberg was right.
Queen Now vs. Queen Rank In 2007
There is a huge difference in 2007 Queen to Queen today. Obviously I enjoyed Queen, but after going through the entire catalog, Queen is an all-time favorite of mine. There were tons of great songs and very few songs that were not worth a listen. Years ago, I knew of “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “We Are the Champions”, but now I don’t even think they are their greatest songs. Okay – maybe that’s not true about “Bohemian Rhapsody” – it is a masterpiece.
Check out where they rank on my current list.
Queen Metrics
By The Numbers
- Qualified Songs: 156
- Greatest Hits: 21
- Four Star: 58
- Three Star: 71
- Two Star: 6
- One Star: 0
Score
1114.10%
Queen was pretty amazing from the start to the end. Their first few albums had fewer “hits” and their last album was a bit of a cheat (released after the death of Freddie Mercury). I was surprised by the number of hits, especially since they had one or two on each album. This wasn’t just one great album and a ton of ‘blah’. There would be a reason to own almost every album.
A Deep Dive Into the Current Score
Queen managed to make some especially great songs. Even the lesser-known songs managed to score well. Songs like “You and I”, “’39”, and “The Prophet’s Song” are gems that most people wouldn’t score in the 5’s, but I did. The fact that Queen didn’t release any ‘noise’ tracks helps their cause. The “Flash Gordan Soundtrack” was eliminated from contention and Queen finds themselves with one of the highest scores.
Queen Podcasts for Reference
Queer as Fact – This podcast focuses mostly on Freddie Mercury and his life. There are plenty of references to his sexual preference – as implied in the title of the podcast. You get a glimpse into the history of Queen’s lead man from his birth to his death.
The Great Albums – This detailed look at A Night at the Opera is a musician and nerds dream. The hosts break down each song and talk way over my head, but in a good way. It only makes you appreciate the album more when musicians are going ga-ga over each track. This is a deep dive.
The Worlds Best Rock Albums – If you want a short version and review of A Night at the Opera, this podcast is your answer.
Glory Days Radio – The host breaks down his favorite Queen albums from worst to best. It sounds like something I might do! Not only does he go over the albums, he does a great job highlighting and playing songs that give credit to the individual members of the band.
Queens – Just like Queer as Fact, this episode was all about Freddie Mercury. This podcast normally talks about Queens – as in royalty, but they do a fantastic job documenting the life of Freddie.
The Last Ovation – This well-produced, audiobook-like Podcast does a great job telling the story of Freddie Mercury. If you want the facts and not host banter, this is your podcast.
Queen Videos for Reference
Rock Legends (AXS TV) – If you want a very abbreviated version of Queen’s history, this 34 minute (with commercials) documentary hits the highlights. Sprinkled with experts and their opinions, this series does a good job just giving you enough information to be dangerous.
Freddie’s Millions (BBC) – Wonder how Freddie spent his money? Good news – the BBC made a show telling you all about it.
Classic Albums (AXS TV) – This series is always a favorite. You get to hear from the members of the band, producers, engineers, and journalists involved in A Night at the Opera. Although it focuses on the album, it also tells the general story of the band. It’s a great way to see how Queen’s greatest album was made.
Was It All Worth It (YouTube) – This unreleased documentary – or so the description says – takes a look at the band and the album The Miracle. Queen had previously been on a breakup and this is a look at them rejoining and getting back into the studio.
Queen in the Movies
Bohemian Rhapsody (Amazon) – A fantastic biopic of Freddie Mercury and the band Queen. It is entertaining and seems to be pretty close to real life. If you are reading this blog, spend the money and rent this movie.
The Battle of Queen Albums
I had a feeling I would fall in line with everyone else – A Night at the Opera #1.
| Album | Score |
| A Night at the Opera | 416.67% |
| A Day at the Races | 320.00% |
| The Game | 280.00% |
| The Works | 266.67% |
| News of the World | 136.36% |
| Sheer Heart Attack | 107.69% |
| Jazz | 92.31% |
| Hot Space | 90.91% |
| The Miracle | 76.92% |
| A Kind of Magic | 58.33% |
| Made in Heaven | 45.45% |
| Queen | 40.00% |
| Queen II | 36.36% |
| Innuendo | 33.33% |
The Greatest Hit from Queen
Queen had some amazing songs. Although I ranked many 5-star songs, there are different levels. There were some clear favorites and others that I knew were “great” but not going to win the popular vote.
Previous Greatest Hit
“The Prophet’s Song”
The tournament didn’t do “The Prophet’s Song” any favors. Random selection pitted the song against “Bohemian Rhapsody” round one. I think in ’07, finding a gem like “The Prophet’s Song” out of nowhere gave it an inflated score. Through time, it holds up but doesn’t beat the classic.
Tournament Outcome
“Don’t Stop Me Now”
Once again, Queen’s most popular song didn’t hit my favorite. In the finals, I decided that “Don’t Stop Me Now” is the song I would rather hear if you gave me the two options. This song just makes me feel good. I have fond memories of singing it on some Wii sing-along videogame and both of my kids loved it.
Overview
I was shocked when the math came out and pushed Queen towards the front of the line. I knew I liked Queen but I thought their ’80s work would kill their totals. Turns out they were far more consistent than I thought. Not only that, they had some amazing songs (a few on each album). Turns out Queen is a band that I like a lot more than I originally thought.
Amendments
January 21, 2020
The Flash Gordon Soundtrack is eliminated from the ranking – but the main theme song is a 5-star. Should it count? Seems like I would have to modify some rules to determine if this qualifies.