The band formed in London in 1970 after May and Taylor's former band Smile split after having released an album and single. Freddie replaced lead vocalist Tim Staffell, after the latter's departure from the original trio.
There was much deliberation as to what the band's name would be. May and Taylor had settled upon the Grand Dance, derived from a C.S. Lewis Trilogy of books Out Of The Silent Planet.
Ultimately, the band went with Queen, a name that was entirely Freddie's. Originally Roger and, especially, Brian did not like the name, though Mercury would eventually persuade them both that it was "right" for the band.
"Years ago I thought up the name Queen... It's just a name, but it's very regal, and it sounds splendid. It's a strong name, very universal and immediate. It had a lot of visual potential and was open to all sorts of interpretations. I was certainly aware of the gay connotations, but that was just one facet of it. "
- Freddie Mercury.
Queen went through several bass players before a young electronics major by the name of John Deacon arrived on the scene in January of 1971.
"Until John, it had been exploding bass player syndrome. If they musically worked they'd look all wrong, and if they felt all right they couldn't play. - Brian May.
This quite shy guy turned up with his immaculate Rickenbacker bass and immaculate amplifier, plugged in, and as soon as he started playing we realized it was right." - Brian May.
Later that year, the band was secured recording time at the newly built De Lane Lea studio, and used the opportunity to record several songs that would later appear on their debut album - Liar, Keep Yourself Alive, Jesus, and The Night Comes Down. The demo reel was passed around from producer to producer with little success, until a staff member of Trident records by the name of Roy Thomas Baker was introduced to the band by fellow Trident producer John Anthony. Baker dropped in to watch the band at work and, clearly liking what he heard, recommended Queen to his superiors.
It was eventually agreed upon that the fledgling band could record at Trident studios, though after already-established artists had finished their work, such as the likes of Elton John and David Bowie. Relegated to the wee hours of the morning to record the remaining tracks of their first album, the band nonetheless stuck it out until they reached their ultimate goal of "perfection".
Queen's self-titled debut album was released in 1973 and received little attention from the general public. They quickly followed it a year later with a second album, "Queen II" which also failed to generate much interest from music fans in Britain, despite the success of the album's single, Seven Seas of Rhye, which would reach #10 on the charts after the band's mimed appearance on Top of the Pops.
The band's second album was recorded with a higher budget than the first, and the band threw everything they had into recording it. Queen II was somewhat of a "concept album", split into "White Side" vs. "Black Side".
As was in their nature, the band pressed onward after the mediocre success of their first two albums, immersing themselves in a world-wide tour to promote Queen II. Queen played in America for the first time, as a support act for Mott the Hoople.
Sheer Heart Attack would be released later that year, focusing more on being accessible to listeners, than the grand and complex ideas of the previous two albums. The recording of their third album was met with some hardships, as May fell victim to a series of illnesses brought on by an infected inoculation, required for the band's rigorous touring schedule.
Sheer Heart Attack brought even more success for the band, with May's Now I'm Here and the song that would be the band's "turning point", the Mercury-penned Killer Queen, the latter of which would reach #2 on the UK charts.
During this time, the band began developing a huge following in Japan and witnessed their popularity for themselves when they visited the country, mainly in 1975, to promote their fourth and most famous album "A Night At The Opera", featuring the epic "Bohemian Rhapsody".
Queen's popularity grew steadily through the latter half of the 70s as they released hit album after hit album, reaching its peak in the mid-80s after their "Live Aid" appearance, and continuing into the early 90s before Mercury's untimely death on 24th November 1991. The official cause of death was bronchial pneumonia resulting from AIDS.
Over the course of their 30 year career, the band did sound tracks for two films ("Flash Gordon" and "Highlander"), released a string of live and studio albums, and had many many fans across the world.
In 1995, 4 years after Mercury's death, the band released the album "Made In Heaven". This album saw the surviving band members in the studio completing or reworking unused vocals, unreleased variations of Freddie solo material (a Queen version of "I Was Born To Love You" for example), and tracks where Brian and Roger added lyrics to flesh out a song ("Mother Love").
Queen have been on indefinite hiatus since 1997, when John Deacon decided to retire.
Several "Queen + ..." projects have been developed in the following years, a few of them mere remixes with no artistic involvement from the band. In 1999, a "Greatest Hits III" album was released. This featured, among others, "Queen + Wyclef Jean" on a rap version of "Another One Bites the Dust", a live version of "Somebody to Love" performed by George Michael, and a live version of "The Show Must Go On" performed live in 1997 with Elton John.
Brian May and Roger Taylor have performed together as Queen on several occasions (award ceremonies, charity concerts, and the like), sharing vocals with various guest singers. They have also recorded several covers of Queen's hits with guest vocalists, including "We Will Rock You" (first with Five and later Britney Spears, Beyonce, John Farnham and P!nk) and "We Are the Champions" (with Robbie Williams).
On the 14th of May 2002 the Queen musical 'We Will Rock You' opened in the Dominion theatre in London's 'West End'. A Musical about young people in the distant future who aren't allowed to listen to music not generated by computers. Various Queen songs are used in the story, played by a live band. This live band was supported by Brian May and Roger Taylor on the premiere evening.
At the end of 2004, May and Taylor announced that they would reunite and return to touring in 2005, with Paul Rodgers (founder and former lead singer of Free and Bad Company). Brian May's website also stated that Rodgers would be 'featured with' Queen as 'Queen + Paul Rodgers', not replacing Mercury. The retired John Deacon would not be participating.
Between 2005 and 2006 Queen + Paul Rodgers embarked on a world tour, the first leg in Europe and the second, Japan and then the US in 2006. On 15 August 2006, Brian May confirmed through his website and fan club that Queen + Paul Rodgers would begin producing their first studio album beginning in October, to be recorded at a "secret location". The album, titled The Cosmos Rocks, was released in Europe on 12 September 2008 and in the United States on 28 October 2008. Following the album the band again embarked on a tour through Europe, opening on Kharkiv's Freedom Square in front of 350,000 Ukrainian fans. The show in Ukraine was later released on DVD.
Queen and Paul Rodgers officially split up without animosity on 12 May 2009. Rodgers did not rule out the possibility of working together again.
Since 2012, Queen has been touring with Adam Lambert as the frontman.
More information about Queen + Paul Rodgers can be found on their last.fm page.
Official website: www.queenonline.com
Discography:
1.- Queen (1973)
2.- Queen II (1974)
3.- Sheer Heart Attack (1974)
4.- A Night at the Opera (1975)
5.- A Day at the Races (1976)
6.- News of the World (1977)
7.- Jazz (1978)
8.- The Game (1980)
9.- Flash Gordon (1980)
10.- Hot Space (1982)
11.- The Works (1984)
12.- A Kind of Magic (1986)
13.- The Miracle (1989)
14.- Innuendo (1991)
15.- Made in Heaven (1995)
Headlong
Queen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And you're rushing headlong out of control
And you think you're so strong
But there ain't no stopping and there's nothin'
You can do about it
Nothin' you can do
No there's nothin' you can do about it
No there's nothin' you can, nothin' you can
And you're rushing headlong you've got a new goal
And you're rushing headlong out of control
And you think you're so strong
But there ain't no stopping no there's nothin'
You can do about it
Yeah
Hey, he used to be a man with a stick in his hand
Hoop diddy diddy hoop diddy do
She used to be a woman with a hot dog stand
Hoop diddy diddy hoop diddy do
Now you've got soup in the laundry bag
Now you've got strings, you're gonna lose your rag
You're gettin' in a fight
Then it ain't so groovy when you're screaming in the night
Let me out of this cheap 'B' movie
Headlong down the highway and you're rushing
Headlong out of control
And you think you're so strong
But there ain't no stopping and you can't stop rockin'
And there's nothin' you can, nothin' you can
Nothin' you can do about it
When a red hot man meets a white hot lady
Hoop diddy diddy hoop diddy do (ho)
Soon the fire starts a raging gets 'em more than half crazy
Hoop diddy diddy hoop diddy do
Oh, now they start freaking everyway you turn
You can't start walking 'cause your feet got burned
It ain't no time to figure wrong from right
'Cause reasons out the window
Better hold on tight, you're rushing headlong
Headlong out of control, yeah
You think you're so strong
There ain't no stopping and there's nothin' you, nothin' you
Nothin' you can do about it at all
Yeah yeah alright go
And you're rushing headlong down the highway
And you're rushing headlong out of control
And you think you're so strong
But there ain't no stopping
There's nothin', nothin', nothin' you can do about it, yeah
Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh
Ha ha
Headlong
Yeah yeah
Headlong
Yeahaw
Headlong
Gnoldaeh gnoldaeh gnoldaeh gnoldaeh
The lyrics of Queen's song Headlong tell a story of someone who is rushing towards a new goal without regard for the consequences. The person believes that they are strong and in control, but they soon realize that they are out of control and there's nothing they can do about it. The lyrics use a mix of metaphors and imagery to convey this idea.
The song's first verse sets the tone for the rest of the lyrics, as the person depicted is "rushing headlong" towards their new goal. They're so convinced of their strength that they believe there's nothing that can stop them. But as the song progresses, it becomes clear that the person is losing control, and they're getting into fights and screaming into the night. The chorus repeats the idea that there's nothing the person can do to stop their headlong rush towards their goal.
The second verse introduces a "red hot man" and a "white hot lady" who start a fire that gets them half crazy. The subsequent lines use a variety of metaphors and imagery to depict the chaos that ensues. The person rushing headlong is compared to a character in a cheap 'B movie', and the lyrics suggest that everything is moving too fast for them to think clearly. In the end, the song suggests that the person is powerless to stop their headlong rush towards their goal.
Line by Line Meaning
And you're rushing headlong you've got a new goal
You're moving quickly towards a new objective
And you're rushing headlong out of control
You're moving too fast and can't slow down
And you think you're so strong
You believe you have the power to handle anything
But there ain't no stopping and there's nothin' you can do about it
You're unable to reverse your momentum and you're powerless to change your course
Nothin' you can do
You are stuck in your current path
No there's nothin' you can do about it
There's no way to avoid the situation
No there's nothin' you can, nothin' you can
Absolutely no way to change the outcome
Hey, he used to be a man with a stick in his hand
He used to be a simple person
Hoop diddy diddy hoop diddy do
Nonsense words indicating a shift in the story
She used to be a woman with a hot dog stand
She used to have a small business
Now you've got soup in the laundry bag
Your life is in chaos
Now you've got strings, you're gonna lose your rag
Your life is unraveling quickly
You're gettin' in a fight
You're being pushed to your limit
Then it ain't so groovy when you're screaming in the night
Your dreams have turned into a nightmare
Let me out of this cheap 'B' movie
You wish you could escape your current situation
Headlong down the highway and you're rushing
You're in a hurry driving fast
And there's nothin' you can, nothin' you can
You feel trapped
When a red hot man meets a white hot lady
Two people with intense passion come together
Hoop diddy diddy hoop diddy do (ho)
Nonsense words indicating a shift in the story
Soon the fire starts a raging gets 'em more than half crazy
Their passion has consumed them
Oh, now they start freaking everyway you turn
They're acting uncontrollably
You can't start walking 'cause your feet got burned
Their passion has hurt them and they can't escape
It ain't no time to figure wrong from right
They're not thinking clearly
'Cause reasons out the window
Rational thought has disappeared
Better hold on tight, you're rushing headlong
Hold on tight, you're going too fast
There ain't no stopping and there's nothin' you, nothin' you
Nothing will stand in your way
Nothin' you can do about it at all
You can't change the outcome
And you're rushing headlong down the highway
You're speeding down the road
There's nothin', nothin', nothin' you can do about it, yeah
You're powerless to change the outcome
Headlong
Going headfirst into a situation
Lyrics ยฉ Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BRIAN MAY, FREDDIE MERCURY, JOHN DEACON, ROGER TAYLOR
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ethanbeutel
I think this song is underrated
@googoogjoob5174
Lyrically yeah. It's funny.
But it's totally a piece of the 90's... Brian listening to FIRE WOMAN by the Cult clearly
@NixDarkLord
Yeah, one of the heaviest song of Queen. Makes me feel invincible.
@pulse4503
These guys had a great chemistry ๐
@NixDarkLord
This song makes me feel unstoppable
@thisisqueen3568
Because the song it's unstoppable.
@cbolanz1
Rest In Peace Freddie mercury
@POTC_Oscarandfriens
set the playback speed to 1.2, and you have yourself a real headbanger
@user-ys5gg5gx4p
The Last QUEEN Feat. The Ultimate King and QUEEN - Headlong
๐๐๐ค๐๐ฏ๐ต๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ๐ค๐ฉโ๐ค๐ค๐ธ
@dam2236
what on earth did you even try to say