The middle section was primarily Mercury's work, according to an interview with May in October 1994's Guitar Magazine. It features a flamenco guitar solo, followed by a classically influenced bridge, and then the solo again but performed with electric guitars. This section is especially complex, featuring a pattern of three bars in 5/4 time (reasonably uncommon in popular music) followed by four bars in the more often used 3/4 time.
The "You can be anything you want to be" section features a very sophisticated orchestration, created by Mercury and producer David Richards using the popular Korg M1 keyboard/synth/workstation. Mercury had arranged and co-arranged orchestras in his solo career, and closed the previous Queen album with "Was It All Worth It", which included a Gershwin-esque interlude also coming from an M1 synth. The bridge section in "Innuendo" is in 3/4, showing once again Mercury's affection for trinary metres: "Bicycle Race" is another one with main sections in 4/4 and middle-eight in 3/4, and some of his best-known pieces (namely "We Are the Champions" and "Somebody to Love") were in 6/8, as would be his last ever composition, "A Winter's Tale".
Steve Howe and Mercury had been friends for several years, since they ran into each other quite often at the Townhouse Studios in London. Yes had been recording at Mountain Studios in 1978 shortly before Queen bought the Swiss studio, and Asia's debut album was produced by Queen's engineer, Mike Stone.
Paul Sutin had released his debut album in 1988 and began recording the second. Steve Howe had played on the first as guitarist and bassist, and Sutin asked him to produce the follow-up, which Howe agreed. This time Howe didn't play bass, only guitar and keyboard, but all of the drum parts in 'Voyager' were recorded by his son. Howe travelled to Geneva to lay his parts down in early 1989. On a break he drove to Montreux and stopped to have lunch. There he ran into Martin Gloves (who had worked for Yes before and then was Queen's equipment supervisor), who told him that Queen were in the studio at the moment.
As soon as Steve Howe went into the studios, Freddie Mercury asked him to play some guitar (according to producer David Richards, who had worked with Yes in the past as well). Another version is that Brian May was the one who asked him to play the flamenco bit. May admitted in a 1991 interview that he couldn't play the bits Howe recorded.
Innuendo
Queen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ooh ooh
While the sun hangs in the sky and the desert has sand
While the waves crash in the sea and meet the land
While there's a wind and the stars and the rainbow
Till the mountains crumble into the plain
Oh yes, we'll keep on trying
Tread that fine line
Oh, we'll keep on trying
Yeah
Just passing our time
Oh oh
While we live according to race, colour or creed
While we rule by blind madness and pure greed
Our lives dictated by tradition, superstition, false religion
Through the eons and on and on
Oh, yes, we'll keep on trying, yeah
We'll tread that fine line
Oh oh we'll keep on trying
Till the end of time
Till the end of time
Through the sorrow all through our splendor
Don't take offence at my innuendo
Duh duh duh duh duh duh duh
Duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh
You can be anything you want to be
Just turn yourself into anything you think that you could ever be
Be free with your tempo, be free, be free
Surrender your ego be free, be free to yourself
Oh oh, yeah
If there's a God or any kind of justice under the sky
If there's a point, if there's a reason to live or die
Ha, if there's an answer to the questions we feel bound to ask
Show yourself destroy our fears release your mask
Oh yes, we'll keep on trying
Hey, tread that fine line
(Yeah) yeah
We'll keep on smiling, yeah
(Yeah) (yeah) (yeah)
And whatever will be will be
We'll just keep on trying
We'll just keep on trying
Till the end of time
Till the end of time
Till the end of time
The lyrics to Queen's song "Innuendo" can be interpreted as a commentary on the state of humanity and the search for meaning and purpose in life. The opening lines paint a picture of the natural world, with references to the sun, desert, sea, land, wind, stars, and rainbow. The use of the word "while" suggests that these elements all exist simultaneously, creating a sense of continuity and cyclical nature.
The following lines address the ways in which humans have structured their societies, dividing themselves according to race, color, and creed, and often driven by greed and madness. The lyrics suggest that these divisions are based on tradition, superstition, and false beliefs, and reflect the way in which humans often cling to established norms and ideas even when they are harmful or limiting.
Despite these challenges, the lyrics suggest that humans can still strive to find meaning and purpose in life. The repeated reference to "treading that fine line" suggests that there is a delicate balance to be maintained between different forces, and that this balance requires perseverance and a dedication to self-discovery. The emphasis on "being free" and "surrendering your ego" suggests that true fulfillment comes not from material success or social approval, but from connecting with a deeper sense of self.
Overall, "Innuendo" presents a complex and thought-provoking message about the human condition, urging listeners to keep searching for answers and meaning in their lives.
Line by Line Meaning
While the sun hangs in the sky and the desert has sand
As long as the world remains as it is, with the sun shining in the sky and sand covering the desert.
While the waves crash in the sea and meet the land
As long as the waves remain steady and the tides meet the shores.
While there's a wind and the stars and the rainbow
As long as the natural forces of wind, stars, and rainbows continue their patterns.
Till the mountains crumble into the plain
Until even the most stable and stoic of mountains turn into flat plain ground.
Oh yes, we'll keep on trying
We will always work to improve ourselves and our situation.
Tread that fine line
Be careful not to cross a line or make a mistake.
Oh, we'll keep on trying
We will never give up trying to make things better.
Just passing our time
We keep on living and existing while we wait for things to get better.
While we live according to race, colour, or creed
As long as we continue to classify and judge people based on factors such as race or religion.
While we rule by blind madness and pure greed
As long as people continue to govern and control others based on irrational or selfish motives.
Our lives dictated by tradition, superstition, false religion
Our lives are unfairly influenced and controlled by outdated beliefs and irrational practices.
Through the eons and on and on
Throughout history and into the future, this has been the case.
Through the sorrow all through our splendor
Throughout all aspects of our lives, whether happy or sad.
Don't take offence at my innuendo
Please don't be upset or take offense at my indirect or subtle suggestion or implication.
You can be anything you want to be
You have the power to become anything you dream or wish to become.
Just turn yourself into anything you think that you could ever be
Take control and transform yourself into the person you aspire to be.
Be free with your tempo, be free, be free
Live your life how you want and be free to express yourself.
Surrender your ego be free, be free to yourself
Let go of your pride and self-importance and be free to be your true self.
If there's a God or any kind of justice under the sky
If there exists a higher power or force that is responsible for the universe and all that occurs within it.
If there's a point, if there's a reason to live or die
If there is a purpose or justification for why we live and eventually pass away.
Ha, if there's an answer to the questions we feel bound to ask
If there exists answers to the many profound questions and mysteries that plague humanity.
Show yourself destroy our fears release your mask
If the higher power reveals themselves and destroys our fears by unveiling their true identity.
We'll keep on smiling, yeah
We will keep on staying positive and optimistic.
And whatever will be will be
What will happen in the future is out of our control and predetermined.
We'll just keep on trying
Regardless of what happens, we will never stop striving for progress and improvement.
Till the end of time
Until the very end of existence itself.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BRIAN MAY, FREDDIE MERCURY, JOHN DEACON, ROGER TAYLOR
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@felixthelmocevallosmorales41
While the sun hangs in the sky and the desert has sand
While the waves crash in the sea and meet the land
While there's a wind and the stars and the rainbow
'Til the mountains crumble into the plain
Oh, yes, we'll keep on tryin'
Tread that fine line
Oh, we'll keep on tryin', yeah
Just passing our time
While we live according to race, colour or creed
While we rule by blind madness and pure greed
Our lives dictated by tradition, superstition, false religion
Through the aeons, and on and on
Oh, yes, we'll keep on tryin'
We'll tread that fine line
Oh-oh, we'll keep on tryin'
'Til the end of time
'Til the end of time
Through the sorrow, all through our splendour
Don't take offence at my innuendo
You can be anything you want to be
Just turn yourself into anything you think that you could ever be
Be free with your tempo, be free, be free
Surrender your ego, be free, be free to yourself
If there's a God or any kind of justice under the sky
If there's a point, if there's a reason to live or die
If there's an answer to the questions, we feel bound to ask
Show yourself, destroy our fears, release your mask
Oh, yes, we'll keep on trying
Hey, tread that fine line
Yeah, we'll keep on smiling, yeah (yeah, yeah)
And whatever will be, will be
We'll keep on trying
We'll just keep on trying
'Til the end of time
'Til the end of time
'Til the end of time
Traducir al español
Fuente: Musixmatch
Compositores: Brian May / Freddie Mercury / John Deacon / Roger Taylor
Letra de Innuendo © Queen Music Limited
@OdesaFilmStudio
Love!
@tomaszzasada7913
:O/)) *
@johnmcdermitt1878
One of my most favorite Queen songs. The power, passion, and force behind it. Nothing really compares to it.
@UsuarioGeek-hm5xu
Cierto solo los ke somos fans de queen entendemos esta obra de arte
@Mexicodebauchary
Why it's never played on the radio is a complete mystery to me.
One of their best.
@madmarkc275
It's always been my personal favourite Queen song! Freddie's voice alone could start the apocalypse on this track.
@w7class
This one is simply the absolute best rock song e all times!..
@petra.5a
Absolutely agree ❤
@steveen.tyler_axlrosee
Rock + Opera + Metal + Twist + Flamenco + Baladas + Pop + Blues + Folk= Masterpiece = Queen
@DaliborPerkovic-sw8mh
Agree!