A Night at the Opera is the fourth studio
album by British rock group Queen, released in November 1975. Co-produced by
Roy Thomas Baker and Queen, it was, at the time of its release, the most
expensive album ever recorded. A commercial success, A Night at the Opera
has been voted by the public and cited by music publications as one of Queen's
finest works.
The album takes its name from the Marx Brothers film A Night
at the Opera, which the band watched one night at the studio complex when
recording. It was originally released by EMI in the UK, where it
topped the charts for four non-consecutive weeks, and Elektra Records in the
US, where it peaked at number 4 and became the band's first Platinum selling
album there.
Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to...)
"Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to...)" could only
be referred to as Freddie Mercury's hate letter towards Queen's ex-manager,
Norman Sheffield, who is reputed to have mistreated the band and abused his
role as their manager from 1972–75. Though it never made a direct reference to
him, upon listening to the song, Sheffield attempted to sue the band for
defamation, and this revealed to the public the subject of the song. Sheffield
later admitted that it probably gave the band an incentive to dedicate the song
to him after he decided to sue them. During live performances, Mercury would
usually re-dedicate the song to "a real motherfucker of a gentleman",
although this line was censored on the version that appeared on their Live
Killers album in 1979. Other than on the version of said live album, he'd said
it was dedicated to a "mother%$^&* I used to know".
In the Classic Albums documentary about the making of A
Night at the Opera, Brian May stated that the band at first was
somewhat taken aback by the incisiveness of Mercury's lyrics. After the song
came together, it was agreed that the "author should have his way",
and the song went on as penned.
As with "Bohemian Rhapsody", most of the guitar parts
on this song were initially played on piano by Mercury, to demonstrate to May
how they needed to be played on guitar. "Death on Two Legs" remained
on the setlist until, and well into, The Game Tour in 1980, then was dropped.
Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon
"Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon" is another song by
Mercury. He played piano and did all of the vocals. The lead vocal was sung in
the studio and reproduced through headphones in a tin bucket elsewhere in the
studio. A microphone picked up the sound from the bucket, which gives it a
hollow "megaphone" sound. The guitar solo is also reported to have
been recorded on the vocal track, as there were no more tracks to record on, as
explained by producer Roy Thomas Baker during the 'Classic Albums' documentary.
The key change going into the guitar solo (Eb to A) is a tritone relationship,
making it a jarring, but very effective, transition into the key of E minor for
the next track, "I'm in Love with My Car".
I'm in Love with My Car
"I'm in Love with My Car" is amongst Roger
Taylor's most famous songs in the Queen catalogue. The song was initially taken
as a joke by May, who thought that Taylor was not serious when he heard a demo
recording.
Taylor played the guitars in the original demo, but they
were later re-recorded by May on his Red Special. The lead vocals were
performed by Taylor on the studio version, and all released live versions.
The revving sounds at the conclusion of the song were recorded by
Taylor's then current car, an Alfa Romeo. The lyrics were inspired by one of
the band's roadies, Johnathan Harris, whose Triumph TR4 was evidently the
"love of his life". The song is dedicated to him, the album says:
"Dedicated to Johnathan Harris, boy racer to the end".
When it came down to releasing the album's first single,
Taylor was so fond of his song that he urged Mercury (author of the first
single, "Bohemian Rhapsody") to allow it to be the B-side and
reportedly locked himself in a cupboard until Mercury agreed. This decision
would later become the cause of much internal friction in the band, in that
while it was only the B-side, it generated an equal amount of publishing
royalties for Taylor as the main single did for Mercury.
The song was often played live during the 1977–1981 period.
Taylor sang it from the drums while Mercury played piano and provided backing
vocals. It was played in the Queen + Paul Rodgers tour in 2005 and the Rock the
Cosmos Tour in 2008. Taylor would again play the song for his concerts with The
Cross and solo tours, where instead of drums he played rhythm guitar.
You're My Best Friend
"You're My Best Friend" was Queen's first single
written by John Deacon. He composed while he was learning to play piano. He
played the Wurlitzer Electric Piano (which Mercury called a
"horrible" instrument in an interview) on the recording and
overdubbed the bass later on. The song was written for his wife, Veronica
Tetzlaff. It was also Deacon's first single to hit the charts in the top 10.
'39
"'39" was May's attempt to do "sci-fi
skiffle". "'39" relates the tale of a group of space explorers
who embark on what is, from their perspective, a year-long voyage. Upon their
return, however, they realize that a hundred years have passed, because of the
time dilation effect in Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity, and the loved
ones they left behind are now all dead. Because the "year of '39"
resembles 1939, some have speculated that this is actually a song about the
beginning of the Second World War but this is not the case. There are backing
vocals by Mercury as well as very high and fairly low harmonies by Taylor, and
some falsettos by Taylor.
Having named their albums A Night at the Opera
and A Day at the Races after two of the Marx Brothers' most
popular films, surviving brother Groucho Marx invited Queen to visit him at his
Los Angeles home in March 1977 (five months before his passing). The band
thanked him, and performed "'39" a cappella.
George Michael performed "'39" at the Freddie
Mercury Tribute Concert in April 1992. Michael cited this song as his favorite
Queen song, claiming he used to busk it on the London Underground.
Counting all of the original songs in album order, starting
with Keep Yourself Alive (on the first Queen album) all the way through to
"'39", this song falls 39th in chronological order.
The Spanish folk metal band Mägo de Oz has a cover of this
song on their album La Ciudad de los Árboles named Resacosix en la Barra.
Sweet Lady
"Sweet Lady" is a distortion-driven fast rocker
written by May. The song is an unusual rock style in 3/4 meter (which gives way
to 4/4 at the bridge). Taylor remembers it as the most difficult drumming part
he ever recorded. The guitar line later evolved into the fast version of
"We Will Rock You".
Seaside Rendezvous
"Seaside Rendezvous", written by Mercury, is
probably best known for the "musical" bridge section which begins at
around 0:51 into the song. The section is performed entirely by Mercury and
Taylor using their voices alone. Mercury imitates woodwind instruments
including a clarinet and Taylor mostly brass instruments, including tubas and
trumpets, and even a kazoo, during this section Taylor hits the highest note on
the album C6. The tap dance segment is also "performed" by Mercury
and Taylor on the mixing desk with thimbles on their fingers. Mercury plays
both grand piano and jangle honky-tonk.
The Prophet's Song
"The Prophet's Song" was composed by May (working
title "People of the Earth"). On the show In the Studio with
Redbeard, which spotlighted A Night at the Opera, May explained that he wrote
the song after a dream he'd had while he was recovering from being ill while
recording the Sheer Heart Attack album, and is the source of some of the
lyrics. He spent several days putting it together, and it includes a vocal
canon sung by Mercury. The vocal, and later instrumental canon was produced by
early tape delay devices. It is a heavy and dark number with a strong
progressive rock influence. At over eight minutes in length, is also Queen's
longest song (not counting the untitled instrumental track on "Made in
Heaven").
As detailed by May in a documentary about the album, the
speed-up effect that happens in the middle of the guitar solo was achieved by
starting a reel-to-reel player with the tape on it, as the original tape player
was stopped.
The dream May had was about The Great Flood, and lyrics have
references from the Bible and the Noah's Ark account.
Love of My Life
"Love of My Life" was written for Mercury's
girlfriend at the time, Mary Austin, and is one of his most covered songs
(there have been versions by many acts like Extreme featuring May, Scorpions
and Elaine Paige). Mercury played piano (including a classical solo) and did
all of the vocals with startling multi-tracking precision. May played harp
(doing it chord by chord and pasting the takes to form the entire part), Gibson
Hummingbird acoustic guitar (which he'd bought in Japan) and his Red Special.
"Love of My Life" was such a concert favorite that
Mercury frequently stopped singing and allowed the audience to take over. It
was especially well received during concerts in South America, and the band
released the song as a single there. When Queen and Paul Rodgers performed the
song (specifically Brian solo) he sang almost none of the words and let the
audience sing it all, continuing the tradition.
Good Company
"Good Company" was written and sung by May, who
provides all vocals and plays a "Genuine Aloha" ukulele.
The recording is remarkable for featuring an elaborate
recreation of a Dixieland-style jazz band, produced by way of May's Red Special
guitar and Deacy Amp.
The song is a narrative tale, told by a man who in young age
was advised by his father to "take care of those you call your own, and
keep good company". In his younger years, the singer follows his father's
advice, keeping his friends and marrying a girl named Sally. However, after
their marriage, he begins to lose interest in his friends, who gradually
disappear. As he grows older, he becomes increasingly skilled at and dedicated
to his occupation, working long nights and neglecting his family.
Eventually, the man's efforts are rewarded, he begins his
own Limited company (which is also a pun, since throughout the rest of the song
"company" is used in the sense of companions). Even more dedicated to
his business, he hardly notices as his wife leaves him.
The song finishes with the speaker as an elderly man,
puffing his pipe and pondering the lessons of his life, which he has no one
left to share with.
Bohemian Rhapsody
"Bohemian Rhapsody" was written by Mercury with
the first guitar solo composed by May. All piano, bass and drum parts, as well
as the vocal arrangements, were thought up by Mercury on a daily basis and
written down "in blocks" (using note names instead of sheets) on a
phonebook. The other members recorded their respective instruments with no
concept of how their tracks would be utilized in the final mix. The now famous
operatic section was originally intended to be only a short interlude of
"Galileos" that connected the ballad and hard rock portions of the
song.
During the recording, the song became affectionately known
as "Fred's Thing" to the band, and the title only emerged during the
final sessions.
Despite being twice as long as the average single in 1975,
the song became immensely popular, topping charts worldwide (where it remained
for an unprecedented nine weeks in the UK) and is now widely regarded as one of
the most significant rock songs in history.
God Save the Queen
May recorded the anthem in 1974 before their Sheer Heart
Attack tour. He played a guide piano which was edited out later and added
several layers of guitars. After the song was completed it was played as
an outro at virtually every concert Queen played. When recording the track May
played a rough version on piano for Roy Thomas Baker. He called his own skills
on the piano sub-par at the time. He performed the song live on the roof
of Buckingham Palace for the Queen's golden jubilee in 2002.
May has stated that he performed the song on the roof of
Buckingham Palace as a homage to Jimi Hendrix's version of "The
Star-Spangled Banner".
Guitar layering is one of May's distinctive techniques as a
rock guitarist. He has said that the technique was developed whilst looking for
a violin sound. For tracks like this, he stated he can use "up to 30"
layers, using a small amplifier named the 'Deacy Amp' built by Deacon, and
later released commercially like the "Brian May" amplifier by Vox.
At the time the most expensive album ever recorded, Brian
May has asserted in subsequent years that, had A Night at the Opera not been
successful, Queen would have disbanded. Upon release, the album was a
commercial success, debuting at No. 1 in the UK and topping the charts for four
non-consecutive weeks. In the US, it debuted at No. 4, the band's strongest
showing at that time. Rolling Stone wrote, "Like all heavy-metal groups,
Queen's most easily distinguished trait is a knack for manipulating dynamics.
But what sets them apart is their selection of unlikely effects: acoustic
piano, harp, acappella vocals, no synthesizers. Coupled with good songs.
Queen's obviously the strongest contender in its field." Melody Maker
called the album a "must-have", encouraging listeners to "turn
it up loud and enjoy", while the Winnipeg Free Press wrote, "The
group's potential is practically limitless, indicating that Queen is destined
to finally take its place among the small handful of truly major acts working
in rock today." Robert Christgau was less enthusiastic, giving the album a
"B-" rating.
Reviews in notable publications such as Allmusic, Mojo and Q
Magazine, have seen the album receive five-star ratings. Allmusic, who chose
the record as an "album pick", wrote, "It's prog rock with a
sense of humor as well as dynamics, and Queen never bettered their approach
anywhere else"; Allmusic chose "Death on Two Legs (Dedicated
to...)", "Sweet Lady" and first single "Bohemian
Rhapsody", as the best tracks on the record. Mojo called the album
"An imperial extravaganza, a cornucopia; a band of hungrily competitive
individualists on a big roll of friendship and delight." Q were similarly
receptive, writing, "It's a record to which all four contributed fine
songs, and one of extremes – among the crashing rock and proggy wigouts were
love songs, acoustic whimsy, a trad-jazz pastiche and a brace of vaudeville
show tunes." The magazine opined that the eight minute "Prophet's
Song" is "as good as Bohemian Rhapsody". Uncut awarded the album
only 3/5 stars, but offered a mostly positive review, commending "the
extent of the band's barmy diversity." Pitchfork awarded the album a
rating of 8.9/10, writing, "No punches pulled, no expense spared: A Night
at the Opera was Queen at the top of the mountain." Rhapsody's Mike
McGuirk wrote, "Generally considered one of the greatest rock albums of
all time, A Night at the Opera's overlaying of heavy metal, genius stereo
gimmickry, Broadway swish and British pomp is as vital and riveting to listen
to today as when it was released in 1975." The BBC said of the record,
"Christmas 1975 was to be forever remembered as Queen’s. And A Night at
the Opera remains their finest hour."
