Freddie wrote this song Britt. And originally it was actually three songs. He didn't know how to end each song, so he added the three songs together. You should listen to the studio version also. And surprisingly the highest voice was not sung by Freddie, but by the drummer Roger Taylor. At your service. :)
Yeah, definitely listen to the studio version and listen to the live version of Somebody to Love from Montreal 1981 concert, you can really see and hear Roger singing while playing the drums...
This is Freddie singing with a bad throat infection and performing against his doctor's advice. It's also just a snippet of the song. Freddie would not explain the meaning of the song and said it was actually a combination of three different songs he had written and made transitions for. The original video is actually the first music video and is a must see as others have mentioned.
Each band had a really limited time slot for Live Aid. Queen managed to compress their songs into each other in such a way that it felt like an entire gig in something like 10 or 15 minutes. It's worth seeing their whole set, they stole the whole show to the point other bands that half assed their slot were actually mad about it
@@ToxicKadea because they were raising money for charity and not being paid I suppose. Who knows, but it happened and only served to highlight the level of effort that Queen put into their own slot.
@@pixlhound It's because other bands showcased their latest material rather than a 'greatest hits' set, Queen understood the term 'Global Jukebox' that Bob Geldof explained to everyone. No fillers.
@@JosephHuntelvisnspiders that is true, but doesn't change that a lot of the bands put very little effort into their performances. Either way, it resulted in a Queen masterclass that we are blessed to be able to enjoy on repeat
@@pixlhound True, and in fairness most of the acts didn't have the back catalogue to preform one. I was a big Queen fan then and had seen them live the year b4, I knew what to expect, but I didn't expect the global reaction they got, they were on a downward slope then and this one performance saw all their albums been bought up again. Truly amazing.
What a great reaction. So glad you mentioned the crowd singing. Considering this was not a Queen gig and the audience were there to hear many artists, their response was incredible. Thanks again for a fabulous reaction. I love your videos ❤
Britt, you have to experience the WHOLE performance from Queen during Live Aid. This was just a teaser. "Eeeeeeeeeeeeee-oh!!" You will understand that when you see the whole performance!
I was just a 16-year-old watching this live on TV when this concert was televised. I was a huge fan of Queen and expected a great show from them. At that time, I wasn't aware that this performance would have been such a milestone in music history. Even today, every time I see this video, I have to stop and watch it. It never gets tiring. It's a shame how music has deteriorated to the point in which we will never have artists like Queen performing events in musical history. At least the music and videos remain for the younger generation to learn and appreciate.
The Live Aid concert was phenominal, especially the Wembley sets - groundbreaking in so many ways, and a tribute to Bob Geldof and Midge Ure for being the inspiration and driving force behind it. But you absolutely, absolutely need to watch Queen's whole 22 minute set in one go. A landmark in music history. And David Bowie's set is a definite must, too. Oh, and U2 (an up and coming band at the time) were noteworthy too for Bono's audience interaction.
I was in the audience at Wembley Stadium that day. I didn’t think so many folks would still be talking about it nearly 40 years later, but it was a great day. Queen’s performance was iconic and is rightly singled out for praise, but so much of it was memorable.
The movie Bohemian Rhapsody is a fantastic movie, and If you'd like to understand the significance of this song and set, the movie explains it pretty well. You really owe it to yourself to see the whole Queen set at Live Aid. It will blow you away and show you what controling a crowd looks like.
Whilst the movie was very well made, especially the Live Aid set, it played fast and loose with the timeline. Record releases in the wrong order etc and also included things tha just. never. happened!
@@garethmilford-scott1789 yeah .. I loved the movie, but it was pretty obvious they shuffled things around and added a few things for entertainment value. I am not even that knowledgeable about Queen and I could tell. But it WAS entertaining.
Oh, Britt...covers of this song are sacrilege! No one else in the world should ever touch this. So, so happy you finally listened to Queen perform their iconic masterpiece. Just sad this video didn't include the entire song.
You need to see the video of the Green Day concert audience singing this song in unison in it's entirety during a time when Green Day wasn't on stage. It is a testament to the popularity and lasting importance of this band .
I watched that video, after someone like yourself mentioned it, and I didn't really know what to expect and didn't think it would be that big of a deal but it nearly brought me to tears for some reason. So powerful to hear all those people just singing along without any prompting!!
Absolutely phenomenal performance from the whole band, Live Aid a live concert in 1985 twinned with a live concert in Philadelphia USA 🇺🇸 92 thousand crowd in Philadelphia and 72 thousand crowd at Live Aid UK both concerts the were to raise money for a terrible famine in Africa, the concert was a first of a kind televised to around 2 billion people worldwide, and the concerts raised the equivalent in today’s money around 350 million dollars or near that figure,all the best artists of the time performed and they had a 20 minute slot to perform, Queen came on stage and there flamboyant performance stole the show from any other artist that performed on the day, Freddie had the crowds in the palm of his hand,the performance from Queen is legendary, Live Aid is special to me as I Actually attended the concert and have so many fantastic memories that time , Freddie is surely missed ! Great reaction thanks 🙏
I heard somewhere that this song was Freddie's way of expressing his coming out as gay. The man he killed was himself, the old self. And IMO that's why emphasized the word truth. He was such an amazing talent, and coupled with that fantastic band, they will always be number one. p.s. I watched this concert when it first aired, and when Freddie walked out in wife beater t shirt and the faded jeans that fit just right, I fell in love!
I’ve read about lots of theories about the meaning of this song-including the one you mentioned @cindyrwagner6930. Considering that Freddie wrote most of this song long before he was a member of Queen and long before he came out as gay or bi, it could be about the fact that he had created a new identity for himself when he changed his name legally from Farrokh Bulsara to Freddie Mercury, and the man he ‘killed’ was the name or identity he was given at birth by his parents. Freddie always refused to explain the song and said that he wanted the listeners to enjoy trying to figure out what it might mean. Freddie sang every song with such emotion and conviction, it always seemed like the words of each song meant something very personal to him-even when they didn’t! He was the ultimate showman and never gave anything but 100% to the audience. So it’s possible this song might just be an interesting story he made up and doesn’t have anything to do with him at all!
Just imagine that’s his live voice no lip syncing or worthless auto tune, that’s Freddie’s raw talented voice and it was written by Freddy. It’s sad Freddie was struggling at the end of his life and said it had to be his greatest
Freddie didn't drink anything carbonated before or during a performance. He didn't want to risk burping into the mic, he said it would be disrespectful to the audience. He did keep tea with honey on the piano to keep his throat from drying out during a performance, and I'm sure other people performing that day had drinks for the same reason - and what better place to put them than on the piano?
Awww, I love your queen reactions. I highly recommend watching the whole live aid set together. This song continues beautiful into Radio Ga Ga (which you really need to see). His crowd control in this live aid. Concert is absolutely amazing. You don’t get the whole Bohemian Rhapsody when you watch from Live Aid.
Freddie was in his mid twenties when he wrote this- he also made a video back in 1974 that set the high standards of MTV- before there really was an MTV-. Astounding!
I HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend watching Queen's entire set from Live Aid, all in one run. He is absolutely a powerhouse. To that point, most of the artists had 'phoned it in', basically, yeah, this is for charity and all that, whatever. Freddie ROCKED IT! Freddie knew he had AIDS at that time, but didn't tell anyone, including the other bandmates, that he was ill until much later.
Freddie MAY have suspected that he could have been experiencing the beginning symptoms of Aids at this time. However, he was diagnosed until 1987. If you are going by what was in the movie, they played fast and loose with the timeline of actual events.
Queen writes all their songs. They don’t do covers. Freddie wrote this but I believe they always credited the whole band with the writing. This wasn’t even half the song!!
I am 55 years old and I was a Senior in High School when LIVE AID was kicking off.... I remember 2 things distinctly from the gig - Status Quo kicked it off with 'Rockin' All Over the World' which I guess was appropriate - and the other was the 22 minutes of the best live gig of all time.... when Queen held the audience at the venue and around the world captive and awe struck. In all my years of travelling around the sun, I have still seen nothing that has come close to their portion of the live gig. Simply brilliant - from a band that could work an audience.... one of my favourite memories from my youth
A Night at the Opera, the album this song comes from, was a progressive rock album they did in '75. It was the first Queen album i bought when i was all of 9 years old in '76. Just a memorable album over all. You should listen to the full song from it. Just beautiful and operatic.
I really enjoy your reactions. They aren't always (but often are) very meaningful but they ALWAYS have meaning. Love your takes on songs. Makes me explore them anew or again. Bless you!
1 of the greatest front men ever !!!!!!!Had this album brand new off the press when it came out the first week..always wondered if he was singing about A.I.D.S which he died from years later ..RIP ONE OF MY ALL TIME FAVORITES !!!
This was recorded at Live Aid. a HUGE concert televised world wide on Saturday July 13 1985 a charity benefit to raise money for the famine in Ethiopia. With 1.9 billion people watching. Over 70 bands and artists preformed over the course of 12 hours. with each act getting about 20 -25 min. All those Soda and beer cups on the piano were from the previous acts. Queen hit the stage after 7 hours of previous acts.
Most radio stations said that it was too long to play but kenny everett loved it and kept plzying it on his radio show people were phoning in asking about the song and it went to number one in the charts 🎉
This was obviously a shortened version due to the time they had on stage. There are full live Bohemian Rhapsody performances on live aid including Montreal 1981. Also check out Love of my Life Live in Rio. 250,000 strong crowd singing with or for him. Going back to Live Aid, Freddie was advised by doctors not to perform because of a throat invection.
That's not beer on his piano. It's a special green tea with honey and lemon for his voice. To answer your question, Freddie wrote this one although different members wrote different songs that were hits. The incredible lead guitar player is Sir Brian May (Knight Of The Realm and Doctor Of Astrophysics) playing the guitar that he and his father made out of the mantlepiece from his childhood home because they couldn't afford to buy him a guitar and he refused to ever play another his whole career
I have some DVD's of an old show called classic albums. Each episodes focused on a classic album and how it was written and recorded. The DVD's come with bonus content as well. One of the one's I have is about the album A NIGHT AT THE OPERA by Queen. This song is on that album. Freddie wrote it. YOU NEED TO HEAR THE FULL ALBUM VERSION OF THIS. It took some time to record this song as it was recorded BD (before digital).
Hi Britt I've followed Queen from their first album check out a song called One Vision. Bohemian Rhapsody was originally called the cowboy song by the members of the band. They would work on it back and forth put it on the shelf and come back to it till they decided on Bohemian Rhapsody.
You should watch the whole concert off-camera it's about 20-25 minutes but it's legendary and he played in England at Wembley Stadium which holds I think 160,000 people that concert was excellent
like 15 seconds into the song and im crying. I was never a big queen fan cause im not old enough. But man queen was one of the greatest live bands of all time.
As a brit, I think this is the only song we ALL know word for word and can and will sing it anywhere 😅 even if you are not a massive fan of the band. Highly recommend looking up an impromptu performance by an audience while they waited in Hyde Park for Green Day to come on stage. Its unbelievable...
You mentioned how he's singing this with a little more grit and you are correct cause the song is very personal to him since it's about the moment he made up his mind as a young man who he is and how he's going to deal with it including the hard/emotional coming out to his mom.
I was 25 attended this at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia, it was in the mid 90's and the fire dept sprayed the crowd to cool us down. One of the Greatest concerts ever.
Clicked the first time , because of your gorgeous good looks . Finished the first video , because of your melodious voice. Subscribed because of your awesome content.
Because Freddy is such a gifted singer people often overlook his piano playing. For those that don’t know, the studio version of this song is one continuous piano take and its a masterpiece. (The drums are also a single take)
I was fortunate enough to watch both the performances in England and the United States. The lineups were amazing, probably the best performances of each of the artists. I worked odd jobs to pay for the pay per view. Radio Gaga was my favorite Queen contribution. It makes for a long video, but I strongly recommend that you watch the entire Queen concert performance. I was 12 years old and became a Classic Rock fanatic right there and then after having been just a fan
You should watch the movie Bohemian Rhapsody. It can answer a lot of your questions, and give you some insight into why this performance was so special
It is a much shortened version of the song Bohemian Rhapsody has they only had 20 minutes and they managed to fit 6 songs in. The full version of Bo Rap is around 8 minutes so they just did a abridged first part. The opera part they couldn't do live anyway, so even when they did do the full version live the band used to go off stage and there would be a backing track play. I suggest you watch the full set as it was an amazing experience and as I say there are 6 songs and only 2 are shortened. Also if you do do the full set, there is an extra song with just Freddie and Brian later in the evening that isn't normally added but can be found at the link I will try to give you. Edit couldn't leave links but look for Queen Live Aid 1985 full set and then Queen Live Aid 1985 Is This The World We Created?.
I can’t emphasize this enough, you MUST listen to the original studio recording with the official video. This is not even half the song! I know many young reactors like to go straight for live recordings. Queen was a great live band but the 70s was all about the studio recordings first. They put a lot of time and effort into creating these masterpieces and you really need to hear studio first. Thanks Brit!
Some of us were just lucky to be born at the right time and got to see Queen, Emerson Lake Palmer, Rush, Led Zepplin, Heart, ZZ Top, Aerosmith, Rare Earth, Grand Funk Railroad and even The Beatles live .... more than once.
If you listen close throughout the set, you can actually hear his voice crack a few times, but he always recovered beautifully. And there are also a few times where he goes for a lower note.. when it's usually much higher. It sounds so good that I can't tell if he just does it because he wants to change the sound up a bit or if he is doing it to keep his voice from cracking more.
Well, there were a LOT of talented musicians playing there, but Queen did steal the show... might want to look up the documentary Queen: Days of our lives.
When this first came out, the critics insisted it could never be performed live because it was too complex, Well I got lucky and got to see them do it for the first time on my 20th bithday back in 1975
I was told that Freddie wrote the song, his producers refused to give him the go ahead saying it was confusing. He was going to leave the band until his producers said he could do the song. Now if not their biggest its in top 3
You need to see the whole song live with Freddy. Wembley or Montreal 1981 are both excellent examples. You haven’t heard the song until you’ve heard the entire original by its creators. They switched labels over this song as the head of their original label thought it was too weird and no one would like it or “bang their heads” to it. This is especially funny in the Bohemian Rhapsody movie (historically incredibly inaccurate & unfair to Freddie but the actor playing him was amazing) Mike Myers plays that record exec. If you don’t know this is hysterical because Mike Myers made it a No. 1 smash hit for the second time with its head banging inclusion in his hit movie Wayne’s World (he created the characters on SNL, wrote the movie, stars as Wayne Campbell a character & film based on his childhood in Scarborough, Ont, a suburb of Toronto. He’s also a diehard Queen fan and proud Canadian).
Freddie brought the opera concept and wrote most of the songs. But guitar may and bass ,plus drums all wrote big songs for the band....you need to see queen movie from 8 years ago very well done ...queen is on tour with Adam lambert this year , does well in Freddie shadow, but their is only one mercury just like Eddie van halen impossible to replace, but you do best you can if bands needs ....
Best version of the song. I heard an Elton John interview that he jokingly told Freddie "eff you" because how am I supposed to follow right after that!!
Fun fact, Brian May (the guitarist) is also an astrophysicist and at least in the early days of the band the guitar he played named the Red Special was designed and built by him and his father.
Also the producer's said the song was to long and wanted to cut it down for radio but, Freddie and the boys said it either goes as it is or it doesn't go
You gotta see the whole 22 minute set. Queen was a last minute addition. By the time they came on, the concert had been going on for a while, the weather was uncooperative, and it wasn't even a queen crowd. When they started in, Freddie had a tired and grumpy crowd eating out of his hand. The papers even said that, for "22 minutes in July 1985, Britain was ruled by an entirely different Queen". It is legend. Freddie's charisma and showmanship are on full display.
Britt I would love you to react to the whole Queen Live Aid performance as it’s around 22 minutes long and absolutely legendary!
THIS!!
What they said
Siiiiii por favor 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
Totally agree but no constant pausing, it’s too good.
Agree 100%
Freddie wrote this song Britt. And originally it was actually three songs. He didn't know how to end each song, so he added the three songs together.
You should listen to the studio version also. And surprisingly the highest voice was not sung by Freddie, but by the drummer Roger Taylor.
At your service. :)
Didn’t know that!! Wow! Interesting😊
Yeah, definitely listen to the studio version and listen to the live version of Somebody to Love from Montreal 1981 concert, you can really see and hear Roger singing while playing the drums...
Freddie wrote album in a wkend I think
⚡RIP Farrokh Bulsara AKA Freddie Mercury⚡
exactly what I wanted to say
This is Freddie singing with a bad throat infection and performing against his doctor's advice. It's also just a snippet of the song. Freddie would not explain the meaning of the song and said it was actually a combination of three different songs he had written and made transitions for. The original video is actually the first music video and is a must see as others have mentioned.
There were music videos before this song. I've seen some from the 60s.
@@lesterine77 How and where were they filmed? Where did you see them? Got an example?
NO no, no. You do not just react to a small piece of the Live Aid concert. Its an event that should be seen in its entirety.
I agree she missed the best performance of all time. She did Freddy an injustice
Each band had a really limited time slot for Live Aid. Queen managed to compress their songs into each other in such a way that it felt like an entire gig in something like 10 or 15 minutes. It's worth seeing their whole set, they stole the whole show to the point other bands that half assed their slot were actually mad about it
Then why half assed their slot in the first place? Maybe they don’t want to be there…
@@ToxicKadea because they were raising money for charity and not being paid I suppose. Who knows, but it happened and only served to highlight the level of effort that Queen put into their own slot.
@@pixlhound It's because other bands showcased their latest material rather than a 'greatest hits' set, Queen understood the term 'Global Jukebox' that Bob Geldof explained to everyone. No fillers.
@@JosephHuntelvisnspiders that is true, but doesn't change that a lot of the bands put very little effort into their performances. Either way, it resulted in a Queen masterclass that we are blessed to be able to enjoy on repeat
@@pixlhound True, and in fairness most of the acts didn't have the back catalogue to preform one. I was a big Queen fan then and had seen them live the year b4, I knew what to expect, but I didn't expect the global reaction they got, they were on a downward slope then and this one performance saw all their albums been bought up again. Truly amazing.
What a great reaction. So glad you mentioned the crowd singing. Considering this was not a Queen gig and the audience were there to hear many artists, their response was incredible.
Thanks again for a fabulous reaction. I love your videos ❤
Britt, you have to experience the WHOLE performance from Queen during Live Aid. This was just a teaser. "Eeeeeeeeeeeeee-oh!!" You will understand that when you see the whole performance!
I was just a 16-year-old watching this live on TV when this concert was televised. I was a huge fan of Queen and expected a great show from them. At that time, I wasn't aware that this performance would have been such a milestone in music history. Even today, every time I see this video, I have to stop and watch it. It never gets tiring. It's a shame how music has deteriorated to the point in which we will never have artists like Queen performing events in musical history. At least the music and videos remain for the younger generation to learn and appreciate.
I Was 15!! It Was Awesome!
The greatest song ever by the best performer and showman. Who doesn't know all the words to this song.
The Live Aid concert was phenominal, especially the Wembley sets - groundbreaking in so many ways, and a tribute to Bob Geldof and Midge Ure for being the inspiration and driving force behind it. But you absolutely, absolutely need to watch Queen's whole 22 minute set in one go. A landmark in music history.
And David Bowie's set is a definite must, too.
Oh, and U2 (an up and coming band at the time) were noteworthy too for Bono's audience interaction.
I was in the audience at Wembley Stadium that day. I didn’t think so many folks would still be talking about it nearly 40 years later, but it was a great day. Queen’s performance was iconic and is rightly singled out for praise, but so much of it was memorable.
Ditto.
The movie Bohemian Rhapsody is a fantastic movie, and If you'd like to understand the significance of this song and set, the movie explains it pretty well.
You really owe it to yourself to see the whole Queen set at Live Aid. It will blow you away and show you what controling a crowd looks like.
None of that movies time line is true so don't base queens history on that. Freddie was unaware at this time he had contracted HIV
Whilst the movie was very well made, especially the Live Aid set, it played fast and loose with the timeline. Record releases in the wrong order etc and also included things tha just. never. happened!
@@garethmilford-scott1789 yeah .. I loved the movie, but it was pretty obvious they shuffled things around and added a few things for entertainment value. I am not even that knowledgeable about Queen and I could tell. But it WAS entertaining.
Freddie always reminds me of gymnasts in these clothes: He's basically an Olympian in his field. :)
He knew his time was coming. He will forever be Legendary ♥️
Oh, Britt...covers of this song are sacrilege! No one else in the world should ever touch this. So, so happy you finally listened to Queen perform their iconic masterpiece. Just sad this video didn't include the entire song.
My son went to see Queen with Adam Lambert. I couldn’t do it, especially since I saw them with Freddie in 1982.
Axl Rose and Elton John performance is a good one
check out the studio version for the whole song
You need to see the video of the Green Day concert audience singing this song in unison in it's entirety during a time when Green Day wasn't on stage. It is a testament to the popularity and lasting importance of this band .
The video: ua-cam.com/video/cZnBNuqqz5g/v-deo.html
Thank you for pointing this out to me. It was Amazing!!!
I watched that video, after someone like yourself mentioned it, and I didn't really know what to expect and didn't think it would be that big of a deal but it nearly brought me to tears for some reason. So powerful to hear all those people just singing along without any prompting!!
You have no idea how important this man is ! Freddie Mercury is an icon in rock music! He’s amazing 💕
U should react to the whole 21 minutes 6 songs live Aid 1985 plus Freddie Mercury & Brian May Lead guitarist wrote it.
Absolutely phenomenal performance from the whole band, Live Aid a live concert in 1985 twinned with a live concert in Philadelphia USA 🇺🇸 92 thousand crowd in Philadelphia and 72 thousand crowd at Live Aid UK both concerts the were to raise money for a terrible famine in Africa, the concert was a first of a kind televised to around 2 billion people worldwide, and the concerts raised the equivalent in today’s money around 350 million dollars or near that figure,all the best artists of the time performed and they had a 20 minute slot to perform, Queen came on stage and there flamboyant performance stole the show from any other artist that performed on the day, Freddie had the crowds in the palm of his hand,the performance from Queen is legendary, Live Aid is special to me as I Actually attended the concert and have so many fantastic memories that time , Freddie is surely missed ! Great reaction thanks 🙏
You need to watch their full set
I heard somewhere that this song was Freddie's way of expressing his coming out as gay. The man he killed was himself, the old self. And IMO that's why emphasized the word truth. He was such an amazing talent, and coupled with that fantastic band, they will always be number one. p.s. I watched this concert when it first aired, and when Freddie walked out in wife beater t shirt and the faded jeans that fit just right, I fell in love!
I’ve read about lots of theories about the meaning of this song-including the one you mentioned @cindyrwagner6930. Considering that Freddie wrote most of this song long before he was a member of Queen and long before he came out as gay or bi, it could be about the fact that he had created a new identity for himself when he changed his name legally from Farrokh Bulsara to Freddie Mercury, and the man he ‘killed’ was the name or identity he was given at birth by his parents. Freddie always refused to explain the song and said that he wanted the listeners to enjoy trying to figure out what it might mean. Freddie sang every song with such emotion and conviction, it always seemed like the words of each song meant something very personal to him-even when they didn’t! He was the ultimate showman and never gave anything but 100% to the audience. So it’s possible this song might just be an interesting story he made up and doesn’t have anything to do with him at all!
Freddy Mercury was simply amazing, what a showman
freddie wrote it and it was much longer
there is a movie about Queen that came out a couple years ago called Bohemian Rhapsody...its a good watch
Just imagine that’s his live voice no lip syncing or worthless auto tune, that’s Freddie’s raw talented voice and it was written by Freddy. It’s sad Freddie was struggling at the end of his life and said it had to be his greatest
You really need to listen to the studio version to get the full version of the song. It was an amazing concert though. Freddie wrote the song himself.
Love I reacted to This Greatest band of All time Greatest song ever written
Freddie didn't drink anything carbonated before or during a performance. He didn't want to risk burping into the mic, he said it would be disrespectful to the audience. He did keep tea with honey on the piano to keep his throat from drying out during a performance, and I'm sure other people performing that day had drinks for the same reason - and what better place to put them than on the piano?
Awww, I love your queen reactions. I highly recommend watching the whole live aid set together. This song continues beautiful into Radio Ga Ga (which you really need to see). His crowd control in this live aid. Concert is absolutely amazing. You don’t get the whole Bohemian Rhapsody when you watch from Live Aid.
Freddie was in his mid twenties when he wrote this- he also made a video back in 1974 that set the high standards of MTV- before there really was an MTV-. Astounding!
you should listen to the full song. Greatest song ever written!
I HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend watching Queen's entire set from Live Aid, all in one run. He is absolutely a powerhouse. To that point, most of the artists had 'phoned it in', basically, yeah, this is for charity and all that, whatever. Freddie ROCKED IT! Freddie knew he had AIDS at that time, but didn't tell anyone, including the other bandmates, that he was ill until much later.
Freddie MAY have suspected that he could have been experiencing the beginning symptoms of Aids at this time. However, he was diagnosed until 1987.
If you are going by what was in the movie, they played fast and loose with the timeline of actual events.
You should check out the Green Day concert where the audience sings this before the band comes out.
Please please please do the whole concert. Love your reactions!
Queen writes all their songs. They don’t do covers. Freddie wrote this but I believe they always credited the whole band with the writing. This wasn’t even half the song!!
You need to hear the studio version which includes an intro not included here. It is an amazing thing like all Queen songs
You should watch the hole Queen live ad concert, it much better that way.
I am 55 years old and I was a Senior in High School when LIVE AID was kicking off.... I remember 2 things distinctly from the gig - Status Quo kicked it off with 'Rockin' All Over the World' which I guess was appropriate - and the other was the 22 minutes of the best live gig of all time.... when Queen held the audience at the venue and around the world captive and awe struck. In all my years of travelling around the sun, I have still seen nothing that has come close to their portion of the live gig. Simply brilliant - from a band that could work an audience.... one of my favourite memories from my youth
A Night at the Opera, the album this song comes from, was a progressive rock album they did in '75. It was the first Queen album i bought when i was all of 9 years old in '76. Just a memorable album over all. You should listen to the full song from it. Just beautiful and operatic.
I really enjoy your reactions. They aren't always (but often are) very meaningful but they ALWAYS have meaning.
Love your takes on songs. Makes me explore them anew or again.
Bless you!
1 of the greatest front men ever !!!!!!!Had this album brand new off the press when it came out the first week..always wondered if he was singing about A.I.D.S which he died from years later ..RIP ONE OF MY ALL TIME FAVORITES !!!
Queen film, bohemian rhapsody this will give you all answers you need
Freddie was a prolific writer.
You need to do the whole concert it’s amazing. Def in the top 3 of the best live performances of all time
This was recorded at Live Aid. a HUGE concert televised world wide on Saturday July 13 1985 a charity benefit to raise money for the famine in Ethiopia. With 1.9 billion people watching. Over 70 bands and artists preformed over the course of 12 hours. with each act getting about 20 -25 min. All those Soda and beer cups on the piano were from the previous acts. Queen hit the stage after 7 hours of previous acts.
This is how music icons do it!! 👏😊
Most radio stations said that it was too long to play but kenny everett loved it and kept plzying it on his radio show people were phoning in asking about the song and it went to number one in the charts
🎉
Yayyyy!! Queen is the party 🎉 🎊 🎈🎈The best live version
is in Montreal 1981. Music video is amazing, too! ❤❤
He was an amazing showman
This was obviously a shortened version due to the time they had on stage. There are full live Bohemian Rhapsody performances on live aid including Montreal 1981.
Also check out Love of my Life Live in Rio. 250,000 strong crowd singing with or for him.
Going back to Live Aid, Freddie was advised by doctors not to perform because of a throat invection.
i was 13 when this came out, we were blessed with so much music those days
Awesome reaction to arguably the greatest live performance by any band in music history.
That's not beer on his piano. It's a special green tea with honey and lemon for his voice. To answer your question, Freddie wrote this one although different members wrote different songs that were hits. The incredible lead guitar player is Sir Brian May (Knight Of The Realm and Doctor Of Astrophysics) playing the guitar that he and his father made out of the mantlepiece from his childhood home because they couldn't afford to buy him a guitar and he refused to ever play another his whole career
You have Got to see the entire concert ! You can especially see how Freddie completely owns the entire crowd with Radio GaGa ! Phenomenal
Here the crowd. Great they all sang that song and remember it isn't a Queen-concert.
I have some DVD's of an old show called classic albums. Each episodes focused on a classic album and how it was written and recorded. The DVD's come with bonus content as well. One of the one's I have is about the album A NIGHT AT THE OPERA by Queen. This song is on that album. Freddie wrote it. YOU NEED TO HEAR THE FULL ALBUM VERSION OF THIS. It took some time to record this song as it was recorded BD (before digital).
Hi Britt I've followed Queen from their first album check out a song called One Vision. Bohemian Rhapsody was originally called the cowboy song by the members of the band. They would work on it back and forth put it on the shelf and come back to it till they decided on Bohemian Rhapsody.
you need to watch the movie he's played by Ramy malek great movie great performance great story
You should watch the whole concert off-camera it's about 20-25 minutes but it's legendary and he played in England at Wembley Stadium which holds I think 160,000 people that concert was excellent
The Live versions are just so fantastic
That was cut off midway.... would really love to see you react to this but the live from montreal version
like 15 seconds into the song and im crying. I was never a big queen fan cause im not old enough. But man queen was one of the greatest live bands of all time.
As a brit, I think this is the only song we ALL know word for word and can and will sing it anywhere 😅 even if you are not a massive fan of the band. Highly recommend looking up an impromptu performance by an audience while they waited in Hyde Park for Green Day to come on stage. Its unbelievable...
You mentioned how he's singing this with a little more grit and you are correct cause the song is very personal to him since it's about the moment he made up his mind as a young man who he is and how he's going to deal with it including the hard/emotional coming out to his mom.
I was 25 attended this at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia, it was in the mid 90's and the fire dept sprayed the crowd to cool us down. One of the Greatest concerts ever.
Clicked the first time , because of your gorgeous good looks . Finished the first video , because of your melodious voice. Subscribed because of your awesome content.
Because Freddy is such a gifted singer people often overlook his piano playing. For those that don’t know, the studio version of this song is one continuous piano take and its a masterpiece.
(The drums are also a single take)
Truly legendary
I was fortunate enough to watch both the performances in England and the United States. The lineups were amazing, probably the best performances of each of the artists. I worked odd jobs to pay for the pay per view. Radio Gaga was my favorite Queen contribution. It makes for a long video, but I strongly recommend that you watch the entire Queen concert performance. I was 12 years old and became a Classic Rock fanatic right there and then after having been just a fan
You should watch the movie Bohemian Rhapsody. It can answer a lot of your questions, and give you some insight into why this performance was so special
It is a much shortened version of the song Bohemian Rhapsody has they only had 20 minutes and they managed to fit 6 songs in. The full version of Bo Rap is around 8 minutes so they just did a abridged first part. The opera part they couldn't do live anyway, so even when they did do the full version live the band used to go off stage and there would be a backing track play. I suggest you watch the full set as it was an amazing experience and as I say there are 6 songs and only 2 are shortened. Also if you do do the full set, there is an extra song with just Freddie and Brian later in the evening that isn't normally added but can be found at the link I will try to give you. Edit couldn't leave links but look for Queen Live Aid 1985 full set and then Queen Live Aid 1985 Is This The World We Created?.
I can’t emphasize this enough, you MUST listen to the original studio recording with the official video. This is not even half the song! I know many young reactors like to go straight for live recordings. Queen was a great live band but the 70s was all about the studio recordings first. They put a lot of time and effort into creating these masterpieces and you really need to hear studio first. Thanks Brit!
Honestly, your voice alone is so soothing
Some of us were just lucky to be born at the right time and got to see Queen, Emerson Lake Palmer, Rush, Led Zepplin, Heart, ZZ Top, Aerosmith, Rare Earth, Grand Funk Railroad and even The Beatles live .... more than once.
This performance Freddie was extremely sick! They themselves didn’t know if he’d be able to do it!! One of the Best bands ever!!!
If you listen close throughout the set, you can actually hear his voice crack a few times, but he always recovered beautifully. And there are also a few times where he goes for a lower note.. when it's usually much higher. It sounds so good that I can't tell if he just does it because he wants to change the sound up a bit or if he is doing it to keep his voice from cracking more.
Freddie wrote all of of it with his band! 😅
Well, there were a LOT of talented musicians playing there, but Queen did steal the show... might want to look up the documentary Queen: Days of our lives.
When this first came out, the critics insisted it could never be performed live because it was too complex, Well I got lucky and got to see them do it for the first time on my 20th bithday back in 1975
This 20 ish minute set is absolutely spectacular.
Good work Britt. Really need to do the full 20 though, it ties into one the greatest sets ever. A lot of it because of how Freddie handled the crowd.
I was told that Freddie wrote the song, his producers refused to give him the go ahead saying it was confusing. He was going to leave the band until his producers said he could do the song. Now if not their biggest its in top 3
Queen were already mega. The extra meaning of Live Aid took them to 110%
Only Queen could create a song that hit #1 and 16 years later hit #1 again. Amazing talent Brian, Roger, John and the amazing Freddy!
BTW ya should view the original video too
You have to do the official video. There’s so much more to it. It’s a full 6 minutes.
You need to see the whole song live with Freddy. Wembley or Montreal 1981 are both excellent examples. You haven’t heard the song until you’ve heard the entire original by its creators. They switched labels over this song as the head of their original label thought it was too weird and no one would like it or “bang their heads” to it. This is especially funny in the Bohemian Rhapsody movie (historically incredibly inaccurate & unfair to Freddie but the actor playing him was amazing) Mike Myers plays that record exec. If you don’t know this is hysterical because Mike Myers made it a No. 1 smash hit for the second time with its head banging inclusion in his hit movie Wayne’s World (he created the characters on SNL, wrote the movie, stars as Wayne Campbell a character & film based on his childhood in Scarborough, Ont, a suburb of Toronto. He’s also a diehard Queen fan and proud Canadian).
Most of the world's top acts played Live Aid and Queen wiped the floor with them.
Freddie brought the opera concept and wrote most of the songs. But guitar may and bass ,plus drums all wrote big songs for the band....you need to see queen movie from 8 years ago very well done ...queen is on tour with Adam lambert this year , does well in Freddie shadow, but their is only one mercury just like Eddie van halen impossible to replace, but you do best you can if bands needs ....
You need to see the rest of Queens performance from that day (live aid 1985)
Best version of the song. I heard an Elton John interview that he jokingly told Freddie "eff you" because how am I supposed to follow right after that!!
I hope you've heard the studio version by now. So much more to the song.
Fun fact, Brian May (the guitarist) is also an astrophysicist and at least in the early days of the band the guitar he played named the Red Special was designed and built by him and his father.
You need to see the entire Live Aid performance! 🔥
You have to do the full concert. Just have to :)
And to add the song Bohemian Rhapsody was originally Freddie's project
Also the producer's said the song was to long and wanted to cut it down for radio but, Freddie and the boys said it either goes as it is or it doesn't go
See the freakin movie Britt. There are stadiums that have all the fans singing this still to this day 30 years after Freddie's death.
You need to do the whole set.
You gotta see the whole 22 minute set. Queen was a last minute addition. By the time they came on, the concert had been going on for a while, the weather was uncooperative, and it wasn't even a queen crowd. When they started in, Freddie had a tired and grumpy crowd eating out of his hand. The papers even said that, for "22 minutes in July 1985, Britain was ruled by an entirely different Queen". It is legend. Freddie's charisma and showmanship are on full display.
Freddie could sing the phone book (white pages), which they still had back then and it would be incredible.