Innuendo
I'm Going Slightly Mad
Headlong
I Can't Live With You
Don't Try So Hard
Ride The Wild Wind
All God's People
These Are The Days Of Our Lives
Delilah
The Hitman
Bijou
The Show Must Go On
Frogtoon Music Album Info: Innuendo
Published: 03 Mar 2009, 01:00
Innuendo Is A 1991 Album By English Rock Band Queen. It Is The Band's Fourteenth Studio Album And The Last To Be Composed Entirely Of New Material. It Is Also The Final Studio Album To Be Released While Lead Singer Freddie Mercury Was Still Alive. The Album Was Praised By Critics And Fans As One Of The Strongest Albums Of Queen's Later Career. It Reached Number One On The UK Album Charts 2 Weeks As Well As In The Netherlands 4 Weeks In Switzerland 8 Weeks Germany 6 Weeks And Italy 3 Weeks . The Album Was Released In The United States One Day After It Was Released In Britain. The Album Would Be The First Queen Album To Go Gold In The US Upon Its Release Since The Works In 1984. It Peaked At Number Thirty In The United States. The Album Was Recorded When Mercury Was Progressing Into The Final Stages Of His HIV/AIDS Infection. Much Of The Material On The Album Deals With The Band's Coming To Terms With His Imminent Death. The Theme Is Also Reflected In The Music Which Can Be Heavy And Arresting "Innuendo" And "Headlong" But Also Bleak And Dark "The Show Must Go On" "These Are The Days Of Our Lives" "I'm Going Slightly Mad" And "Don't Try So Hard" And Very Often Both "The Hitman" And "Bijou" . The Album Cover Was Designed By Queen And Richard Gray. The Booklets And Single Covers From The Album Are By Grandville Or Are Inspired By His Illustrations. Track Listing LP Release Side One
"Innuendo" Queen – 6 29 "I'm Going Slightly Mad" Queen – 4 04 "Headlong" Queen – 4 31 "I Can't Live With You" Queen – 4 04 "Ride The Wild Wind" Queen – 4 41 Side Two
"All God's People" Queen / Mike Moran – 3 53 "These Are The Days Of Our Lives" Queen – 3 55 "Delilah" Queen – 3 32 "Don't Try So Hard" Queen – 3 32 "The Hitman" Queen – 3 43 "Bijou" Queen – 1 19 "The Show Must Go On" Queen – 4 24 CD Release
"Innuendo" Queen – 6 29 "I'm Going Slightly Mad" Queen – 4 22 "Headlong" Queen – 4 39 "I Can't Live With You" Queen – 4 35 "Don't Try So Hard" Queen – 3 39 "Ride The Wild Wind" Queen – 4 41 "All God's People" Queen / Mike Moran – 4 19 "These Are The Days Of Our Lives" Queen – 4 12 "Delilah" Queen – 3 32 "The Hitman" Queen – 4 52 "Bijou" Queen – 3 36 "The Show Must Go On" Queen – 4 24 Song Information Innuendo
Main Article Innuendo Song "Innuendo" Began As A Jam Session In Switzerland Amongst May Taylor And Deacon In Spring 1989. Mercury Was Upstairs And Heard Them Playing The Beat And Turned It Into A Song Creating The Melody And Starting Off The Lyrics. From Then On They All Four Worked On Polishing The Track And Taylor Took Over The Lyrics Which Were Written As A Tribute To Led Zeppelin And Their Song "Kashmir" . The Middle Section Written By Mercury Was Included Later And It Featured A Synth-Orchestra Programmed By Producer David Richards And A Flamenco Interlude Played By Yes Guitarist Steve Howe Who Had Come To Visit Them And Was Asked To Play What Brian May Himself Admitted He Couldn't. Like "Kashmir" The Title Of The Song Is Only Mentioned Once. "Innuendo" Was Released As A Single In January 1991. I'm Going Slightly Mad
Main Article I'm Going Slightly Mad
"I'm Going Slightly Mad" Was Begun In Mercury's London House After He'd Got The Idea Of Writing A Song About Madness Inspired By Noel Coward's Camp One-Liners. Most Of The Lyrics Like "banana Tree" Or "one Needle" Came From Both Him And His Friend Peter Straker Who Stayed Up All Night In Mercury's Kitchen Devising Ever More Outlandish Lines. The Music Is Mercury's As Well And It's One Of The Earliest Songs They Were Working On In Montreux When Steve Howe Came In. The Video That Accompanied The Song Saw Mercury Dressed In A Costume Suit With Wild Hair White Gloves Long Pointing Shoes And Extremely Heavy Make Up Also Filmed In Black And White. Whilst Queen Fans Were Thoroughly Amused By The Band In The Video In The Documentary "Champions Of The World " Taylor Confessed From The Band's Perspective The Video Was Marred By Mercury's Appearance Having To Be Camouflaged By Costume And Make-Up As Taylor Admitted Mercury Looked "Pretty Ill At That Point." Actress Cleo Rocos Stated That Mercury Had Explained To Her And Mutual Friend Kenny Everett That The Song Touches On The AIDS Induced Dementia He Incurred During The Final Years Of His Life. Headlong
Main Article Headlong Song "Headlong" Came From May At The Studio They'd Got In Switzerland. He Recorded It For The Solo Album He Was Doing At The Same Time. Once May Heard Mercury Singing It And Instantly Decided That It Worked Better As A Queen Track. Then The Band Took It Over And They All Made Modifications. I Can't Live With You
"I Can't Live With You" Was Also Written For May's Solo Album. He Gave It To The Band As Well Since Taylor Deacon And Mercury Were Fond Of The Track. Drums Were Programmed On Synth By May And The Keyboard-Pads Were Added By The Producer. An Alternative Version Of This Song Appeared On The 1997 Compilation Album Queen Rocks Billed As The "'97 Rocks Retake". It Was Said To Be More Along The Lines Of How May And Taylor Originally Wanted The Track To Sound With A Harder Guitar-Driven Rock Edge. Don't Try So Hard
"Don't Try So Hard" Came From Mercury. The Intro "rain" Is Actually The Pre-Set Sound Of The Korg M1 Which Appears When It's Switched On. Mercury Sings Most Of The Song In Falsetto. The Song's Middle Section Is Written In A Style Reminiscent Of Queen's Early 1980s-Songs Such As Play The Game. Ride The Wild Wind
"Ride The Wild Wind" Was Composed By Taylor Who Recorded A Demo With His Own Vocals. The Definitive Version Is Sung By Mercury With Taylor On Backing Vocals. The Song Is A Sort Of Sequel Of Roger's "A Night At The Opera" Composition "I'm In Love With My Car" Focused On Taylor's Passion For Cars And Race. This Time The Song Involved All Of The Other Members That Gave Life To A Fast Song With Beating Drums And Rhythmic Bass Line Which Create The Sensation Of Speed And Engine's Roar. In The Mid-Part A Brilliant May's Solo Which Accentuate The Sense Of High Velocity And Also Give The Song A Heavier Sound. In Some Parts A Racing Car Can Be Heard. All God's People
"All God's People" Started Off As Part Of Mercury's Barcelona Project Under The Title "Africa By Night" Hence The Co-Writing Credit With Mike Moran . He'd Asked May To Play Guitar Then One Thing Led To Another And The Entire Band Played. Piano Was Recorded By Mike Moran. The Song Features Mercury Singing A Head-Voiced High-F Note As Well As Some Very Low Ones. These Are The Days Of Our Lives
Main Article These Are The Days Of Our Lives
"These Are The Days Of Our Lives" Was Written By Roger Taylor. It's Harmonically And Structurally One Of The Simplest Songs Of The Band's Catalogue. Keyboards Were Programmed By The Four Of Them In The Studio And Conga Percussion Was Recorded By David Richards. The Music Video For This Song Was Mercury's Last Appearance In A Video Medium. By The Time The Video Was Made It Had Become Impossible To Disguise That Freddie Was Seriously Ill. Despite His Frail Appearance He Appeared And Gave What Energy He Had Left Filmed In Black And White. The Black And White In The Video Helped Somewhat To Reduce The Ill/frail Appearance. When Footage Of The Band Making The Video Was Released In Colour It Is Clear To See Why. Delilah
"Delilah" Is A Song Mercury Penned For His Favourite Housecat A Female Tortoiseshell Cat Named Delilah. May Recorded His Solo Using A Talk Box. The Hitman
"The Hitman" Was Written By Mercury As Well. The Original Version Was Apparently On Keyboards And In A Different Key. May Took Mercury's Riff Not Un-Common Changed The Key And Recorded A Demo Of The Heavy Version. Deacon Then Re-Arranged The Structure And They All Filled The Gaps In Lyrics And Recorded It. All Of The Backing Vocals Were Done By May. Bijou
"Bijou" Was An Idea Mercury And May Had Of Making A Song "inside-Out" Having Guitar Doing The Verses And The Vocal Doing The Break . Mercury Put The Chords Title And Lyrics And The Two Of Them Worked On The Guitar Parts. Mercury Sang The First Line And Then May Transferred The Melody To His Red Special. The Song Was Finished Without Any Input From Taylor Or Deacon. The Idea Was Not New And Already Used By Yes On Their Song "Soon". Brian Later Credited Jeff Beck's 1989 Song "Where Were You" As The Inspiration 'Bijou'. In 2008 Queen Paul Rodgers Performed This Song In Their Shows Of The Rock The Cosmos Tour. The Show Must Go On
Main Article The Show Must Go On Queen Song "The Show Must Go On" Was Written By May & Mercury. The Song Was A Lively Dramatic Cross Between Opera And Rock. The Initial Idea Was A Chord Sequence Taylor And Deacon Were Working On. Then May Decided To Use The Sequence And Both He And Mercury Decided The Theme Of The Lyrics And Wrote The First Verse Together. From Then On May Finished The Lyrics Did The Vocal Melody And Wrote The Bridge Inspired By Pachelbel's Canon. Some Keys And Ideas Were Suggested By The Producer Too. The Song Was Initially Not Released As A Single As Part Of Promotion For The Innuendo Album But Was Released In October 1991 As The Band Launched Their 2nd Greatest Hits Album. The Video For The Song Featured A Compilation Of Clips From All Their Videos Since 1982 In Support Of The Greatest Hits 2 Album. Due To Mercury's Now Critically Fast Fading Health A Fresh Appearance By The Band In A Video Was Not Possible. A Live Version Featuring Elton John On Vocals Appeared On The Greatest Hits III Album. Elton Stated At The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert That The Song Was A Personal Favourite Of His. Personnel
Queen Are Freddie Mercury Lead Vocals Backing Vocals Piano Synthesisers Programming Brian May Electric Guitars Backing Vocals Synthesisers Programming Roger Taylor Drums & Percussion Backing Vocals Synthesisers Programming John Deacon Bass Synthesisers Programming Backing Vocals Guest Musicians Steve Howe Classical-Electric Guitar "Innuendo" Credited As "Wandering Minstrel" Mike Moran Piano Synthesisers Programming "All God's People" David Richards Producing Engineering Synthesisers Programming Brian Zellis Programming Noel Harris Assistant Engineer Justin Shirley-Smith Assistant Engineer Sleeve Design Richard Gray Sleeve Design Grandville 1803-1847 Illustrations Angela Lumley Additional Illustrations Simon Fowler Photography Singles
Five Singles Were Released From The Album "Innuendo" Was The Lead Single From The Album In Most Countries Save The United States Where "Headlong" Was Released As The First Single. It Was Released On 14 January 1991 In Europe And March 1991 In The United States As A Promo Single Becoming Queen's Twelfth Number-One Single. The Song Also Achieved Modest Success In The US Charting At Seventeen On Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart. Still The Length And Style Of The Track Limited Its Appeal And It Only Spent A Week At Number One In The UK And Quickly Slid Down The Chart Spending Only Six Weeks In The Top Seventy-Five. B-Side On 7 Inch Release- "Bijou" "I'm Going Slightly Mad" Was Released On 4 March 1991. It Reached Number Twenty-Two In The UK Charts. B-Side On 7 Inch Release- "The Hitman" In Some Countries In Others It Was "Lost Opportunity" Which Was A Non Album Cut. "Headlong" Was Released In January 1991 In The US And On 13 May 1991 In The UK. It Was One Of The Most Successful Songs From The Album And Actually Served As The Lead Single In The United States. It Entered The UK Charts At Number Fourteen And Reached Number Three On The U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart. B-Side On 7 Inch Release- "All God's People" In Some Countries In Others "Lost Opportunity" And In A Few "The Hitman" "The Show Must Go On" Was Released On 14 October 1991 In The UK. The Single Was Taken From The Album Although It Had Not Been Released As A Single From Innuendo And Released As Promotion For The Greatest Hits II Album And Peaked At Number Sixteen In The UK Charts. After Mercury's Death In November The Song Re-Entered The British Charts And Spent Longer In The Top Seventy-Five Than It Had On Its Original Release. This Single Was Released Just Six Weeks Before Mercury Died. In 1992 The Song Was Released As A Double A-Side With "Bohemian Rhapsody" In The US And Reached #2 In The US. The Original B-Side In October 1991 Was "Keep Yourself Alive". "These Are The Days Of Our Lives" Was First Released In The USA On Freddie Mercury's Birthday 5 September 1991. In The UK It Was Released In December 1991 Following Mercury's Death As A Double A-Side With "Bohemian Rhapsody". The Single Was The UK's Christmas Number One Of 1991. Promo Single
"I Can't Live With You" Was Released As A Promo Single To Radio Stations In The USA. This 2-Track Promo Single Completely Remixed By Brian Malouf Uses Slightly Different Lead Vocal Tracks By Freddie Louder And Tighter Harmony Tracks And Re-Programed Synth Drums Resulting In A Much More Punchy And "over The Top" Poppy Version Than Included On The Album. It Reached #28 On The US Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart. Charts
Country Charts Sales Peak Position Weeks Certification Sales Belgium 1 Finland 1 Platinum 50.000 Germany 1 Platinum 700.000 Ireland 1 Platinum 50.000 Italy 1 4xPlatinum 400.000 Netherlands 1 Platinum 150.000 Portugal 1 Gold 20.000 Singapore 1 3x Platinum 45.000 Switzerland 1 36 2x Platinum 100.000 United Kingdom 1 37 2x Platinum 600.000 Austria 2 20 Platinum 50.000 Australia 6 7 70.000 Norway 8 5 Spain 3 Platinum 140.000 Sweden 9 5 50.000 Japan 150.000 United States 30 Gold 900.000 Canada Gold 50.000 France Platinum 350.000 New Zealand 3xPlatinum 55.000 Spain 65 2