Reviews (page 13 of 14)
Eclectic departure from other albums. Has some absolute standout hits (Bohemian Rhapsody, You're My Best Friend), but a lot just seems campy.
some of the songs were great, others were not!
I have no idea why, but I just can't get into Queen. There's so much that I should like, but it just never grabs me. They have classics, and yeah, bohemian is on here, but there just isn't a pull to want to listen, and it just doesn't resonate with me.
Queen’s music has very complicated form and sometimes harmony. It’s beautiful but hard to sing along or do anything else at the same time. So my attention is always on this structure and complicity, it’s more like studying than just enjoying good music.
Queen is cool, love the biggest hits. I don’t play the records front to back
Ok, but not quite what I expected and doesn't strike me as Queen at their best. Some songs I wouldn't recognise as theirs.
nisam baš fan queena. okej su mi bend i poštujem, ali to je to. tako je sa ovim albumom.
So theatrical! I can see a world where I really love it, but it’s not this world and I can’t quite place why.
Too eclectic
So much filler... too bad I can't give queen less than 3 stars.
First time I have ever listened to that album. The hits from it are fine. I was never into their music so after hearing it I would not rush out to purchase it.
Still not liking the 80s.
This one started slow for me, but it got awesome about 4-5 tracks in and stayed pretty consistently awesome. Obviously, people should hear Bohemian Rhapsody before they die, but I'm not sure they should have to sit through I'm in Love with My Car to do it.
No niin
I like a lot of Queen but his one not as much, apparently I'm one of the few people who absolutely distastes Bohemian Rhapsody. Best friend is pretty awful too. I'll give them credit for bring in different genres of music like '39 and Seaside Rendezvous but there not great songs. Now Death on Two Legs and I'm in love with my Car are great tunes, yeah they said like classic Queen which is what I like I guess.
While it’s sonically rich, I only care about the rock music on the record. I just don’t care about any parts of this that are “show tune-y” or novelty songs. You’re my Best Friend is just nice 70’s sunshine pop. Yes, Bohemian Rhapsody is a classic for a reason.
It's a Queen album. Which means there are 2-4 great songs that fit on a Greatest Hits album and the rest of the album is tough to get through. Some sonically interesting things on this album that made listening on headphone interesting. But interesting doesn't always equal fun or good.
I have tried at least 5 times to get into Queen. It's just not my thing. I like the hits though.
How do you rate an album that has one incredibly great song and a series of painfully cheesy deep cuts emulating some sort of Vaudeville style that was never not a misstep?
J'ai pas autant aimé que l'autre album de Queen que j'ai eu, mais quand même solide. J'aurais mis un 3.5
This album is a lot. It has true genius and forever classics. But it also has songs that are simply not good. It's overly dramatic and a roulette of genres. The classics are classics for a reason, but I also really liked '39 and will revisit in the future. The rest, I hope not.
Massively overrated album. Much prefer Sheer Heart Attack. '39 is an underrated track that I always forget about though. McCartney-esque. Doesn't need the national anthem at the end ffs.
Mercury's voice is a gift alongside the screamin' guitars. There were several songs on this one that I had not heard and was fascinated with. Also, there were a couple of tracks that were in a completely different style sort of like when Fleetwood Mac does that other thing. Overall, an entertaining album.
I’ve enjoyed the ”theatricality” of Queen’s music before, but on this album it devolves into excess. The songs tend to get derailed (most egregiously in the indulgent middle section of “The Prophet’s Song”) and good songs like “Love Of My Life” are at a threat of being drowned out by the myriad extra flourishes. Still, there are great moments: The previously mentioned “Love Of My Life” is a personal favourite. “‘39” is a nice tune. “I’m In Love With My Car” is amusing. “Bohemian Rhapsody” is Bohemian Rhapsody. It all balances out to a fairly enjoyable listen
Cool
Queen was so good so much of the time, but I always found this album to be tiresome.
Tuneful, camp, vaudevillian, better than I remembered, but on the whole, not my thing. Wasn't at the time, won't ever be. Standout - 'You're my best friend'. I am so so bored with Bohemian Rhapsody.
Its just fine
It was neat. not really a fan of glam rock but this had some decent tunes. it was weird hearing bohemian rhapsody in album context.
All the motifs are there but despite the biguns it just doesn't hit the mark consistently.
It was fine. I still don’t love Queen beyond just a handful of songs, mostly from this album.
alright, it's gotta be said: queen is corny. i'm sorry, it's just a fact. freddie mercury is obviously a legitimate talent, as is the rest of the band. but, somehow, there's still a bunch of corny-ass dad rock in their catalogue. there are some legitimately amazing songs on this album - you're my best friend is a personal favorite, and obviously bo-rhap will stay in the pop culture lexicon forever. queen hits when they hit, and really miss when they miss. this is true of a night at the opera, and the rest of their discography. they are a "greatest hits" band, and the world will see that one day.
Fine. Besides the few bangers on it, I was kind of underwhelmed.
A largely pedantic album that happens to hold two notable commercial successes ("Bohemian Rhapsody" & "You're My Best Friend"), leaving the story behind the album's creation to be one of the more interesting pieces. Emerging from their lawsuit and with new managment, Queen shows the musicianship and creativity in this album that would ensure their future place among iconic groups. While a half-hearted concept album, it is truly elevated by Rhapsody and otherwise is largely forgettable.
Overlong and melodramatic, but bohemian rhapsody is as good a track as any. nothing else really stood out though
A few hits but pretty boring
A Night At The Opera is a solid album that showcases Queen's unique and iconic sound. The standout tracks, such as "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "I’m In Love With My Car," demonstrate the band's ability to blend diverse musical influences into a cohesive and epic sound. However, other tracks like "Seaside Rendezvous" feel less inspired and detract from the album's overall impact. While this album may not be their best, it still has its moments of greatness, and fans of Queen will enjoy the classic rock sound on tracks like "The Prophet’s Song."
Pomp and circumstance pop/rock. For me they were always a singles band and this album doesn't do anything to change my opinion. Best Tracks: You're My Best Tracks; The Propeht's Song; Bohemian Rhapsody
It is an interesting hodge podge. Not every song works for me. And the overall concept is not clear on one listen anyway. The best songs are the hits but really who ever needs to hear Bohemian Rhapsody again?
I've never heard Bohemian within the context of this album, so I was surprised to find its orchestral trappings fall right in line with the rest of Queen's output here. It's definitely a novel place to take a rock-oriented album, and while not all of the ideas here work, most are catchy enough to make me glad that Freddy and Co. gave it a try.
Catchy baroque rock Fav- BoRap Fav new - death on 2 legs
Queen innit 👌
Some iconic tracks but didn't enjoy the album stuff as much as I thought I would
It's Queen.
Fine, I suppose.
Bändin levyille tyypillisesti epätasainen eikä ihan mun tyyliä. Harkitsin jopa vain 2/5 mutta Bohemian Rhapsodyn takia pitää antaa kolme.
Queen - a night at the opera (1975) Notes: - What a crazy layered and complex album - Not just bohemian rhapsody but the whole album is so dense - Similar to fragile by yes bc each band member contributes songs and sections of songs, so you can really hear how the different styles come together - the song 39 was a really interesting change of pace - The acapella layered delay section in the middle of the prophets song was wild Fav: - Bohemian rhapsody - This is another one to add to the list of 10/10 iconic songs - Even though its massively overplayed its still great Least fav: - Seaside rendezvous - Funny interlude-y song but I can’t see myself going back to listen to it 3.5/5
Death On Two Legs (Dedicated To…), Lazing On a Sunday Afternoon, ‘39, Bohemian Rhapsody
Bohemian Rhapsody is a five, album is a begrudging three
ok 3.5
Listened to most of it. Didn’t blow me away. Not really a huge Queen fan to begin with.
many songs i've not heard before :O queen is good, but not what i'm currently listening to bohemian rhapsody still 5/7 though, but only because i've been brainwashed by the lizard elite
Excess on a grand – and mostly annoying – scale. The album seems composed to bring together the worst impulses of all the many genres it touches -- from classical leider to music hall/vaudeville to hair metal and glam. It's mostly bouffant nonsense (perhaps its intentino) -- clear evidence of why less is more. \"Best Friend\" is a terrific pop song, but doesn't come close to redeeming the rest. \"'39\" sounds wonderful – probably because it's a realitvely straightfoward, you know, pop song, rather than an overwrought song cycle. It all comes together in \"Bohemian Rhapsody,\" which is briliiant but also enocouraged further excess in the future. Whle there's much to admire, it works out to be just too much – much too much, in fact.
Overblown and silly, but seems to be knowingly so. Still more likely to put on 'Greatest Hits' than any single Queen album if I ever listen to them. As an album experience a Night At The Opera is patchy and all over the place despite the obvious talent and hits.
No me gusta este estilo de rock
I mean... it's queen... it was fine
funky, fun, you know queen
It was definitely what would be expected from Queen. Didn’t know most of the songs. They were fine but I wasn’t super into any of them except the classics.
Good listen, but nothing that'll keep me coming back for more, found myself kinda phasing in and out in the latter half. 'cept for that song right at the end, what's it called again? man it was real good, I think I've heard it before, just gimme a sec, it's on the tip of my tongue. favorite song: bohemian rhapsody.
Interesting without being great
ANATO isn't my favourite Queen album, far from it, thought it's good and does what it set out to do. Just lacks in outstanding tracks that I love from them, except for Bohemian Rhapsody, and even that despite being something of a masterpiece isn't in my top 5 Queen songs. Probably gonna sit in the middle with a 3 rating for me.
Mixed on this - it flows together beautifully, it shows off Freddie's voice beautifully, and it's a really fun concept. But, it's so overblown (probably at least a bit deliberately?) that it takes some of the shine off, and there are some bits that don't work very well (I'm In Love With My Car is not great, and The Prophet's Song is a bit too prog-rocky in a bad way). Doesn't quite make a 4, even with Bohemian Rhapsody in it.
Queen is altijd goed. Als je een typische album luisteraar bent dan kun je misschien de opbouw van dit album wel erg waarderen. Voor mij is het niet het beste album van Queen, maar zeker wel leuk om te luisteren. ***
it at the top of the queen totem pole for me. however, my queen totem pole isn't very tall. i love this album in the scope of queen albums, as far as how i place it amongst all music, it's merely above average. don't know why, but queen always had one trick (freddy) and they used it all the time. i like magic, but if i see you make the same card disappear over and over again, eventually i grown tired of it and look for a magician that can to more and better tricks.
Heard a couple songs before, decent album. Unique.
3.9 - Another Queen album that's completely over-the-top. Mostly the maximalist approach works but it can also be quite annoying. "You're My Best Friend" and "Bohemian Rhapsody" are obvious classics, and still sound amazing despite Queen's recent resurgence in pop culture. I also like a few of the deeper cuts. "The Prophet's Song" is an opus of several movements with an interesting a cappella breakdown in the middle. "Love of My Life" is a lushly orchestrated ballad. But "Death On Two Legs" hits like whiplash and I don't enjoy it as an album opener. "Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon" is similarly campy and theatrical.
Not their best, over produced
Not the first Queen album I would pick to listen to
I get the concept, but that doesn't mean I have to love the concept.
Bo rap is a fantastic song takes music some where its never been before. The rest is pants
Bohemian Rhapsody is truly majestic, the rest rather less so.
Difficult to reflect on the album (as a whole) as legendary as it is, Bohemian Rhapsody takes most of the limelight. It's a fun album, but other than You're My Best Friend the rest of the songs are forgetful.
3.5
Bohemian rhapsody adds a whole point, other than that it’s cool I like the one about the car but other than that meh
Classic Queen album, in the better end of their discography - but not their best album though.
Jag fattar varför hitsen är hits. Inte ett fan av det andra tbh
woopidoo
Starkt! inte så tätt med klassiska låtar men uppskattar det, känns nytt och fräscht!
Plutôt cool mais sans plus
Sympathique, mais pas transcendant. On ne retient que très peu de morceaux…
Quelques passages exceptionnels impulsés par un Freddy Mercury totalement déchaîné. Légère inquiétude cependant vers le milieu de l'album lorsqu'on aperçoit celui-ci les mains posées sur les hanches et le front couvert de sueur. Plusieurs minutes s'écoulent alors pendant lesquelles on lui demande s'il a assez de force pour terminer l'album. L'intéressé se montre rassurant et reprend (heureusement) sa place pour enregistrer le classique Bohemian Rhapsody. Il s'écroule au début de la piste suivante et se voit contraint de céder sa place sous une ovation.
Barely scrapping a 3
On second listen the opening is too poor to give it a 4 star review. Second half is great fun though.
I hadn’t heard most of the tracks on this album since 1975 or 1976 when one of my classmates (I can’t remember who) brought it into school, to Mr Jones’ music appreciation lesson. The standout track is of course Bohemian Rhapsody, which stayed at number one on the UK singles chart for nine weeks and was universally loved by everyone I knew. I have a very clear memory of being fourteen years old and trying to remember all the lyrics to that song while trudging the dark cold streets of Freckleton on my morning paper round. Listening to A Night at the Opera now, some 26 years later, my overall feelings about it are much the same as they were back then; although the musicianship and songwriting are obviously second to none, much of the actual music leaves me a bit cold. Many of the songs are a little too experimental for my taste, a little too avant-garde. That’s not to say that there aren’t highlights; Besides Bohemian Rhapsody, You’re My Best Friend, Love of My Life and ’39 (a cautionary tale about the dangers of Einsteinian time dilation) stand out to my ear. Overall I would give A Night at the Opera three stars out of five, mainly for the inclusion of the wonderful Bohemian Rhapsody, but also for the inevitable sense of nostalgia for my long-lost misspent youth that comes with revisiting an album I haven’t heard in so many years. Perhaps I won’t wait another quarter of a century before listening to it again.
An album I’ve known and owned (on cassette) for a long time. Not my favourite Queen album but still very good. You’re My Best Friend is one of Deacons best and Love of My Life is as good a singalong anthem as Queen ever wrote
Best Song: '39. Topic is unexpected for what I know of Queen. Worst Song: The Prophet's Song. The layered vocals/canon thing that takes up the entire middle of the song is horrible. Overall: I could never listen to Bohemian Rhapsody again and die happy.
big big.
The vocal harmonies and iconic guitar make Queen what it is, and it's clearly inspired so many musicians that have come after. That said, I can only really take Queen for a couple of songs at a time and their music dances on that balance of making me hop along an making me feel extremely anxious. This album contains pretty much all of their bangers but I still don't love it and can't give it more than a very very strong 3
Jenny tycker om Queen och jag tycker om Jenny
such a pleasure to have a break from the constant Greatest Hits that one is normally exposed to, even though there are a few on this album. A few songs that really caught my off guard in a positive way. Sick of Bohemian Rhapsody though
While it is obvlously a classic, I find it a bit overwrought - not really to my taste. I'm not a fan of Opera either.
Liked this a bit more than Queen II. Bo Rap helps of course
Eh. Queen's still mostly a singles band to me. But the singles are excellent. 6/10
Ambitious? Yes. Is it well produced? Maybe for the 70s, but overall I tend to agree with the guy who told them that's a poorly-made collage-like record. Although there are two great songs (Love of my life and Bohemian rhapsody), other songs are plain stupid. The only good in them is Freddy's vocal that sounds angry, energetic and transparent at the same time, that's badass.
It's been a long time since I've heard this, and I'm amazed by how well it holds up. Even the music hall and dixieland bits are better than I remember. Probably more like 3 1/2 stars, but I prefer to round down.
Enjoyed a few new songs, but overall not my style. Somewhat distracting. I would not put this on for a dinner party
Good, weird to discover that queen had a sound besides epic rock opera - a few of the tracks were surprising
Too much self indulgence and pomp at times for me.
Some queen classics and some rather psychedelic tracks
More mixed than I remember
Light 6-7, felt like a musical, had some interesting musical moments but didn’t feel a real connection to it
A singles band that couldn't put it together for a full album. Decent lead single tbf!
Не моё
Good album some misses. Prefer to stick with their hits.
2nd half stronger than the first. Feel like it had a ratings bump from having Bohemian Rhapsody at the end. Some of it didn't work for me, but it sounds like they were having fun.
Beetje teveel Queen op dit moment. Hoewel ik dit wel echt een goed album vind. Niet alles is even interessant, maar toch zeker een paar pareltjes. Zoals bijv. Love of my Life.
Heb het niet helemaal kunnen luisteren (zo’n actieve vakantie :)), maar wat ik heb gehoord vond ik best leuk en gevarieerd.
I know it is a classic…but it does not amaze me…
Feels pretty middle of the road to me honestly. Like to to be honest, I don't think it's bad. It's just a decent album. But then, it also has bohemian rhapsody. Which is a certified classic.
Saved Prior: Bohemian Rhapsody Off Rip: Death On Two Legs (Dedicated To...), '39, Sweet Lady, Seaside Rendezvous Cutting Edge: Love Of My Life Overall Notes: I know very few people who don't know Bohemian Rhapsody, and I know even fewer people who don't like Bohemian Rhapsody. The variety of this album surprised me, and it was a lot more campy than I expected. Crazy that Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon, Death on Two Legs, You're My Best Friend, Love Of My Life and Bohemian Rhapsody are all on the same album and it doesn't completely not work. That being said, I didn't really like some of these songs, so it goes down as a 3.5 rounded down.
This album sounded sing songy, like a Broadway play. Probably what they were going for, with the title and all, but I didn't think it was their best stuff. Nick's wedding song and bohemian rhapsody both featured though.
Sapevo che prima o poi sarebbe arrivato questo momento. Non ci sono molte parole da spendere, il fatto che i Queen ci sappiano fare sia tecnicamente che a livello compositivo è indiscusso, questo album è anche molto vario e sicuramente personale e originale. Se poi mi arriva/mi piace la visione artistica è un altro discorso. Questo disco mi proietta automaticamente in un'ipotetica cena con Brian May e Freddy Mercury e me li immagino parlare solo loro di quanto sono superiori agli altri gruppi di quanto artisticamente stiano facendo la differenza e gli altri non osano e te vorresti parlare di cazzate ma poi ti senti stupido. Diciamo che si sente che hanno un'alta considerazione di loro stessi ecco. Il risultato per me e più di una volta tendente al cringe nonostante tutti i lati positivi. Per me musicalmente se vogliamo sarebbe pure un 4, artisticamente è un 2, famo un 3 e passa la paura. (Sono consapevole che queste note susciteranno l'odio di tutti)
Went in thinking I’d preheat a hot giant 5 stars. Was a bit disappointed that between the hits, there were numerous misses
man, i was really hoping God Save the Queen was going to be a Sex Pistols cover. i do realize that would've required a time machine, but honestly, i think it would've been worth the effort.
3
good not great
Too theatrical
I mean it's queen.
Obviously bohemian rhapsody was groundbreaking but I'm in love with my car? 39?
I really wish that I liked this album more than I did. It's 3/5 and barely so. 3 really good songs (already known and popular) a few mediocre songs and then some filler
Some really cool riffs and amazing vocals, but there's something about Queen that I just don't like.
Au début de l’album j’ai été charmé, du rock innovateur et des chansons de Queen que je ne connaissait pas, Tout indiquait un 4. Par contre, à mis parcours je me suis rappeler pourquoi je ne suis pas un fan de Queen, trop d’harmonie de voix interminable et irritante. Je comprends que c’est la signature, Mais j’aime pas Je l’évite love of my life et good compagny ainsi que tous les harmonies de voix en deuxième partie de l’album Je lévite les 5 premières chansons du rock solide
I really loved the basement level of the Hangge Uppe, but it never got me laid, and that will cost Queen two stars.
Queen is really more of a singles band than an album band
Not in love with the idea that my Spotify is now like 'Here are some fleet foxes, queen, phoebe bridgers, mroe queen, the strokes, and even more queen' but I liked this album significantly more than the previous one we listened to
Queen is OK. The highlight of this is you-know-what. Within the week, I just saw that scene from Wayne's World for the first time in 20 years.
Odd collection of songs that sound more like an opening act to a vaudeville act than a 70s rock band.
A good album, but not the masterpiece I was expecting. Obviously Bohemian Rhapsody is incredible, You're My Best Friend is a great song also, otherwise nothing really stood out for me. 3 stars.
This is fine, but I'm guessing it was chosen exclusively because of Bohemian Rhapsody.
Why does Paul McCartney get lambasted for Maxwell’s Silver Hammer and O Bla Di when this is an entire album of that shizz?
I don’t believe that I have ever listened to a queen album all the way through. I loved this. There is a part of me that feels like if the Beatles had continued and been more odd that this is an album they could have made.
3.5 - Prophet's Song and Bohemian Rhapsody are immense. Extraordinary composition, arrangement and production. john deacon is a groove machine with You're my Best Friend and Love of My life is one of the best ballads ever. Still, a few songs don't really do it for me: Sweet Lady, Seaside Rendezvous, Good Company, In Love with my Car, 39 . They're ok but I wouldn't come back to them.
Erghhhh, was like a 47 minute version of bohemian rhapsody. I couldn’t wait for this to finish. Two good songs and a bunch of weird crap.
Queen has been so overplayed by this point in my life, it's hard to really get into this. I cannot listen to bohemian rhapsody any more. Maybe I wasn't in the right headspace. I wish I could listen to it for the first time on a record player in the mid 70s. But I was one years old at the time. I understand the history and importance of this.
Hét album van Queen. "Death on Two Legs" is een stevige opener, meteen al die oh zo bekende Queen sound. Qua productie, mix en geluid waanzinnig goed. Roy Thomas Baker heeft daar zijn sporen nagelaten. "Lazy on a Sunday Afternoon" laat je meteen weten waarom het album a night at the opera heet. Dit wordt een pastiche van muziekstijlen. Loopt vloeiend over in het nummer gezongen door Roger Taylor "I'm in love with my car". De gitaarklanken van Brian May geven dit standaard rocknummer nét dat beetje extra . En dan de Wurlitzer klanken op "You're my best friend", pure reclame voor dit instrument. "'39", gezongen door May, een van de mindere tracks op het album maar met een bijzondere tekst over tijddilatie. Toch mooi dat May gepromoveerd is in astrofysica. Lekkere rocker "Sweet Lady" volgt erop. "Seaside rendevouz" is dan weer zo'n maf nummer dat er tussen zit. Niet mijn ding, wel muzikaal enorm knap. "The prophet's song", met ruim 8 minuten een zwaar nummer dat een stuk lichter wordt gemaakt door de harmonieën van Mercury. De vocale delayeffecten halverwege het nummer zijn dikke voorlopers van de resultaten die muzikanten nu krijgen wanneer ze een looppedaal gebruiken. Een naadloze overgang naar het bekende "Love of my life". Pracht ballad uit de koker van Mercury. "Good company", weer een May liedje, die zich lekker uitleeft op ukelele en gitaar. "Bohemian Rhapsody" daar valt weinig over te zeggen. Het album sluit af met een interpretatie van "God Save The Queen" zoals dat alleen door Queen gedaan kan worden: Episch. Herspeelbaarheid: 3 van de 5 sterren
Varmaan Queenin ensimmäinen studiolevy jota kuuntelen. Aika vähän megahittejä löytyy, ja meno on muutenkin melkoisen poukkoilevaa. Jossain vaiheessa ensimmäistä kuuntelua jopa unohdin mikä bändi on kyseessä ja piti hieman mietiskellä että mitäs levyä listalta olinkaan kuuntelemassa. Yllättävän kylmäksi jätti vaikka odotukset oli korkealla. Levyn kohokohtana oli kenties etäisesti tuttu Seaside Rendezvous.
Some killer tracks on this album and others more pretentious and meh. Probably a low 3.5
Just not as good as I hoped
A few really good songs, but for the most part, uninteresting. Most of the songs sounded good but made me feel nothing.
Good album but goes into why Queen has many albums but very few hits.
Queenia monipuolisimmillaan, mut kokonaisuuteen nähden liikaa ”oopperaa”.
I really do not like Bohemian Rhapsody. It's the most holds up spork arena rock song ever made. I'd give it a 3/5 though. That being said, most of the rest of this album was just kinda worse than that and some (looking at you, Good Company and Seaside Rendezvous) were awful.
Bohemian Rhapsody is obviously a classic, and I think I enjoyed '39 if I am remembering correctly (could be +- one song). Overall though not really my cup of tea, very all over the place and just not very satisfying to listen to.
I had never seen this cover before! Fun! Album is not my thing but Bohemian Rhapsody is canon
Creo que nunca había escuchado un disco entero de corrido de Queen. Parece más un musical de Broadway que un disco de la "mejor" banda de "rock" de todos los tiempos... A veces valorar y sobrevalorar en vanguardismo y lo artesanal no está bueno. Sacando dos o tres temas que son indiscutidos, imaginate lo intrascendente que terminó el último tema, Spotify puso U2 y ni me di cuenta. 2,5/5
2 great songs, with a lot of silliness interspersed
best one yet
If an album has 9 bad songs, 2 good songs, and 1 Bohemian Rhapsody, it's a mid album. 5 / 10
My elementary school music teacher made me analyse Bohemian Rhapsody 4 times. Incredibly, there is nothing of worth on this album except for Bohemian Rhapsody, and I hate Bohemian Rhapsody. Pleasant enough to evade a 1 though
Bohemian Rhapsody is by far the best track on this album. Just a bit overblown.
유명한 노래가 꽤 있던 건 맞지만 내 스타일은 아니었다. It's true that there were quite a few famous songs, but they weren't my style.
J'ai vraiment, mais alors vraiment du mal avec tous ces groupes, et plus particulièrement ceux des années 70, que la bien-pensance nous oblige à leur vouer un culte aveugle. Queen en fait partie, et excepté une poignée de singles qui font le job, aussi loin que je me souvienne, je n'ai jamais mais absolument jamais accroché à leur délire. C'est trop de tout et trop de rien à la fois, et à force de piocher à droite et à gauche, de vouloir faire du cabaret, de l'opéra, du hard rock et de la pop de salon, le groupe s'est lui-même dilué. Ce A Night At The Opera est au final un gros ballon de baudruche qui fait beaucoup de bruit pour pas grand chose. Dès l'ouverture avec "Death on Two Legs", on a compris le délire : c'est théâtral, c'est vindicatif, c'est surchargé de piano et de choeurs qui en font des caisses. Freddie Mercury en fait des tonnes, comme s'il jouait sa vie sur chaque syllabe. On passe d'un morceau de music-hall ringard comme "Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon" à de la pop gentillette et boursouflée avec "You're My Best Friend". Le cas "Bohemian Rhapsody" est presque fascinant dans sa bêtise grandiloquente. Six minutes d'un patchwork informe où l'opéra de pacotille vient télescoper un riff hard rock lourd et pataud. C'est l'archétype du morceau boursouflé par l'ego de son auteur, une suite de sections qui s'emboîtent mal, un délire de studio qui a vieilli comme un mauvais flan. Les interventions de guitare de Brian May, censées apporter de la fluidité, ne font qu'ajouter une couche de vernis pompière sur un édifice déjà chancelant. C'est du grand spectacle pour stades, du divertissement de masse déguisé en art total. Et que dire du reste ? "The Prophet's Song" s'étire sur plus de huit minutes d'un ennui mortel, avec un canon vocal central qui donne juste envie de couper le courant. Le groupe s'écoute jouer, s'extasie devant ses propres prouesses techniques et oublie l'essentiel : faire de la musique qui touche au coeur, pas seulement aux tympans. Même les morceaux plus courts, comme "Seaside Rendezvous", tournent à la farce de cabaret grotesque. C'est l'antithèse absolue de la pureté brute et de l'économie de moyens qu'on est en droit d'attendre d'un grand album. À force de vouloir plaire à tout le monde, de mélanger le rock progressif, la pop bubblegum et les envolées lyriques, Queen signe un disque qui manque cruellement de ligne directrice. C'est un buffet à volonté où tous les plats se mélangent dans une bouillie indigeste. Ce projet "1001 Albums" m'oblige à me replonger dans ces soi-disant chefs-d'oeuvre, mais là, j'ai vraiment du mal. Un 2 sur 5, soit un tout petit point de plus que Queen II. C'est cher payé pour un disque qui s'écoute parler.
Aside from 2-3 all-timers, most of this album is unlistenable.
I liked this okay but it really wore on my by the end. Half a very good album couched in some novelty nonsense.
wow this sounds bad. did it always sound like ass or do the 2011 masters just make it sound exceptionally awful? the production doesn't give any of these songs a chance except for the acoustic one. pretty concrete evidence that talented people can put in so much work and pour their heart and soul into something that's ultimately pretty bad
We had a plumber out a few times last year. Very nice older gent called Ray, who, as you can imagine, enjoys a bit of a slegging (especially slegging someone like me with no skills), is a bit ornery and gruff, but is really very generous and sweet at heart. The last time he was in, he took some time out to tell me about the first record he ever bought. He was about fifteen. He saved up his money and went into Belfast and picked up the 7 inch of Bohemian Rhapsody. It's hard to believe now that he was considered a little unusual for taking Bohemian Rhapsody to his room and soaking up the grandiosity. But he absolutely loved it. He'd never heard anything like it. And, he assured me, neither had anyone else. I'm pretty sure that I first heard Bohemian Rhapsody in Wayne's World, which I saw in Cineworld with Peter Maddin on release in 1992. While there was certainly the feeling of it being an oldie being dusted off, it still felt remarkable - its distinct acts working perfectly with the choreography of the car scene. I have a faint memory of watching the Freddie Mercury concert with my mother, which was also in 1992, so it is possible that my first introduction to Bohemian Rhapsody was actually as part of a medley performed early in the concert by Extreme. If so, I've forgotten that part. Regardless of which instance was the first, I'm in agreement with Ray. It is a remarkable piece of work: beautifully arranged and cleverly produced, its disparate parts pieced together seamlessly, it builds and pays-off every few minutes without enjambment. Earning its name, it does exactly what opera can do at its best: reaching emotional heights without being serious, maudlin, or melodramatic. It isn't humourous exactly, but it is not to be taken seriously. It is certainly not meant as emotional realism. This is Mercury's perfect mode, where wide scope makes up for lack of depth and the ache of a story will do for an arc of a story. Arch and ache - those are two things that Mercury knows how to do and, on Bohemian Rhapsody, he does both exquisitely. It is also, I think Brian May's most honest, unfettered instance of rocking out: neither overthought nor unthinking pastiche. What a remarkable song. And, rightly, it is established itself as one of the most significant pop songs of the pop era - celebrated for its camp excess, broad appeal, and staying power. It somehow survives, indeed is possibly enhanced, by the very many contexts in which a person may encounter it. Released as a single three weeks earlier, I am quietly confident that nobody was ever introduced to Bohemian Rhapsody as track eleven on A Night at the Opera. And thank goodness. There is nothing more likely to put one off notorious singles band, Queen, than an album by Queen. And the context of A Night at the Opera is positively deleterious to their crowning achievement, Bohemian Rhapsody. The rococo oohs and aahs that sounds so unique on BR, the very quality that sets it apart in every other setting, are all over the place on A Night at the Opera and have long worn out their welcome by the time a listener gets to track eleven (they're on Sheer Heart Attack and Queen II, but the effect is numbing here). The masterful flow of the single is missing from the album itself, which is, like their earlier albums, a jarring hodge-podge of parody, written by four different songwriters who give no impression of being friends, let along kindred artistic spirits. My criticisms of Sheer Heart Attack apply just as well to this record. Mercury's sloppy inexactitude undermines his homages - "sunnydown" on Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon is the worst offender. And the absence of any real humour, despite the posture, remains, perhaps because none of them (three absolute bores and the camp leader who everyone finds amusing because of the force of his will) knows the difference. The last time, I compared them to The Beatles on this front. However, this time Seaside Rendezvous pales in comparison to the similar Postcard by the Bonzo Dog Band: empty camp imitation versus surrealist bricolage and satire. While Queen never set out to be comedy band, there is no doubt that the writer believes that the choice of a few fruity anachronisms and neologisms will charm the listener. But charm is superficial. This is why Bohemian Rhapsody is such an unmitigated success. It capitalises on all Mercury's strengths, while avoid the pitfalls of his weaknesses. The faux operatic mode allows a sort of emotional resonance without him having to open up or be sincere. He can't avoid being arch on the similar March of the Black Queen, but plays with this mode successfully later in his career - not necessarily operatic pastiche, but the overwrought pastiche of emotion of We are the Champions or I Want to Break Free, say, that will allow the subtext to bob almost entirely on the surface during The Show Must Go On. Of course, I haven't mentioned any songs by his bandmates here. It is significant, I suppose, that plumber Ray didn't have a moving story about the single's b-side, I'm In Love With My Car. Your My Best Friend is sweetly mundane. None of Brian May's songs are particularly good. 2 Well I love Bohemian Rhapsody. It was one of the very first pieces of rock music that I ever loved. It is on the radio most days and has become easy to ignore, but when I do sit down and give it my attention it remains fascinating. There are those who criticise it as a ‘bad song’ for its seeming structural arbitrariness and lyrical clumsiness. There may be a kernel of truth in the criticism, but the conclusion is entirely wrong. It’s an exceptional record and all the greater a work of pop music for its uniqueness. Most of the rest of this album is bad. Partly this is down to the tyranny of the big, big hit. Can anyone go in not hamstrung by anticipation of Bohemian Rhapsody as the album’s destination? Not experiencing the titillations of studio trickery and musical eccentricity elsewhere as mere rehearsals for the finale? In any case, the only other decent song is ‘You’re My Best Friend’ - a neat, subdued and conventional pop song that sticks out like a sore thumb amid Freddie’s exhausting mugging and Brian May’s grey earnestness. A Night at the Opera is such a trying listen that Bohemian Rhapsody is nearly at its least enjoyable at the far end. I would not seek to dismiss Queen’s other albums in saying this (they have better albums) but the best way to encounter Bohemian Rhapsody is as the opener of Queen Greatest Hits 1. 2/5
I can imagine anyone who bought this on the basis of hearing Bohemian Rahpsody being perplexed by the George Formby/ Noel Coward style ditties that are peppered around. It sounds like a comedy album at times. As always Brian Mays guitar tone is great and the singles are strong but not much else to see here. 2.4
yea whatever, I mean they have their electric guitar sound, but I find myself skipping songs I already know. Will probs be 2 or 3. Like bohemiam rhapsody deserve a higher rating but at the same time it already gets that from everyone. I just feel like all their composition feels jagged to me.
Very bad
A mostly fine album, but the band begins to feel too theatrical in the worst way on the second half. This also has the only song I've skipped so far listening to all of these albums, with "Bohemian Rhapsody" being maybe the worst song that I've ever heard in my entire life. I've always found Queen to be one of the most overrated bands of all time, and this album cemented that opinion for me.
When Queen are good, they’re good. Unfortunately, they’re mainly just naff. The hits are hits for a reason. The rest is skippable.
Really quite impressive and just never has been my thing
'I'm in love with my Car' is such dreadful hot garbage that I can't even review the rest of the album. Is there a great track on it towards the end? I can't stand to make it through.
Not a queen fan
Going into this album with my long-held belief that Queen are nonsense. This album isn't doing much to disavow me of that, though maybe it's more interesting than I had anticipated.
Yes, this album has Bohemian Rhapsody but the rest of the album is a mess. I have a feeling that a lot of their album are all over the place.
Non li sopporto
I really didn’t like this at all, barring BR which is pretty classic, I don’t have any Queen on any playlist, or own anything by them, and this is not great.
39 and I'm In Love With My Car are passable but would better suit another band (I know they tried to do the Beatles-esque everyone gets a song thing but it never really worked for Queen). There are two iconic tracks (overplayed but still enjoyable). Everything else was horrible.
iconico pero no es lo que yo escucharía
This one lost me. Too all over the place, no throughline as I expected from the title, twee flourishes a la late 1960s (what’s that doing on a 1975 album?), and then there’s the terrible “I Love My Car” song. The absolute undeniable huge swing and a hit of “Bohemian Rhapsody” saves this from being a 1.
Freaking epic bacon!
I think Queen might be really bad you know. The non singles are awful and the singles are overplayed.
Goeie nummers zijn erg goed, slechte nummers zijn erg slecht.
2,5
Not a huge queen fan, recognized a couple songs 2.5 stars
Never been a fan tbhdesu Not bad, just not for me
It was fine
I'm never in the mood to listen to Queen but I don't hate them. They are possibly the most uncool band ever though.
Banco Queen, pero este disco me saturó. Buenos tracks, pero suena demasiado brillante y es como que es casi glam rock pero no. Próximo.
This is not my style of music I prefer, but it's still a well-made album. Well-rounded, classic songs that you'll always recognize. I would hate to give this a low rating, but I will never be going back.
Meh
To be honest I expected more. I mean, I like Bohemian Rhapsody as much as the next person, but the rest was so forgettable.
I have no idea why this is rated so highly, it's mostly a novelty album. More like "A Day At The Funfair".
Pretty good! This is probably my least favourite Queen era but I do appreciate the irony and kind of fun corniness of the songs and subjects etc.
This sort of theatre-kid rock, is in the meatloaf mold to me, it's very hard to listen to at times. I'd say the only highlights are you're my best friend and Bohemian Rhapsody. No one likes the song i'm in love with my car
This album should count its lucky stars it has BoRap on it or it would be lower.
Queen is so overrated
I really just don't get the appeal of Queen. Whilst they do have a couple of decent songs, the albums I've heard from them have been so wildly inconsistent. This record is no different and it just makes for quite a jarring experience. Also ending on a rendition of God Save the Queen is frankly embarrassing.
Disappointing, genius, disappointing
Difficult one to score. You could forgive any band for saying “my work here is done” after writing Bohemian Rhapsody. In the case of this album it was. The rest (which a couple of exceptions) is dire - an afterthought
Confirms my view that Queen was a singles band (and I'm happy to debate they were run of the mill at that). A hot mess of an album and that's before I get started on The Prophet's Song. 2* and that only because Bohemian Rhapsody is unquestionably a musical masterpiece.
Mostly what I've come to expect from Queen. I don't even like the hits on here. Few songs make my skin crawl like You're My Best Friend, and I've never understood the appeal of Bohemian Rhapsody. I just don't go in for this overly theatrical crap.
With this album, having such an outside legacy, I really wanted to love it, but unfortunately, I just can’t. It has no clear direction, it’s half show tune, half hard rock, and sometimes both of those mixed into the same song. It sucks, I can’t sugarcoat it in anyway, the only reason it gets two stars is because of a handful of songs that are decent Amongst all of the crap on this album.
Couldn't stomach most of this album. Freddy Mercury's falsetto is so grating. Gave it a 2 only because of Bohemian Rhapsody, You're My Best Friend, and '39, otherwise it's pretty intolerable. I literally do not understand the hype around Queen. (2)
From Merriam-Webster Dictionary. 'Singles-Band' Noun 1. Musical artist that somehow is able to write memorable, crowd-pleasing mega hits, but at the same time completely unable to write as much as a second of music that comes even close to any measure of quality. 2. See UK-rock band Queen.
This was filler plus Bohemian rhapsody, and some of that filler was shockingly bad, ‘39 I’m looking at you.
My college roommate owned this album and maybe Jazz (is that a Queen album?) and I may have listened to it in full once before. I am not the biggest fan of Queen. I appreciate them and what they did for rock and music as a whole. That Live Aid deal was rad. Outside of the singles of this album that I have heard plenty of times before, not much else piqued my interest. Some great tunes, just not for me.
- Positives: They’re proficient musicians, all of them. The production is very good (though bloated instrumentation). - Now that’s out of the way, lol… I’ve never liked Queen because of the jokiness/lack of authenticity in the songs. ’39 took me by surprise because it didn’t feel camp like I had expected. That said, what was with that awful flat vocal harmony - you have Freddie Mercury in your band, so there is no excuse for out of tune vocals. Also, why is the double bass so forward in the mix? - The rest of the album is more of what I expected - like it’s a soundtrack to a camp movie, which is fun for a camp movie/cabaret, but not what I’m looking for in music to just listen to. The lyrics just annoy me - “I’m in love with my car”, like, come on. I agree with the person who said it’s like theatre kids trying to do rock. - I hate Seaside Rendezvous & The Prophet’s Song is torture. - Bohemian Rhapsody and You’re My Best Friend are definitely the standouts. - Not happy they broke the SA apartheid boycott to tour because they weren’t “political” and just wanted to spread fun music. It’s exactly what their music says to me - we don’t actually have anything to say, we just want to be a joke/theatrical.
First four songs good. Rest: mostly bad. Bohemian rhapsody? More like Barfemian rhapsody. Yeah, I said it.
Never been a Queen fan, and will not be. Ya it has Bohemian Rhapsody on it, but I just don't love them at all. People do, just not me. It's obviously not a terrible album or they wouldn't be rock icons. I just don't care for them.
Ughh it’s okay I think I’m a republican.
It was okay, not a huge fan.
Meh - not for me !
I mean it’s alright.
One excellent song, a bunch of shit
overrateddd
got old quick sadly... Loved a few off it though.
two overplayed hits and a bunch of filler
Tough to describe how much I dislike this band and album.
Can only be described as Queen noise to be totally honest. I like Queen, but find they have a lot of fluff in amongst the singles. This album is mostly fluff.
4/10 queen ist valid intro song is geil, bohemian, langweilig divers
Camp! As much as I liked the campness and songwriting of this album, I am unsure on the composition of it as a whole project. Feels slightly disjointed. This is an album I am unfamiliar with, but did enjoy it. Some tracks I have listened to previously like best friend and bohemian rhapsody, but lots I was unfamiliar with. I really liked hearing non-mainstream tracks.
Interesting to hear a whole Queen record, but not my thing really. Feels overegged across the board. Just dramatics for the sake of it. Feels really private school in a way I can't put my finger on. Wasn't expecting Bo Rap when it came in the running order
I feel bad rating this album as low as I am, but man this is just way too maximalist for me. Every other second there's some random studio sound effect or vocal delay or distortion or harp or chimes or 128-track harmony that it's just exhausting to listen to. At times it feels like listening to a kid fuck around in garageband and I'm begging the album to just stay still for 2 seconds. Because I am a person with ears, I've heard Bohemian Rhapsody about a million times, and it's still a great song, but when almost every song on your album is Bohemian Rhapsody levels of elaborate it gets very tiresome very fast. I'd also argue that the reason Bohemian Rhapsody is so good is that there's some level of restraint to the studio effects. Speaking of, my favorite song on this is actually '39 - I really like it when Queen put away the studio equipment and let the song speak for itself. I realize that telling Freddie Mercury to have some restraint is like telling a bird not to fly, and it completely misses the point of his appeal, but this is just really not my bag. I totally get why people would enjoy this and rate it so highly though.
Hm, it's fine. There's nothing that massively jumps out to me. It's got Bohemian Rhapsody which is a cool song and all but nothing that I'm overly obsessed with. 2/5 stars.
2 for ‘You’re My Best Friend’ and ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’
Bekræftede mig i at jeg ikke er Queen fan, men et par gode sange var der da 🦧
Pretty meh. Bohemian at the end feels like a reward after listening to the rest of this. God safe the Queen afterwards was a fucking jumpscare as well. Not my thing really
Could be a rogue shout but thought this was pretty mid, no songs gonna make it on the playlist
No ok
i hate opera but this wasn;t bad.
I don't prefer Queen, but this is a decent album. TBH, if it were not for "You're My Best Friend" and Wayne's World's resuscitation of "Bohemian Rhapsody", would this album be on the list?
Queen is awesome. Did not interest me, though.
2 big wins and the rest is below meh for me
Two stars for pop. I just really don't like Queen that much and can't fathom driving even pennies in royalties to this.
I don't like Queen. There are tracks I've learnt to tolerate and understand the complexity, but mostly they just rub me the wrong way.
I just don’t really like Queen. 39 is good though, best song on the album.
I like Queen for its originality but I don’t love to listen to it
Nunca consigo gostar de um disco inteiro deles
Queen to me is like listening to a musical and a secondary school. The school band are all trying to outdo each other and as a result the music turns into bombastic nonsense. This is no different, apart from where Freddy Mercury takes a backseat where the band, understandably, takes a break. It’s hard work being 100% bombastic. The Brian May songs are just odd. A weird homage to country music just doesn’t fit, nor does a song where carburettors are mentioned either.
++: '39, Sweet Lady, Seaside Rendezvous, Good Company, Bohemian Rhapsody +: Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon, I'm in Love with My Car, You're My Best Friend +-: Death on Two Legs, Love of My Life, God Save the Queen -: The Prophet's Song 4,2/10
2.5
In a nutshell: "a little Bohemian Rhapsody, gentlemen?" Yes, Freddie is oozes coolness and has a stellar voice. Brian May et al are good too. The blend in theatrics with rock. But Queen are a best-of band. You know it's true. Overall: 3/10
There’s a reason why we only know their greatest hits. Bohemian Rhapsody and not much else!
Found this really fatuiging.
Look, I don't like Queen. I knew this going in. The hits are well fashioned songs, album cuts are mostly forgettable. Giving it 2 stars because the song the drummer sings about wanting to fuck his car made me laugh. His vocal performance is better than y'all are giving him credit for
Hopelessly middlebrow. An affront to my finely honed sensibilities
No ja nie lubię. 2/5
I found this album not my style. Even though I liked You’re My Beat Friend and Bohemian Rhapsody, really didn’t like Seaside Rendezvous, Love of Amy Life, Good Company among others.
Bohemian Rhapsody is doing a lot of lifting here
Pretty sure I've heard most the these songs before, apart from Bohemian Rhapsody, that was so long and boring, I thought it would never end.
mmmehh
I appreciate the hits, but Queen is not my jam.
I know a couple of tracks off this album already. This is vaudeville at its most mediocre. Im not even sure Boemian Rhapsody saves this album. They did improve on later albums thankfully.
Just too much going on here. Not their best. Some cool songs, some cool parts but it’s not cohesive and kinda hard to listen to in succession. Feels longer than it is
whimsical and unique yet straightforward themes and lyricism. went into this only knowing bohemian rhapsody. surprisingly, the rest of the album has a similar soundscape (ex. reappearing piano) and whimsy. it was interesting to hear this hit in the album context. while there are moments i like, and a few solid tunes, i found it harder to sink into this one. not sure why. Best tunes: you're my best friend, seaside rendezvous, the prophet's song, good company, bohemian rhapsody
Rating: 1.6 I do not possess the proper amount of theater kid whimsy to appreciate this album. What a loud, overblown, expensive-sounding mess. Everything about it annoys me to my core. I don’t fully hate it, there is some genuinely impressive guitar work in this thing, but Queen just never was and probably never will be for me.
first song is already about music industry drama. thats good brian thought the third song was a joke. and taylor locked himself into a cupboard until they agreed to make it a b side on bohemian rhapsody. checks out youre my best friend is like idk why you would listen to that song aside from if youre too happy to be alive and youre about to kill yoursefl '39 is alright i like it i dont like prog rock acapella canon on prophets song is dog shit love of my life is ok i dont really like it good company is pissing me off. spongebob music bohemian rhapsody is so good
An ok album overall. Most of the album kind of felt like filler except for Bohemian Rhapsody.
This didn't really move me in any way, pretty bleh. Bohemian Rhapsody is cool, but the rest of it is meh. Sorry Queen!
You’re My Best Friend and Bohemian Rhapsody are proper tracks. But so so so many novelty songs. Just stop. Stop. Stop right now. Please stop ✋ 🛑 . Soft 2/3
Freddie mercury is to blame for brendon urie I didn't realize queen has songs where the other guy(s?) sing, they shouldnt have done that For some reason I did notes for each track 1not bad 2wtf 3wtf 4 smash hit 5kinda nice folkbop 6 (i didn't write anything for this one) 7 this is about jersey shore (and references my cat clementine) goofy fun good 8 acapella part in the middle is good, transition into LOML is good 9 awww sweet 10 ehhhhh 11 woah this ones wild 12 big finale huh?
Ehh, very very Queen which felt like too much Queen, not my favorite collection
Overrated. didn't enjoy most songs. Bohemian Rhapsody is amazing obviously. Not bad just decent. 6/10
An rating principal I've settled on is that if there is a song on a record that I genuinely love, then I cannot assign the record one star. This album pushes the limits of that standard, because for as much warmness as I feel for You're My Best Friend, the rest of this is completely unbearable. I only could sit through this one once.
One thing I've learned from this website is that Queen is extremely overrated. Honestly, wtf are songs like "Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon", "I'm In Love with My Car" and "Seaside Rendezvous"? Cool to hear some proto-metal chugging in "The Prophet's Song" but that song became to much after a few minutes. 2.33
I really don't like queen. They've made a handful of good songs but even there good songs are annoying as hell. It's just generic 70s glam rock slop that everyone thinks is like the best music ever and tries to copy what it's contemporaries did better. Also Bohemian rhapsody is an ok song I don't hate it 5/10 Favourite: Bohemian Rhapsody Least Favourite: Seaside Rendezvous
Not really my thing I hate super overproduced rock and the songwriting and guitar aren’t anything special other than bohemian rhapsody which is a banger
I know Queen’s music primarily through their most popular songs on the radio and now I realize why. I have only listened to an entire album through the 1001 project. If this record is considered Queen’s finest it only confirms that they are the quintessential greatest hits band. This is a disjointed mix of genres with no flow. Too many campy silly songs mashed up with bloated overblown prog arrangements. Not a fan. Freddie Mercury is obviously a unique vocalist and performer, but also an overactor. If I never hear Bohemian Rhapsody again, that would be fine by me.
I have never really connected with Queen. I feel like there are too many random sound that don't really connect. A little metal, some vaudeville and then a few too many epics thrift and flail wildly but to what end? I just did not care. And listening to this album I have finally understood the foundational issue I have - that damn guitar tone. It pierces through everything. It never sits in the pocket. It like a wolverine waiting to pounce. Even when it's not there you can tell it's just there lurking, biding it's time to come raging and busting up everything in the room. You're My Best Friend is the most palatable (maybe even successful) song precisely because the guitar is kept at bay until the very end where two guitars (probably more) tastefully harmonize to support the song as opposed to taking over the proceedings. Still better than Steely Dan.
Not too bad, actually. But not too good either. Give me Freddie and a piano and lose the rest.
A more delicate Queen Not quite what they seem I liked this more than other This doesn't seem to bother It still gives me an itch Even if his voice so rich It sounds a bit like George Ringo Paul and John They shine through a couple of song
Appreciate the ambition of the album but doesn’t really do it for me. Queen is greatest hits band for me and Bohemian Rhapsody (obviously) and you’re my best friend are the standouts on this album
I dislike the Mercury songs and the other guy's songs are boring. So I cannot win!
solo love of my life e bohemian rhapsody (che sono bellissime!!) si salvano mi spiace
Just not for me. Obviously Bohemian Rhapsody is ridiculous and fun - mainly because of the Wayne's World connection - but the rest of it is annoying.
Um. I can appreciate the musical ability. But I just can’t jam on this
Good
One of the funniest things today is reading the five star reviews dissing the car song while completely ignoring the mental tosh like Seaside Rendezvous. And praising '39? The car song is fine. It's a bit latter pink Floyd and the lyrics are cringe but I've heard a lot worse. Obviously there's Bohemian Rhapsody and Best Friend here which are great songs, I'm not such a Queen hater to be blind to that. But there is a LOT of shit. Besides even the silly music hall stuff. If you want that done properly then go listen to The Kinks. No to The Prophets Song. I like 2 songs and they are 2 excellent songs so I guess it's a 2. I somehow got to album 850 before getting any of the 3 Queen records and here I am at 989 and I still have Sheer Heart Attack to come. Oh well.
Just fine, not a huge queen fan but nothing wrong with it objectively
Overblown pompous pantomime rock. No thanks.
Wildly all over the place.
Bohemian Rhapsody and other songs.
I had a Queen period around the time Freddie died. I came out of that period with an appreciation of what incredible hit writers they were - and what incredibly mediocre album writers. Which also means: any good Queen song you've probably heard to death, and any deep cut is not really worth your while. This is no exception. Death On Two Legs is almost an exception to the deep cut rule I just mentioned. Besides that... There are more. musichall-esque novelty songs here than I remember. Some of them INCREDIBLY annoying. Plus that car song which even 30-odd years ago I found incredibly stupid and which hasn't gained much since. And a faux country folk stomp song makes as much sense to me today as it ever did. Ie very little. All of that said... Yes, their sort of erratic writing/output is part of what made them create the outstanding stuff they certainly have in their discography. Like Bohemian Rhapsody. And this album definitely was influential in the way it was written and produced (so much better than previous Queen albums!). I still don't really enjoy it an awful lot as an album.
The first of unfortunately three albums on the list from the most overrated, radio-play, bang-average band in history. And it’s very much as expected. One half glam rock that acts as an overexposed photograph in musical form, and another half of what they’re best (worst) at - shitty whimsical ditties. There is false hope in the intro to Death on Two Legs, and reconciliation in the surprise eight-minute long Prophet’s Song, featuring a genuinely good guitar section. I only hope that God can rid me of Bohemian Rhapsody. It’s certainly impressive that I can know all the lyrics to such an (allegedly) complex song without ever willingly listening to it, but the novelty’s worn off, and my Christ. It isn’t anywhere near the ‘best song of all time’. I’m aware this rating is more of a statement against the band rather than this particular record. But I can’t move past the band, so here you are.
This album is OBNOXIOUS. Like "Death on Two Legs" and "Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon" might be the most grating one-two punch of opening tracks in the 1970s. It's weirdly twee with boring, big guitar riffs punctuated by just enough bizarre vocal harmonies and orchestral flourishes that it demands your attention. This trend just continues through the entire album. "Sweet Lady" is notably terrible and "Seaside Rendezvous" sounds better suited for musical theater than normal human listening. "The Prophet's Song" seems to go for a more proggy style and the first 4 minutes aren't that bad, but the crescendo of a cappella vocals in the round that goes on for two minutes is truly awful. A truly bizarre track that goes nowhere. "Love of My Life" is a comparatively sane track and a nice showcase of Freddie Mercury's undeniable vocal talent. "Good Company" would be a much better track without the banjolele. Then, of course, there is "Bohemian Rhapsody". On its own this is a delightfully strange, dizzying rock opera with such a massive place in pop culture that it's hard to hear for what it is. I think listening to it in its context on this album actually makes me like it less. The first ~half of the song is considerably more enjoyable than anything else on the album, but the operatic interlude in the middle is kind of ruined. The crescendo towards the return of the guitars after this interlude and the outro are, like the first half, still more enjoyable than most of the album. And rounding it out with the contemptible "God Save the Queen". Ugh. Admittedly, Brian May's arrangement isn't in itself offensive. Overall I liked this far less than I anticipated. I knew Queen weren't my favorite band and that they verge on a particular kind of over-the-top that I don't care for, but I guess I had never sit down and listened to a full album of it. Turns out "over-the-top" and "I don't care for [it]" are understatements. 3/10
Ah sweet Jesus. When the words “rock” and “opera” intersect, I feel my blood boil. I feel my DNA scream as if warning me from my primordial past. An ancestral shiver travels my spine as though it’s a sign of strike from a crocodile. My hackles are up as we enter the theatre. May your deity have mercy on my soul and my distaste for theatrical bombast be ever untested. The initial riff rules. Oh boy. This is absolutely a theatre song. It’s a musical. The guitar tone is nice, the vocals are varied and competent (obviously) but they do SCREAM this is a scene set in an office in a community theatre production. Weird Beatles interlude. Kinda funny. Pretty decent musically again. A little nursery rhyme-y, but hey. It’s a silly interlude. This guy is in love with his car. This HAS to be a comment on overly performative masculinity. Or, maybe it’s what I have always said, there is something super weird about car guys and horse girls for the same exact reason. Don’t read too deep into that. Or do, but I won’t explain it. Use your critical thinking. (They want to fuck the thing). Anyway. What the hell is this song? I like the silly critique, but as a song, if I’m supposed to actually listen to this ever again, I will not. Holdin’ hands, sippin’ root beer floats with your honey down at the jukebox diner. Maybe your sweetheart will give you a kiss on the cheek when your chaperone ain’t looking, gee whiz! Man the guy can sing though. Despite my expert takedown of an idealized time in world history that is not necessarily reality, but a misremembering of certain aspects while omitting much of the truth of the era as humans are wont to do, this song is ok. What the hell is going on? This is basically maritime folk tinged now. Can’t keep up with the genre changes, which is really cool. Far too many of these albums pick a lane and occupy it, oftentimes poorly. Listen to me using car analogies. I’ll never beat the car romance allegations. This one was pretty cool. Typical rock song to start with a kind of freakout end to the thing. Lyrics are fairly lame, and by lyrics, I mean the song title and the repetition of that over and over. Nahhhh. I can picture the exact person this is for. Their description eludes me for the most part. Well, let me give it a go, during this odd horn breakdown (which is pretty fun to be fair). The most positive person you’ve ever met, despite having no reason to be positive whatsoever. A deep lover of musical theatre and probably has a pet gecko named Hermione or something like that. This person is also definitely in three to four parasocial relationships and calls YouTubers by their first names in comments. If this is you, oh boy, do I have the song for you!! Good riffs here. While it’s definitely the villains intro song in this ongoing rock opera (shudder), it’s a pretty decent one. Wait. What happens 4 minutes in? Why? Eh. It stays cool at least. Riffs all the way through. Best song so far. Piano ballad. Gearing us up for the rhapsodic ending that we all know is coming. This one is too cheesy for me. The actor is now on his knees in the middle of the stage, periodically stepping into ballet moves. Why do I know so much about musical theatre? I’m telling you, it sticks with me and gnaws at my very soul and provides enough cringe to launch a thousand grimaces. Not the beloved McDonald’s mascot. The facial expression. Although imaging a submarine shaped like Grimace is getting me through this sappy mess of a song. More Beatles worship here. Sgt. Peppers era. Even sounds like Paul McCartney. Meh. The most theatrical song to ever exist. It is so incredibly overplayed and overhyped but when I heard it the first time as a young fella, it crushed me. It still holds a place as an ambitious, artful rock song. Weird English national anthem closer. Alba gu bràth. I feel like I’m grading this on a curve. I feel like I absolutely hate it, yet I feel as though it’s wrong to feel that way. Hate might be a strong word as there are some excellent ideas and singing here. There is also much that just doesn’t appeal to me at this point in my life. This isn’t objective, it’s the subjective thoughts of a weirdo who spent most of this time making fun of theatre kids. 2.5 HIGHLIGHTS: ‘39, Prophet’s Song, Bohemian Rhapsody
Fine. 2/5
meh
Ok
Ei kyllä Queen ole oma juttu. Ihan musiikkia on, mutta ei ole omaan makuun tämä lain.
Didn’t hate it as much as I thought
A Night At the Opera krijgt bijna 4 sterren op dit platform, maar ik laat de hypetrain graag aan mij voorbij gaan. Deze luistersessie was wederom een bevestiging dat ik niet houd van Queen. Het is enorm overgeproduceerd. Ergens hoor je meerdere stukjes Freddie Mercury achter elkaar geplakt. Net als de laag-over-laag gitaarsolo's. En dan natuurlijk de meerstemmige Queen-koortjes. Blegh. Het is gewoon pretentieuze meuk eigenlijk. Gelukkig mocht ook hier -net als bij the Beatles- de drummer ook een nummertje aanleveren. Zijn ode -I'm in Love in My Car- is zo verschrikkelijk dat ik er al snel uit was: ik ga Bohemian Rhapsody niet eens draaien... 4,5/10 Highlights '39 (van Brian May, toch wel geinig)
Giving this a 2 for Bohemian Rhapsody and general musical competency, but this really didn’t do it for me. I like Queen more when they’re just straight rocking out and less being “quirky” or “fun” and this felt like more of the latter. Most of these songs bored me and a few outright annoyed me.
Biggest one hit wonder of all time, most overrated band of all time. One good song and two commercials/movie soundtrack pieces and they get talked about with the greats. Ridiculous. This is a novelty band nothing more, and a flamboyant front man does not change that.
Despite having the most (over)played Queen song on it, the rest of this album is largely unrecognizable as Queen. Some of it sounds like another band entirely, and that's not a band I would go out of my way to listen to. This album feels disjointed, and too experimental for its own good. Maybe I'm missing something, but I didn't really enjoy this one very much. To their credit, though, Bohemian Rapsody has to be the least annoying overplayed major hit from the 60s and 70s. Unlike Stairway, for example, I'm not sick of it. But it can't carry the rest of the album on its back.
This is just Hamilton for boomers. Boo, go back into the Def Leppard / Journey / Foreigner bin, you are not one of the big boys, and I won't let Hollywood execs gaslight me into thinking that. Anyways, "Death on Two Legs" is a better song than "Bohemian Rhapsody".
Like seemingly all of queen's albums, shite when they go operatic/soft, good when they actually go heavy. I'm in love with my car the only new addition to songs by them I actually like, which are seemingly few and far between. Reminds me a bit of the Beatles when they'd go off-piste, with the main difference being it was a novelty with the Beatles so acceptable, but for Queen it's seemingly 3 in every 4 songs. Really drags. 2.5*
- i can recite the entirety of bohemian rhapsody but i can’t get myself to rate this album more than 2 stars - just not something i’d enjoy listening to casually
I mean, it's queen. couple of tracks I liked, nothing that blew my mind. 2.5
doesn't do it for me
I feel like I have to ostracize myself, but having now listened to this album for the first time, I think a few parts are better than the whole sum. I'll continue to listen to the parts I like and skip the rest.
I love me some Queen, and actually have never listened to a full album of there’s before, so I was excited to listen in it’s entirety. Unfortunately not as great as I had hoped. Of course the hits like Bohemian Rhapsody and You’re My Best Friend are on there, but the weird songs in between are almost too eclectic for me. Definitely ties into the album name though-I can hear and feel the drama and novelty of the songs and how they would be portrayed at an actual opera. Listen again: maybe Purchase for my collection: if I found it super cheap-it’s Queen after all! Favourite Song: Bohemian Rhapsody, so cliche.
I hate Queen, and my greatest fear on doing this project was that I would be proved wrong and have to either revise my opinion or double down while knowing I was wrong. Luckily, I still hate Queen. What an absolutely dreadful joke of an album this is. Is it meant to be funny? Is singing about how much you love your car cool now? Not even the appearance of Bohemian Rhapsody, which I guess even I have to concede is not without merit, fails to elevate this boring old nonsense. Why do people like them so much?
One banger one OK rest so so
Progressive Avant Pop. Most well known song is "Bohemian Rhapsody".
queen are pants
I love them and have seen them live, with Freddie, a couple of times but I think Queen are a Greatest Hits band rather than an album band.
This album wouldn't be on here if it didn't contain Bohemian Rhapsody.