Freddie Mercury wasn’t only a gifted singer; he was also an engaging performer, a successful songwriter and producer. To honor what would have been Freddie’s 69th birthday, I decided to make a list of some of his best songs.
1946, Zanzibar, East Africa (current Tanzania). Farrokh Bulsara was born to a Parsi family originary of the Gujarat region of India. His father Bomi, worked as a cashier at the British Colonial Office. Nobody on September 5 of that year could have predicted that in a matter of decades, Farrokh, who spent most of his young life in a boarding school in Bombay, would become one of the biggest music legends of the 20th century: Freddie Mercury, rock star and front man of the equally legendary band Queen.
Since Freddie was an incredibly proficient composer for Queen, many of the band’s most famous songs were written or co-written by him, so I tried to stay away from obvious choices like the hugely known “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the iconic sport anthem “We Are the Champions,” early hit “Killer Queen” or the classics “Somebody to Love” and “Crazy Little Thing Called Love.”
Here you have my personal Top 10:
Liar – Queen
Liar is a fan-favorite song from the band’s first album, and it could take up to ten minutes when performed live. The song also contains a solo performed by bassist John Deacon, the most substantial solo he ever performed live.
The Fairy Fellers Master-Stroke – Queen II
The first two Queen albums were full of a mix of intricate harmonies, heavy rock sounds and lyrical variety, and Queen II is the embodiment of that. Selecting only one song from it was the hardest choice I had when making this list, as half of the album was written by Freddie and has great tracks. The Fairy Fellers Master-Stroke is probably one of Queen’s most unique songs, lyric-wise. Based on Richard Dadd's painting by the same name, it features complex arrangements around a backing track of piano, bass guitar and drums, and also includes harpsichord, multiple vocal overdubs and overdubbed guitar parts.
It was performed live only a couple of times, but we never had a recording until 2014. Give this song a listen and then try listening to the live version, it’s worth it.
Lily of the Valley – Sheer Heart Attack
Slower than most of the songs in this list, Lilly of the Valley is a piano-led ballad with all vocals done by Freddie. Its lyrics reference the song “Seven Seas of Rhye” and it is musically connected to the track “Flick of the Wrist,” also written by Mercury.
Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to...) – A Night at the Opera
I almost used this space to include another Queen II song (because that albums deserves it), but I decided to include Death on Two Legs just to have another side of Freddie's songwriting. The song shows his most aggressive lyrics, as it was dedicated to the band's ex-manager, who was reputed to have mistreated Queen and abused his role as their manager from 1972 to 1975.
The most iconic Freddie song of this album was Bohemian Rhapsody. However, the second best song of the album (or the first one, as some fans would argue), was Brian May's "The Prophet's Song."
The Millionaire Waltz – A Day at the Races
From the album that brought Queen another iconic single, “Somebody to Love.” “The Millionaire Waltz” is Queen doing what they did best: another multi-key and multi-meter song like “Bohemian Rhapsody”, with abrupt arrangement changes and multi-tracked guitar choirs.
Mustapha – Jazz
A weird song made with mostly made-up words. The only discernible phrases are “Mustapha,” “Ibrahim,” “Allah we pray for you” and “alaikum salaam.” It was released as a single in Germany, Spain, Yugoslavia and Bolivia in 1979.
Princes of the Universe – A Kind of Magic
Not as "obscure" as some of the songs in this list. ‘Princes of the Universe’ is a cult favorite, given that it was the theme song of the film Highlander. However, it was never released as a single in the US or in the UK, even though it gained popularity in video channels.
The Golden Boy – Barcelona
I personally love Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballe’s album “Barcelona,” so I couldn’t make a list of Freddie’s best songs without including at least one song from there. The Golden Boy is the only song in this list where Mercury isn’t featured as the only writer, as it was an effort between him, Mike Moran and Tim Rice. The gospel choir is a highlight.
If you have the chance, listen to the re-orchestrated version of Barcelona.
Was It All Worth It – The Miracle
Criminally underrated. "The Miracle" brought back what Queen had been lacking for most of the 80s, after a series of mostly okay album. While “I Want It All” is probably the most famous song out of the album, “Was It All Worth It” can easily give it a run for its money. It is a throwback to Queen’s 70s sound and just delightful all around, even including gong and timpani in its instrumentation.
A Winter’s Tale – Made in Heaven
The last song fully composed and recorded by Freddie. It was inspired by the views from his apartment in Montreux, Switzerland, and has a psychedelic, dreamy feel to it. The video was produced after his death and displays Freddie’s written notes for the song and images and clips from his life.
Sources: 1, 2, myself
Favorite Freddie Mercury/Queen song? Agree/disagree with the choices? Remember the first time you heard Freddie's voice? I was planning on doing this yesterday but I had no time.