Not picking on you one bit, but it was like you listened to the entire song and you didn't hear a word. It was saying. It was an incredibly sad story and it's like you didn't hear one word of it.
@@smoothmove7566 I kinda said that in the video! And I explain why it was like that :) it’s a hard song to digest all at once cause it’s so complex and surprising!
@@smoothmove7566 With good music, and especially with a song of this caliber both lyrically and instrumentally, there is far too much to digest in the first listen. You can pick up on one aspect of a song, but not everything all at once. It's perfectly acceptable to simply be taken in by the chorus, the vocals, the instruments, the beat, etc all without actually hearing and understand the lyrics at first. People pick up on additional aspects of phenomenal songs over many subsequent listenings, as I'm sure @StaceyRPGReacts will with this one.
1974 at the Rainbow or Hammersmith four it for me, they rocked better then than when they became utter superstars. Their songs got better and more popular for most but their early work on the first 3 albums was amazing for me.
While there will never be another Queen, Jasper Steverlinck of the band Arid comes close. I'm not actually a huge fan of Arid, but he did a project with Arjen Lucassen (of Ayreon) called "Guilt Machine" in which Jasper was the lead vocalist on the whole album. Three songs come to mind that would be a hit with Queen fans, "Green and Cream", "Leland Street" and "The Stranger Song" (the latter being a Leonard Cohen cover). Instrumentally, the closest band I've encountered is Muse. They were definitely inspired by Queen, the composition and structure of the songs are so similar.
Bohemian Rhapsody", which was released originally in 1975, is the creation of Freddie Mercury but he never told anyone what he was thinking when he wrote the lyrics. Freddie tended to write in metaphors so I would not suggest taking any of his songs literally. He wanted listeners to be able to apply to the song whatever meaning it had to them personally. Not what it meant to him. BTW - Freddie did admit that "Bohemian Rhapsody" was composed of three separate songs that he had been working on but could not seem to finish. So he decided to mash them together, adding some transitions and bridges, and created "Bohemian Rhapsody". "Bohemian Rhapsody" can be broken down into 6 parts: Part I is the "Into". The video image shows the four members of Queen singing and harmonizing the lyrics of the "Intro" in acapella. In reality, it is only Freddie's voice you hear on the recording. Freddie laid down 5 separate tracks of himself singing and harmonizing with himself. (FYI - multi-tracking and overdubbing runs rampant in Bohemian Rhapsody.) Next is the "Ballad" portion of the song ('Mama, just killed a man'). Freddie had worked on this song for years but it never had a name. The other members of Queen tentatively titled it "Freddie's Cowboy Song". The lyrist Sir Tim Rice, (a close friend of Freddie who wrote the lyrics for "Jesus Christ, Superstar", "Evita", "Alladin", and "The Lion King", ...) believes this portion of the song’s lyrics were about Freddie confessing to his fans that he was gay. The third section is the guitar solo. This is the only part of Bohemian Rhapsody not written by Freddie. Freddie told Brian that he wanted a guitar solo in the song and where he wanted it to fit into the song but left it to Brian to create. Brian wanted to have his guitar effectively sing a verse that would inject a different melody. He heard something in his head. He said that he could hear this melody and had no idea where it came from. That melody isn’t anywhere else in the song, but it’s on a familiar chord sequence, so it dovetails in quite nicely. The guitar solo leads to the fourth section which is the "Operatic" section. Freddie not only loved Rock but he loved Opera. He was always fascinated with the idea of combining rock and opera. It took 3 weeks to record "Bohemian Rhapsody" and the "Operatic" section was much smaller when they began recording but Freddie kept adding to it. Various lyrics in the "Operatic" section seem to refer to the band... * Freddie casts himself as Scaramouche, a stock clown of 16th-century Italian literature. * Galileo who was an Italian astrometer, physicist, and engineer definitely refers to Brian (Queen's lead guitarist) who in real life is Dr. Brian May, who has a Ph.D. in Astrophysics. * Figaro refers to the Mozart opera, "The Marriage of Figaro" and it is a subtle way to reference Roger Taylor (Queen's drummer) who has a four-range vocal span (E2-E6) and was even frequently cited as hitting E5 in live performances. Freddie compared Roger's voice to a dog whistle and it is Roger's voice that hits those high notes. * The final reference of Magnifico is John Deacon (Queen's bass guitarist), who has not just a BSc but a First Class Honors Degree in Electronics. John is the creator of the "Deacy Amp". When Brian's homemade electric guitar (dubbed The Red Special) was connected through a treble-booster (an effects unit used by guitarists to increase the high end of their tonal spectrum) to the "Deacy Amp", Brian could produce sounds reminiscent of various orchestral instruments, such as violin, cello, trombone, clarinet, or even vocals from his guitar. It is hard to realize that it is only Freddie, Brian, and Roger singing in the "Operatic" section (John never sang on the records). This was 1975, well before digital recordings and they were using 24-track analog tape. This made it necessary for the three to overdub themselves many times and "bounce" these down to successive sub-mixes. Some sections feature 180 separate overdubs! The fifth section is the "Hard Rock" portion. In this section, Freddie sings angry lyrics addressed to an unspecified "you", accusing them of betrayal and abuse and insisting "Can't do this to me, baby", before the final lines conclude with him singing, "Just gotta get right outta here". (FYI - the "Operatic" and the "Hard Rock" sections of BoRap were featured in a scene in the 1992 film Wayne's World, in which the main character and his friends headbang in a car to the rock part.) In the sixth and final section, the "Outro", returns to the "Ballad" to close the circle of the song and ends with the sound of a Chinese gong. As for the video itself... Before the making of the Bohemian Rhapsody video, some artists had made video clips to accompany songs, including Queen themselves. It was only after the success of "Bohemian Rhapsody" that it became a regular practice for record companies to produce promotional videos for artists' single releases. According to Queen's lead guitarist, Brian May, the video was produced so that the band could avoid miming on Top of the Pops (Top of the Pops [TOTP] was a British music chart television program, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly). They knew that there was no way that they could realistically mime such a complex song live on TV. In addition, the band was already booked to appear at Dundee's Caird Hall on tour, which clashed with the date that TOTP scheduled the performance of Bohemian Rhapsody on the program. If TOTP accepted the promo video in place of the band live miming on the air, it would solve all the issues. The video was recorded in just four hours on 10 November 1975, for £4,500 (a little over $4,800). The band was involved in the discussion of the video and the result was a cooperative between the band, the director, the assistant director/floor manager, and the cameraman. It only took about 4 hours to tape. All of the special effects were achieved during the recording, rather than editing. The visual effect of Freddie's face cascading away (during the echoed lines "Magnifico" and "Let me go") was accomplished by pointing the camera at a monitor, giving visual feedback, a glare analogous to audio feedback. The honeycomb illusion was created using a shaped lens. The video was edited within five hours because it was due to be broadcast the same week in which it was taped. The video was sent to the BBC as soon as it was completed and aired for the first time on Top of the Pops in November 1975. The video has been hailed as launching the MTV age. Welcome to the world of Queen! 7
Excellent run down. I started replying to Stacy about this masterpiece, but your response saved me from writing. I was 15 when this came out (prime age for music appreciation at the time), and this song was an instant success. But more than its popularity, we KNEW also that we just witnessed a tectonic shift in music history. Between 1968-1977, so many tectonic shifts in music occurred which gave birth to so much of what Gen Z and Millennials.
This song is named Britain's favourite number 1 time and time again. This song was released in 1975 and originally spent 9 weeks at number 1 in the British singles chart. This song is still widely known to day, arguably Queen's most famous track.
"We Are the Champions" and "We Will Rock You" are much more famous. Every bloody sports fan in the world knows these songs, even if they haven't got a fucking clue who Queen are.
@@DMSG1981 Bohemian Rhapsody was in the movie Wayne's World which was the reason why people know "We Will Rock You" and "We are the Champions" Bohemian Rhapsody was the song that put gave Queen global stardom.
Freddy at Live Aid: Microphone in one hand, 86,000 fans in the other. His vocal warm ups / crowd control were epic. Can’t help but smile watching Queen perform.
"2. This was their masterpiece." Hmm, that makes me think. I've never really thought about what my favorite Queen songs are. Bohemian Rhapsody for sure. What would the others be? Somebody to Love, A Kind of Magic, The Show Must Go On, We are the Champions, I Want to Break Free, Under Pressure... There are tons of others, but I'm not really sure which other ones would be in my top 10. It's a really fun thing to think about.
To be honest, I don't know how anyone has never heard this song before. It's been around and played so much. But thank you for your reaction to something so iconic and powerful.
Come on.... this is how the reactor channels genre works. They have to say they've never heard a song before, even if they have (not saying Stacey is pretending - but a lot of reactors are). Also, it's all about validating your own preferences. You won't watch reactions to tracks you don't personally like - but if you do you will find that the reactors love those too. In fact, see if you can find a reactor video where the person reacting hates or even dislikes the track...... I'll wait........
I lot of reactors are hating on tracks or artist. Just saw a black reactor who where hating on the beasty boys bc they were not black etc @@alanmusicman3385
“I’ve never seen a band do this before!” Neither had anyone, hon. This song was released in 75’. I was 7 years old. My three kids, ages 24, 20 and 18, all absolutely LOVE it. That’s the mark of a true timeless classic.
im glad my generation is going back to watch bands like queen. yall prob went nuts like we go nuts over ronald by falling in reveres. and queen was the singers fav band ever. Every generation has wonder music. I love heavy metal. But there are times I enjoy stuff from the 20's
I was lucky to be in a group when I was young that was willing to cover a couple of the Roger Taylor lead vocal songs like Tenement Funster and I'm in Love with my Car.
I don't even have the words to describe Roger's high harmonies. It's also mind boggling to think that every member could play an instrument and sing at such an unbelievable level - in addition to all of them holding professional degrees in some field. If there's a shortage of talent in the world - Queen, Paul McCartney & Billy Joel stole most of it.
Imagine hearing this about the time Pink Floyd, Supertramp, Yes,Led Zeppelin, Steely Dan, Chicago, Doobie Brothers, Emerson, Lake and Palmer Heartb along with dozens more were all coming out with music that is still played 50 yrs later. It was an incredible time to enjoy your high school years !!
We all seemed to take it for granted at the time (at least I did) and just assumed this is what the music industry was like and would always be. Little did we know it was sort of like an accident at a fireworks factory where everything fired off at once and there's really been nothing left musically -- of any substance -- for later generations to create and call their own.
Somewhere in the summer of '75 as a twenty year old young buck serving in the Army I got amazing fourth-row tickets to a dual headline concert...Queen and Kiss. Imagine hearing AND seeing Freddie from 30 feet away beginning this tune as their encore. Blown away doesn't begin to describe what I was hearing and seeing. I stood...stunned...rocked to the core of my existence...until Kiss took the stage. I turned and walked out of the venue. Nothing could have lifted me higher...moved me more...touched me in a way that Queen just had. Very nearly fifty years later, this magnum opus is still a watershed moment. Simply because...who cannot remember where you were when YOU first heard this song?
Freddie created this song in his head all by himself... He was the master... For a real sample of his ABSOLUTE power you need to watch Queen at live aid, also "love of my life" live in Rio... Freddie's control of 400,000 people is still mind blowing
It was unbelievable, every concert he held the fans in the palms of his hand, especially at Live Aid. They literally stole the show, so many famous bands, and so many people kinda looked at them as has beens at that point. And they just killed it. I was a HUGE U2 fan at that point too, and have to say, they were the 2nd best in Live Aid, the world was kinda introduced to Bono and the boys that day, though I had been a huge fan at that time. Bono also had great control of the crowd. But Freddie on that day was otherworldly. It was like a great comeback from a former heavyweight champion. 1st round KO. His control of the fans in Wembley was iconic. Get goosebumps even today almost 40 years later.
This song is Freddie's masterpiece, still popular nearly 50 years after its release. This exact recording has been a number 1 hit in 3 separate decades. I love this song and never get tired of listening to it. It is so layered that I still hear new things in it and I have been listening to is since its release. Thank you for reacting to this outstanding composition. Queen! What a unique and talented band. The entire intro on this song is only Freddie doing track after track to sound like a full vocal choir. After that all the harmonies are Freddie, Brian and Roger. John did not like to sing so he rarely did so. I still get goosebumps from that first guitar solo. Brian May is such a talented musician with a tone like no one else. He plays from his soul and his guitar is his voice. Roger Taylor (drums) is responsible for those high notes, he has an amazing falsetto. Freddie referred to it as a "Dog Whistle Pitch" and he had Roger use it often in his compositions. Freddie compiled this song from three songs he had written but never finished. Queen was in a hole financially due to poor management and those managers stealing all the profits they band had made on previous albums and tours (Freddie wrote the song Death On Two Legs to expose that manager). The band members were still living in the same apartments they had been living in when they first started and only making about 20 dollars a week each while their manager bought a brand new Rolls Royce with the money he had made off of the band. It was a make or break moment for Queen because they were bankrupt and actually unable to pay the people who were working with them. So Freddie took those three songs and put then together to form a Rhapsody which is this song. Originally referred to as the Cowboy Song, Freddie changed the name a couple of times until settling on Bohemian Rhapsody. None of the band members had any idea what this song was going to sound like because it was all in Freddie's head and they were just recording random pieces all the time. It wasn't until it was finished that the band was able to hear it all put together and in song format. It was risky because back then radio would only play songs that were around 3 minutes or less and this song came in at 6 minutes. Management and the record company wanted to break the song apart to make it radio friendly but Freddie refused, it was going to be all of it or none of it. A DJ who was a friend of Freddie and the band got hold of an original copy (stole it actually) and started playing it on his radio show every hour and people went crazy for it. So it was released in its entirety and became a huge hit which kept Queen from having to break up the band and give up entirely. What a great success story Queen is.
So there is another video related to this you would enjoy. It's footage from a Green Day concert before the band took the stage. The camera is set up above the drum riser showing the crowd of thousands. Bohemian Rhapsody plays over the PA system and THE ENTIRE CROWD sings the song in unison! It's amazing to see strangers from all walks of life come together for this. Even if you watch it on your own time, it's worth it. Also, congrats on 100! Great reaction. 😊
I was on a 'Trek cruise' in the 90's - a sci fi convention on a cruise ship - and while we were waiting in the ships auditorium for the guest actors to appear, Bohemian Rhapsody came on over the PA. at the rock drop moment...everyone in the theatre (including myself) was headbanging on air guitar. It was wonderful.
Kudos to Greenday for uploading that vid to their own official YT channel' Edit: When it was the entire crowd singing along to the background track to an empty stage. Edit 2: That vid is well worth also reacting to, at least in my deranged opinion. It will probably give you goosebumps.
I can’t really add to what’s already been said, except to point out that this song is one of only a handful of OG Classic Rock grandaddies. “Bohemian Rhapsody” is pretty much the definition of Classic Rock.
Coming to the UK -from Africa - in my youth, having grown up on black and white television, the first thing I ever saw in colour was this very video. It blew my mind then and it still does every time I watch it.
I totally agree, and that is not only with this song. I see so many 'first times' reaction videos which I can't believe they never ever heared before. .
Well, with her 10 minutes of listing all of her accomplishments and how fantastic she is, she probably could never find the time. She's explaining a song to all of us who have heard it 1000 times and know all of the words. Not subscribing to this princess.
@@StaceyRPGReacts You’d be interested in watching the movie “Bohemian Rhapsody”. They did a decent job. It explains how this song came about!!! Also much about Queens history! You must watch it. Great job. I believe Freddy sings about himself. It’s almost prophetic! It’s call Rock Opera!!!!
@@amyaeschbach3581To be honest, BR the movie is entertaining, but since it's about equally split between fact and fiction, I wouldn't recommend anyone use it as a reliable source for learning about Queen's or Freddie's history. I often hear people confidently repeating some incident from the movie, believing it to be something that really happened, when it was actually only a piece of the invented drama that went into the 'Hollywood-isation' of the band's story. I do think the movie captures the time and the atmosphere very well, the mannerisms and to some extent the personalities. Unfortunately, although Rami did a good job of imitating Freddie's outward mannerisms, in real life he had an unusually multi-layered character and I felt much of the inner, warmer and more private dimensions of his personality were lost in this interpretation. Never do you really get to see the band's peacemaker, the loony, fun-loving playmate (as in his relationship with Roger) the supportive and generous friend, the tender hearted animal lover or the by turns gentle and shy, flirtatious and funny sides of the defiant, semi-closeted gay, prima donna rock icon the world mostly saw and the film mostly portrayed.
@@papercup2517 agree a lot. Don’t believe it’s all fact. It does a decent job of showing the process of creating the song. Interesting. I’m not sure any movie could ever capture the true essence and layers to Freddy!
Freddie put this song together. He was a genius and I'm 74 and still cry when I listen to all their songs. Play stone cold crazy. He wrote it in early 70s
From the show about Freddie's life (sorry, forget the name), it looked like they had to do an obscene number of takes to get it right. I'm sure today they would just fix it in post.
Bohemian Rhapsody is considered by many to be one of the greatest songs ever,the song released in 1975 N01 in the United Kingdom for 9 weeks and after Freddie passed away in 1991 the song reached N01 again for 5 weeks,The film Bohemian Rhapsody from 2018 was the highest grossing biographical film ever grossing 1billion dollars, Queen were considered by many to be one of the greatest bands ever,Queen famous for their legendary flamboyant performances all the band members have written N01 hits,and they were all amazing musicians, Freddie had a degree in graphic design and illustration he designed the Queen logo, Brian May has a degree in physics and is a astrophysicist, John Deacon has a degree in electronics with first time honours, and John Taylor has a degree in biology, I attended many Queen live concerts in the late 70s and throughout the 80s, great reaction thanks 🙏
A rhapsody in music is a one-movement work that is episodic yet integrated, free-flowing in structure, featuring a range of highly contrasted moods, colour, and tonality. Freddie was classically trained in music, so knew this form.
Freddie once commented that Roger Taylor (the drummer) could hit notes that "only a dog can hear." ❤ Your emotions are so raw and sweet. I had to subscribe. 😊
From wikipedia: A rhapsody in music is a one-movement work that is episodic yet integrated, free-flowing in structure, featuring a range of highly contrasted moods, colour, and tonality. An air of spontaneous inspiration and a sense of improvisation make it freer in form than a set of variations.
After Freddie left us, three European universities did an large study of the 'best voice in rock music'. Based on range, timbre, vibration, control, etc. Freddie won.
I can not believe that nobody has ever heard this song before....you would have to have been living on Mars for the past 40+ years to have never heard it
I say this a lot on RUclips, at 59 it always makes me smile when I see first time reactions to songs I have heard and known most of my life, your reaction was a joy to watch
'The March of the Black Queen' is a song which Queen recorded before this and is thought to be a predecessor to it because it has some of the same elements. It was also written by Freddie. Some people interpret Bohemian Rhapsody as Freddie's coming out song. The man he 'killed' was the man he used to be before he killed him by coming out as gay. Freddie would never give an interpretation. He said it could mean whatever the listener wanted.
I hinestly cannot imagine the size of the boulder you've had to be living under to not have heard this song at least a thousand times by now. I saw Queen live at the Santa Monica Civic on the tour that immediately following the release of "A Night At The Opera" and it was simply amazing. Now, to further blow your mind, I HIGHLY recommend the song on the same album I consider even better than this one ... "The Prophet's Song". Few people have paid attention to it because this was on the other side of the album, but it's Brian May's magnum opus. Once again, Freddie does vocal gymnastics using echos, which was mastered by using reel to reel tape running though multiple devices in a room, which today is done electronically. The fact that both Freddie and Brian wrote their greatest composition for the same album is almost beyond comprehension. I promise and guarantee your mind will be blown.
YES! But I do think fare warning is warranted in that it is VERY and even farther more experimental than even this and REALLY takes you on a mind ride that people have to have a level of patience and tolerance for but will find it COMPLETELY worthwhile as an experience. All of, "A Night Of The Opera", is a masterpiece.
@@alexkx8599 The story of his inspiration is amazing as well. I think it is deeper than BoRhap, and requires a bit of knowledge to fully appreciate how brilliant it truly is. Queen eventually took the "Echo" part and applied it to "White Man" for concerts, and I thiink it was because "Prophet's" was too difficult to reproduce on stage. I never saw them ever try to reproduce the "Operatic" part of BoRhap, they always used a tape, and that's simply because both Freddie and Roger can only sing one part at a time, and it's layered to the moon.
The mezzo-soprano-like high harmonies on the middle section are actually Queen's drummer, Roger Taylor. He himself has a very good singing voice (listen to the song I'm In Love With My Car). When they were laying down the tracks in the recording sessions for Rhapsody, Freddie kept telling him to go higher, and rewound the tape (everything was on reel-to-reel tape back in the 1970s) again, and again, and again, with Roger at the microphone in the recording studio, Keep in mind, at this time still, only Freddie knew what was on his mind and how he wanted the song to sound - the rest of the band had no idea what was happening until the final mix ran through. So Roger would sing "for me, for me, for meeeeeeee" as high as he could, then Freddie kept telling him to go higher and higher until, as Roger once said, he felt like his testicles were in his chest lol
Gosh I remember when this song came out, everyone was so blown away! I remember a girl in my 7th grade class mimeographing the lyrics to this song and passing it out to everyone..Haha.
Its hilarious watching young people see this for the very first time. Great reaction. You MUST watch Live Aid at some point, Its a legendary performance and you will love it for sure.
33 years later this Nov after your passing Freddie. We still love you darling ❤ your song "Who wants to live forever" well you will live forever in your music till the end of time
Great reaction Stacey! 😁 There will never be another Bohemian Rhapsody. As Freddie said, "There will be a time when technology becomes so advanced that we'll rely on it to make music rather than raw talent...and music will lose its soul." We all know how far the technology has come. The song was all in the head of the genius Freddie Mercury. It’s also documented really well. I recommend a documentary like “Inside The Rhapsody”. They were ahead of their time.
I was a kid when the Night at the Opera album came out. My neighbor who was a few years older came over as my parents were leaving to go to dinner. He brought the album (vinyl) and told me take this inside and crank Bohemian Rhapsody 3x. I asked he was coming in, he said I had to experience this by myself. I ended up listening to it 5x before I took it back to him. I bought it the next day.
As Roger Taylor noted "Noel Coward meets Led Zeppelin".. Freddie never explained the lyrical narrative but it seems to be moving from his old life, shaking off the cultural expectations of his background and embracing the bohemian lifestyle to come... This song is the UK's second national anthem...
I am jealous of people who listen to this masterpiece for the first time. Real music. Real talent. Real artistry. Nobody like what Queen was. RIP Freddie Mercury
Wanna hear Freddie Mercury calm a rowdy rock crowd? Check Queen’s Hyde Park concert where Freddie sings his new song You Take My Breath Away and hypnotized the crowd! ❤ Check out their 1973 Hammersmith Odeon concert performance of White Queen. Try Save Me and Dragon Attack at Montreal 1981. Check out My MelancholyBlues, Spread Your Wings, Millionaire Waltz, Another One Bites the Dust, In The Lap of the Gods, Love of My Life…to start. 😂❤
Glad you enjoyed this. To me this is the greatest song ever written. No competition. You are right. There will never be another Bohemian Rhapsody. Many bands have tried, but this is just the landmark of landmarks. As far as I know there is a documentary about the making of this song and some technicals. Rick Beato had an interview with Brian May (the guitarist) where they talked extensively about their process, and it's absolutely fascinating. The super high falsetto voice is actually Roger Taylor's voice (the drummer). There are a few songs where he tickles the high notes out. ALso, this was done at a time when there was no Autotune or digital tricks. This is pure and raw talent. Rock on!
Your reactions is totally priceless..............you are totally amazing.......beautiful, intelligent, your reactions are so honest and heartfelt. This is THE BEST reaction to this song that I have ever heard. Freddie LOVED Opera.........Stacey, you are amazing !!! ❤❤❤❤❤
This song has been in the background, foreground, in my brain, for almost 50 years. I can't even imagine never having heard it. I recommend You're My Best Friend next. JMO.
It's a 7 minute opera. The song following Bohemian Rhapsody on the album is Queen's version of 'God Save the Queen'. Back in those days the national anthem was played in theatres at plays, operas etc.
As you've seen, Freddie Mercury was a master at his craft. I've seen my fair share of live shows (unfortunately, I was too young to see Queen while they were around) and just seeing how he was onstage with people shows a level of crowd control I never heard or saw, before or since. The closest I've come to seeing it again is going to be my recommendation to you for a new band (I haven't looked at your video catalog to see, but I doubt you have reacted to them yet). That band is called BABYMETAL out of Japan. They are amazing and the lead singer, Suzuka Nakamoto, aka Su-Metal, has the best crowd control and stage presence I've seen since Freddie.
Sorry for my English. The song is about Freddie Mercury himself. Being a rhapsody we find ourselves in 7 different parts: Act 1 and 2 a Capella 3rd act Ballad 4th act guitar solo 5th act opera 6th act rock 7th act "coda" or final act The song is about a poor boy who wonders if this life is real or if it is his distorted imagination living another reality. He says that even if he stops living, the wind will continue to blow without his existence. So he makes a pact with the devil and sells his soul. When he makes this decision, he runs to tell his mother and tells her... "Mom, I just killed a man, I put a gun to his head and now he's dead. I threw my life away. If I don't come back tomorrow, go on as if nothing matters..." That man who kills is himself, Freddie Mercury himself. If he doesn't respect the pact with the devil, he will die immediately. He says goodbye to his loved ones and his mother bursts into tears, tears and desperate cries that come from the notes of Brian May's guitar. Freddie, scared, shouts "mom I don't want to die" and the operatic part begins. Freddie is in an astral plane where he sees himself: "I see a little silhouette of a man" (I see the small silhouette of a man).. "Scaramouche, do you want to have a fight? Scaramouche is "skirmish" a dispute between armies with knights on horseback (4 horsemen of the Apocalypse of evil fight against the forces of good for Freddie's soul) and he keeps saying "Thunderbolt and lightning very frightening me" (thunder and lightning scare me too much). This phrase appears in the Bible, exactly in Job 37 when he says... "The thunder and lightning frighten me: my heart pounds in my chest" (thunder and lightning frighten me: my heart pounds in my chest). His mother, seeing him so frightened by the decision her son has made, begs to save him from the pact with Mephistopheles. "He's just a poor boy..." "Spare his life from this monstrosity. What comes easy, goes easy, will you let him go? "their pleas are heard and the angels descend to fight the forces of evil." Bismillah (Arabic word meaning "In the name of God") is the first word that appears in the holy book of Muslims, the Koran. So God himself appears and shouts: "We will not abandon you, let him go". Faced with such a clash, the forces of good and evil enter, Freddie fears for his mother's life and says "Mamma mia, mamma mia let me go" (mother, let me go). They return to shout from heaven that they will not abandon him and Freddie shouts "no no no no no no no" and says "Beelzebub (the Lord of Darkness) it is possible that he has placed a devil with you mother". Freddie pays homage to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Johann Sebastian Bach when he sings... "Figaro, Magnifico" refers to Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro", considered the greatest opera ever, and Bach's "Magnificat". The operatic part ends and the more rock part bursts in. The devil, angry and betrayed by Freddie when he did not respect the pact, says to him "Do you think you can insult me like this? Do you think you can come to me and then abandon me? Do you think you can love me and let me die?" It is shocking how the lord of evil feels helpless in front of a human being, in front of repentance and love. Having lost the battle, the devil leaves and we arrive at the last act or "coda" where Freddie is free and this feeling comforts him. The gong that closes the song sounds The gong is an instrument used in China and in the Far East Asia to heal people under the influence of evil spirits. 5:55 minutes lasts. Freddie liked astrology and 555 in numerology is associated with death, not physical but spiritual, the end of something where angels will protect you. 555 is linked to God and the divine, an end that will begin a new stage. And the song plays on the eve of the Saints for the first time. A holiday called "Samhain" by the Celts to celebrate the transition and opening to the other world. The Celts believed that the world of the living and the dead were almost united, and on the day of the dead the two worlds joined allowing the spirits to pass to the other side. Nothing in Bohemian Rhapsody is casual. Everything is very measured, worked and has a meaning that transcends beyond being a simple song. It was voted worldwide as the best song ever. This topic represented a radical change in Queen as if they had really made a pact with the devil, changed their lives forever and made them immortal.
Stacy, are you beginning to understand why music in the '60s and '70s was so much better? The creativity was off the charts back then. Now that you've heard the original, you MUST do the cover by the acapella group Pentatonix. They are a deep rabbit hole in themselves. Five voices that create the sounds of the voices and instruments. They are something special.
WOW. Never Heard It ? ... There are as yet ''Undiscovered'' Tribes in the Amazon Jungle that KNOW this Song ! ! ! ! ..... LOL . ... The Record Label Very Nearly didn't release it as a Single because they said it was Too LONNNNNNG ! ! ! ... And this Music Video was the ONE that started the ''Music Video'' .... Erm, Industry .... Congrats on Number 100 ....
Different times. The song is 45 years old and the access to music is more selective. I accuse the parents for not introducing Stacey it to her earlier. 😡
When I say that Floor Jansen is the most charismatic band front person since Freddie, I hope you fully realise what an incredible compliment I am paying to her!
If you wanna know about the creative process of this song, you have to watch the movie called „bohemian rhapsody“ 💖 My understanding of the lyrics is that it's actually addressed to his mother and it's about him and his 180 degree change. He didn't physically kill anyone, of course, but when he officially changed his name to Freddy Mercury, he "buried" the man he used to be and went all in wherever the wind blew him too.
The harmonies at the beginning, right up to Mamma, just killed a man was all Freddie multi tracked. For more fabulous harmonies from 1975, multi tracked into over 600 voices listen to 10cc and "I'm Not in Love". Or better still, watch 'The making of 10 cc's I'm Not in Love'. Then at the end, sit comfortably in a dark room and listen to the harmonies as they wash over you. Pure magic.
Thank you so much for your videos, Stacey. You really make me value and appreciate these pieces of pure art even more, and I thought that wasn't possible. Thank you!
thank you for reacting, You put into words the feelings that i can't say or explain, I know exactly how I feel but you say it out loud, you say it with real feeling, much respect Stacey
As someone new to RUclips reaction videos, I love seeing young people experience Queen and Freddie for the first time. I've loved Freddie for about 50 years now, and still no one even comes a close second to him. Please check out some of his collaborations with Montserrat Caballe - fantastic! Enjoy your journey!
This was freddie’s first song he developed specifically toward his singing strengths and style. It is the forerunner of all great ‘freddie’ songs to follow.
For info: One thing Queen did really well at the time (1970s and throughout their time) was to use their vocals and music to maximise the stereo effect. If you can find it, 'A Night at the Opera' is available on a DVD Audio disk in 5.1 and it absolutely works for this and the other songs whether it is being used subtly, or to the full 'WTF' effect.
That high note you noticed (7:08) was actually not sung, it was played on guitar, but blended and mixed so well that it sounds like a vocal note. Roger Taylor normally sings the top notes. It's not a song, it's a journey. In a similar vein, a track from their album Queen 2 called 'March of the Black Queen'. Again operatic periods in it. And recorded long before Bo Ra. I could be wrong, but I'm sure I heard Freddie say, in an interview, that he had parts for a couple of songs he'd had for some time that were going nowhere, and developed and linked them into the finished article - after a lot of work. Freddie did most of the vocals himself, initially, and bought the others in as their parts developed. Thank you for posting.
Great reaction to a classic Queen song! First off, Drummer Roger Taylor has the insane high pitched falsetto voice. Guitarist Brian May has a great midrange singing voice too and they all harmonized very well. Bassist John Deacon usually refused to sing though he would sometimes sham it when multitracked echoes of the others voices were used for a choral effect, like was done at spots here. The song is, in many ways, a rock opera more than anything else. Even the name gives an insight to the song as a Bohemian is often an artistic type who is and often keeps themselves outside of society while the musical term Rhapsody I believe represents a musical piece that feels more improvisational and, as you put it, chaotic. The first section is a kind of operatic trope: a young man has, in a moment of uncontrolled anger, killed another young man, and now he's realizing that he has effectively ended his life as well as the other man's. He's feeling awful for himself, but he feels even worse for his mother who will have to live for the rest of her life without her son and will have to bear the shame and disgrace in the community of having raised a murderer. It is a very heart wrenching story, of course as one would expect from an opera. As for some of the unfamiliar words in the middle, I know bismillah is an Arabic word representing the phrase In The Name Of God. So bismillah, let me go is saying in the name of God let me go, let me live, let me get away and also asking in a way for his mother (mama mia) to let him go, and to an extent act as if he never was so she will not grieve not be shamed. Some of the other terms are ones I'm unfamiliar with, though I know from theater classes long ago that the character of Scarmouche was a kind of no-good rascally sort in Italian theater. The operatic trope is as expected, but there could be said to be deeper and more personal meanings to the song too, especially for Freddie himself who, at this stage in his career, was still in the process of working out who he was, though he was certainly Bohemian in nature. All the back and forth between begging to be free and condemnation could have had a more personal meaning for him while still supporting the message of the operatic trope of the song. The potential for meaning both shallow and deep is what also makes this song very interesting in itself. This was not their only foray into more theatrical styles of music. There is a song called The Prophet Song on the album A Night At The Opera which is both very operatic and rock too like Bohemian Rhapsody and seems to be about a catastrophic time, specifically like the great flood and Noah. It (and all of the album actually) is a great one to listen to and reflect on as it has a wide variety of musical styles on it. It contains the operatic Prophet's Song and Bohemian Rhapsody, the harder rock Death on Two Legs, the cheerful love song You're My Best Friend and the more melancholic Love of My Life, and others that are whimsical and offbeat. You should listen to the entire album, just for fun sometime. 🙂
I was a freshman in college when Queen released Bohemian Rhapsody; I have loved the song from then on. My best interpretation of the lyrics is this: it is the story of a man coming to accept his fate; he goes theough different stages -- much like the stages of grief psychologists speak of. there is denial, bargaining, confusion, anger and, in the end, acceptance. The bridge -- the part with Galileo, Figaro and the rest -- is basically a cauldron of all these emotional states. The hard rocking break after the bridge is one last angry outburst before the soft ending indicating acceptance. I love Queen; you should listen to.Night at the Opera, the album that includes Bohemian Rhapsody, it is a masterpiece,
The first part of this song is the protagonist's lamentation about this heinous act he has perpetrated. He is filled with regret. Not only has he ruined his life but also he has hurt his beloved mother. He realizes that what happens next is out of his control and he consoles himself with the line, "nothing really matters." The next part is his trial, if you will, It is much more boisterous because there are opposing sides that are trying to save his life and trying to end his life. The people trying to end his life are, "thunderbolts and lightning". The people trying to save his life are saying, "will you let him go?". The ending is a call back to the first part where he is once again consoling himself with, "nothing really matters" and we end with the chorus, "anyway the wind blows free" presumably as he is executed. The gong crescendos. As stated in a previous comment it is a six minute Italian tragedy opera as rock song .
There's a classical musician who listens to this, "Virgin Rock" - she has a 2nd part where she explains the "why" of the 3 different parts to the song. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in learning what a "Rhapsody" is in Opera terms. Yes, Freddy wanted an "Operatic" vibe for this song, and much of the album "A Night at the Opera" (thus the title...). Love watching your react to my favorite music, StacyRPG! I grew up on Queen, and to watch people experience their music for the first time is addicting!
every year in my country between xmass and NYE we have a TOP2000, u can hand in your personal top 10 favourite songs of all time, and this song has been #1 pretty much every years, showing queen is ageless!!
MY 100TH VIDEO!!
Genuine and articulate reactions dude. Good stuff
Not picking on you one bit, but it was like you listened to the entire song and you didn't hear a word. It was saying. It was an incredibly sad story and it's like you didn't hear one word of it.
@@smoothmove7566 I kinda said that in the video! And I explain why it was like that :) it’s a hard song to digest all at once cause it’s so complex and surprising!
I would like to believe that Freddie knew how much we loved him before he past. RIP Freddie.
@@smoothmove7566 With good music, and especially with a song of this caliber both lyrically and instrumentally, there is far too much to digest in the first listen. You can pick up on one aspect of a song, but not everything all at once. It's perfectly acceptable to simply be taken in by the chorus, the vocals, the instruments, the beat, etc all without actually hearing and understand the lyrics at first. People pick up on additional aspects of phenomenal songs over many subsequent listenings, as I'm sure @StaceyRPGReacts will with this one.
You really gotta watch their LIVE AID performance in it's entirety, the day QUEEN literally ruled the earth
"their"
@@TheRedStateBlue fixed it just for you,,, it wuz a typo not grammar errors fi htat lepsh u fill batter
All in 😊 fun
1974 at the Rainbow or Hammersmith four it for me, they rocked better then than when they became utter superstars. Their songs got better and more popular for most but their early work on the first 3 albums was amazing for me.
Yea! Live Aid!!!!
I also mentioned it once I guess. This concert is a MUST watch. Critics til nowadays say it's the most perfect gig any band ever did.
There will never be another Queen. please watch their gig at Live Aid. You will be shaken off your seat.
While there will never be another Queen, Jasper Steverlinck of the band Arid comes close. I'm not actually a huge fan of Arid, but he did a project with Arjen Lucassen (of Ayreon) called "Guilt Machine" in which Jasper was the lead vocalist on the whole album.
Three songs come to mind that would be a hit with Queen fans, "Green and Cream", "Leland Street" and "The Stranger Song" (the latter being a Leonard Cohen cover).
Instrumentally, the closest band I've encountered is Muse. They were definitely inspired by Queen, the composition and structure of the songs are so similar.
I have
This comment did in fact age well ♥️
"True poetry is for the listener. It ruins the mystery if everything's explained." ~ Freddie Mercury.
AAANNNDD He was Right "LISTENING IS AN ART".😀😀
Bohemian Rhapsody is not a song. It's an experience.
Bohemian Rhapsody", which was released originally in 1975, is the creation of Freddie Mercury but he never told anyone what he was thinking when he wrote the lyrics. Freddie tended to write in metaphors so I would not suggest taking any of his songs literally. He wanted listeners to be able to apply to the song whatever meaning it had to them personally. Not what it meant to him.
BTW - Freddie did admit that "Bohemian Rhapsody" was composed of three separate songs that he had been working on but could not seem to finish. So he decided to mash them together, adding some transitions and bridges, and created "Bohemian Rhapsody".
"Bohemian Rhapsody" can be broken down into 6 parts:
Part I is the "Into". The video image shows the four members of Queen singing and harmonizing the lyrics of the "Intro" in acapella. In reality, it is only Freddie's voice you hear on the recording. Freddie laid down 5 separate tracks of himself singing and harmonizing with himself. (FYI - multi-tracking and overdubbing runs rampant in Bohemian Rhapsody.)
Next is the "Ballad" portion of the song ('Mama, just killed a man'). Freddie had worked on this song for years but it never had a name. The other members of Queen tentatively titled it "Freddie's Cowboy Song". The lyrist Sir Tim Rice, (a close friend of Freddie who wrote the lyrics for "Jesus Christ, Superstar", "Evita", "Alladin", and "The Lion King", ...) believes this portion of the song’s lyrics were about Freddie confessing to his fans that he was gay.
The third section is the guitar solo. This is the only part of Bohemian Rhapsody not written by Freddie. Freddie told Brian that he wanted a guitar solo in the song and where he wanted it to fit into the song but left it to Brian to create. Brian wanted to have his guitar effectively sing a verse that would inject a different melody. He heard something in his head. He said that he could hear this melody and had no idea where it came from. That melody isn’t anywhere else in the song, but it’s on a familiar chord sequence, so it dovetails in quite nicely.
The guitar solo leads to the fourth section which is the "Operatic" section. Freddie not only loved Rock but he loved Opera. He was always fascinated with the idea of combining rock and opera. It took 3 weeks to record "Bohemian Rhapsody" and the "Operatic" section was much smaller when they began recording but Freddie kept adding to it.
Various lyrics in the "Operatic" section seem to refer to the band...
* Freddie casts himself as Scaramouche, a stock clown of 16th-century Italian literature.
* Galileo who was an Italian astrometer, physicist, and engineer definitely refers to Brian (Queen's lead guitarist) who in real life is Dr. Brian May, who has a Ph.D. in Astrophysics.
* Figaro refers to the Mozart opera, "The Marriage of Figaro" and it is a subtle way to reference Roger Taylor (Queen's drummer) who has a four-range vocal span (E2-E6) and was even frequently cited as hitting E5 in live performances. Freddie compared Roger's voice to a dog whistle and it is Roger's voice that hits those high notes.
* The final reference of Magnifico is John Deacon (Queen's bass guitarist), who has not just a BSc but a First Class Honors Degree in Electronics.
John is the creator of the "Deacy Amp". When Brian's homemade electric guitar (dubbed The Red Special) was connected through a treble-booster (an effects unit used by guitarists to increase the high end of their tonal spectrum) to the "Deacy Amp", Brian could produce sounds reminiscent of various orchestral instruments, such as violin, cello, trombone, clarinet, or even vocals from his guitar.
It is hard to realize that it is only Freddie, Brian, and Roger singing in the "Operatic" section (John never sang on the records). This was 1975, well before digital recordings and they were using 24-track analog tape. This made it necessary for the three to overdub themselves many times and "bounce" these down to successive sub-mixes. Some sections feature 180 separate overdubs!
The fifth section is the "Hard Rock" portion. In this section, Freddie sings angry lyrics addressed to an unspecified "you", accusing them of betrayal and abuse and insisting "Can't do this to me, baby", before the final lines conclude with him singing, "Just gotta get right outta here".
(FYI - the "Operatic" and the "Hard Rock" sections of BoRap were featured in a scene in the 1992 film Wayne's World, in which the main character and his friends headbang in a car to the rock part.)
In the sixth and final section, the "Outro", returns to the "Ballad" to close the circle of the song and ends with the sound of a Chinese gong.
As for the video itself...
Before the making of the Bohemian Rhapsody video, some artists had made video clips to accompany songs, including Queen themselves. It was only after the success of "Bohemian Rhapsody" that it became a regular practice for record companies to produce promotional videos for artists' single releases.
According to Queen's lead guitarist, Brian May, the video was produced so that the band could avoid miming on Top of the Pops (Top of the Pops [TOTP] was a British music chart television program, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly). They knew that there was no way that they could realistically mime such a complex song live on TV. In addition, the band was already booked to appear at Dundee's Caird Hall on tour, which clashed with the date that TOTP scheduled the performance of Bohemian Rhapsody on the program. If TOTP accepted the promo video in place of the band live miming on the air, it would solve all the issues.
The video was recorded in just four hours on 10 November 1975, for £4,500 (a little over $4,800). The band was involved in the discussion of the video and the result was a cooperative between the band, the director, the assistant director/floor manager, and the cameraman.
It only took about 4 hours to tape. All of the special effects were achieved during the recording, rather than editing. The visual effect of Freddie's face cascading away (during the echoed lines "Magnifico" and "Let me go") was accomplished by pointing the camera at a monitor, giving visual feedback, a glare analogous to audio feedback. The honeycomb illusion was created using a shaped lens. The video was edited within five hours because it was due to be broadcast the same week in which it was taped. The video was sent to the BBC as soon as it was completed and aired for the first time on Top of the Pops in November 1975.
The video has been hailed as launching the MTV age. Welcome to the world of Queen!
7
Excellent run down. I started replying to Stacy about this masterpiece, but your response saved me from writing. I was 15 when this came out (prime age for music appreciation at the time), and this song was an instant success. But more than its popularity, we KNEW also that we just witnessed a tectonic shift in music history. Between 1968-1977, so many tectonic shifts in music occurred which gave birth to so much of what Gen Z and Millennials.
Awesome info man, great comment!
Man Im outta breath learning all that! Thanks!
It’s so simple. It’s Freddie’s coming out song. Very simple.
This is a feature article you can make money with
This song is named Britain's favourite number 1 time and time again.
This song was released in 1975 and originally spent 9 weeks at number 1 in the British singles chart.
This song is still widely known to day, arguably Queen's most famous track.
"We Are the Champions" and "We Will Rock You" are much more famous. Every bloody sports fan in the world knows these songs, even if they haven't got a fucking clue who Queen are.
@@DMSG1981 Bohemian Rhapsody was in the movie Wayne's World which was the reason why people know "We Will Rock You" and "We are the Champions" Bohemian Rhapsody was the song that put gave Queen global stardom.
@@rdp281089 Please tell me, you're American
@@rdp281089 And Metallica became popular because of Guitar Hero **LOL** Please tell me you're American
@@DMSG1981 I'm British born and bread
Freddy at Live Aid: Microphone in one hand, 86,000 fans in the other.
His vocal warm ups / crowd control were epic. Can’t help but smile watching Queen perform.
Microphone in one hand, 86,000 fans in the other. --Nice. Stealing that, I am, lol!
But do not forget the other millions worlwide!
@@CarradineF Yeah, I remember watching that performance on that day, he had the world by heart.
1. Their producers didn't want them to do this because it was too long for radio.
2. This was their masterpiece.🤩
"2. This was their masterpiece."
Hmm, that makes me think.
I've never really thought about what my favorite Queen songs are.
Bohemian Rhapsody for sure.
What would the others be?
Somebody to Love, A Kind of Magic, The Show Must Go On, We are the Champions, I Want to Break Free, Under Pressure...
There are tons of others, but I'm not really sure which other ones would be in my top 10. It's a really fun thing to think about.
Thanks to kenny Everett, it got played
Vc e' linda demais. Sim,essa musica nos leva ao extase...beijao.❤
I agree
@@CharlesPhillips-no3sz no the length was the main thing as the radio would help make it a hit. Elton John also said it was too long for radio
To be honest, I don't know how anyone has never heard this song before. It's been around and played so much. But thank you for your reaction to something so iconic and powerful.
Come on.... this is how the reactor channels genre works. They have to say they've never heard a song before, even if they have (not saying Stacey is pretending - but a lot of reactors are). Also, it's all about validating your own preferences. You won't watch reactions to tracks you don't personally like - but if you do you will find that the reactors love those too. In fact, see if you can find a reactor video where the person reacting hates or even dislikes the track...... I'll wait........
We have all "heard" a million songs over the years but to sit down and devote all that time to actually listen and take it all in is another thing.
I lot of reactors are hating on tracks or artist. Just saw a black reactor who where hating on the beasty boys bc they were not black etc @@alanmusicman3385
“I’ve never seen a band do this before!”
Neither had anyone, hon.
This song was released in 75’. I was 7 years old. My three kids, ages 24, 20 and 18, all absolutely LOVE it. That’s the mark of a true timeless classic.
Check out the "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" album by Genesis from 1974. You will be surprised how crazy it is!
im glad my generation is going back to watch bands like queen. yall prob went nuts like we go nuts over ronald by falling in reveres. and queen was the singers fav band ever.
Every generation has wonder music. I love heavy metal. But there are times I enjoy stuff from the 20's
Freddie's voice was so amazing that it's easy to overlook the fact that every member of that band had a great singing voice too. Especially Roger.
I was lucky to be in a group when I was young that was willing to cover a couple of the Roger Taylor lead vocal songs like Tenement Funster and I'm in Love with my Car.
I don't even have the words to describe Roger's high harmonies. It's also mind boggling to think that every member could play an instrument and sing at such an unbelievable level - in addition to all of them holding professional degrees in some field. If there's a shortage of talent in the world - Queen, Paul McCartney & Billy Joel stole most of it.
John Deacon didn't have a great voice
Imagine hearing this about the time Pink Floyd, Supertramp,
Yes,Led Zeppelin, Steely Dan,
Chicago, Doobie Brothers,
Emerson, Lake and Palmer Heartb along with dozens more were all coming out with music that is still played 50 yrs later. It was an incredible
time to enjoy your high school years !!
We were so spoiled! Great time to be alive ❤
We all seemed to take it for granted at the time (at least I did) and just assumed this is what the music industry was like and would always be. Little did we know it was sort of like an accident at a fireworks factory where everything fired off at once and there's really been nothing left musically -- of any substance -- for later generations to create and call their own.
Somewhere in the summer of '75 as a twenty year old young buck serving in the Army I got amazing fourth-row tickets to a dual headline concert...Queen and Kiss. Imagine hearing AND seeing Freddie from 30 feet away beginning this tune as their encore. Blown away doesn't begin to describe what I was hearing and seeing. I stood...stunned...rocked to the core of my existence...until Kiss took the stage. I turned and walked out of the venue. Nothing could have lifted me higher...moved me more...touched me in a way that Queen just had.
Very nearly fifty years later, this magnum opus is still a watershed moment. Simply because...who cannot remember where you were when YOU first heard this song?
I was 10.Being told off by my teacher for repeatedly singing this ....
I must have listened to this song thousands of times but every time I do it gives me goosebumps!
Freddie created this song in his head all by himself... He was the master... For a real sample of his ABSOLUTE power you need to watch Queen at live aid, also "love of my life" live in Rio... Freddie's control of 400,000 people is still mind blowing
It was unbelievable, every concert he held the fans in the palms of his hand, especially at Live Aid. They literally stole the show, so many famous bands, and so many people kinda looked at them as has beens at that point. And they just killed it. I was a HUGE U2 fan at that point too, and have to say, they were the 2nd best in Live Aid, the world was kinda introduced to Bono and the boys that day, though I had been a huge fan at that time. Bono also had great control of the crowd.
But Freddie on that day was otherworldly. It was like a great comeback from a former heavyweight champion. 1st round KO. His control of the fans in Wembley was iconic. Get goosebumps even today almost 40 years later.
This song is Freddie's masterpiece, still popular nearly 50 years after its release. This exact recording has been a number 1 hit in 3 separate decades. I love this song and never get tired of listening to it. It is so layered that I still hear new things in it and I have been listening to is since its release. Thank you for reacting to this outstanding composition. Queen! What a unique and talented band. The entire intro on this song is only Freddie doing track after track to sound like a full vocal choir. After that all the harmonies are Freddie, Brian and Roger. John did not like to sing so he rarely did so. I still get goosebumps from that first guitar solo. Brian May is such a talented musician with a tone like no one else. He plays from his soul and his guitar is his voice. Roger Taylor (drums) is responsible for those high notes, he has an amazing falsetto. Freddie referred to it as a "Dog Whistle Pitch" and he had Roger use it often in his compositions. Freddie compiled this song from three songs he had written but never finished. Queen was in a hole financially due to poor management and those managers stealing all the profits they band had made on previous albums and tours (Freddie wrote the song Death On Two Legs to expose that manager). The band members were still living in the same apartments they had been living in when they first started and only making about 20 dollars a week each while their manager bought a brand new Rolls Royce with the money he had made off of the band. It was a make or break moment for Queen because they were bankrupt and actually unable to pay the people who were working with them. So Freddie took those three songs and put then together to form a Rhapsody which is this song. Originally referred to as the Cowboy Song, Freddie changed the name a couple of times until settling on Bohemian Rhapsody. None of the band members had any idea what this song was going to sound like because it was all in Freddie's head and they were just recording random pieces all the time. It wasn't until it was finished that the band was able to hear it all put together and in song format. It was risky because back then radio would only play songs that were around 3 minutes or less and this song came in at 6 minutes. Management and the record company wanted to break the song apart to make it radio friendly but Freddie refused, it was going to be all of it or none of it. A DJ who was a friend of Freddie and the band got hold of an original copy (stole it actually) and started playing it on his radio show every hour and people went crazy for it. So it was released in its entirety and became a huge hit which kept Queen from having to break up the band and give up entirely. What a great success story Queen is.
So there is another video related to this you would enjoy. It's footage from a Green Day concert before the band took the stage. The camera is set up above the drum riser showing the crowd of thousands. Bohemian Rhapsody plays over the PA system and THE ENTIRE CROWD sings the song in unison! It's amazing to see strangers from all walks of life come together for this. Even if you watch it on your own time, it's worth it. Also, congrats on 100! Great reaction. 😊
I was on a 'Trek cruise' in the 90's - a sci fi convention on a cruise ship - and while we were waiting in the ships auditorium for the guest actors to appear, Bohemian Rhapsody came on over the PA. at the rock drop moment...everyone in the theatre (including myself) was headbanging on air guitar. It was wonderful.
Kudos to Greenday for uploading that vid to their own official YT channel'
Edit: When it was the entire crowd singing along to the background track to an empty stage.
Edit 2: That vid is well worth also reacting to, at least in my deranged opinion. It will probably give you goosebumps.
I like the version which a drunk man sitting in the backseat of a police car singing the whole Bohemian Rhapsody to the Police Officer.
I can’t really add to what’s already been said, except to point out that this song is one of only a handful of OG Classic Rock grandaddies. “Bohemian Rhapsody” is pretty much the definition of Classic Rock.
I loved that they even attempted the guitar solos!!
Coming to the UK -from Africa - in my youth, having grown up on black and white television, the first thing I ever saw in colour was this very video. It blew my mind then and it still does every time I watch it.
I'm not calling you a liar...I just can't imagine a world in which an adult doesn't already know this song.
😂😂😂 so true
I was thinking the same
When I saw the title of that clip I thought the very same thing.... Especially given the popularity of the motion picture...
I totally agree, and that is not only with this song. I see so many 'first times' reaction videos which I can't believe they never ever heared before. .
Well, with her 10 minutes of listing all of her accomplishments and how fantastic she is, she probably could never find the time. She's explaining a song to all of us who have heard it 1000 times and know all of the words.
Not subscribing to this princess.
When you consider the available technology in the mid 1970s, this is a true masterpiece
I’d give anything to hear this for the first time again
Life changing
@@StaceyRPGReacts You’d be interested in watching the movie “Bohemian Rhapsody”. They did a decent job. It explains how this song came about!!! Also much about Queens history! You must watch it. Great job. I believe Freddy sings about himself. It’s almost prophetic! It’s call Rock Opera!!!!
@@amyaeschbach3581To be honest, BR the movie is entertaining, but since it's about equally split between fact and fiction, I wouldn't recommend anyone use it as a reliable source for learning about Queen's or Freddie's history. I often hear people confidently repeating some incident from the movie, believing it to be something that really happened, when it was actually only a piece of the invented drama that went into the 'Hollywood-isation' of the band's story.
I do think the movie captures the time and the atmosphere very well, the mannerisms and to some extent the personalities. Unfortunately, although Rami did a good job of imitating Freddie's outward mannerisms, in real life he had an unusually multi-layered character and I felt much of the inner, warmer and more private dimensions of his personality were lost in this interpretation. Never do you really get to see the band's peacemaker, the loony, fun-loving playmate (as in his relationship with Roger) the supportive and generous friend, the tender hearted animal lover or the by turns gentle and shy, flirtatious and funny sides of the defiant, semi-closeted gay, prima donna rock icon the world mostly saw and the film mostly portrayed.
@@papercup2517 agree a lot. Don’t believe it’s all fact. It does a decent job of showing the process of creating the song. Interesting. I’m not sure any movie could ever capture the true essence and layers to Freddy!
@@papercup2517 That's a great comment. Bravo, so well worded.
Queen has arguably some of the best harmonies in rock n roll
Yeah, and before all that Autotune crap!
The beginning is all Freddie, harmonizing with himself.
This is a musicians music. Everybody from opera singers to beet boppers. Anyone who is serious about their music, loves this piece.
Freddie put this song together. He was a genius and I'm 74 and still cry when I listen to all their songs. Play stone cold crazy. He wrote it in early 70s
Yeah this song really showcase the absolute genius that queen was.
Are.
Band member who reached the highest note in the song was the Drummer Roger Taylor !
Watch him on the video of "Somebody to Love", live at Montreal.
Na verdade o timbre dele para estética do álbum , foi a melhor !ele sempre é o contraponto de Freddie , em toda discografias!
From the show about Freddie's life (sorry, forget the name), it looked like they had to do an obscene number of takes to get it right. I'm sure today they would just fix it in post.
Freddie said Roger had "Dog whistle notes"!
Bohemian Rhapsody is considered by many to be one of the greatest songs ever,the song released in 1975 N01 in the United Kingdom for 9 weeks and after Freddie passed away in 1991 the song reached N01 again for 5 weeks,The film Bohemian Rhapsody from 2018 was the highest grossing biographical film ever grossing 1billion dollars, Queen were considered by many to be one of the greatest bands ever,Queen famous for their legendary flamboyant performances all the band members have written N01 hits,and they were all amazing musicians, Freddie had a degree in graphic design and illustration he designed the Queen logo, Brian May has a degree in physics and is a astrophysicist, John Deacon has a degree in electronics with first time honours, and John Taylor has a degree in biology, I attended many Queen live concerts in the late 70s and throughout the 80s, great reaction thanks 🙏
Roger Taylor.
This shows brilliance and genius of Freddie. He wrote and arranged this song from his imagination.
A rhapsody in music is a one-movement work that is episodic yet integrated, free-flowing in structure, featuring a range of highly contrasted moods, colour, and tonality. Freddie was classically trained in music, so knew this form.
Freddie once commented that Roger Taylor (the drummer) could hit notes that "only a dog can hear." ❤
Your emotions are so raw and sweet. I had to subscribe. 😊
Hello stacey 😊 one of the best songs ever written 😁 congrats on your 100th video 🎉
From wikipedia: A rhapsody in music is a one-movement work that is episodic yet integrated, free-flowing in structure, featuring a range of highly contrasted moods, colour, and tonality. An air of spontaneous inspiration and a sense of improvisation make it freer in form than a set of variations.
After Freddie left us, three European universities did an large study of the 'best voice in rock music'. Based on range, timbre, vibration, control, etc. Freddie won.
evidence?
@@kevinlakeman5043 Yes, evidence.
I can not believe that nobody has ever heard this song before....you would have to have been living on Mars for the past 40+ years to have never heard it
many people heard it but never knew what song and from who.
I say this a lot on RUclips, at 59 it always makes me smile when I see first time reactions to songs I have heard and known most of my life, your reaction was a joy to watch
There is a video of a crowd at a green day concert singing this song .unbelievable
There will NEVER BE another Queen and FREDDIE MERCURY!!!!!
LEGENDS!!!
Flawless harmony, no autotune required
One of the greatest voices ever!!!!
'The March of the Black Queen' is a song which Queen recorded before this and is thought to be a predecessor to it because it has some of the same elements. It was also written by Freddie. Some people interpret Bohemian Rhapsody as Freddie's coming out song. The man he 'killed' was the man he used to be before he killed him by coming out as gay. Freddie would never give an interpretation. He said it could mean whatever the listener wanted.
Queen II is my favourite album of theirs and you can see how they were developing towards Bohemian Rhapsody.
March of the Black Queen, live in 1974 will low you away. That entire concert is dope.
You are right, nailed the meaning 👍
I hinestly cannot imagine the size of the boulder you've had to be living under to not have heard this song at least a thousand times by now. I saw Queen live at the Santa Monica Civic on the tour that immediately following the release of "A Night At The Opera" and it was simply amazing. Now, to further blow your mind, I HIGHLY recommend the song on the same album I consider even better than this one ... "The Prophet's Song". Few people have paid attention to it because this was on the other side of the album, but it's Brian May's magnum opus. Once again, Freddie does vocal gymnastics using echos, which was mastered by using reel to reel tape running though multiple devices in a room, which today is done electronically. The fact that both Freddie and Brian wrote their greatest composition for the same album is almost beyond comprehension. I promise and guarantee your mind will be blown.
YES! But I do think fare warning is warranted in that it is VERY and even farther more experimental than even this and REALLY takes you on a mind ride that people have to have a level of patience and tolerance for but will find it COMPLETELY worthwhile as an experience. All of, "A Night Of The Opera", is a masterpiece.
For the views. That's all.
@@alexkx8599 The story of his inspiration is amazing as well. I think it is deeper than BoRhap, and requires a bit of knowledge to fully appreciate how brilliant it truly is. Queen eventually took the "Echo" part and applied it to "White Man" for concerts, and I thiink it was because "Prophet's" was too difficult to reproduce on stage. I never saw them ever try to reproduce the "Operatic" part of BoRhap, they always used a tape, and that's simply because both Freddie and Roger can only sing one part at a time, and it's layered to the moon.
@@chadbennett7873 Right.
@@alexkx8599 as is A Day at the Races.....
Those high notes come from the drummer, Roger Taylor. Somebody to Love, live, monteal highlights Roger's background vocals really well.
The mezzo-soprano-like high harmonies on the middle section are actually Queen's drummer, Roger Taylor. He himself has a very good singing voice (listen to the song I'm In Love With My Car). When they were laying down the tracks in the recording sessions for Rhapsody, Freddie kept telling him to go higher, and rewound the tape (everything was on reel-to-reel tape back in the 1970s) again, and again, and again, with Roger at the microphone in the recording studio, Keep in mind, at this time still, only Freddie knew what was on his mind and how he wanted the song to sound - the rest of the band had no idea what was happening until the final mix ran through.
So Roger would sing "for me, for me, for meeeeeeee" as high as he could, then Freddie kept telling him to go higher and higher until, as Roger once said, he felt like his testicles were in his chest lol
Gosh I remember when this song came out, everyone was so blown away! I remember a girl in my 7th grade class mimeographing the lyrics to this song and passing it out to everyone..Haha.
Its hilarious watching young people see this for the very first time. Great reaction. You MUST watch Live Aid at some point, Its a legendary performance and you will love it for sure.
It's hilarious that you think she heard this song now for the first time 😂
Freddie had a once in a lifetime voice. We are so lucky to have it. There'll never be another.
33 years later this Nov after your passing Freddie. We still love you darling ❤ your song "Who wants to live forever" well you will live forever in your music till the end of time
Congratulations! You just experienced one of the most iconic songs of rock history! And definitely the most iconic guitar solo ever!
Freddie and all the members of Queen are simply incredible
Great reaction Stacey! 😁 There will never be another Bohemian Rhapsody. As Freddie said, "There will be a time when technology becomes so advanced that we'll rely on it to make music rather than raw talent...and music will lose its soul." We all know how far the technology has come.
The song was all in the head of the genius Freddie Mercury. It’s also documented really well. I recommend a documentary like “Inside The Rhapsody”. They were ahead of their time.
and there's also a great video called "Freddie recording Bohemian Rhapsody (25mn) Amazing !!!"
Just to say, most Brits know all the words to this all the way through.......and will sing it when they hear it!
French Canadian here…and I’ll match you word for word. 😀
..who wants to live forever ..Freddie is still there..
When this first came out. It stunned everyone! It took the world by storm!
I was a kid when the Night at the Opera album came out. My neighbor who was a few years older came over as my parents were leaving to go to dinner. He brought the album (vinyl) and told me take this inside and crank Bohemian Rhapsody 3x. I asked he was coming in, he said I had to experience this by myself. I ended up listening to it 5x before I took it back to him. I bought it the next day.
As Roger Taylor noted "Noel Coward meets Led Zeppelin".. Freddie never explained the lyrical narrative but it seems to be moving from his old life, shaking off the cultural expectations of his background and embracing the bohemian lifestyle to come...
This song is the UK's second national anthem...
Ummm, who's, "Noel Coward"?
For me this is Queen's alltime masterpiece.
Rhapsody was a creative masterpiece. There will never be anything like it. Mercury's talent was sadly unappreciated at first.
There is a life before and after first hearing Bohemian Rapsody..... The World will never be the same.....
So true. Queen changed the world several times, but THIS one is above everything else.
I am jealous of people who listen to this masterpiece for the first time.
Real music. Real talent. Real artistry. Nobody like what Queen was. RIP Freddie Mercury
lol for the first time 😂 yeah right.
Yep, if there is an Olymp of best songs ever written, this song has a seat in it for eternity
Oh, and congrats to your 100th video! 🥳
Wanna hear Freddie Mercury calm a rowdy rock crowd? Check Queen’s Hyde Park concert where Freddie sings his new song You Take My Breath Away and hypnotized the crowd! ❤ Check out their 1973 Hammersmith Odeon concert performance of White Queen. Try Save Me and Dragon Attack at Montreal 1981. Check out My MelancholyBlues, Spread Your Wings, Millionaire Waltz, Another One Bites the Dust, In The Lap of the Gods, Love of My Life…to start. 😂❤
Glad you enjoyed this. To me this is the greatest song ever written. No competition. You are right. There will never be another Bohemian Rhapsody. Many bands have tried, but this is just the landmark of landmarks. As far as I know there is a documentary about the making of this song and some technicals. Rick Beato had an interview with Brian May (the guitarist) where they talked extensively about their process, and it's absolutely fascinating. The super high falsetto voice is actually Roger Taylor's voice (the drummer). There are a few songs where he tickles the high notes out. ALso, this was done at a time when there was no Autotune or digital tricks. This is pure and raw talent. Rock on!
Your reactions is totally priceless..............you are totally amazing.......beautiful, intelligent, your reactions are so honest and heartfelt. This is THE BEST reaction to this song that I have ever heard. Freddie LOVED Opera.........Stacey, you are amazing !!! ❤❤❤❤❤
FREDDIE MERCURY THE GREATEST SINGER OF ALL TIME!!! 😎😎😎🎤🎤🎤🎼🎼🎼🎹🎹🎹🥁🥁🥁🎸🎸🎸🎬🎬🎬🎧🎧🎧🎥🎥🎥👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
I love watching reactors attempting to make literal sense of the lyrics. 🤣
We live in such un-poetic times.
This song has been in the background, foreground, in my brain, for almost 50 years. I can't even imagine never having heard it. I recommend You're My Best Friend next. JMO.
Hahaha- love your reaction. Shows you how good Queen was that they can impress across so many generations. 👍🏻
It's a 7 minute opera. The song following Bohemian Rhapsody on the album is Queen's version of 'God Save the Queen'. Back in those days the national anthem was played in theatres at plays, operas etc.
You should listen to Barcelona, who wants to live forever and Love of my life. All queen. They are must listen to songs
Freddy is very theatrical...it's all his influence.. greatest front man in my opinion
. . . GOOD JOB STACEY !
As you've seen, Freddie Mercury was a master at his craft. I've seen my fair share of live shows (unfortunately, I was too young to see Queen while they were around) and just seeing how he was onstage with people shows a level of crowd control I never heard or saw, before or since. The closest I've come to seeing it again is going to be my recommendation to you for a new band (I haven't looked at your video catalog to see, but I doubt you have reacted to them yet). That band is called BABYMETAL out of Japan. They are amazing and the lead singer, Suzuka Nakamoto, aka Su-Metal, has the best crowd control and stage presence I've seen since Freddie.
Sorry for my English.
The song is about Freddie Mercury himself. Being a rhapsody we find ourselves in 7 different parts:
Act 1 and 2 a Capella
3rd act Ballad
4th act guitar solo
5th act opera
6th act rock
7th act "coda" or final act
The song is about a poor boy who wonders if this life is real or if it is his distorted imagination living another reality. He says that even if he stops living, the wind will continue to blow without his existence. So he makes a pact with the devil and sells his soul.
When he makes this decision, he runs to tell his mother and tells her...
"Mom, I just killed a man, I put a gun to his head and now he's dead. I threw my life away. If I don't come back tomorrow, go on as if nothing matters..." That man who kills is himself, Freddie Mercury himself.
If he doesn't respect the pact with the devil, he will die immediately. He says goodbye to his loved ones and his mother bursts into tears, tears and desperate cries that come from the notes of Brian May's guitar. Freddie, scared, shouts "mom I don't want to die" and the operatic part begins. Freddie is in an astral plane where he sees himself: "I see a little silhouette of a man" (I see the small silhouette of a man).. "Scaramouche, do you want to have a fight?
Scaramouche is "skirmish" a dispute between armies with knights on horseback (4 horsemen of the Apocalypse of evil fight against the forces of good for Freddie's soul) and he keeps saying "Thunderbolt and lightning very frightening me" (thunder and lightning scare me too much). This phrase appears in the Bible, exactly in Job 37 when he says... "The thunder and lightning frighten me: my heart pounds in my chest" (thunder and lightning frighten me: my heart pounds in my chest). His mother, seeing him so frightened by the decision her son has made, begs to save him from the pact with Mephistopheles. "He's just a poor boy..." "Spare his life from this monstrosity. What comes easy, goes easy, will you let him go? "their pleas are heard and the angels descend to fight the forces of evil." Bismillah (Arabic word meaning "In the name of God") is the first word that appears in the holy book of Muslims, the Koran. So God himself appears and shouts: "We will not abandon you, let him go".
Faced with such a clash, the forces of good and evil enter, Freddie fears for his mother's life and says "Mamma mia, mamma mia let me go" (mother, let me go). They return to shout from heaven that they will not abandon him and Freddie shouts "no no no no no no no" and says "Beelzebub (the Lord of Darkness) it is possible that he has placed a devil with you mother". Freddie pays homage to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Johann Sebastian Bach when he sings... "Figaro, Magnifico" refers to Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro", considered the greatest opera ever, and Bach's "Magnificat". The operatic part ends and the more rock part bursts in. The devil, angry and betrayed by Freddie when he did not respect the pact, says to him "Do you think you can insult me like this? Do you think you can come to me and then abandon me? Do you think you can love me and let me die?"
It is shocking how the lord of evil feels helpless in front of a human being, in front of repentance and love. Having lost the battle, the devil leaves and we arrive at the last act or "coda" where Freddie is free and this feeling comforts him. The gong that closes the song sounds The gong is an instrument used in China and in the Far East Asia to heal people under the influence of evil spirits.
5:55 minutes lasts. Freddie liked astrology and 555 in numerology is associated with death, not physical but spiritual, the end of something where angels will protect you. 555 is linked to God and the divine, an end that will begin a new stage.
And the song plays on the eve of the Saints for the first time. A holiday called "Samhain" by the Celts to celebrate the transition and opening to the other world.
The Celts believed that the world of the living and the dead were almost united, and on the day of the dead the two worlds joined allowing the spirits to pass to the other side. Nothing in Bohemian Rhapsody is casual.
Everything is very measured, worked and has a meaning that transcends beyond being a simple song. It was voted worldwide as the best song ever.
This topic represented a radical change in Queen as if they had really made a pact with the devil, changed their lives forever and made them immortal.
Greatest rock composition ever. A masterpiece.
Settle down, Beavis, It's fine, but also pretty cheesy in parts. That's why it's in "Wayne's World".
You MUST watch Queen at Live Aid 1985....
Stacy, are you beginning to understand why music in the '60s and '70s was so much better? The creativity was off the charts back then. Now that you've heard the original, you MUST do the cover by the acapella group Pentatonix. They are a deep rabbit hole in themselves. Five voices that create the sounds of the voices and instruments. They are something special.
And to think that at their record company, they thought it was too long and it would never be a hit. It literally become the biggest hit ever.
The entire album a night at the opera is pure genius
WOW. Never Heard It ? ... There are as yet ''Undiscovered'' Tribes in the Amazon Jungle that KNOW this Song ! ! ! ! ..... LOL . ... The Record Label Very Nearly didn't release it as a Single because they said it was Too LONNNNNNG ! ! ! ... And this Music Video was the ONE that started the ''Music Video'' .... Erm, Industry .... Congrats on Number 100 ....
That could be true and if not, I bet they know the stomp to " We Will Rock You " LOL😂👑💙
How on earth havent you seen Bohemian rhapsody? Probably one of the most well known song of any artist out there.
Different times. The song is 45 years old and the access to music is more selective. I accuse the parents for not introducing Stacey it to her earlier. 😡
When I say that Floor Jansen is the most charismatic band front person since Freddie, I hope you fully realise what an incredible compliment I am paying to her!
If you wanna know about the creative process of this song, you have to watch the movie called „bohemian rhapsody“ 💖
My understanding of the lyrics is that it's actually addressed to his mother and it's about him and his 180 degree change. He didn't physically kill anyone, of course, but when he officially changed his name to Freddy Mercury, he "buried" the man he used to be and went all in wherever the wind blew him too.
The harmonies at the beginning, right up to Mamma, just killed a man was all Freddie multi tracked. For more fabulous harmonies from 1975, multi tracked into over 600 voices listen to 10cc and "I'm Not in Love". Or better still, watch 'The making of 10 cc's I'm Not in Love'. Then at the end, sit comfortably in a dark room and listen to the harmonies as they wash over you. Pure magic.
If you don't know where to pause, don't pause.
Part of the RUclips rules for these reaction type videos is that you have to pause a certain amount and comment
There's a reason the 70s had the greatest music
Thank you so much for your videos, Stacey. You really make me value and appreciate these pieces of pure art even more, and I thought that wasn't possible. Thank you!
thank you for reacting, You put into words the feelings that i can't say or explain, I know exactly how I feel but you say it out loud, you say it with real feeling, much respect Stacey
As someone new to RUclips reaction videos, I love seeing young people experience Queen and Freddie for the first time. I've loved Freddie for about 50 years now, and still no one even comes a close second to him. Please check out some of his collaborations with Montserrat Caballe - fantastic! Enjoy your journey!
This was freddie’s first song he developed specifically toward his singing strengths and style. It is the forerunner of all great ‘freddie’ songs to follow.
There is only one word to describe this song. Masterpiece. Love from Scotland
For info: One thing Queen did really well at the time (1970s and throughout their time) was to use their vocals and music to maximise the stereo effect. If you can find it, 'A Night at the Opera' is available on a DVD Audio disk in 5.1 and it absolutely works for this and the other songs whether it is being used subtly, or to the full 'WTF' effect.
That high note you noticed (7:08) was actually not sung, it was played on guitar, but blended and mixed so well that it sounds like a vocal note. Roger Taylor normally sings the top notes.
It's not a song, it's a journey.
In a similar vein, a track from their album Queen 2 called 'March of the Black Queen'. Again operatic periods in it. And recorded long before Bo Ra.
I could be wrong, but I'm sure I heard Freddie say, in an interview, that he had parts for a couple of songs he'd had for some time that were going nowhere, and developed and linked them into the finished article - after a lot of work. Freddie did most of the vocals himself, initially, and bought the others in as their parts developed.
Thank you for posting.
British rock in the 70s was to an incredible standard never beaten
Great reaction to a classic Queen song!
First off, Drummer Roger Taylor has the insane high pitched falsetto voice. Guitarist Brian May has a great midrange singing voice too and they all harmonized very well. Bassist John Deacon usually refused to sing though he would sometimes sham it when multitracked echoes of the others voices were used for a choral effect, like was done at spots here.
The song is, in many ways, a rock opera more than anything else. Even the name gives an insight to the song as a Bohemian is often an artistic type who is and often keeps themselves outside of society while the musical term Rhapsody I believe represents a musical piece that feels more improvisational and, as you put it, chaotic.
The first section is a kind of operatic trope: a young man has, in a moment of uncontrolled anger, killed another young man, and now he's realizing that he has effectively ended his life as well as the other man's. He's feeling awful for himself, but he feels even worse for his mother who will have to live for the rest of her life without her son and will have to bear the shame and disgrace in the community of having raised a murderer. It is a very heart wrenching story, of course as one would expect from an opera.
As for some of the unfamiliar words in the middle, I know bismillah is an Arabic word representing the phrase In The Name Of God. So bismillah, let me go is saying in the name of God let me go, let me live, let me get away and also asking in a way for his mother (mama mia) to let him go, and to an extent act as if he never was so she will not grieve not be shamed.
Some of the other terms are ones I'm unfamiliar with, though I know from theater classes long ago that the character of Scarmouche was a kind of no-good rascally sort in Italian theater.
The operatic trope is as expected, but there could be said to be deeper and more personal meanings to the song too, especially for Freddie himself who, at this stage in his career, was still in the process of working out who he was, though he was certainly Bohemian in nature. All the back and forth between begging to be free and condemnation could have had a more personal meaning for him while still supporting the message of the operatic trope of the song. The potential for meaning both shallow and deep is what also makes this song very interesting in itself.
This was not their only foray into more theatrical styles of music. There is a song called The Prophet Song on the album A Night At The Opera which is both very operatic and rock too like Bohemian Rhapsody and seems to be about a catastrophic time, specifically like the great flood and Noah. It (and all of the album actually) is a great one to listen to and reflect on as it has a wide variety of musical styles on it. It contains the operatic Prophet's Song and Bohemian Rhapsody, the harder rock Death on Two Legs, the cheerful love song You're My Best Friend and the more melancholic Love of My Life, and others that are whimsical and offbeat. You should listen to the entire album, just for fun sometime. 🙂
I was a freshman in college when Queen released Bohemian Rhapsody; I have loved the song from then on. My best interpretation of the lyrics is this: it is the story of a man coming to accept his fate; he goes theough different stages -- much like the stages of grief psychologists speak of. there is denial, bargaining, confusion, anger and, in the end, acceptance. The bridge -- the part with Galileo, Figaro and the rest -- is basically a cauldron of all these emotional states. The hard rocking break after the bridge is one last angry outburst before the soft ending indicating acceptance. I love Queen; you should listen to.Night at the Opera, the album that includes Bohemian Rhapsody, it is a masterpiece,
Not the biggest Queen fan, but the arrangement and musicality of this song is just out of this world.
The first part of this song is the protagonist's lamentation about this heinous act he has perpetrated. He is filled with regret. Not only has he ruined his life but also he has hurt his beloved mother. He realizes that what happens next is out of his control and he consoles himself with the line, "nothing really matters."
The next part is his trial, if you will, It is much more boisterous because there are opposing sides that are trying to save his life and trying to end his life. The people trying to end his life are, "thunderbolts and lightning". The people trying to save his life are saying, "will you let him go?".
The ending is a call back to the first part where he is once again consoling himself with, "nothing really matters" and we end with the chorus, "anyway the wind blows free" presumably as he is executed. The gong crescendos.
As stated in a previous comment it is a six minute Italian tragedy opera as rock song .
There's a classical musician who listens to this, "Virgin Rock" - she has a 2nd part where she explains the "why" of the 3 different parts to the song. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in learning what a "Rhapsody" is in Opera terms. Yes, Freddy wanted an "Operatic" vibe for this song, and much of the album "A Night at the Opera" (thus the title...).
Love watching your react to my favorite music, StacyRPG! I grew up on Queen, and to watch people experience their music for the first time is addicting!
every year in my country between xmass and NYE we have a TOP2000, u can hand in your personal top 10 favourite songs of all time, and this song has been #1 pretty much every years, showing queen is ageless!!