Talk:Bohemian Rhapsody

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Good article Bohemian Rhapsody was one of the good articles, but it has been removed from the list. There are suggestions below for improving the article to meet the good article criteria. Once these issues have been addressed, the article can be renominated. Editors may also seek a reassessment of the decision if they believe there was a mistake.
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[edit] Scaramouche

Tiberio Fiorelli, the first Scaramouch, couldn't do the Fandango, as that dance was confined to Spain during his lifetime. Another of life's great mysteries solved. Totnesmartin 13:40, 6 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Inaccurate

It says in the History section that it took three weeks to record yet the quote from Roy Thomas Baker in the Opera section says that it took 3 weeks to record that one part. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 89.241.58.133 (talk) 14:38, 5 April 2007 (UTC).

The Kenny Everett story is slightly inaccurate. Everett was given a promotional copy but Mercury never winked at Everett when the latter was asked not to play the record. Most sources instead state that the band really did not want Everett to play the record on his radio show. In the 2005 "Story of Bohemian Rhapsody" doco states it was Everett who winked at the band when he made his "promise" not to play the record. David French 05:57, 5 June 2007 (UTC)


In the biography, Queen the Definitive Biography by Laura Jackson, it says that there are 200 overdubs, not 180.Cmos 12:55, 11 June 2007 (UTC)Cmos

[edit] Other versions

That section listing covers is getting pretty long again. I wonder, is it really necessary at all?!?!?!

[edit] Live Performance; Music Video

There was a line in the article about the music video being played during the operatic section live. The original music video was never played behind the stage--big screens weren't even used until the Magic Tour to begin with. Instead, starting with the Jazz/Live Killers tour, the stage lights would flash in time with the music to provide a show for the audience during this section. During the Queen + Paul Rodgers tour, *a* video was played that contained bits and pieces of the music video, but not the whole thing--it was mostly a retrospective of Freddie Mercury's career. It's worth mentioning that professionally produced concert videos of the band generally have the music video superimposed over the flashing lights of the stage, but that's added in post-production, and viewing older, unreleased tapes like Earl's Court '77, Houston '77, and Vienna '84 show that there is clearly no video being played; not even a screen to play it on! 70.162.79.251 03:50, 5 May 2007 (UTC)

They just used the live recording for the operatic section until the Magic Tour. Plus, the video shown during the Queen + Paul Rodgers tour is a tribute to both Freddie Mercury and John Deacon. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rebfan1993 (talk • contribs) 05:39, 23 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Needs more refs.

Like the header says. The Popularity section has few references, unfortunately. - A Link to the Past (talk) 22:41, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Theater Groups?

"Some select theater groups have been known to sing passionate renditions of the song to warm up for a show."

-Deleted this, seems extraneous. Phoneclear 08:00, 17 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Rock opera

I don't actually know much about rock operas, but from a brief look at the rock opera article, it seems to me that a rock opera is basically just a musical that uses lots of rock, though I could be wrong. So is this song actually rock opera-style? Or do people just call it that because it's a song by a rock band that has an opera-style section in it? --Foot Dragoon 00:34, 3 June 2007 (UTC)

"Rock opera" refers to an entire musical performance that consists primarily of well-known rock songs to drive the story. It's not a type of music so much as a type of musical. For instance, "We Will Rock You" (the play) is a rock opera consisting of songs by Queen. Make sense?Phoneclear 04:13, 4 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Notable Cover Versions

I don't think a "Notable Cover Versions" section is really objective. For instance, the section a couple months back detailing the cover of the song performed during some obscure play. I hardly consider a one-off performance of the song in a musical that maybe ten people have seen to be notable, but to the performers of the play, I'm sure it was. Maybe we should consider removing that section entirely and integrating a couple of covers into the "Popularity" section?Phoneclear 04:10, 4 June 2007 (UTC)

Well the College Humor version seemed quite large budget, and in fact became quite popular, as evidenced by the video views, especially on a site which sees much traffic. That's more of a parody - so perhaps the title could be altered? Here's the link [1] for the aforementioned video - I can't stop laughing. It's so perfectly done. Zchris87v 11:18, 14 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] first music video

i think that distinction goes to the beatles. the beatles sent ed sullivan two music videos to be played on american national tv instead of performing live. the videos showcased the somgs paperback writer and rain. ----louis lopez, el paso, texas

Perhaps the Bohemian Rhapsody video was one of the first to be more than just a video of the band performing the song.--Timtak 09:03, 28 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Consistently ranks highly

In the Popularity section, the statement "The song consistently ranks highly in media reader polls of "the best singles of all-time" has had a [citation needed] tag added to it. It seems to me that it does not, because the remainder of the paragraph does a fairly successful job at backing up that opening statement. BigBadaboom0 07:07, 24 July 2007 (UTC)

I agree.--Timtak 08:58, 28 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] The song's name

The article is very detailed and gives much information about the song's background, but one major issue is totally missed - what stands behind the song's name? Gidip 21:05, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

Well, nobody knows for sure what it exactly means. When asked anything about the subject of the song, Freddie would just say "I don't know" because he wanted the listener to come up with their own idea. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rebfan1993 (talk • contribs) 05:42, 23 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] The various sections of the song

Regarding the various sections of the song discussed in the article - their names appear to be WP:original research - also, it would make more musical sense to refer to their start and finish points in bars ("measures", for all your Americans out there ;-), rather than in seconds...--feline1 13:58, 4 September 2007 (UTC)

They seem to be fitting, as they are named after the musical style that they follow. Perhaps this should be noted. Though the sections aren't actually named, they are each representative of those styles mentioned. Zchris87v 11:20, 14 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Bris Milah

Bris Milah (alternately Brit Milah - either way a 'bris') REALLY IS the "Covenant of Circumcision," perhaps this was a joke by the band or a double entendre? Anyway, it was a sincere edit, and not an attempt at vandalism. Thank you. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.176.249.232 (talk • contribs) 9 November 2007

[edit] Cover by Montserrat Caballé and Bruce Dickinson

There's a cover of Bohemian Rhapsody, by Montserrat Caballé and Bruce Dickinson. I think it should be added. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.235.50.235 (talk) 14:42, 13 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Heavy Metal??

The 4th part isn't heavy metal, it's hard rock... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 190.31.40.117 (talk) 04:28, 30 November 2007 (UTC)

Yes, I just noted that myself. At least by my understanding of the genres, the fourth section is hard rock and not at all heavy metal, like the person above stated. I will change shortly if there is no opposition. Iamthedeus (talk) 21:03, 16 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Taylor's high note

The article states "Roger Taylor famously tops the last note with a Bb6, or B-flat in the sixth octave, a note in the soprano range. Taylor used falsetto to reach the note, a common practice for countertenors."

I'm pretty certain this is actually Bb5, i.e. two semitones below Soprano C (C6), which is still impressive for a male vocalist (although whether its 'famous' is debatable'. I don't think the line needs a citation since pitch can be measured objectively, but the line should be corrected if I'm not mistaken. Fool on the hill (talk) 15:06, 17 December 2007 (UTC)

It is a Bb5. The mistake probably comes fromthe fact it would be written as a Bb6, as per all male voices in the treble clef. I'll change it.

--77.97.10.32 (talk) 17:54, 27 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Mountain Dew Commercial

Anyone want to add the Mountain Dew Commercial link? - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oe6NDOGBNmU ElMeroEse (talk) 21:55, 17 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Elvis Presley reference

Found on: http://scalzi.com/whatever/?p=216 in a comment, which was linked on BoingBoing at http://www.boingboing.net/2007/12/18/beatnix-beatles-perf.html, don't know if it's true, please check!

Fact:

In late 1969 Elvis Presley, backed up by the Jordanaires, was scheduled to appear on a special edition of the variety show Hollywood Palace, taped in London. During a rehearsal break, Elvis was approached by a studio intern and amateur musician named “Freddie” Bulsara. Bulsara was looking for an opinion from the King on the first draft of an unusual pop song he’d written, one that ended with a flamboyant light opera parody. Bemused, Elvis and the band ran through “Bohemian Rhapsody,” much to the stagehands’ amusement.

It was so much fun, they might have been persuaded to actually sing the song on air, but Elvis’s manager, “Col.” Tom Parker, deemed the tune “queer,” and insisted they proceed as planned — with a cover of the new British hit “In the Court of the Crimson King.”

doesn't sound really probable. among other things, I think that there woudl be mentions of freddie metting elvis when he was younger. also I don't think he had the first draft some 5 years and 3 albums earlier to the recordings of the song. Donny (talk) 11:39, 29 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Length

Honestly, if you're going to have a "structure" section that long, then you should 'ave enough to round it out. By the lookers, you 'ave 4 resources and 11 notes. 'Ats nothing to have such a long structure section. You should:

1)cut "structure" down to balance it with the rest of the article, or...

2)make the rest of the article longer to balance out the long structure section.

Either way...yeah. It's a great song, Bohemian Rhapsody, and deserves a great article. Thanks. A lot. 01:30, 5 March 2008 (UTC) Kodster (Talk) (Haha, I changed it around!)

[edit] Length of Song

I read somewhere that "Bohemian Rhapsody" was over 7 minutes long, but was cut down to 5:55 for single release. Can someone verify this? -- Tim, 27 April, 2008. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.68.63.99 (talk) 03:23, 28 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Cultural sgnificance?

Does the article really cover the cultural significance of the song?

[edit] Food Rocks

Should it be menchened that it was parodied in Disneyland's Food Rocks attraction? - 72.9.19.42 (talk) 05:38, 14 June 2008 (UTC)