Seven Seas of Rhye

"Seven Seas of Rhye" is a song by British rock group Queen. Written by Queen lead vocalist Freddie Mercury, it is the final track on both the group's debut album Queen (1973) and its follow-up Queen II (1974).^[1] However, only a less-developed instrumental version was featured on the former.^[2] The completed version served as the band's second single, the earliest-released song to appear on their Greatest Hits album, with the exception of some versions where their first single, "Keep Yourself Alive", is included.

After the band performed it on Top of the Pops it became their first hit, peaking at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart.^[3] The song became a live favourite throughout Queen's existence, and is recorded in 1985's Queen: Live in Rio, and Queen at Wembley 1986.^[2] It features a distinctive arpeggiated piano introduction. The piano runs are sampled in "It's a Beautiful Day (reprise)", on the album Made In Heaven.^[4]

The version on Queen II ends with a cross fade, instruments blending into several people singing "I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside", accompanied by a stylophone played by producer Roy Thomas Baker. .^[2] Its inclusion here on the final track of Queen II is briefly mirrored in the first few seconds of "Brighton Rock", which opens their next album, Sheer Heart Attack.

In a 1977 radio interview, Freddie Mercury described the subject of the song as a "figment of his imagination." In the Queen musical We Will Rock You, the Seven Seas of Rhye is a place where the Bohemians are taken after they are brainstormed by Khashoggi.^[5]

References

External links

• Queenpedia - detailed worldwide release information
• "Seven Seas of Rhye" Song Review at Allmusic
• "Queen II videos, detailed description"