The Works (Queen album)

The Works
Studio album by Queen
Released 27 February 1984
Recorded August 1983 – January 1984
Studio Record Plant Studios, Los Angeles, California and Musicland Studios, Munich, Germany
Genre Rock[1]
Length 37:11
Label
Producer
Queen chronology
Hot Space
(1982)Hot Space1982		 The Works
(1984)		 A Kind of Magic
(1986)A Kind of Magic1986
Singles from The Works
  1. "Radio Ga Ga"
    Released: 23 January 1984
  2. "I Want to Break Free"
    Released: 2 April 1984
  3. "It's a Hard Life"
    Released: 16 July 1984
  4. "Hammer to Fall"
    Released: 10 September 1984
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
Chicago Tribune[3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
Rolling Stone[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[6]
Sounds[7]

The Works is the eleventh studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 27 February 1984 by EMI Records in the United Kingdom and by Capitol Records in the United States. After the synth-heavy Hot Space (1982), the album saw the re-emergence of Brian May and Roger Taylor's rock sound, while still incorporating the early 80s retro futuristic electro pop of the German electronic underground (Freddie Mercury) and New York funk scenes (John Deacon). Recorded at the Record Plant Studios in Los Angeles, California and Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany from August 1983 to January 1984, the album's title comes from a comment Taylor made as recording began – "Let's give them the works!". During the decade, after a conservative reaction against and ban of the music video for "I Want to Break Free" in the United States, the band decided not to tour in North America and lost the top spot in US sales, but sales around the world (especially Europe) would be even better. The Works has sold over 5 million copies worldwide.

History

Following the release of and subsequent touring for their 1982 album Hot Space, the four members of Queen opted to take a break from the band the following year. While a spring tour of South America had been an early possibility, especially following the band's success there two years prior, equipment and promotional problems brought an end to these plans.[8] Brian May worked with Eddie Van Halen and others on the Star Fleet Project, while Roger Taylor and Freddie Mercury began work on their own solo albums (Strange Frontier and Mr. Bad Guy). By August 1983, however, the band had reunited and began work on their eleventh studio album. It would be Queen's first album for EMI (and its US affiliate Capitol Records) worldwide after the band nullified its recording deal with Elektra for the United States, Canada, Australia and Japan.[8]

Recording commenced at Record Plant Studios in Los Angeles – Queen's first time recording in America – and Musicland Studios in Munich. Also during this time, their manager Jim Beach offered them the opportunity to compose the soundtrack for the film The Hotel New Hampshire. The band agreed, but soon discovered much of their time was being spent on the soundtrack instead of the upcoming album, and the project fell through.[8] Only one song written for the soundtrack, "Keep Passing the Open Windows", made it onto The Works. By November 1983, Roger Taylor's "Radio Ga Ga" was chosen as the first single from the album. The Works was released on 27 February 1984.

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Radio Ga Ga"Roger Taylor5:44
2."Tear It Up"Brian May3:28
3."It's a Hard Life"Freddie Mercury4:08
4."Man on the Prowl"Mercury3:28
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
5."Machines (Or 'Back to Humans')"May, Taylor5:10
6."I Want to Break Free"John Deacon3:20
7."Keep Passing the Open Windows"Mercury5:21
8."Hammer to Fall"May4:28
9."Is This the World We Created...?"Mercury, May2:13

Song information

"Radio Ga Ga"

The Works opens with "Radio Ga Ga". It was composed on keyboards, after Roger Taylor heard his son Felix (three years old at the time) saying "radio ca ca".[8] He wrote it in Los Angeles and locked himself in the studio with a Roland Jupiter 8 and a drum machine. Afterwards John Deacon came up with a suitable bass line. Freddie Mercury reconstructed the track, both musically and lyrically. It was still credited to Taylor since Mercury was an arranger rather than a co-writer. Fred Mandel, their session keyboardist, put together an additive track with piano, synth and a temporary bass part. Brian May used a glass slide for his guitar solo. Taylor sang all the backing vocals, and used a Vocoder throughout the song. Most of the song is made out of electronics and synthesisers.

"Tear It Up"

The second track, "Tear It Up", is May's song, and the demo features him doing the vocals instead of Mercury. It was written as an attempt to revive Queen's old sound. It features stomping percussion similar to "We Will Rock You" that drives the song. When performed live during The Magic Tour, May would play the intro from "Liar" then go into the beginning of the song.

"It's a Hard Life"

The third song on The Works, "It's a Hard Life", is one of May and Taylor's favourite songs of Mercury's (although they admitted that they hated the video). May contributed with some of the lyrics, and the intro was based on Ruggiero Leoncavallo's "Vesti la giubba", an aria from his opera Pagliacci. Mercury played piano and did most of the vocals, and instructed May about the scales he should use for the solo, described by May in the guitar program Star Licks as very "Bohemian Rhapsody"-esque.

"Man on the Prowl"

A three-chord rockabilly Mercury composition (similar to "Crazy Little Thing Called Love") in which Mandel plays the piano ending. May played the solo using a Fender Telecaster. This was planned as the fifth and final single from the album, with a provisional release date of 19 November 1984,[9] and promotional copies were indeed pressed (QUEEN 5) and sent out (b/w "Keep Passing the Open Windows"), but the band opted for a Christmas single ("Thank God It's Christmas").

"Machines (Or 'Back To Humans')"

The fifth track on The Works, "Machines (Or 'Back to Humans')", came about as an idea by Taylor, and May collaborated with him and finished it. Producer Reinhold Mack programmed the synth-"demolition" using a Fairlight CMI II Sampler, and the song is sung as a duet between a double-tracked Mercury (singing in harmony with himself), and a robotic Taylor (using a Roland VP330 Vocoder). The instrumental remix of the song samples parts of "Ogre Battle" from Queen's second album Queen II, "Flash" and Larry Lurex's "Goin' Back" (in fact Queen (without Deacon) under a pseudonym). This song, along with "Radio Ga Ga" are some of the heaviest uses of electronics on the album.

"I Want to Break Free"

The sixth song, "I Want to Break Free" was written by John Deacon. This pop song is best known because of its video, featuring all four Queen members dressed up as women, in a parody of the British soap opera Coronation Street. The idea for the clip was Taylor's. Mercury commented that 'Everybody ran into their frocks'. Deacon, the song's author, insisted he didn't want a guitar solo on the track so a synth solo was played by Mandel – live, however, May played the solo on guitar. The version used for the single and the promotional video includes an opening and instrumental bridge (after the synth solo) not part of the original mix.

"Keep Passing the Open Windows"

"Keep Passing the Open Windows" is The Works's seventh track, and was written by Mercury in 1983 for the film version of The Hotel New Hampshire, based on a novel by John Irving. The phrase is mentioned on a number of occasions throughout the film and was, according to the opening credits, also co-produced by the band's manager Jim Beach, who changed it in order to suit the album mood better. Mercury played piano and synths and wrote the lyrics after reading the quote in the book.

"Hammer to Fall"

"Hammer to Fall", the eighth song, is May's other rock song on the album. Live versions were considerably faster and he sang it in his solo tours as well. Synths are played by Mandel and most of vocal harmonies were recorded by May himself, particularly in the bridge (save for "oh no" which is Taylor). The song harks back to the Queen of old, with a song being built around a hard angular and muscular riff. The song features Mercury on lead vocals, doing a call and response with May, who sings the chorus. The song's music video directed by David Mallet, contains footage of a performance of the song in Brussels.[10] "Hammer to Fall" was a concert favourite, and was the third song the band performed at Live Aid in 1985.[11] The song also features in both the setlist of the band's Works Tour and Magic Tour in 1986.[12]

"Is This the World We Created...?"

The album concludes with "Is This the World We Created...?", which was written in Munich after Mercury and May watched the news of poverty in Africa; the song was performed at Live Aid as an encore. Mercury wrote most of the lyrics and May wrote the chords and made small lyrical contributions. The song was recorded with an Ovation but live May used Taylor's Gibson Chet Atkins CE nylon-stringed guitar. A piano was tracked at the recording sessions for this song, but ultimately not included in the final mix.

Unreleased Songs and Demos

The sessions for The Works were highly productive, resulting in an overwhelmingly large body of material written and recorded. Only nine of these were used on the album, but many of those remaining have been released in other forms.

"Back to Storm"

Believed to originate from the Works sessions, this is a fast-paced track dominated by the piano and drums. Only a low-quality demo version exists, and very little is known about the track. It is little over a minute long. At the end of the track, Mercury can be heard to say: "very good, ha, ha. It's gotta go somewhere, but it just, er, wasn't"; the rest of the dialogue is inaudible.

"I Dream of Christmas"

When Queen wanted to write a Christmas single in 1984, Roger wrote the basics of "Thank God It's Christmas" while Brian wrote "I Dream of Christmas". The group then had to choose between the two, and opted for "Thank God It's Christmas", which Brian and Roger then wrote together. It is rumored that "I Dream Of Christmas" was recorded by the band, though nothing has ever been confirmed. Brian later worked on "I Dream Of Christmas" with his future wife Anita Dobson, which was released as a single in 1988 and also features John Deacon.

"I Go Crazy"

Written by May some time in 1981, the song was recorded during the album sessions but never made it onto the final cut. it was instead used as the b-side to the single release of "Radio Ga Ga".

"Let Me In Your Heart Again"

Written by May, this song went through several rewrites and re-recordings before it was left unfinished and subsequently recorded by Anita Dobson, featuring May, for her 1988 album 'Talking of Love'. In 2014, the band released a completed version of the song which features elements from a number of Queen demos of the track, with new backing vocals from Brian and Roger, and new guitars from Brian on the album Queen Forever.

"Let Me Live"

"Let Me Live" was originally recorded by the band in 1983 as a duet between Mercury and Rod Stewart. It originally also featured Jeff Beck on guitar. The song was never released, although it was reworked by the band for inclusion in their 1995 studio album Made in Heaven, released after Mercury's death. The finished version one features one verse and the chorus sung by Mercury, while the rest is sung by May and Taylor. It is unknown why the Stewart version was never used.

Little Boogie

Believed to originate from the Works sessions, this is an alternative piano version of "Back to Storm". Nothing else is known about the track.

"Love Kills"

Written by Mercury and Giorgio Moroder, "Love Kills" was originally recorded for the band's 1984 studio album The Works, but was ultimately rejected. It was then reworked as a Mercury solo track for inclusion in Moroder's 1984 restoration and edit of the 1927 silent film Metropolis, and was also released as a single. The track was later remade into a Queen ballad and released on the 2014 album Queen Forever.

"Man Made Paradise"

This song was later re-recorded as a Mercury solo track and released on his 1985 solo album Mr. Bad Guy.

"Man on Fire"

"Man on Fire", written by Taylor, is believed to have been recorded in 1984 for The Works, before it was re-recorded and then released on Taylor's second solo album Strange Frontier that same year. An early promo cassette for The Works features a very different track listing, where its title appears. Nothing else is known about the track, or even whether a complete version exists.

"Thank God It's Christmas"

This track, written by May and Taylor, was eventually released as a Christmas single in 1984, and later appeared as the b-side to the "A Winter's Tale" single in 1995. It was also released as part of the 1999 compilation Greatest Hits III. It was the only-ever Christmas song Queen recorded.

"There Must Be More to Life Than This"

Written by Mercury, this song was originally recorded by Mercury and Michael Jackson before being re-recorded by Queen in 1981 for their Hot Space album. The track was then going to be recorded to close The Works before Mercury and May wrote "Is This the World We Created...?". It was ultimately recorded as a solo track by Mercury and released on his 1985 solo album Mr. Bad Guy. In 2014, a reworked Queen version with Mercury and Jackson duetting was released on the album Queen Forever.

Personnel

Additional personnel

Tour

Singles

For the first and only time in their career, all the songs (and one non-album track, "I Go Crazy") from a Queen album were used as either A-sides or B-sides on singles. Starting with this album, the group began issuing singles in the UK under their own catalogue numbers.

NumberFormatA-sideB-sideReleased date (UK)
QUEEN 1 (7" Single) "Radio Ga Ga" "I Go Crazy" —
12QUEEN 1 (12" Single) "Radio Ga Ga (Extended Version)" "Radio Ga Ga (Instrumental Version)"/"I Go Crazy" 23 January 1984
QUEEN 2 (7" Single) "I Want to Break Free (Single Mix)" "Machines (or 'Back to Humans')" —
12QUEEN 2 (12" Single) "I Want to Break Free (Extended Mix)" "Machines (or 'Back to Humans')" 2 April 1984
QUEEN 3 (7" Single) "It's a Hard Life" "Is This the World We Created...?" —
12QUEEN 3 (12" Single) "It's a Hard Life" "Is This the World We Created...?" 16 July 1984
QUEEN 4 (7" Single) "Hammer to Fall (Headbanger's Mix Edit)" "Tear It Up" —
12QUEEN 4 (12" Single) "Hammer to Fall (Headbanger's Mix)" "Tear It Up" 10 September 1984
QUEEN 5 (7" Single) "Thank God It's Christmas" (non-album track) "Man on the Prowl"/"Keep Passing the Open Windows" —
12QUEEN 5 (12" Single) "Thank God It's Christmas" "Man on the Prowl (Extended Version)"/"Keep Passing the Open Windows (Extended Version)" 26 November 1984

Others

FormatA-sideB-side
US 7" Single & Cassette Single "Radio Ga Ga (US Single Edit)" "I Go Crazy"
US Promo 7" Single "I Want to Break Free (Single Mix)" "I Want to Break Free (Special 7" Single Edit)"
US 7" Single & Cassette Single "I Want to Break Free (Single Mix)" "Machines (or 'Back to Humans') (Instrumental Version)"

Charts

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[35] Platinum 50,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[36] Platinum 100,000^
Germany (BVMI)[37] Platinum 500,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[38] Gold 50,000^
Poland (ZPAV)[39]
2008 Agora SA album reissue		 Platinum 20,000*
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[40] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[41] Platinum 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[42] Platinum 650,000[33]
United States (RIAA)[43] Gold 500,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ AllMusic Review by Greg Prato
  2. ↑ http://www.allmusic.com/album/r2378162
  3. ↑ Kot, Greg (19 April 1992). "An 18-record, 80 Million-copy Odyssey". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  4. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2011). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. p. 2248. ISBN 0857125958.
  5. ↑ Puterbaugh, Parke (12 April 1984). "The Works". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
  6. ↑ DeCurtis, Anthony; Henke, James; George-Warren, Holly, eds. (1992). The Rolling Stone Album Guide (3rd ed.). Random House. p. 570. ISBN 0679737294.
  7. ↑ "Queen – 02-25-1984 – The Works – Sounds". Queen Archives. 25 February 1984. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Queen Biography 1984". Queenzone.com. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  9. ↑ "Record News". NME. London, England: IPC Media: 40. 3 November 1984.
  10. ↑ Queen Biography 1984 Queen Zone. Retrieved 11 July 2011
  11. ↑ Live Aid: Hammer to Fall Ultimate Queen. Retrieved 11 July 2011
  12. ↑ Queen live on tour: Magic tour Queen Concerts. Retrieved 11 July 2011
  13. 1 2 Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  14. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Queen – The Works" (ASP) (in German). austriancharts.at. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  15. 1 2 Steffen Hung. "Queen – The Works" (ASP) (in French). ultratop.be/fr. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  16. ↑ "Results – RPM – Library and Archives Canada" (PHP). Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  17. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Queen – The Works" (ASP). Hung Medien (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  18. ↑ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste : Queen" (in French). infodisc.fr. Archived from the original (PHP) on 18 August 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  19. 1 2 "Hit Parade Italia – Gli album più venduti del 1984" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
  20. ↑ a-クイーン "– Yamachan Land (Archives of the Japanese record charts) – Albums Chart Daijiten – Queen" Check |url= value (help) (in Japanese). 30 December 2007. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  21. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Queen – The Works" (ASP). Hung Medien. recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  22. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Queen – The Works" (ASP). Hung Medien. VG-lista. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  23. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Queen – The Works" (ASP). swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  24. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Queen – The Works" (ASP). hitparade.ch. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  25. ↑ http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/21275/queen/
  26. ↑ "Queen". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  27. ↑ "charts.de" (ASP). charts.de. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  28. ↑ "Queen - The Works" (in Dutch). ultratop.be/nl. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  29. ↑ GAON ALBUM CHART : 2011년 9월 (in Korean). gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  30. ↑ "Austriancharts.st – Jahreshitparade 1984". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  31. ↑ "Top 100 Albums of 1984". RPM. 5 January 1985. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
  32. ↑ "Les Albums (CD) de 1984 par InfoDisc" (in French). infodisc.fr. Archived from the original (PHP) on 27 October 2012. Retrieved 2012-01-29.
  33. 1 2 "Complete UK Year-End Album Charts". Archived from the original on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
  34. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Bestenlisten – 80-er album" (in German). Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
  35. ↑ "Austrian album certifications – Queen – The Works" (in German). IFPI Austria. Enter Queen in the field Interpret. Enter The Works in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
  36. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Queen – The Works". Music Canada.
  37. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Queen; 'The Works')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  38. ↑ "Dutch album certifications – Queen – The Works" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers.
  39. ↑ "Polish album certifications – Queen – The Works" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry.
  40. ↑ "Solo Exitos 1959-2002 Ano A Ano: Certificados 1979-1990". Iberautor Promociones Culturales. ISBN 8480486392.
  41. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Queen; 'The Works')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  42. ↑ "British album certifications – Queen – The Works". British Phonographic Industry. Enter The Works in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
  43. ↑ "American album certifications – Queen – The Works". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
Preceded by
The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking by Roger Waters		 Dutch Mega Chart number-one album
2 June 1984 		Succeeded by
Seven and the Ragged Tiger by Duran Duran

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