Written by Freddie Mercury for the band’s 1975 album A Night at the Opera. It is a six-minute suite, consisting of several sections without a chorus: an intro, a ballad segment, an operatic passage, a hard rock part and a reflective coda.
The song is a more accessible take on the 1970s progressive rock genre. It was reportedly the most expensive single ever made at the time of its release, although the exact cost of production cannot be determined.
When it was released as a single, “Bohemian Rhapsody” became a commercial success, staying at the top of the UK Singles Chart for nine weeks and selling more than a million copies by the end of January 1976.
It reached number one again in 1991 for another five weeks when the same version was re-released following Freddie’s death, eventually becoming the UK’s third-best-selling single of all time.
It is also the only song to be the UK Christmas number one twice by the same artist. It topped the charts in several other markets as well, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and The Netherlands, later becoming one of the best-selling singles of all time selling over 6 million copies worldwide. In the United States, the song originally peaked at number nine in 1976.
It returned to the chart at number two in 1992, and also appeared in the film Wayne’s World, which contributed to the revival of its American popularity.
Although critical reaction was initially mixed, “Bohemian Rhapsody” remains one of Queen’s most popular songs and is frequently considered one of the greatest rock songs of all time.
The single was accompanied by a promotional video, which many scholars consider ground-breaking. Rolling Stone stated that its influence can’t be overstated, practically inventing the music video seven years before MTV went on the air.
The Guardian ranked the music video number 31 on their list of the 50 key events in rock music history, adding it ensured videos would be a mandatory tool in the marketing of music.
In 2004, Bohemian Rhapsody was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2012, the song topped the list on an ITV nationwide poll in the UK to find “The Nation’s Favourite Number One” over 60 years of music, while Mercury’s vocal performance was chosen as the greatest in rock history by readers of Rolling Stone.
For more details about the song, please see addition information on Wikipedia.
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- Queen - Greatest Hits - EX - UK - vinyl LP - £20.00, $25.00, €22.40 (New Item) (arrived 19-Sep-2020 11:20)
QUEEN Greatest Hits (1981 UK 17-track LP compilation, including classics such as Bohemian Rhapsody, Killer Queen, We Will Rock You & more, glossy non-barcoded picture sleeve with illustrated credits inner. The sleeve has a spot of minor paper wear to an edge & from past sticker removal whilst the vinyl still looks barely played EMTV30)
- Queen - Somebody To Love - UK - 7" vinyl - £10.00, $12.50, €11.20 (New Item) (arrived 03-Sep-2020 15:42)
QUEEN Somebody To Love (1976 UK 7" vinyl single with 'crest' picture labels & four prong centre, also featuring White Man, plain die-cut paper sleeve. The vinyl is Excellent with just light evidence of play EMI2565)
- Queen - Let Me Live - Stickered - UK - 7" picture disc - £20.00, $25.00, €22.40 (New Item) (arrived 26-Aug-2020 15:27)
QUEEN Let Me Live (1996 UK limited edition 3-track 7" Picture Disc single, including digitally remastered versions of Fat Bottomed Girls and Bicycle Race, ¾ size fold-out wraparound picture insert with superb group shot inside a hype &barcode stickered PVC outer QUEENPD24)
- Queen - Too Much Love Will Kill You - Pink Vinyl - UK - 7" vinyl - £25.00, $31.25, €28.00 (New Item) (arrived 26-Aug-2020 15:32)
QUEEN Too Much Love Will Kill You (1996 UK limited edition 3-track 7" single pressed on Pink Vinyl, also including digitally remastered versions of We Will Rock You and We Are The Champions, issued in the hype-stickered glossy picture sleeve QUEEN23)
- Queen - Greatest Hits - Red Vinyl - Sealed - UK - 2-LP vinyl set - £59.99, $74.99, €67.19 (New Item) (arrived 28-Aug-2020 11:53)
QUEEN Greatest Hits (2019 UK limited edition remastered issue of their 1981 17-track double LP now pressed on Red Heavyweight Vinyl. This 'all killer, no filler' collection of hits from their 1973 to 1980 period includes Bohemian Rhapsody, Another One Bites The Dust, Killer Queen, Don't Stop Me Now, Somebody To Love, We Will Rock You, We Are The Champions and more. Both discs are UNPLAYED housed in the gatefold picture sleeve which remains sealed in its hype-stickered shrinkwrap)
- Queen - A Night At The Opera - 1st - VG/EX - UK - vinyl LP - £75.00, $93.75, €84.00 (New Item) (arrived 29-Aug-2020 14:31)
QUEEN A Night At The Opera (1975 UK first press 12-track LP with picture labels, including Bohemian Rhapsody & You're My Best Friend. Comes housed in the original embossed gatefold picture sleeve with illustrated inner. The cover [VG+] shows a few light spots of age wear [1" hairline split in a top edge] with the usual thin hairline split to the inner, whilst the vinyl remains in Excellent condition with few signs of play. Now very collectable EMTC103)
- Queen - A Night At The Opera - 1st - EX - UK - vinyl LP - £95.00, $118.75, €106.40 (New Item) (arrived 31-Aug-2020 09:46)
QUEEN A Night At The Opera (Scarce 1975 UK first issue 12-track vinyl LP with picture labels and 'BLAIRS' scratched into the run-off area. Their fourth studio album including their classic hit Bohemian Rhapsody. Complete with the card picture inner which has a seam split to the bottom edge, the embossed gatefold picture sleeve has the lyrics inside and shows only minor signs of shelfwear. The labels have just a couple of spindle marks whilst the vinyl remains very clean with little signs of play, overall an Excellent example EMTC103)
- Queen - Sheer Heart Attack - 1st + Inner - EX - UK - vinyl LP - £65.00, $81.25, €72.80 (New Item) (arrived 31-Aug-2020 09:50)
QUEEN Sheer Heart Attack (1974 UK first issue 13-track LP, the group's marvellous third studio album including Stone Cold Crazy, Now I'm Here, Killer Queen & Brighton Rock, complete with lyric inner with angle corner cuts, fully laminated picture sleeve with the 'Trident' logo on the reverse. The sleeve has nice & shiny laminate with just a little edgewear, the inner has a small split at the bottom otherwise really nice, the labels have just a few spindle marks whilst the vinyl showsonly light signs of play with a couple of light cosmetic marks, overall a really nice example EMC3061)
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