The Works
Studio album by Queen
Released	February 27, 1984
Recorded	August 1983 – January 1984 at The Record Plant, Los Angeles, California and Musicland Studios, Munich, Germany
Genre	Pop rock
Length	37:11
Label	EMI/Parlophone; Capitol, Hollywood Records (US)
Producer	Queen and Mack
Professional reviews
People (favourable) – link (Queen Archives) Rolling Stone – link Sounds – link (QueenCuttings) All Music Guide – link
Queen chronology
Hot Space (1982) The Works (1984) A Kind of Magic (1986)
Singles from The Works
"Radio Ga Ga" Released: January 23, 1984 "I Want to Break Free" Released: April 2, 1984 "It's a Hard Life" Released: July 16, 1984 "Hammer to Fall" Released: September 10, 1984

The Works is a 1984 pop/rock album by English band Queen. The band's eleventh studio album, it marked a partial return to their rock roots, although with a much lighter approach. It has also the heaviest electronics amongst all group albums. In comparison, rock was mostly absent on their previous effort Hot Space giving room to dance and funk with the use of analogue synths and brass, while electronics were not that much present. Image File history File links Queen_The_Works. ... A studio album is a collection of studio-recorded tracks by a recording artist. ... Queen are an English rock band formed in 1972 in London by guitarist Brian May, lead vocalist Freddie Mercury, and drummer Roger Taylor, with bassist John Deacon joining the following year. ... is the 58th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... Record Plant Studios (also known as just The Record Plant) is a famous recording studio, first opening in New York City at 321 West 44th Street map, in 1968. ... Los Angeles and L.A. redirect here. ... Musicland Studios was a recording studio based in Munich, Germany. ... Munich: Frauenkirche and Town Hall steeple Munich (German: München pronunciation) is the state capital of the German Bundesland of Bavaria. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see Pop rock (disambiguation). ... In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. ... For other uses, see EMI (disambiguation). ... Parlophone is a record label, founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company. ... Capitol Records is a major United States-based record label, owned by EMI. // The Capitol Records company was founded by the songwriter Johnny Mercer in 1942, with the financial help of movie producer Buddy DeSylva and the business acumen of Glenn Wallichs, (1910-1971) (owner of Music City, at the... Hollywood Records is a record label owned by Disney. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Queen are an English rock band formed in 1972 in London by guitarist Brian May, lead vocalist Freddie Mercury, and drummer Roger Taylor, with bassist John Deacon joining the following year. ... Reinhold Mack (aka Mack) is a German record producer. ... This article is about the magazine. ... Sounds was a British music paper, published weekly from October 10, 1970 – April 6, 1991. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music, owned by All Media Guide. ... Image File history File links 2. ... Queen are an English rock band formed in 1972 in London by guitarist Brian May, lead vocalist Freddie Mercury, and drummer Roger Taylor, with bassist John Deacon joining the following year. ... Hot Space is an album by English rock band Queen, released in 1982 (see 1982 in music). ... A Kind of Magic is a 1986 album by English rock band Queen. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... Radio Ga Ga is a song performed and recorded by the band Queen, written by their drummer Roger Taylor. ... is the 23rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... I Want to Break Free ( ) is a song performed by Queen, which was written exclusively by bassist John Deacon. ... is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... Its a Hard Life is a song by English rock band Queen, written by lead singer Freddie Mercury. ... is the 197th day of the year (198th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... Hammer to Fall is a 1984 hard-rock song written by Brian May and performed by the British rock group Queen with Freddie Mercury on lead vocal. ... is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... This article is about the genre of popular music. ... This article is about the genre. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Queen are an English rock band formed in 1972 in London by guitarist Brian May, lead vocalist Freddie Mercury, and drummer Roger Taylor, with bassist John Deacon joining the following year. ... This article is about the genre. ... Hot Space is an album by English rock band Queen, released in 1982 (see 1982 in music). ...

Recorded at the Record Plant Studios and Musicland Studios from August 1983 to January 1984, the album's title comes from a comment drummer Roger Taylor made as recording began – "Let's give them the works!" Record Plant Studios (also known as just The Record Plant) is a famous recording studio, first opening in New York City at 321 West 44th Street map, in 1968. ... Musicland Studios was a recording studio based in Munich, Germany. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

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, indulging in solo projects and taking the chance to stretch in individual directions. 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.^[1] Brian May worked with Eddie Van Halen and others on the Star Fleet Project, while Freddie Mercury began work on his solo album. 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 United States affiliate Capitol Records) worldwide after the band nullified its recording deal with Elektra for the United States, Canada, Australia and Japan.^[1] South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... For the Australian film composer, see Brian May (composer). ... Edward Lodewijk Eddie Van Halen (born January 26, 1955)[1], is a Dutch guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter and producer most famous for being the lead guitarist and a co-founder of the hard rock band, Van Halen. ... Star Fleet Project is a solo project by Brian May, most famous as the guitarist from Queen, which resulted on an album with the same name. ... Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British musician, best known as the lead singer of the rock band Queen (inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001). ... Mr. ... For other uses, see EMI (disambiguation). ... Capitol Records is a major United States-based record label, owned by EMI. // The Capitol Records company was founded by the songwriter Johnny Mercer in 1942, with the financial help of movie producer Buddy DeSylva and the business acumen of Glenn Wallichs, (1910-1971) (owner of Music City, at the... Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, and today operates under Atlantic Records Group. ...

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.^[1] 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 February 27, 1984. Record Plant Studios (also known as just The Record Plant) is a famous recording studio, first opening in New York City at 321 West 44th Street map, in 1968. ... Los Angeles and L.A. redirect here. ... Musicland Studios was a recording studio based in Munich, Germany. ... For other uses, see Munich (disambiguation). ... Jim Beach is a manager best known as the long-time manager of the English rock band Queen. ... The Hotel New Hampshire is a 1984 film based on a 1981 novel of the same name by John Irving. ... Radio Ga Ga is a song performed and recorded by the band Queen, written by their drummer Roger Taylor. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... is the 58th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ...

Track listing

• Side 1

1. "Radio Ga Ga" (Taylor) – 5:45
2. "Tear It Up" (May) – 3:28
3. "It's a Hard Life" (Mercury) – 4:08
4. "Man on the Prowl" (Mercury) – 3:28

• Side 2

1. "Machines (Or 'Back to Humans')" (May/Taylor) – 5:10
2. "I Want to Break Free" (Deacon) – 3:20
3. "Keep Passing the Open Windows" (Mercury) – 5:21
4. "Hammer to Fall" (May) – 4:28
5. "Is This the World We Created...?" (Mercury/May) – 2:13

• 1991 Hollywood Records bonus tracks (US reissue)

1. "I Go Crazy" (May) (original B-side) – 3:42
2. "Radio Ga Ga (Extended Mix)" (Taylor) – 6:50
3. "I Want to Break Free (Extended Mix)" (Deacon) – 4:16

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2007)

In terms of recorded music, a bonus track is a piece of music which has been included on specific releases or reissues of an album. ... Image File history File links Question_book-3. ...

Radio Ga Ga

Main article: Radio Ga Ga

"Radio Ga Ga" was composed on keyboards, after Roger Taylor heard his son Felix (then 3 years old at the time) saying "radio ca ca".^[1] He wrote it in Los Angeles and locked himself in the studio with a synth and a drum machine. Afterwards John Deacon came up with a suitable bass line. 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. May used a glass slide for his guitar show-off. Taylor sang all the backing vocals, and used a Vocoder throughout the song. Most of the song is made out of electronics and synthesizers. Radio Ga Ga is a song performed and recorded by the band Queen, written by their drummer Roger Taylor. ... A Boss DR-202 Drum Machine A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums and/or other percussion instruments. ... For the motorcyclist, see John Deacon (motorcyclist). ... A backup vocalist or background singer (or, especially in the U.S., backup singer or sometimes background singer) is a singer who sings in harmony with the lead vocalist, other backing vocalists, or alone but not singing the lead. ... A vocoder (name derived from voice encoder, formerly also called voder) is a speech analyzer and synthesizer. ... Synth redirects here. ...

Tear It Up

"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's a Hard Life

Main article: It's a Hard Life

"It's a Hard Life" is one of May's and Taylor's favourite songs from Mercury. May contributed with some of the lyrics, and the intro was based on Ruggero Leoncavallo's Vesti la giubba, an aria from his opera Pagliacci. Mercury played piano and did most of the vocals, and conducted May about the scales he should use for the solo, described by May in the guitar program Star Licks as very "Bohemian Rhapsody"-esque. Its a Hard Life is a song by English rock band Queen, written by lead singer Freddie Mercury. ... Ruggiero Leoncavallo (April 23, 1857- August 9, 1919) was an Italian opera composer. ... Vesti la Giubba (Put on the costume) is a famous tenor aria performed as part of the opera Pagliacci, written and composed by Ruggiero Leoncavallo, and first performed in 1892. ... Cover of the first edition of Pagliacci published by E. Sonzogno, Milan, 1892 Pagliacci (Clowns) is an opera consisting of a prologue and two acts written and composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo. ...   is a song written by Freddie Mercury and originally recorded by the band Queen for their 1975 album A Night at the Opera. ...

Man on the Prowl

"Man on the Prowl" is a three-chord rockabilly Mercury composition (similar to "Crazy Little Thing Called Love") in which Fred Mandel plays the piano ending. Note that "Tear It Up", "It's a Hard Life" and this song are free of synthesizers. Mercury played rhythm guitar throughout the song, while May played the solo using a Telecaster.^{[citation needed]} Crazy Little Thing Called Love is a song performed by the English rock band Queen, written by singer Freddie Mercury. ... Rhythm guitar is a guitar that is primarily used to provide rhythmic and harmonic accompaniment for a singer or for other instruments in an ensemble. ...

Machines (Or 'Back to Humans')

"Machines (Or 'Back to Humans')" came up 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 two Mercury (harmonising with each other) 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. The song got a heavy use of electronics and syntheizers. Reinhold Mack (aka Mack) is a German record producer. ... The Fairlight CMI (Computer Musical Instrument) was the first digital sampling synthesizer. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

I Want to Break Free

Main article: I Want to Break Free

"I Want to Break Free" was written by John Deacon out of frustration. This pop song is best known probably because of its controversial video, featuring all four Queen members dressed up as women, in a parody of the British soap opera Coronation Street. The synth solo is played by Fred Mandel - live, however, May played it on guitar. I Want to Break Free ( ) is a song performed by Queen, which was written exclusively by bassist John Deacon. ... This article is about the genre of popular music. ... The first TIME cover devoted to soap operas: Dated January 12, 1976, Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes of Days of our Lives are featured with the headline Soap Operas: Sex and suffering in the afternoon. A soap opera is an ongoing, episodic work of fiction, usually broadcast on television... Coronation Street is an award-winning British soap opera. ...

Keep Passing the Open Windows

"Keep Passing the Open Windows" 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. John Winslow Irving (born March 2, 1942 as John Wallace Blunt, Jr. ...

Hammer to Fall

Main article: Hammer to Fall

"Hammer to Fall" is May's other rock song in 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). Hammer to Fall is a 1984 hard-rock song written by Brian May and performed by the British rock group Queen with Freddie Mercury on lead vocal. ...

Is This the World We Created...?

"Is This the World We Created...?" was written in Munich after Mercury and May watched the news. Mercury wrote the lyrics and May wrote the chords. The song was recorded with an Ovation but live they used May's Gibson Chet Atkins CE nylon-stringed guitar. The Ovation Elite The Ovation Guitar Company, a holding of Kaman Music Corp, is a guitar company based in Bloomfield, CT. Ovation guitars are notable because the instruments are made with a composite synthetic bowl that replaced the traditional wooden back and sides of the modern acoustic guitar produced by... The Gibson Guitar Corporation, of Nashville, Tennessee, USA, is a manufacturer of acoustic and electric guitars. ...

Personnel

• Freddie Mercury: Lead Vocals, Piano, Backing Vocals, Keyboards, Rhythm Guitar
• Brian May: Electric Guitar, 12-String Acoustic Guitar, Backing Vocals
• Roger Taylor: Drums, Electronic Drums, Backing Vocals, Keyboards
• John Deacon: Bass, Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Keyboards

With

• Fred Mandel: Piano ("Man on the Prowl"), Keyboards, Programming
• Mack: Demolition Fairlight programming on "Machines", engineering
• Mike Beiriger: Additional engineering
• Stefan Wissnet: Additional engineering
• Ed Delena: Additional engineering

• Bill Smith: Sleeve Design
• George Hurrell: Photography

George Hurrell (June 1, 1904 - May 17, 1992) was a photographer who made a significant contribution to the image of glamour presented by Hollywood during the 1930s and 1940s. ...

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 United Kingdom under their own catalogue numbers.

is the 23rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... is the 197th day of the year (198th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... is the 330th day of the year (331st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ...

Others

Charts

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Queen Biography 1984
2. ^ RIAA. Gold & Platinum.