"Friends Will Be Friends" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() UK single picture sleeve | ||||
Single by Queen | ||||
from the album A Kind of Magic | ||||
B-side | "Seven Seas of Rhye" | |||
Released | 9 June 1986 | |||
Recorded | 1985–1986 | |||
Genre | Rock | |||
Length |
| |||
Label | EMI | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) |
| |||
Queen singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music video | ||||
"Friends Will Be Friends" on YouTube |
"Friends Will Be Friends" is a song performed by Queen, written by Freddie Mercury and John Deacon, released on 9 June 1986 as a single for the album A Kind of Magic . [1] It was the band's 30th single in the UK upon its release, reaching number 14 in the UK.
"Friends Will Be Friends" was performed live on The Magic Tour. It is remarkable in that it was the first and only song that was sung at the end of concerts between "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions" since the News of the World Tour in 1977. [2]
The song was included in various greatest hits compilations by Queen such as Greatest Hits II , Greatest Flix II and Greatest Video Hits II.
The song's key signature is G major, and makes heavy use of Brian May's melodic guitar playing style. The song was debuted on the second show of The Magic Tour (Leiden). Queen played the complete version of the song for the first two Leiden shows then the arrangement was shortened on 14 June (Paris). The shorter version is featured on the Live At Wembley release. On all live versions, the song was performed in F major, modulated down a tone.
The video was directed by DoRo and filmed at JDC Studios, Wembley in May 1986 and features the band performing the song in front of fan club members. During the show, Freddie Mercury "high fives" audience members, and at the end cuts the mic and sings along with them, letting them lead. Because of this, this performance was nicknamed "Queen's Greatest Show Never Performed".
7" Single
A Side. "Friends Will Be Friends" (Album Version) - 4:07
B Side. "Seven Seas Of Rhye" - 2:46 [3]
12" Single
A Side. "Friends Will Be Friends" (Extended Version) - 6:15
B1. "Friends Will Be Friends" (Album Version) - 4:07
B2. "Seven Seas Of Rhye" - 2:46
Chart (1986) | Peak position |
---|---|
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [4] | 17 |
Dutch Singles Chart [5] | 16 |
German Singles Chart [6] | 20 |
Irish Singles Chart [7] | 4 |
New Zealand Singles Chart [8] | 50 |
Swiss Singles Chart [9] | 19 |
UK Singles Chart [10] | 14 |
"Under Pressure" is a song by the British rock band Queen and singer David Bowie. Originally released as a single in October 1981, it was later included on Queen's 1982 album Hot Space. The song reached number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Queen's second number-one hit in their home country and Bowie's third, and also charted in the top 10 in more than 10 countries around the world.
Queen II is the second studio album by the British rock band Queen. It was released on 8 March 1974 by EMI Records in the UK and Elektra Records in the US. It was recorded at Trident Studios and Langham 1 Studios, London, in August 1973 with co-producers Roy Thomas Baker and Robin Geoffrey Cable, and engineered by Mike Stone. It is significant for being the first album to contain elements of the band's signature sound of multi-layered overdubs, vocal harmonies, and varied musical styles.
"Tie Your Mother Down" is a song by the British rock band Queen, written by lead guitarist Brian May. It is the opening track and the second single from their 1976 album A Day at the Races. On its original release as a single in 1977 the song peaked at 31 in the UK Singles Chart. More than 20 years later, it was released as a double a-side to "No-One but You " where it reached 13 in UK Singles Chart. On the album the song is preceded by a one-minute instrumental intro featuring a Shepard tone melody, performed by Brian May, which is reprised in the ending of "Teo Torriatte": this was intended to create a "circle" within the album.
A Kind of Magic is the twelfth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 2 June 1986 by EMI Records in the UK and by Capitol Records in the US. It is based on the soundtrack to the film Highlander, directed by Russell Mulcahy.
Hot Space is the tenth studio album by the British rock band Queen. It was released on 4 May 1982 by EMI Records in the UK and by Elektra Records in the US. Marking a notable shift in direction from their earlier work, they employed many elements of disco, funk, R&B, dance, pop and new wave music on the album. This made the album less popular with fans who preferred the traditional rock style they had come to associate with the band. Queen's decision to record a dance-oriented album germinated with the massive success of their 1980 hit "Another One Bites the Dust" in the US.
Queen Rocks is a compilation album by the British rock band Queen, released on 3 November 1997.
"I Was Born to Love You" is a 1985 song by Freddie Mercury that was released as a single from his first solo album, Mr. Bad Guy. After Mercury's death, Queen re-worked this song for their album Made in Heaven in 1995, by having the other members play their instrumental parts over the original track, transforming the song from disco to rock. The Queen version from the Made in Heaven album also includes snippets of Mercury's ad-lib vocals taken from "A Kind of Magic" and from "Living on My Own".
"Seven Seas of Rhye" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was primarily written by Freddie Mercury, with Brian May contributing the second middle-eight. The song is officially credited to Mercury only. A rudimentary instrumental version appears as the final track on the group's self-titled debut album (1973), with the final version on the follow-up Queen II (1974).
"Love of My Life" is a song by the British rock band Queen from their 1975 album A Night at the Opera. The song is a sentimental ballad, notably featuring a harp played by Brian May.
"A Kind of Magic" is the title track of the 1986 album of the same name by the British rock band Queen. It was written by the band's drummer, Roger Taylor, for the film Highlander and featured as the ending theme. The single reached number three in the UK Singles Chart, top ten in a number of European countries, and #42 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song is the opening track on the band's compilation albums, Greatest Hits II, and Classic Queen.
"One Vision" is a song written and recorded by the British rock band Queen, first released as a single in November 1985 and then included on their 1986 album A Kind of Magic. It was conceived by the group's drummer Roger Taylor.
"Princes of the Universe" is a song written by Freddie Mercury and performed by the British rock band Queen, originally released as a single in the United States on March 12, 1986, via Capitol Records. The song was written for the film Highlander, and released on the album A Kind of Magic, which also featured other selections from the Highlander song score on June 2, 1986. In 1999 it was included in Queen's compilation album Greatest Hits III.
"The Show Must Go On" is a song by British rock band Queen, featured as the twelfth and final track on their 1991 album, Innuendo. It is credited to Queen, but written mainly by Brian May. The song chronicles the effort of frontman Freddie Mercury continuing to perform despite approaching the end of his life, although his diagnosis with HIV/AIDS had not yet been made public in spite of ongoing media speculation claiming that he was seriously ill. When the band recorded the song in 1990, Mercury's condition had deteriorated to the point that May had concerns as to whether he was physically capable of singing it. May recalls; "I said, 'Fred, I don't know if this is going to be possible to sing.' And he went, 'I'll fucking do it, darling'—vodka down—and went in and killed it, completely lacerated that vocal".
"Hammer to Fall" is a 1984 song by the British rock band Queen. Written by guitarist Brian May, the song is the eighth track on their 1984 album The Works. It was the fourth and final single to be released from that album, although the single version was edited down by thirty seconds from the version on the album. Different sleeves were used to package this single and the live picture sleeve is now a collector's item. The song harks back to the old roots of the band, being built around a hard angular and muscular riff.
"Who Wants to Live Forever" is a song by the British rock band Queen. A power ballad, it is the sixth track on the album A Kind of Magic, which was released in June 1986, and was written by lead guitarist Brian May for the soundtrack to the film Highlander. Queen was backed up by an orchestra, with orchestrations by film score composer Michael Kamen. The song peaked at No. 24 in the UK charts. In 1991, it was included in the band's second compilation album Greatest Hits II.
"Now I'm Here" is a song by English rock band Queen, released on their third studio album, Sheer Heart Attack (1974). Written by guitarist Brian May, the song is noted for its gritty guitar riffs and vocal harmonies. In the UK, the song reached #11 on the charts when released as a single in 1975. The song was a live favourite, performed at virtually every concert from late 1974 to 1986.
"Las Palabras de Amor (The Words of Love)" is a rock ballad by the British rock band Queen. It was released as the third single from their 1982 album Hot Space. It is sung mostly in English, but with several Spanish phrases. Written by guitarist Brian May, the song proved more popular in the United Kingdom than their previous single ("Body Language"), reaching No. 17 in the UK Singles Chart.
"The Miracle" is the fifth and final single from Queen's 1989 studio album of the same name. It was composed by the entire band, though Freddie Mercury and John Deacon were the main writers. It was released as a single on 27 November 1989 and it was the band's final single release of the 1980s.
The Magic Tour was a European concert tour by the British rock band Queen in 1986. The tour was in support of their latest album, A Kind of Magic, and featured 26 shows across Western Europe. In addition, the band performed one show behind the Iron Curtain in Hungary.
"Radio Ga Ga" is a 1984 song performed and recorded by the British rock band Queen, written by their drummer Roger Taylor. It was released as a single with "I Go Crazy" by Brian May as the B-side. It was included on the album The Works and is also featured on the band's compilation albums Greatest Hits II and Classic Queen.