Entertainment

The 'Bohemian Rhapsody' Soundtrack Will Rock Your World

by Ani Bundel
20th Century FOX

The reviews are in and Bohemian Rhapsody the movie is not doing so well with the critics. It's a real shame, because "Bohemian Rhapsody" the song was an instant Queen classic when it was released on 1975's Night At The Opera album. Considered at the time to be the most expensive single ever recorded, it was one of the songs cementing Queen as rock and roll legends and made Freddie Mercury's career. While the movie might not be as highly lauded, the Bohemian Rhapsody soundtrack is an A-plus collection of Queen music, one which any fan of the group, or anyone looking to learn more about their music, will love.

For a long time, there were really only three comprehensive Queen albums: The Red, The Blue, and the White Albums. The "Red" Greatest Hits I album was released in 1981. The "Blue" Greatest Hits II album came out in 1991. The "White" Greatest Hits I, II, & III album was both the Red and the Blue albums, plus a third disc of the group's solo hits and the remaining band's collaborations with other artists after Mercury's passing.

The new Bohemian Rhapsody soundtrack functions as a new variation on a Greatest Hits listing, with 22 tracks in all, several of which are live tracks from shows never before released for purchase.

  1. "20th Century Fox Fanfare"
  2. "Somebody To Love "
  3. "Doing All Right" (…revisited) (by Smile)
  4. "Keep Yourself Alive" (Live at The Rainbow)
  5. "Killer Queen"
  6. "Fat Bottomed Girls" (Live in Paris)
  7. "Bohemian Rhapsody"
  8. "Now I'm Here" (Live at The Hammersmith Odeon)
  9. "Crazy Little Thing Called Love"
  10. "Love Of My Life" (Live at Rock in Rio Festival)
  11. "We Will Rock You" (Movie Mix)
  12. "Another One Bites The Dust"
  13. "I Want To Break Free"
  14. "Under Pressure"
  15. "Who Wants To Live Forever"
  16. "Bohemian Rhapsody" (Live Aid)
  17. "Radio Ga Ga" (Live Aid)
  18. "Ay-Oh" (Live Aid)
  19. "Hammer To Fall" (Live Aid)
  20. "We Are The Champions" (Live Aid)
  21. "Don't Stop Me Now" (…revisited)
  22. "The Show Must Go On"

Note "Doing All Right" is credited to Smile. It's the band Roger Taylor and Brian May were part of before they met Mercury, and which reformed with the original vocalist Tim Staffell for this movie soundtrack.

But the real gems are tracks 16-20, which form the entirety of Queen's legendary performance at Live Aid in 1985. Live Aid was a charity event put on by Bob Geldorf, who the year before had formed Band Aid. Band Aid's aim was the raise money for Ethiopia, which was undergoing severe drought and famine at the time.

In 1984, they released the single "Do They Know It's Christmas." The next year they produced Live Aid, which was held simultaneously in Philadelphia and London, and featured a line up of every single A-list band on the planet at the time. According to reports from the time, nearly 40 percent of the world's population tuned in to the broadcast, and by all accounts, Queen's 20-minute set stole the entire show. Having it reproduced in full here is something no Queen fan should miss.

The Bohemian Rhapsody Original Soundtrack is available for download on Amazon. Bohemian Rhapsody will arrive in theaters on Nov. 2, 2018.