Another One Bites the Dust
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| “Another One Bites the Dust” | |||||
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| Single by Queen from the album The Game |
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| Released | 22 August 1980 | ||||
| Format | vinyl record (7") | ||||
| Recorded | 1980 | ||||
| Genre | Funk rock | ||||
| Length | 3:32 | ||||
| Label | EMI, Elektra (US) | ||||
| Writer(s) | John Deacon | ||||
| Producer | Queen and Mack | ||||
| Queen singles chronology | |||||
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"Another One Bites the Dust" is a 1980 funk-rock song from the English rock band Queen, written by bassist John Deacon and was a worldwide crossover hit (hitting number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, hitting #2 on the R&B charts and the Disco Top 100, and #7 in the UK Singles Chart). The song is Queen's best selling single and their biggest hit to date, with sales of over 7 million copies. The track is on the album The Game (1980). In 1998, it was remixed and re-released by Wyclef Jean, Pras Michel and featured Free's rap vocals.
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[edit] History
The bass line was inspired by the song "Good Times" by the Disco group Chic.[citation needed] In an interview with New Musical Express, Chic co-founder Bernard Edwards stated, "...that Queen record came about because that Queen bass player... spent some time hanging out with us at our studio".[1]
The opening line "Steve walks warily down the street" is thought to be a reference to Steve McQueen.[who?] Recording sessions were produced by Reinhold Mack at Musicland Studios in Munich (West Germany) and consisted of Deacon playing almost all the instruments: bass, piano, rhythm and lead guitars and handclap percussion. Roger Taylor added a drum loop under protest[citation needed] and Brian May did some noises with his guitar and an Eventide Harmoniser. There are no synthesizers used in the song: all effects are created with pianos, guitars, and drums, with subsequent tape playback performed in reverse at various speeds. Finally, some sound effects were run through the Harmoniser for further processing. The effect of the Harmoniser can be heard clearly in the "swirling" nature of the sound immediately before the first lyric. Taylor did not like the song, but Freddie Mercury strongly believed in it and added some ideas[citation needed]. During the mix the road crew suggested it as a single but the band didn't like the idea until Michael Jackson recommended it after a concert (this was confirmed by Roger Taylor and Brian May on the U.S. radio show In the Studio with Redbeard that spotlighted the album The Game on one episode).
The song garnered Queen its only Grammy nomination, for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. The band lost to Bob Seger's album Against the Wind.
The music video was filmed at Reunion Arena in Dallas, Texas.
[edit] Alleged backmasking
A common urban legend surrounding the chorus is that, when played in reverse, it contains the messages "it's fun to smoke marijuana" and "start to smoke marijuana".
[edit] Charts
| Country | Peak position | Certification |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 1 | |
| Canada | 1 | |
| Guatemala | 1 | |
| Spain | 1 | |
| U.S. | 1 | platinum[2] |
| New Zealand | 2 | |
| U.S. R&B | 2 | |
| Ireland | 4 | |
| Australia | 5 | |
| Austria | 6 | |
| Germany | 6 | |
| UK | 7 | |
| Switzerland | 8 | |
| Italy | 10 | |
| Sweden | 12 | |
| Netherlands | 14 | |
| France | 22 |
[edit] Cover versions
[edit] 1998 single
| “Another One Bites the Dust” | ||
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| Single by Queen featuring Free, Wyclef Jean, Pras and Canibus from the album Ghetto Supastar and Greatest Hits III |
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| Released | November 1, 1998 | |
| Format | CD single, 12" single, Cassette | |
| Recorded | 1998 | |
| Genre | Rap | |
| Length | 4:20 | |
| Label | Dreamworks Records | |
| Writer(s) | John Deacon | |
| Producer | Queen, Wyclef Jean, Jerry 'Wonder' Duplessis | |
In 1998, Wyclef Jean along with Pras Michel, Canibus, and Free and remixed the song using a new instrumental track and samples from the actual song for the 1998 movie Small Soldiers. This version also appeared on Queen's compilation Greatest Hits III released in 1999. It enjoyed the most success in the UK, where it entered the chart at #5, its highest chart position, going on to spend six weeks on the chart. It also reached the top ten in Finland. It charted #18, #23, #50 and #62 in New Zealand, Austria, Sweden and France, respectively.
It was Pras' third top-10 UK hit as a solo artist following Ghetto Supastar and Blue Angels.
[edit] Tracklists and formats
[edit] *US 5-inch Single
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Radio Edit) (4:00)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (LP Version) (4:20)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Instrumental) (4:17)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (A Cappella) (4:45)
[edit] *UK 5-inch Single
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (New LP Version) (4:20)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Team 1 Black Rock Star Main Pass Mix) (4:46)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Team 1 Black Rock Star Radio Edit) (4:17)
[edit] *Italy 12-inch Single
A Side
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (LP Version) (4:20)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Small Soldiers Video Mix) (4:00)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Instrumental) (4:17)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (A Cappella) (4:45)
B Side
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Team 1 Black Rock Star Main Pass) (4:48)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Team 1 Black Rock Star Radio Edit) (4:17)
- "Another One Bites The Dust" (Team 1 Black Rock Star Remix Instrumental) (4:46)
[edit] 2002 version
The song was covered by Queen Factory, a french project of Stéphane Durand who was inspired by Mad'House (house covers of Madonna) and King of House (house covers of Michael Jackson)
[edit] 2004 version
The song was remixed and covered by Greek-American singer Kalomoira for her debut self titled album released in Greece and Cyprus in September 2004. The album reached number 1 in both countries and was certified gold.
[edit] 2006 version
The song was remixed again in 2006 by The Miami Project.
| Preceded by "Upside Down" by Diana Ross |
Billboard Hot 100 number one single October 4, 1980 |
Succeeded by "Woman in Love" by Barbra Streisand |
| Preceded by "Upside Down" by Diana Ross |
ARC Weekly Top 40 number one single October 4, 1980 - October 11, 1980 |
Succeeded by "Woman in Love" by Barbra Streisand |
[edit] References
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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