I Want to Break Free
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "I Want to Break Free" | ||
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| Single by Queen | ||
| from the album The Works | ||
| Released | 22 April 1984 | |
| Format | vinyl record (7", 12") | |
| Recorded | 1983 | |
| Genre | Pop rock | |
| Length |
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| Label | EMI / Capitol | |
| Writer(s) | John Deacon | |
| Producer(s) | Queen and Mack | |
| Chart positions | ||
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| Queen singles chronology | ||
| "Radio Ga Ga" (1984) |
"I Want to Break Free" (1984) |
"It's a Hard Life" (1984) |
"I Want to Break Free" (sample ) is a song performed by Queen, which was written exclusively by bassist John Deacon. It featured on the 1984 album The Works. In the UK Chart, it peaked at number 3, and remained in the chart for fifteen consecutive weeks.
Two differing versions of the song are in circulation. The version on The Works album itself is in fact shorter than the single remix by nearly a minute, which is the direct opposite to Hammer to Fall, a song which was edited down by thirty seconds from the album version to be released as a single.
The music video, directed by David Mallet, was a parody of the northern British soap opera Coronation Street. During part of the video, the band members dressed in drag, as mildly similar characters found in the soap at the time. The video also depicted the band in what appeared to be a dark cave in their normal look, and it also features a ballet piece with the Royal Ballet, for which Freddie Mercury shaved off his trademark moustache to portray Nijinsky. The video was initially banned by MTV in the U.S., but the ban was lifted in 1991 when it aired on VH1's My Generation 2-part episodes devoted to Queen hosted by guitarist Brian May. The song received renewed attention when it was used in a media advertising campaign for the soft drink Coca-Cola C2.
At the 1992 Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, Lisa Stansfield performed the song. She entered the Wembley stage wearing hair curlers (a la Hilda Ogden) and pushing a vacuum cleaner in a direct reference and tribute to the song's video.
[edit] Analysis
The lyrics seem to contradict each other from verse to verse, as the song begins with the ending of a frustrating relationship, followed by the upbeat celebration of a new love, finishing with the regretable isolation of single life. The ubiquitous desire to "break free" in all such situations indicates that wherever love is involved, contentment is not.
Some think of this track as dedicated to Freddie Mercury's homosexuality. Breaking free meaning he wants to let loose and be who he is. When he says "God knows" he refers to God knowing that he is a good man and he won't be judged because of his sexual preference something the church does. When he also says "I've fallen in love for the first time and this time I know it's for real" tells us that he is finally happy with someone he actually loves (a man).
However, in interviews Freddy has denied such rumours, since John Deacon wrote the track and was a straight man.
[edit] Covers
In the late 90s, the Spanish TV program "El Informal" made a parody of the videoclip of the song. The song was called "Me Quiero Reir" (I Want to Laugh) and it features the presenters dressed as the band members and performing funny sketches.
In 2006, this song was covered by the Indonesian band called "Dewa 19" & available in the album 'Republik Cinta (Republic of Love)'
