Queen drummer Roger Taylor as soon as paid tribute to Freddie Mercury’s “terrifically fertile brain” – and the singer-songwriter’s powers of creativeness have been sparklingly evident in the way in which wherein he helped flip “A Kind of Magic” from what Taylor referred to as “a filmic” tune for the 1986 fantasy film Highlander right into a “dance-orientated” hit single. A Sort of Magic was Queen’s first album after their triumphant efficiency in 1985’s Reside Help live performance, and it had a powerful presence in Highlander, with six tracks from the file showing within the movie directed by Australian Russell Mulcahy.
Hearken to Queen’s “A Kind of Magic” right here.
Essentially the most well-known tune is the title monitor, whose principal line, “a kind of magic,” is utilized by actor Christopher Lambert when his character Connor MacLeod is boasting about his immortality. Taylor liked the phrase and used it as inspiration for the tune, which included different references to the movie script equivalent to “no mortal man” and “one prize, one goal.” “Originally it was used at the end of the movie, over the closing credits,” Taylor later commented. “It was a grander concept with a much more broken-up tempo. Freddie really believed in this song and we reworked it as a single.”
Mercury “polished” the lyrics, added the bassline, and re-arranged the construction, though the top end result was nonetheless solely credited to Taylor. “The track, as originally conceived by Roger, was lugubrious and heavy and Freddie totally lightened it up to make it a commercially accessible thing, adding all the little riffs,” recalled guitarist Brian Might.
The recording
The only, which the band started recording in September 1985, was lastly launched commercially within the UK on March 17, 1986, ten days after the movie opened in cinemas. The only was produced with David Richards throughout classes for the album. Richards mentioned he was pushed creatively by Mercury in the course of the classes for “A Kind of Magic.” “It was pretty hard to keep up with all Freddie’s ideas,” he admitted in an interview. “I remember one day we were working on ‘A Kind of Magic’ and he said, ‘I want to hear a herd of wildebeests swinging from left to right.’ I said, ‘Oh yeah, fine, how am I going to do this?’ I spent another two days thinking about it, realizing he wanted some kind of stereo effect. Eventually, we came up with these magic effects that went swinging round.”
The video
Queen requested Mulcahy to direct the music video, which was filmed at The Playhouse Theatre, close to London’s Trafalgar Sq.. “It was dilapidated at the time and we made it even more derelict for our atmospheric video,” mentioned Might. “We thought it was a neat idea for Freddie to be the wizard and for us to be the guys he transforms from tramps into glamorous rock stars.” Might, who was utilizing a 1921 three-quarter Gibson guitar throughout filming, mentioned it was one of many group’s finest movies. “It’s nicely shot; you can tell Russell is a movie director,” he added.
The legacy
“A Kind of Magic” reached No. 3 within the UK singles chart, and the tune was utilized in that very same 12 months by the BBC for the introduction of the opening ceremony of the 1986 Commonwealth Video games. Taylor remained keen on his composition, particularly the catchy sing-along refrain. He included it on later solo live performance dates and together with his band The Cross. “It became very popular on stage and when we did it on the 1986 Magic tour, which was our last ever tour, it used to go down incredibly well. It had a good ending and it was always fun,” he mentioned. “Funny enough, they played it on the jukebox in the second Highlander movie as, by then, it had been a worldwide hit.”
Hearken to Queen’s “A Kind of Magic” right here.
