Product Description

Though they began their career practicing an artier, more theatrical variant on the Led Zeppelin heavy rock sound, Queen was always capable of much more. Ultimately, Freddie and the boys were popsters at heart, and capable ones to boot. A NIGHT AT THE OPERA is where they begin to show their eclecticism and compositional facility. The album title is probablya reference to the FM rock anthem "Bohemian Rhapsody", which begins as an existential ballad before moving into a mock-operatic section featuring scores of overdubbed Freddie Mercurys.
"Rhapsody" is just the tip of the iceberg here. "Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon" is a music hall ditty that owes a debt to the Kinks. "'39" is a surprisingly poignant folk-rocker written and sung by Brian May. "You're My Best Friend"is pure '70s AM melodic pop. Queen even ventures into vaudeville territory (given Mercury's show biz leanings, not as much of a stretch as one might think) on the fatalistic, old-timey "Good Company". There are several souped-up rockers here as well, but it's A NIGHT AT THE OPERA's winning stylistic experimentation that makes it a milestone in Queen history.

Track Listing

1. Death on two legs
2. Lazing on a Sunday afternoon
3. You're my best friend
4. I'm in love with my car
5. Sweet lady
6. Seaside rendezvous
7. Good company
8. '39
9. Prophet's song
10. Love of my life
11. Bohemian rhapsody
12. God save the Queen

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #65574 in Music
• Released on: 1993-09-27
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
One of the most preposterous albums ever made, A Night at the Opera also remains one of the most popular. While it is difficult to completely dislike a record that successfully introduced the phrase "Scaramouche! Scaramouche! Will you do the fandango?" into the popular lexicon, it is harder still to understand quite what Queen were thinking of when they made this. Whether or not Queen were fully aware of their own absurdity remains a moot point. However, if one can find the hefty psychic hooks and pulleys necessary to suspend this much disbelief, A Night at the Opera is a perversely enjoyable record. The awesomely daft and supremely catchy "Bohemian Rhapsody" aside, it contains the almost equally risible excursions "The Prophet's Song" and "39", a couple of the irresistibly amusing headbanger numbers that Queen could write in their sleep ("Death On Two Legs") and the very possibly heartfelt pop ballad "You're My Best Friend". Immortally baffling, like the pyramids. Yet also enjoyably compelling. --Andrew Mueller

From Amazon.com
Nothing succeeds like excess--at least that's the case with Queen's breakthrough commercial smash, A Night at the Opera. On one level, the title is a reference to the band's operatic pretensions, best in evidence here on the classic "Bohemian Rhapsody," which was championed by headbangers a generation before being revived by the Wayne's World set. Of course, A Night at the Opera is also the title of a Marx Brothers movie, and the reference isn't lost on Queen, which seldom scaled the heights of rock pomp without a knowing wink. The album is remembered for its meticulously produced bombast, but the truth is that there's a wide variety of material on display here, from the gorgeous piano-based "You're My Best Friend" and the McCartneyesque "39," to the music-hall-style "Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon" and the pedal-to-the-metal rockers "Death on Two Legs" and "I'm in Love with My Car." A Night at the Opera is viewed by most as the quintessential Queen album, and justifiably so. --Daniel Durchholz

Customer Reviews

Good Queen album, but not their best.....
This is Queen's most realised studio album. When you think of Queen, you think of Bohemian Rhapsody and its parent album A Night At The Opera. The music is totally over the top but, nonetheless, great. As well as Bohemian Rhapsody and You're My Best Friend (Deacon-penned single which is a real undervalued gem) there are some classic album tracks here - Death On Two Legs, Love Of My Life and I'm In Love With My Car (yes, Roger Taylor did write the odd great track in the 70s). Also, this album is pretty consistent as compared with subsequent Queen studio albums (which always tended to have the odd stinker!). Having said all of this, I still prefer its predecessor Sheer Heart Attack.

A Masterpiece!
It's been well over thirty years since this album came out and I finally bought it. I've been missing out on a lot of fantastic music. This album is extraordinary in its own merit, and I finally understand what "Queen" really was all about - the entire experience! Sure, "You're My Best Friend" was a really nice song and "Bohemian Rhapsody" defined an entire generation, but hearing it as it was pieced together in one collage of a musical experience and you'll understand what the big fuss is all about. Freddie Mercury's vocals are astounding. There simply is no `best' song on this album. Every song is its own masterpiece, but I am partial to the anthemic, "'39". God Save the Queen!

Overblown pomp rock
Don't get me wrong, I love Queen ... but I really don't like Bohemian Rhapsody, as in I really dislike it. The rest of the album is really pretty good, especially "Death on Two Legs" and "I'm in Love with my Car". This is really quite a quirky album as evidenced by "Seaside Rendezvous" and " '39 " but it's also one of the key albums that sparked the rise of punk in rebellion at the sheer pomposity of groups such as mid-70's Queen. I listened to this album again a few days ago and it had dated very badly I'm sorry to say. Not the best period for Queen.

Is is a good album? Yes.
Is is a great album? No.
Should you have it in your collection? Probably.