38. The Game by Queen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_5O-nUiZ_0&list=OLAK5uy_kkHhuEInejU2gl6gTx1ALT7nb9UrmmBpo
While I do think Queen had other albums that were better artistically, this is their best selling album with their only two #1 hits in America with "Another One Bites the Dust" and "Crazy Little Thing Called Love." But lets all face the facts--"Another One Bites the Dust" is the monster hit that made this their top-selling album. It's definitely the reason I bought this album at the beginning of 9th grade.
This album got played a lot from 9th grade through 12th grade, but in the end I threw my copy of the album in the garbage. Why? Because although I had heard rumors that the album had backwards masking, I didn't believe it. But after Randy showed me how to play the records backwards, I discovered that on "Another One Bits the Dust" there is backwards masking that says "smoke marijuana" in the same spot where the lyrics "Another one bites the dust" is played. Because at one point in my senior year I got really mad about how Randy's marijuana smoking had basically ruined what could have been a really good relationship between the two of us. He knew he couldn't smoke around me, so he decided that I wasn't going to be his friend, even though we shared the same bedroom my whole junior year of high school. So in my fit of anger, I threw my copy of "The Game" into the burn barrel.
But I'd already memorized all the songs on the entire album, having listened to it at least once a week for over 3 years. And eventually after my mission I got another copy of the album. I couldn't resist how it triggered memories of my youth. One of those memories is of sitting in on a planning meeting for a school dance, and some girl suggested that the theme of the dance be from a song that was over a year old. And Sean Haney--who for some inexplicable reason had been invited to take part in the meeting--said in a supremely sarcastic tone "Why don't we make 'Crazy Little Thing Called Love" the theme song?" It made the girl feel really bad, but I have to admit it was kind of a funny thing to say. Also, I admit that I would have really liked it if we had made "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" as the theme song for the dance. But the group opted for a new song that was starting to get radio play--I don't remember which one. Probably something really stupid by Air Supply.
The one song on this album that I skipped a lot while listening to it was "Don't Try Suicide." That's because it had the problematic line "You can't be a prick teaser all of your life." That was just not something I could blast out of the speakers and not have someone else in the house hear it and report it to Mom. So, yeah, that song got skipped the most.
But I enjoyed all the other songs on the album quite a bit. There's a pretty good range of sounds from the different songs, from the Elvis Presley vibe on "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" to the new Disco sounds of "Another One Bites the Dust" to a more classical Queen sound on "Sail Away Sweet Sister." It's got solid contributions from all of the group too. They all shine at one point in at least one song.
If they just hadn't put on that damn backwards masking, I would have enjoyed the album throughout all of high school and into college. And in the end, throwing away the album didn't do a thing to fix the broken relationship between me and Randy. It was what it was.
And the album is what it is--a solid, all-around musical performance by Queen with a gigantic monster hit.
Nardo
If I had extended my list from a Top 60 to a Top 65, two more Queen albums would have been on it, "Innuendo," and "The Game." "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" is by far my favorite from the album, with "Play the Game," "Another One Bites the Dust," and "Need Your Loving Tonight" all battling it out for the next three spots. ("Need Your Loving Tonight" is very underrated.) I really like all of the songs on Side 2 of the album, but each song seems to be just missing a little something to turn them from "really good" to "great."
ReplyDeleteI do have a specific memory of "Don't Try Suicide" from our junior high years. There was some kind of gathering in the commons area, and this song was playing. But, every time Freddie was preparing to sing the word "damn," you would run to the stereo and turn the volume down. Like most good jokes, it was funny the first two or three times, but then I seem to recall Mark Barker getting pissed at you for continuing to turn the volume down pre-"damn." (I don't remember specifically, but I imagine your turned down the volume for "prick" as well.)