Dear Friends ���
‘So dear friends, Your love has gone, Only tears to dwell upon.’
A short piano ballad, ‘Dear Friends’ really demonstrates May’s
songwriting versatility. Mercury’s vocals are pretty solid too.
Misfire ��
The first ever John Deacon composition to appear in the Queen
repertoire, ‘Misfire’ is a jaunty pop song hinting at the hits that
Deacon was to write as the years went on. ‘Your gun is loaded, and
pointing my way, There’s only one bullet, so don’t delay, Got to
time it right, fire me through the night.’
Bring Back That Leroy Brown ���
Both written and sung by Freddie Mercury, ‘Bring Back That
Leroy Brown’ features May playing a banjo, and Deacon playing a
double bass in this nice 1920s pastiche complete with treated vocal
effects.
She Makes Me (Stormtrooper in Stilettos) ��
With Deacon on acoustic guitar, ‘She Makes Me’ is a Brian May
number with an outro consisting of real night-life recordings from
New York, such as police sirens and the like. Abstract, possibly
even a little too abstract.
In the Lap of the Gods... Revisited ���
A forerunner, of sorts, to ‘We Are the Champions’, ‘In the Lap of
the Gods... Revisited’ is all powerful chorus and stadium rock
stylings. Also has a touch of ‘Hey Jude’ about it to boot.
Conclusion
‘Sheer Heart Attack’ is a rocking album, full of hits that ran
throughout their career. Their first real commercial success, the
record coincided with Queen’s first tour of Japan, and peaked at