History of the song "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" by Queen

"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" is a song by the legendary rock band Queen. Written by Freddie Mercury, it was released as part of the album The Game. The composition became the first number one in the US for a rock band! "Crazy Thing Called Love" (as the name of the single is translated) is sustained in a light spirit of rockabilly. Mercury performed the song in the manner of the unsurpassed king of rock and roll, Elvis Presley. As a result, she gained success and popularity among listeners! To this day, the composition remains one of the most famous creations in the repertoire of Queen.

background

When Queen recorded this gentle nod to 50s rock 'n' roll, they were confident that "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" would be the next hit on the UK top chart (after 1975's "Bohemian Rhapsody"). They were right, but only partly... The song was released in October 1979, and a month later it basked in the second position of the national hit parade (the leader was the Dr. Hook single "When You're In Love With A Beautiful Woman"). However, on December 22, "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" entered the US Hot 100, after which it brought the group their first number one in America ...

Written exclusively by Freddie Mercury, the song became one of Queen's biggest international singles to that point! It was the highest of about 15 new entries on the US chart that week, right before Christmas... By the second half of February, "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" began a five-week run to the top of Olympus... In Australia, the track was awarded platinum certification. In addition, the single was certified gold in the US, UK and also in Holland! Here is what the author of the hit himself, the legendary Freddie Mercury, said:

“I wrote this song while relaxing in the bathtub at the Munich Hilton…”

It is also known that when Freddie got out of the bath, he went to his guitar and piano to lay down the melody.

“The next day at rehearsal, I tried to play rhythm guitar. Everyone liked the sound, so we recorded it. The finished version was like a bathtub-perfect version... It wasn't typical of my work, but that's because there's nothing typical in my work...”

Curiously, Queen's American label, Elektra, wasn't thrilled about releasing "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" as a single... But there was no doubt when radio DJs started playing imports. In the end, the release of "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" in the US turned out to be a wise decision!

Music video

A music video for the song was directed by Dennis De Vallance. Filming took place at Trillion Studios in late September 1979. This time, Queen appeared in the form of some kind of rock and roll players of the 50s! The band members were dressed in black leather jackets, and Brian May wore sunglasses ... By that time, Mercury was already wearing a shorter haircut, however, he was still without his signature mustache.

During the filming of this particular video, Queen used a professional backing dancer for the first time! After the introduction, Freddie takes off his hat and the magic begins… With the words “Oh, this thing (this thing)”, two pretty girls in black become the heroines of the clip. Later, two guys join them, like the rest of the heroes of this action, dressed in black. It's interesting, but only after the third verse, when Brian's guitar solo goes into battle, all the band members are shown in the frame!

Live performance...

The composition instantly became the group's favorite hit during live performances! In the mid-80s, while playing it, Mercury switched to a Fender Telecaster electric guitar (instead of an acoustic guitar). As a rule, Freddie soloed throughout the first verse ... Then Brian May entered with his variety of guitars! First he played an acoustic guitar, then a Fender Telecaster, after which he picked up a Red Special ... The fourth verse always turned into a kind of show without musical accompaniment. It was replaced by live clapping to the beat of the music ...

The audience sang with Mercury in unison. It all looked like some kind of magic ... By the way: since 1982, Queen began to use the piano to perform this song.

Interesting Facts…

• Since the song wasn't released in the US for a while, US radio stations had to play imported recordings... That's what convinced Elektra to release the track as a single in America... And it paid off with the first number one!
• If you believe the widespread legend, which, by the way, was launched by Roger Taylor himself, it was "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" that inspired John Lennon to continue his musical career!
• Soon after the release, the composition was included in all live performances of Queen! The unique "highlight" of the hit is not only Freddie's playing the guitar, but also Brian's playing three guitars at once!
• At the Freddie Mercury Memorial Concert, the remaining members of Queen performed this song with Robert Plant. The performance began with "Thank You" (Led Zeppelin). Then the composition abruptly ended, and the band elegantly moved on to the chords of “A Crazy Thing Called Love”…

• It is in this song that Mercury imitates Elvis Presley's signature style of performance ...
• Subsequently, footage from the video for "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" appeared in the video for the song "Radio Ga Ga".