"Princes of the Universe" is a song written by Freddie Mercury and performed by the British

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, originally released as a single in the United States on March 12, 1986 via Capitol Records. The song was written for the film '' Highlander'', and released on the album '' A Kind of Magic,'' which also featured other selections from the ''Highlander'' song score on June 2, 1986.Freestone, Peter (2001
Freddie Mercury: an intimate memoir by the man who knew him best
p.96.Omnibus Press, Retrieved 22 January 2011 In 1999 it was included in Queen’s compilation album '' Greatest Hits III''. In terms of musical style, the song is notable for being one of the most hard-edged tracks performed by the band, featuring a bombastic sound reminiscent of contemporary hard rock and heavy metal and vocals by Mercury akin to

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

. A

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

for the song, which featured Mercury briefly re-enacting the film's sword-fighting scene with the titular character, achieved some notoriety.

Background

"Princes of the Universe", written and composed for ''Highlander'', is the only song on the album for which Mercury receives sole credit. The song's name comes from the original working title of the film. It is played over the film's opening credits, and was later used as the opening theme for '' Highlander: The Series''. The song was never released as a single in the United Kingdom, and while it never truly charted, it is considered a cult favourite because of its relation to the film. In the movie, the guitar solo is not present as it was not yet created.

Music video

The

was directed by

Russell Mulcahy Russell Mulcahy ( ; born 23 June 1953) is an Australian film director. Mulcahy's work is recognisable by the use of fast cuts, tracking shots and use of glowing lights, neo-noir lighting, windblown drapery, and fans. He directed music videos ...

, and was shot on 14 February 1986 at

Elstree Studios Elstree Studios is a generic term which can refer to several current and demolished British film studios and television studios based in or around the town of Borehamwood and village of Elstree in Hertfordshire, England. Production studios ha ...

, near London, on the Silvercup rooftop stage used for the film. It consists mostly of Queen performing the song, intercut with scenes from ''Highlander.'' Christopher Lambert reprises his role as Connor MacLeod for a brief appearance in the video, where he swordfights Freddie Mercury, who uses his microphone stand as a sword.

Brian May Brian Harold May (born 19 July 1947) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and astrophysicist, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen. May was a co-founder of Queen with lead singer Freddie Mercury and ...

is seen playing a Washburn RR11V instead of his

Red Special The Red Special is the electric guitar designed and built by Queen's guitarist Brian May and his father, Harold, when Brian was a teenager in the early 1960s. The Red Special is sometimes referred to as the Fireplace or the Old Lady by May and ...

. The video was regularly played on MTV. It was released on ''Greatest Flix III'' (VHS, 1999) and ''

Greatest Video Hits 2 ''Greatest Video Hits 2'' is the second DVD of music videos from the English band, Queen. It was released in November 2003, and included video hits of the band from 1981 to 1989. It was at number one in UK, in its first week. It also peaked at ...

'' (DVD, 2003).

Charts

Personnel

* Freddie Mercury –

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and

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

, synthesizer *

– lead and rhythm guitars, backing vocals * Roger Taylor – drums, backing vocals *

John Deacon John Richard Deacon (born 19 August 1951) is an English retired musician, best known for being the bass guitarist for the rock band Queen. He wrote several songs for the group, including Top 10 hits " You're My Best Friend", "Another One Bite ...

–

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

References

External links