Mr. Bad Guy
| Mr. Bad Guy | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Freddie Mercury | ||||
| Released | 29 April 1985 | |||
| Recorded | Early 1983 - January 1985[1] | |||
| Studio | Musicland Studios, Munich | |||
| Genre | Pop rock, disco | |||
| Length | 40:41 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Producer | Reinhold Mack, Freddie Mercury | |||
| Freddie Mercury chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Mr. Bad Guy | ||||
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Freddie's liner notes in the booklet:[2]
"This album is dedicated to my cat Jerry - also Tom, Oscar and Tiffany, and all the cat lovers across the universe - screw everybody else!"
Freddie
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [3] |
| Rolling Stone | (positive)[4] |
Mr. Bad Guy is the debut solo album from Queen singer, Freddie Mercury. Released in 1985, during a period in which Queen were on hiatus from recordings, it contains eleven songs, all written by him.[2]
For the album, Mercury compiled influences ranging from disco to dance music. It was a contrast to typical Queen work, as they were rock-orientated. The album took nearly two years to record as Mercury had to gather enough material, while committing to band activities.[4] Initially, the album was supposed to feature duets with Mercury and Michael Jackson. They recorded "There Must Be More to Life Than This", but Mercury dropped out of any further collaboration after feeling uncomfortable working with Jackson's pet llama in the studio.[5] Recording was taxing on Mercury as he took part in everything from performing the tracks to sound engineering to obtain his desired effect. Mercury used synthesizers and orchestration in track development, adding to the diversity in each piece.[6][7]
The song "Living on My Own" was re-released in 1993 in a remixed form by No More Brothers, while "I Was Born to Love You" and "Made in Heaven" were later re-worked by the surviving three Queen members and included in the 1995 curtain-call Made in Heaven. The album was originally planned to be called Made in Heaven.[8]
Track listing
All songs written by Freddie Mercury.
| Side one | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "Let's Turn It On" | 3:42 |
| 2. | "Made in Heaven" | 4:05 |
| 3. | "I Was Born to Love You" | 3:38 |
| 4. | "Foolin' Around" | 3:29 |
| 5. | "Your Kind of Lover" | 3:32 |
| Side two | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 6. | "Mr. Bad Guy" | 4:09 |
| 7. | "Man Made Paradise" | 4:08 |
| 8. | "There Must Be More to Life Than This" | 3:00 |
| 9. | "Living on My Own" | 3:23 |
| 10. | "My Love Is Dangerous" | 3:42 |
| 11. | "Love Me Like There's No Tomorrow" | 3:46 |
| UK CD bonus tracks[9] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Track listing | ||
| No. | Title | Length |
| 12. | "Let's Turn It On" (12" Version) | 5:06 |
| 13. | "I Was Born to Love You" (12" Version) | 7:03 |
| 14. | "Living on My Own" (12" Version) | 6:40 |
Personnel
- Freddie Mercury – vocals, piano, synthesizer
- Fred Mandel – additional piano, synthesizer, guitar
- Paul Vincent – lead guitar
- Curt Cress – drums
- Stephan Wissnet – bass guitar
- Jo Burt – fretless bass on "Man Made Paradise"
- Rainer Pietsch – arrangement for "Mr. Bad Guy"
- Mack and Stephan Wissnet – Fairlight CMI, drum programming
- Mack, assisted by Stephan Wissnet – engineering
- The Artful Dodger – artwork
- A. Sawa – photographs
Chart performance
| Country | Charts | |
|---|---|---|
| Peak position | Weeks | |
| United Kingdom | 6 | 23 |
| Switzerland | 14 | 6 |
| Japan | 20 | 21 |
| Netherlands | 20 | 11 |
| Austria | 23 | 4 |
| United States | 159 | 7 |
References
- ↑ Mr. Bad Guy (album) queenpedia.com Retrieved 2014-10-07.
- 1 2 Jen Longshaw. "Freddie Mercury's Cats". Retrieved 2012-08-10.
- ↑ Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Mr. Bad Guy - Freddie Mercury". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-08-03.
- 1 2 Holmes, Tim. "Mr Bad Guy - Rolling Stone (Issue 450)". Queen Archives. Retrieved 2013-01-02.
- ↑ "Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender - Documentary".
- ↑ "Queen: Days of Our Lives - Documentary".
- ↑ "Michael Jackson and Freddie Mercury". inquistr.com. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
- ↑ "Freddie Mercury interview (1985)". YouTube. Retrieved 2011-08-03.
- ↑ "Freddie Mercury - Mr. Bad Guy".