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We Are the Champions

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For other uses, see We Are the Champions (disambiguation).

"We Are the Champions"
Song
B-side"We Will Rock You"

"We Are the Champions" is a power ballad written by Freddie Mercury and recorded and performed by British rock band Queen for their 1977 album News of the World.[1] One of their most famous and popular songs, it remains among rock's most recognisable anthems.[2]

The song was a worldwide success, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart, and number four on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States.[3][4] In 2009, "We Are the Champions" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame,[5] and was voted the world's favourite song in a 2005 Sony Ericsson world music poll.[6] In 2011, a team of scientific researchers concluded that the song was the catchiest in the history of popular music.[7]

"We Are the Champions" has become an anthem for sporting victories,[2] including as official theme song for 1994 FIFA World Cup, and has been often used or referenced in popular culture (see below). The song has also been covered by many artists.

Original Queen version

Music

Written by Freddie Mercury, "We Are the Champions" was built on audience response, with Brian May stating; 'We wanted to get the crowds waving and singing. It’s very unifying and positive'.[8]

Musically, it is based around Mercury's piano part, with Roger Taylor and John Deacon providing a drums and bass guitar backing. May overdubbed some guitar sections, initially subtle, but building to a 'solo' played simultaneously with the last chorus. Mercury employed many jazz chords (major and minor 6th, 7th, 9th, 11th and 13th harmonies), and the choruses featured these voiced as 4 and 5-part vocal harmonies. The lead vocal is very demanding and strident (highest point is a C5 both belted and in falsetto), with one of Mercury's most notable performances taking place at the Live Aid concert, at Wembley Stadium, London in 1985.[9]

The single featured "We Will Rock You" as a B-side, and followed the song on the album. The two songs were often played consecutively at the close of Queen concerts, and are customarily played together on radio broadcasts (in album order).[2] Keeping with tradition, it was also used to close the 1992 Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert with all the show's acts joining in behind the lead vocal of Liza Minnelli.[2]

Chart performances

In 1977-1978, "We Are the Champions" was released as a single in many countries, reaching number 2 on the UK Singles Chart.[3] number 4 on Billboard in the US.,[4] the top 10 in Ireland, Netherlands, and Norway, and top 15 in Germany, Austria and Sweden.[10][11]

In 1992, 1993 and 1998, the single was re-released in France, totalling 45 weeks on the chart and peaking respectively at #19, #14, and #10 during the 1998 FIFA World Cup.[11]

Personnel

  • Freddie Mercury: lead vocals, piano, backing vocals
  • Brian May: electric guitar, backing vocals
  • John Deacon: bass guitar, backing vocals
  • Roger Taylor: drums, backing vocals

Track listings

Charts and certifications

Cover versions and samplings

Live performances

The song has been regularly played to celebrate sports victories. Formula One drivers Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button have both sung the song after crossing the finish line to become world drivers champions. Various politicians around the world have played this as a victory song after winning an election. In the National Hockey League when a team wins the Stanley Cup, as well as the Premier League when a team wins the league, the song is always played.

The song can be heard in many music video games (Guitar Hero: On Tour series, Pro Evolution Soccer 2, Taiko no Tatsujin series, The Matrix: Path of Neo and Lego Rock Band), films (including High Fidelity, D2: The Mighty Ducks, What Happens in Vegas, A Knight's Tale, Kicking & Screaming, Chicken Little, You Again, Happy Feet Two and Revenge of the Nerds), and TV series (including South Park, The Mighty Ducks trilogy, three episodes of The Simpsons (in "The War of the Simpsons", "Wild Barts Can't Be Broken" and "She Used to Be My Girl"), Season 5 of The Sopranos, Drawn Together, Malcolm in the Middle where Hal shows his skating abilities, South Park episode "Stanley's Cup", So You Think You Can Dance in 2007, The Big Bang Theory, Angel, and a Robot Chicken episode called "Unionizing Our Labor"). In May 2012, the song was performed on Glee in the episode Nationals, and features in The Graduation Album.[30]

The song was also used as the introductory music prior to Prince's halftime TV performance at Super Bowl XLI on 4 February 2007 in Miami, Florida. When the New York Yankees won the 2009 World Series, the song played as soon as Mariano Rivera got the last out. The song also features as downloadable content on the multiplatform music video games, Guitar Hero World Tour, Guitar Hero 5, & re-issued in a RB3 Version for Rock Band 3. After the 1981 World Series, Jay Johnstone, Jerry Reuss, Steve Yeager, and Rick Monday of the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers released a cover version of "We Are the Champions", which they later performed on Solid Gold, the syndicated music television program.

This song, along with "We Will Rock You", was part of a two song medley sung by Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy on Disney's album Mickey Sports Songs.[31]

The song was covered by Katie Waissel during the first live show of the 2010 UK The X Factor. The song was also performed as part of the Closing Ceremony of the Delhi Commonwealth Games. The song was featured in the novel The Million Dollar Kick when Whisper makes the million-dollar goal.

Catchiest song ever

In 2011, a team of scientific researchers concluded that the song was the catchiest song in the history of pop music. Dr. Daniel Mullensiefen said of the study, "Every musical hit is reliant on maths, science, engineering and technology; from the physics and frequencies of sound that determine pitch and harmony, to the hi-tech digital processors and synthesisers which can add effects to make a song more catchy. We’ve discovered that there’s a science behind the sing-along and a special combination of neuroscience, maths and cognitive psychology can produce the elusive elixir of the perfect sing-along song."[7]

See also

Preceded by FIFA World Cup theme song
with
Gloryland by Daryl Hall
1994 		Succeeded by

References

  1. ^ BRITs 25 Song Award: We Are The Champions - Queen BBC Retrieved 21 January 2011
  2. ^ a b c d We Are the Champions: Song Review All Music Retrieved 21 January 2011
  3. ^ a b c UK Singles Chart Chartstats.com (Retrieved 29 July 2008)
  4. ^ a b c d Billboard allmusic.com (Retrieved 29 July 2008)
  5. ^ Grammy Hall of Fame Award Grammy.org Retrieved 21 April 2011
  6. ^ Haines, Lester (29 September 2005) 'We Are The Champions' voted world's fave song (Sony Ericsson world music poll) Retrieved 21 April 2011
  7. ^ a b We Are The Champions voted catchiest pop song of all time... by scientists, The Daily Mail, September 29, 2011
  8. ^ For the first time ever...Queen: Ten great hits from the sensational rock band Mail Online Retrieved 21 January 2011
  9. ^ Sacha Baron Cohen to play Freddie Mercury BBC News Retrieved 22 January 2011
  10. ^ a b Irish Single Chart Irishcharts.ie (Retrieved 29 July 2008)
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i "We Are the Champions", in various singles charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved 29 July 2008)
  12. ^ 1978 Austrian Singles Chart Austriancharts.at (Retrieved 29 July 2008)
  13. ^ 1998 French Singles Chart Disqueenfrance.com (Retrieved 29 July 2008)
  14. ^ "Les Certifications depuis 1973" (in French). Infodisc.fr. Retrieved 29 March 2012id=To access, user must select "Queen" in the search bar and click "OK".. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  15. ^ "British certifications – Queen – We Are the Champions". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 29 March 2012. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type We Are the Champions in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  16. ^ Grein, Paul (24 September 2010). "Chart Watch Extra: Songs From The Last Century". Nielsen Business Media. Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  17. ^ "American certifications – Queen – We Are the Champions". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  18. ^ Steffen Hung. "Queen Dance Traxxx" germancharts.com.
  19. ^ J.B.O - Laut! Musik Sammler.de
  20. ^ "Soundtrack for "A Knight's Tale". Internet Movie Database.
  21. ^ Das Oath - Uber Alles Terminal Nation.
  22. ^ "We Are the Champions" by Jean-Sébastien Lavoie, French and Swiss singles charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved 29 July 2008)
  23. ^ Killer Queen: A Tribute to Queen Allmusic. Retrieved 11 July 2011
  24. ^ "We Are the Champions (Ding a Dang Dong)", in various singles charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved 16 December 2007)
  25. ^ The Rick Rubin Remixes Ultimate Queen. Retrieved 11 July 2011
  26. ^
  27. ^ Live 8 accounts: Berlin BBC. Retrieved 11 July 2011
  28. ^ Kaufman, Gil (20 May 2009). "Kris Allen, Adam Lambert Tear Up Queen's 'We Are The Champions' – News Story | Music, Celebrity, Artist News | MTV News". MTV. Retrieved 16 March 2012.
  29. ^ 'The Voice': Christina Aguilera, Blake Shelton, Adam Levine, Cee Lo Green Perform Queen Medley The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 16 March 2012
  30. ^ "Glee: The Music, The Graduation Album". Official Music for Glee. Columbia Records. Retrieved 18 May 2012
  31. ^ Mickey Sports Songs Allmusic. Retrieved 11 July 2011
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