I'm in Love with My Car
| "I'm in Love with My Car" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| A-side | "Bohemian Rhapsody" |
"I'm in Love with My Car" is a song by the British rock band Queen, released on their fourth album A Night at the Opera in 1975. It is the album's only song written entirely by drummer Roger Taylor.
History
Taylor played the guitars in the original demo, but they were later rerecorded by May on his Red Special and Taylor also doubled on electric guitar in addition to drums.[1] The lead vocals were performed by Taylor on the studio version and all released live versions.[2] The revving sounds at the conclusion of the song were recorded by Taylor's then current car, an Alfa Romeo. The lyrics were inspired by one of the band's roadies, Johnathan Harris, whose Triumph TR4 was evidently the "love of his life".[3] The song is dedicated to him, with the liner notes mentioning, "Dedicated to Johnathan Harris, boy racer to the end".
When it came down to releasing the album's first single, Taylor was so fond of his song that he urged Freddie Mercury (author of the first single, "Bohemian Rhapsody") to allow it to be the B-side and locked himself in a cupboard until Mercury agreed.[4] This decision would later become the cause of much internal friction in the band, in that while it was only the B-side, it generated an equal amount of publishing royalties for Taylor as the main single did for Mercury simply because it was the B-side to "Bohemian Rhapsody".[3]
The song was often played live during the 1977–81 period. Taylor sang it from the drums while Mercury played piano and provided backing vocals. During the News of the World Tour, Mercury would often sing the chorus lines with Taylor.
The song was used in a 2004 advertisement for Jaguar.[5]
Reception
Music writer Tom Reynolds described the song as "seriously, one of the greatest and most passionate love songs I've heard during the last thirty-plus years".[6] AllMusic appreciated it as a "solid, hard hitting rocker" from Taylor. They observed, "The music lives up to the macho tone of the lyrics by matching up verses that swagger in a midtempo hard rock style", regarding it as an "album highlight".[7]
Personnel
- Roger Taylor – lead and backing vocals, drums, rhythm guitar[8]
- Freddie Mercury – piano, backing vocals
- Brian May – lead guitar, backing vocals
- John Deacon – bass guitar
References
- ^ "A Night At The Opera". Wueen songs. Retrieved 15 April 2018
- ^ I'm In Love With My Car UltimateQueen Retrieved 27 August 2011
- ^ a b Mark Blake, Is This the Real Life?: The Untold Story of Queen (Da Capo Press, 2013), ISBN 978-0306819735. Excerpts available at Google Books.
- ^ The Mojo Collection (4th ed.). Canongate Books. 2007. ISBN 9781847676436. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
- ^ "Queen Prepares To 'Rock' Again", Billboard, 16 July 2004.
- ^ Tom Reynolds, Touch Me, I'm Sick: The 52 Creepiest Love Songs You've Ever Heard (Chicago Review Press, 2008), ISBN 978-1556527531, p. 249. Excerpts available at Google Books.
- ^ "I'm in Love with My Car - Queen". AllMusic.
- ^ http://www.queensongs.info/album-analysis/a-night-at-the-opera
