Surround Sound Mixes

This page lists details of the tracks which have been remixed into 5.1 Surround Sound, for release on standard DVD's and DVD-Audio discs. It only includes details of tracks which have significant remixing, with different elements coming through different channels, and where applicable, the DTS mix has been used.

There are a number of DVD's which feature 5.1 surround sound, but their content does not seem to differ significantly from normal. For these there are minor changes but these are not worth mentioning. Unfortunately due to region coding I have been unable to check the USA 'We Will Rock You' DVD, and The Immortal Edition of 'Highlander', but I would imagine that the same applies to these.

In summary, this page includes details of the surround sound mixes found on 'Greatest Video Hits I', 'Greatest Video Hits II', 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs', and the DVD-Audio releases of 'A Night At The Opera' and 'The Game'.

In the descriptions given below, a 'straight' vocal refers to a normally sung, non-harmonied vocal.

Queen Tracks:

Freddie Mercury Tracks:

'39
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses all of the acoustic guitar, retaining only the straight vocals, percussion and double bass. As a result, there are a few silent sections.
Front: Seems identical to normal, although some of the harmonied vocals are lost.
Rear: The acoustic guitar at the start is less prominent, and some of the guitar, straight vocals and drums are less prominent.

A Kind Of Magic
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Drums seem more prominent, while some of Brian's guitar and the keyboards are lost
Rear: Drums are less prominent (and sound different), while some of Brian's guitar and the backing vocals are more prominent.

Some of Brian's guitar solo is mixed so that it travels around the various speakers.

Another One Bites The Dust
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I' and 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses the guitar, harmonied vocals, handclaps and 'earthquake' effects. As a result the mix sounds a lot more basic.
Front: Features some new stereo effects, but otherwise very similar to normal.
Rear: Loses the bass, harmonied vocals, handclaps, and some of the guitar, and also has some stereo effects.

The centre channel for the mix on 'Greatest Video Hits I' is silent.

Back Chat
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is the single version of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Includes only Brian's guitar solo from about 1:52 to 2:18, and a couple of jangly guitar sounds later in the track.
Front: Loses all of the 'back chat, back chat' vocals. Brian's guitar is also much quieter or missing from many places, but his solo from 2:18 to 2:32 is still present. There are some other changes too but these are the most noticeable.
Rear: The bass and straight vocals are quieter, but the 'back chat, back chat' vocals are louder. The drums are also quieter (except the solo), but the cymbals are still present. Some of Brian's guitar is also removed.

Bicycle Race
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Quite similar to normal, but the piano is louder, some vocals are lost, the harmonied vocals are quieter, and the entire bell-ringing section is lost.
Rear: Loses most of the piano, and Freddie's straight vocals are less prominent. Also, some of the vocals are missing at various points, and the drums sound different.

In this mix, Brian's solo travels between the two channels.

Body Language
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Some of Freddie's vocals are more prominent, while the synthesised effects and handclaps are less prominent (although the fingerclicks are still there).
Rear: Handclaps and cymbals are more prominent, and some of the percussion effects are lost.

Bohemian Rhapsody
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I' and on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.
As the song has so many elements, I have divided it up into four sections and described the mixing for each part:
Part One: (the introduction to the track, upto 'Anyway the wind blows, doesn't really matter to me, to me')
Centre: Retains the bass and some of the straight vocals only.
Front: Some of the vocals are quieter while the piano is louder. Some harmonied vocals are lost.
Rear: Contains very little piano, the straight vocals are quieter and the harmonied vocals are louder.
Part Two: (the verses of the song, from 'Mama, just killed a man' to 'I sometimes which I'd never been born at all')
Centre: Loses the piano and harmonied vocals, retaining the drums, bass and guitars. The straight vocals are still present but less prominent.
Front: Loses some of the harmonied vocals and guitar but retains the solo.
Rear: Similar to normal but loses all piano. There are also other minor changes.
Part Three: (the opera and rock section, from 'I see a little silhouetto of a man' to 'Just gotta get right outta here')
Centre: Loses the guitar, piano and harmonied vocals, so retains only the straight vocals, bass and drums. The vocal is lost from the rock section.
Front: Some piano is lost while the rest of the music is the same. Some harmonied vocals are lost and the rock section includes all it's vocals.
Rear : Loses the piano in some places, while some harmonied vocals and most of the guitars are lost. The rock section loses it's vocals, and is very piano-orientated.
Part Four: (the closing part of the track, from 'Ooooh, ooooh, ooooh, oooh yeah, oooh yeah' onwards)
Centre: Loses all piano, guitar and harmonied vocals, leaving only the drums, bass and straight vocals.
Front: Similar to normal, but the guitar is more prominent.
Rear: Loses the piano and some of the guitar, and 'anyway the wind blows' is lost.

Breakthru'
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Drums and keyboards seem more prominent, while some of the guitar and backing vocals are less prominent.
Rear: Piano, drums, keyboards, some vocals and some guitar is less prominent, while the bass is removed.

Calling All Girls
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Contains most of Freddie's chorus vocals a-capella ('Love, take a message of love' and 'this message is' etc), and some other vocals, but none of the verse vocals. It also contains small parts of electric guitar.
Front: Loses some of the acoustic guitar and other effects, while the chorus vocals and some other vocals are far less prominent.
Rear: Drums are less prominent, and some of the vocals are quieter or lost completely. Some of the guitar is also quieter.

Coming Soon
Available on 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This mix features some different vocals to the original, as the original tracks were not available.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Retains only the drums and Freddie's straight vocals
Front: Retains the full music, straight vocals, and Brian's backing vocals, but loses Roger's vocals. The bass is also more prominent.
Rear: Retains the full music and Roger's backing vocals, but the straight vocals are less prominent.

Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I' and 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Very similar to normal, but the harmonied vocals are a lot less prominent and missing in some places.
Rear: The drums have a slightly different sound and are less prominent, and it loses the bass. The harmonied vocals are a lot more prominent.

Death On Two Legs (Dedicated To....)
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Contains Freddie's straight vocal, the bass and drums only, and some guitar at the start.
Front: Some of the guitar is lost in places, but some of Brian's solo is still present. Some harmonied vocals are also lost.
Rear: The piano and straight vocals are much quieter throughout, whilethe guitar is more prominent in places but quieter in others. Also, the harmonied vocals are more prominent.

Don't Stop Me Now
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: The piano is more prominent throughout, while the harmonied vocals are much quieter (and missing in some places).
Rear: The piano and bass throughout are much quieter, while the harmonied vocals are more prominent. As a result, Freddie's opening and closing vocals are almost a-capella, while the rest of the track sounds very different.

Don't Try Suicide
Available on 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Contains the straight vocal and bass only, with two guitar bursts towards the end.
Front: No piano, and features less prominent guitar (and in some places none at all). It also loses all of Brian's solos.
Rear: Loses the bass and hand claps (but retains drums), and the piano and Brian's solo are very prominent.

Dragon Attack
Available on 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses a lot of the guitar and some drums. Some of the bass is more prominent.
Front: More prominent drums and harmonied vocals, and the bass is less prominent in places. Some of the drums are lost.
Rear: The bass is less prominent, and loses some harmonied vocals and guitar

Fat Bottomed Girls
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is a unique version of the track, containing the single version which then segues into the end of the album version.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Although similar to normal, the guitar seems more prominent, and the harmonied vocals slightly less prominent. The very last drum blast is missing (although the bass is intact).
Rear: The track loses all guitar until 1:45, leaving just the vocals, drums and bass. The guitar after this point is less prominent and in some places different to the front channel.

Flash
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Includes only two excerpts of film dialogue, both from the news reports ("seemingly there is no reason for these extraordinary intergalactical upsets. Only Dr Hans Zarkoff, formerly of NASA, has provided any explanation" and "this morning's unprecedented solar eclipse is no cause for alarm")
Front: Very similar to normal, but loses the two film excerpts mentioned above, and Ming's laughter.
Rear: The track starts on the first 'Flash', but some of the vocals are quieter. The main beat of the song is also quieter in places, and it loses the film excerpts that comes through the centre channel.

The film sound effects of weapons are mixed so that they travel between the front and rear speakers.

Friends Will Be Friends
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is the video version of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Similar to normal, but some of the guitar, harmonied and crowd vocals are less prominent.
Rear: Drums, bass and keyboards are less prominent, while the harmonied vocals and some of the guitar are more prominent. The drums also sound slightly different too.

God Save The Queen
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.
DVD-Audio Version:
Centre: Appears to be the same as the normal version
Front: Appears to be the same as the normal version
Rear: The opening and closing drums seem more prominent, while the drums in the middle appear to be less prominent. Also, the cymbals are quieter, and some of the guitar travels between the left and right channels.
30th Anniversary DVD Version:
Centre: Contains only the cymbals
Front: Appears to be the same as the normal version
Rear: Contains the opening drums, and it is then silent until about 0:25. The cymbals seem generally quieter, and some of the guitar is more prominent than normal.

Good Company
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Contains only the vocals (except the 'all through the years' verse), drums and bass.
Front: Similar to the normal version, but loses some lead guitar and 'guitar jazz band' from some sections.
Rear: Straight vocals and acoustic guitar are less prominent, while the electric guitar and 'guitar jazz band' are more prominent. The acoustic guitar is completely lost from the instrumental break.

Hammer To Fall
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is the single version of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Includes some of the 'candy-floss' noises and some of Brian's guitar solo only.
Front: Loses most of Brian's guitar solo, but otherwise very similar to normal.
Rear: Most of the drums are less prominent, and it loses a lot of the guitar (including some of the solo) and audience noise. The straight vocals are also echoed. As a result of the changes it is a more basic mix.

I'm In Love With My Car
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Contains Roger's vocals, drums and bass only.
Front: Roger's vocals are more prominent but the harmonied vocals are less prominent. The jangly guitar also seems more prominent, and at about 1:20 there seems to be a banjo (I think) which is far more prominent than normal. The very end includes just the guitar and no engine noises.
Rear: Roger's vocals are not as prominent, but the harmonied vocals are more prominent. There is also no guitar right at the end, while the engine noises are still present.

It's A Hard Life
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses the piano and guitar and only retains the vocals, drums and bass (but they are barely audible). However Brian's solo is intact (again very quiet) although two bursts are at normal volume.
Front: Loses some of Brian's guitar, and backing vocals are less prominent (and some are lost).
Rear: Loses all of the piano, and backing vocals seem more prominent. Most of Brian's guitar seems more prominent.

I Want It All
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is the single version of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Similar to normal, but Brian's guitar is lost from some places,
Rear: Harmonied vocals are less prominent in places, while the guitar is lost from some places (including most of the solo). Also, the drums have a different sound.

I Want To Break Free
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is the single version of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Includes only two short bursts of guitar, then at the very end some of the keyboard/synthesiser effects.
Front: The straight vocal and seems to have a slight echo, as does the synthesiser solo in the middle. It also loses most of the guitars.
Rear: The drums are a lot less prominent, and have a different sound. The bass is quite prominent, and the harmonied vocals seem more prominent. The synthesiser solo is also much quieter.

In places the guitars are mixed so that they travel around the speakers.

Killer Queen
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Similar to normal, but a lot of the lead guitar is lost and some harmonied vocals are lost or quieter. The piano is also quieter in places.
Rear: The opening finger clicks are missing, so the track starts with the vocals. The straight vocals and bass are a lot less prominent, some of the lead guitar is lost. and some harmonied vocals sound different.

Las Palabras De Amor (The Words Of Love)
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Backing vocals are quieter while the drums are louder. Brian's guitar is much louder in some places, but quieter in others.
Rear: The backing vocals are more prominent, while Brian's lead guitar is also quieter in some places. Some of the strings are also quieter.

Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: This mix loses all of the piano and harmonied vocals, leaving the drums, bass, and guitar only. Freddie's straight vocals are also more prominent.
Front: The piano, harmonied vocals and guitar are very quiet, and the drums and bass are slightly more prominent.
Rear: The piano is a lot more prominent, but the drums and straight vocals are less prominent.

Love Of My Life
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Retains only the vocals, drums, bass, and harp at the end. Much of the track is silent.
Front: Quite similar to the album version, but it loses all harmonied vocals
Rear: Piano is much quieter (and in some places absent), and it also loses most of the guitar and bass, and some of the harmonied vocals. Most of the track is almost a-capella.

Need Your Loving Tonight
Available on 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Retains only the drums, bass and vocals, but the vocals are far more prominent. The only guitar is Brian's solo, but this is much heavier than can be heard in the original.
Front: Similar to the normal version, but the rhythm guitar seems more prominent, and most harmonied vocals are lost.
Rear: A much more basic mix, losing some of the rhythm guitar, and bass. The harmonied vocals are also more prominent.

One Vision
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is the single version of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Loses some of the lead guitar, while some of the backing vocals are less prominent.
Rear: Most of the introductory music is much quieter, and the guitar is more prominent in places, but missing from others. Also, the keyboards and some of the other effects are less prominent, and some of the echoed vocals are missing. The changes mean the track sounds very different in places.

Play The Game
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I' and 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.
'Greatest Video Hits I' version:
Centre: Silent
Front: Similar to normal, but some of the guitar is lost or less prominent. The guitar solo is lost completely.
Rear: Similar to normal, but the backing vocals seem more prominent, and the drums have a slightly different sound. Some of the synthesised effects are less prominent.
'The Game' version:
Centre: Includes Freddie's straight vocal only, some of Brian's solo, and very quiet bass, giving an almost a-capella version.
Front: Freddie's straight vocals are less prominent (barely audible), but the harmonied backing vocals are still present. A lot of the guitar is also lost, including all of the solo.
Rear: Virtually identical to the 'Greatest Video Hits I' rear mix, but the vocals are slightly more prominent and there are changes to the synthesized effects in places.

Princes Of The Universe
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Similar to normal, but in some places the backing vocals and Brian's guitar are either lost or less prominent.
Rear: Loses some vocals and a lot of guitar, and some of the percussion from the fast part towards the end. As a result, parts of the track sound very different.

Radio Ga Ga
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Very similar to normal, but loses some of the synthesised effects. During the chorus, the drums seem to have a slight echo.
Rear: Drums and synthesisers are far less prominent, so the vocals, keyboards, bass and guitar dominate, giving a more basic mix. Brian's guitar towards the end seems more prominent, and the vocals also have a slight echo throughout.

Rock It (Prime Jive)
Available on 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Contains the bass, drums, straight vocals, and some lead guitars only. The intro section does not include any guitar.
Front: Straight vocals and bass are more prominent, but the guitar and harmonied vocals are less prominent, and it loses Brian's solo.
Rear: Straight vocals are less prominent throughout, and the guitar and harmonied vocals seem more prominent.

Some of the sound effects are mixed so they appear through various channels.

Sail Away Sweet Sister (To The Sister I Never Had)
Available on 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is possibly the best of all the remixes.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: The piano is lost, while the bass, drums and vocals are less prominent. Freddie's vocal and parts of the guitar are far more prominent. A lot of Brian's guitar sounds quite different to the album version.
Front: The bass seems more prominent than normal, and most of the guitar is lost. Freddie's vocals are less prominent,
Rear: The piano and bass is much less prominent, and Brian's vocals seem to have a phased effect in places. Most of the guitar is present, although some parts are lost.

Save Me
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I' and 'The Game'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Similar to normal, but the harmonied vocals and a lot of the guitar are lost.
Rear: Loses all piano, making the opening vocals a-capella, and the harmonied vocals are more prominent. Some of the acoustic guitar towards the end of the track is lost.

Scandal
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Loses some of the backing vocals (not all) and some of the synthesised effects
Rear: Drums are noticeably different, and some of the synthesised effects are more prominent, while Brian's guitar solo is a lot quieter.

Seaside Rendezvous
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses a lot of the piano, the harmonised vocals and most of the 'vocal orchestrations'. Also, in places, some of Freddie's straight vocals are lost.
Front: Harmonised vocals are a lot less prominent while the piano is more prominent. The 'vocal orchestration of brass' seems to be quieter (I think)
Rear: Loses the bass and a lot of the piano, and the 'vocal orchestrations of woodwind' are absent (I think). The harmonied vocals are also louder.

The surround sound mix contains some elements that are not present (or at least, not obviously present) in the original stereo mix. Also, the original DVD-Audio version features tapping at about 2:09 (in the rear mix), which is not present on any other versions. Apart from this, the mixes are identical.

Somebody To Love
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Harmonied vocals are almost inaudible, but the piano is much more prominent.
Rear: Straight vocals and guitar are less prominent than normal, and the piano is almost inaudible. The drums also sound different.

Spread Your Wings
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Original mix 'upmixed' by Justin Shirley-Smith and Tim Young.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Seems identical to the album version.
Front: Seems identical to the album version. The guitar may be quieter in some places, but any changes are only minor.
Rear: Loses all vocals, and there are a few other minor changes.

Sweet Lady
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Retains only the drums, bass, and straight vocals, and the lead guitars towards the end.
Front: Some of the lead guitar and harmonied vocals are lost.
Rear: Guitars are absent from the start, but the rest of the track has much more prominent guitar. It retains most of the harmonied (and no straight) vocals. This means it is almost a karaoke version.

The Invisible Man
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is the video version of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Includes around 20 seconds of Brian's guitar solo only.
Front: Similar to normal, but some of Brian's guitar is lost (although his solo is still intact). Roger's solo towards the end is also less prominent.
Rear: Loses the strange noises at the start, and the drums have a different sound. It also loses John's bass solo, most of Brian's solo, and there are some other changes too.

The Miracle
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Similar to normal, but in places the guitar, keyboards and harmonied vocals are less prominent.
Rear: The piano is lost, Freddie's vocals are less prominent in places, and the drums and bass are more prominent.

The Prophet's Song
Available on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
The two DVD's feature an identical surround sound mix, but the version on the DVD-Audio disc adds about eleven seconds of wind at the very start of the track.
Click here for the original song details.
As the song has so many elements, I have divided it up into three sections and described the mixing for each part:
Part One: (the start of the song, upto 'Should death await you')
Centre: Straight vocals are louder and some harmonied vocals are missing. Only the drums are retained, which means the opening vocals are mostly a-capella. The harp at the start is also lost.
Front: Includes the full backing, straight vocals and some harmonied vocals. Some guitar is lost, but the harp at the start is kept.
Rear: Straight vocals are quieter and some of the guitar is more prominent. Some of the harmonied vocals are louder but some are quieter. Small parts of the harp at the start are retained.
Part Two: (the middle 'echo' part of the song, from 'Aaah, people can you hear me' until 'listen to the mad, listen to the mad man')
Centre: Silent
Front: Appears to be the same as normal
Rear: Again, the same as normal, but the stereo channels are reversed.
Part Three: (the closing part of the song, from 'God give you grace to purge this place')
Centre: Retains the vocals, bass and drums, but no guitar, harmonied vocals or the harp at the end.
Front: Some of the lead guitar is lost and there are no harmonied vocals. The outro includes all of the harp.
Rear: The drums are quieter and some of the guitar is lost. Straight vocals are quieter, while the harmonied vocals are much louder. Small parts of the harp at the end are retained.

Tie Your Mother Down
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent.
Front: Similar to normal, but there are a few stereo effects applied. Roger's backing vocals also seem more prominent, while some of Freddie's vocals seems to be echoed or multi-tracked.
Rear: Straight vocals are less prominent, while the harmonied vocals are more prominent. Some of the guitar is also quieter, and Brian's guitar solo is lost.

Under Pressure
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Keyboards are less prominent, while the drums are more prominent. Brian's lead guitar and some vocals are also less prominent.
Rear: Lead vocals seem slightly quieter while the backing vocals are louder. The keyboards and piano are also far more prominent, while Brian's jangly guitar is lost from some places.

We Are The Champions
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Piano is more prominent than normal, while the guitar is far less prominent, and some of the harmonied vocals are lost.
Rear: The piano and drums are less prominent, while the guitar is more prominent, and some harmonied vocals are lost.

We Will Rock You
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Identical to normal, but the chorus vocals are less prominent.
Rear: Identical to normal, but Freddie's straight vocals are less prominent.

Who Wants To Live Forever
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits II'.
Produced by Justin Shirley-Smith. This is the single version of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Silent
Front: Seems very similar to normal, but some backing vocals are less prominent. Some of the drums sound different aswell.
Rear: Some of the vocals seem quieter, and some of the orchestra is more prominent. In places the guitar is louder while in others it is quieter (including the solo). Some of the drums are also quieter, while Roger's backing vocals towards the end are more prominent.

You're My Best Friend
Available on 'Greatest Video Hits I' and on the 'A Night At The Opera' DVD Audio and 30th Anniversary DVD.
Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Brian May.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses all piano, guitar, and most harmonied vocals, and the bass seems more prominent. As a result it is a very drum orientated track.
Front: Loses most of the harmonied vocals, but otherwise very similar to normal.
Rear: Straight vocals are less prominent, while harmonied vocals, and some piano, is more prominent.

Barcelona (single version)
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by David Richards and Peter Cobbin.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses most of the piano from the slow sections, and also the harmonied vocals throughout. Some other vocals are also lost, and there are other minor changes.
Front: Seems identical to the normal version.
Rear: The slow piano and vocal sections are much quieter, and the straight vocals are generally much less prominent.

The bells at the start of the track are mixed so that they travel around the various speakers.

Barcelona (live)
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by David Richards and Peter Cobbin.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Vocals are more prominent (some are lost), and the piano, audience, and fireworks are a lot less prominent.
Front: Sounds very similar to normal.
Rear: Vocals and piano are a lot less prominent. The fireworks and audience seem more prominent.

How Can I Go On? (live)
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by David Richards and Peter Cobbin.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Most of the music is much quieter, leaving the vocals, bass and fingerclicking far more dominant. As a result, this is an almost a-capella version.
Front: The vocals are less prominent, but the rest seems similar to normal.
Rear: The vocals and some of the orchestral music are less prominent. The vocals also seem slightly echoed in places.

In My Defence
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by Dave Clark. This is the 2000 Remix of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Vocals, drums and guitars are more prominent. This gives the mix a very basic feel.
Front: Seems very similar to normal.
Rear: Vocals and drums are far less prominent, and the guitar is very dominating.

The version on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' contains several quotes from Freddie at the start and end of the track which come through the Centre channel. These quotes are not present on any of the channels for the mix on 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs', but apart from this they seem identical.

I Was Born To Love You
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by Mack.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Piano and keyboards are far less prominent (and in some places not present), and the bass is more prominent. Some of the synthesisers are also missing.
Front: The vocals and drums are slightly less prominent, so piano chords are also louder while some are quieter. There may also be some other minor changes.
Rear: Vocals are less prominent, and the volume of some piano chords also changes. Some of the keyboards also sound slightly different.

Many of the disco effects are mixed so that they travel around the different speakers.

Living On My Own (original version)
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by Paul Hicks.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: A more basic mix (especially the drums), with the vocals, drums and bass more prominent than the other elements. It also loses most of the piano.
Front: Similar to normal, but the drums have a different sound and some of the piano is lost. Again, this mix has a more basic feel.
Rear: Freddie's main straight vocal is much quieter (although some of the 'second' straight vocals are present), and it also loses most of the piano. The drums also have a different sound. Some of the synthesisers are also more prominent.

Living On My Own (1993 radio remix)
Available on 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Upmixed by Kris Fredrikkson.
Click here for the original remix details.

Centre: Not radically different, the percussion, bass and vocals are more prominent, while some synths and keyboards are quieter.
Front: Very similar to the normal version.
Rear: Vocals are quieter and echoed while some of the bass, keyboards and synths are missing. The percussion has a different feel to it, and you can also hear other drums (possibly bongos) in the background, which give the track a very different feel.

Made In Heaven
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by Mack.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses the warming up noises at the start and the audience noise at the end, while the bass is more prominent and the piano and orchestra are less prominent (barely audible).
Front: Seems very similar to normal, the most noticeable difference is that the orchestra is much quieter.
Rear: Loses the warming up noises at the start, and the vocals are less prominent (they also seem slightly echoed). The synthesisers also seem quieter.

The Golden Boy (live)
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by David Richards and Peter Cobbin.
Click here for the original song details

Centre: Most of the music and the choir vocals are far quieter, but the percussion is present, so the track is almost a-capella.
Front: Seems identical to normal, although the choir vocals seem louder.
Rear: Straight vocals are far less prominent, but the choir vocals are more prominent.

The Great Pretender (single version)
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by David Richards and Peter Cobbin.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Most of the track retains only the vocals, drums and bass. There are also orchestral parts in some sections.
Front: Most vocals are far less prominent, while some are missing. The drums also have a different sound.
Rear: The drums are far less prominent, while most of the harmonied vocals are lost. The orchestral parts are also less prominent.

The Great Pretender (extended version)
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by David Richards and Peter Cobbin.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: In some sections, it contains only the vocals, drums and bass. Some of the orchestral parts are retained, but not many. It also retains the backstage comments.
Front: Vocals are less prominent, and it loses the backstage comments. The drums also have a different sound.
Rear: The harmonied vocals, bass and orchestral parts are far less prominent. The drums also sound different, and this mix loses the backstage comments.

Time
Available on 'The Freddie Mercury Video Collection' and 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs'.
Produced by Dave Clark. This is the 2000 Remix of the track.
Click here for the original song details.

Centre: Loses most of the harmonied vocals, and orchestral music, while the piano is quieter.
Front: Lead vocals are far less prominent, while the piano and some of the guitar are more prominent.
Rear: Freddie's straight vocals and drums are much quieter, while the harmonied vocals and some of the guitar are far more prominent.

Return to top | Legal Stuff | No Menu? | Bookmarkable link | File last modified: 02 May 2011