FLASH'S THEME

When Queen were offered the 'Flash Gordon' project, they did it as a collection of individual efforts, most of them synth-based. There wasn't much group participation, except for Freddie's Football Fight and the two main tracks that Brian wrote: The Hero and this one.

Still, this one features May doing almost everything: he plays guitar, piano and synthesiser, sings backing vocals and takes over the lead at the end. The song's very simple and at the same time quite May-estic.

General Information:

Music & Lyrics by: Brian May
Arranged by: Brian May
Written: 1980
Length: 3:22
Released on: 8th December 1980

Produced by: Brian May & Reinhold Mack
Mixed by: Reinhold Mack
Engineered by: Reinhold Mack & Alan Douglas

Recorded: October - November 1980
Recorded at: Townhouse Studios, 150 Goldhawk Rd, London, UK

Keys: A Minor
Metre: 4/4
Form: Two-Bridge

Acoustic Drums: Roger Taylor
Electric Bass: John Deacon
Electric Guitar: Brian May
Acoustic Piano: Brian May
Analogue Synthesiser: Brian May

Lead Vocals: Freddie Mercury & Brian May
Backing Vocals: Roger Taylor, Freddie Mercury & Brian May

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Form:

Spacer (10)
Chorus
Spacer (4)
Chorus
Spacer (11)
Chorus
Spacer (4)
Chorus'
Middle-Eight
Spacer (18)
Chorus
Spacer (4)
Chorus'
Middle-Eight'
Spacer (18)

One of the simplest in the Queen catalogue. The length of the spacer section alternates between 'x' and 4, always followed by a chorus. The use of long connectors over only the tonic chord wasn't new to Queen, as they had practised it at least once per album since 'Races': Somebody to Love (gospel interlude), Get Down Make Love (harmoniser interlude), Fat Bottomed Girls (album cut, after the first verse), Another One Bites the Dust (after the second chorus). Off-Queen examples include Pressure On (Roger Taylor), Bye Bye Bye (N'SYNC), Aserejé (Las Ketchup) and Gimme Gimme Gimme (ABBA).

Brian's piano hits the Am chord in some seemingly-random places: on the 4th beat of the second measure in the 11-bar spacer, 1st beat 9th measure in the last spacer and at the very end, taking advantage of the extra-octave large Bösendorfer's have.

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Harmony:

Chorus
Chord
Am
Am
G/A
G/A
Function
i
i
VII
VII
Chord
F/A
D
A/C#
D
G/B
Function
VI
IV
V-IV
IV
VII
Chorus'
Chord
Am
Am
G/A
G/A
Function
i
i
VII
VII
Chord
F/A
D
A/C#
D
A/C#
D
G/B
Function
VI
IV
V-IV
IV
V-IV
IV
VII
Middle-Eight
Chord
C
G/B
Function
III
VII
Chord
Dm
A/C#
Function
iv
V-iv
Chord
F
C/E
F
D/F#
G
E/G#
Function
VI
III
VI
IV
VII
V
Middle-Eight'
Chord
C
G/B
C
G/B
Function
III
VII
III
VII
Chord
Dm
A/C#
Dm
A/C#
Function
iv
V-iv
iv
V-iv
Chord
F
C/E
F
D/F#
G
E/G#
Function
VI
III
VI
IV
VII
V
Chord
Am
G
F
F
Function
i
VII
VI
VI

Only eight chords: all diatonic functions except for "v" and all three major chords of the parallel. Note that having minor keys avoiding "v" was a formula used several times by Roger (Tenement Funster), Brian ('39, Who Wants to Live Forever, Being On My Own) and Freddie (You Take My Breath Away, It's a Hard Life, Love Kills, Love Me Like There's No Tomorrow).

Brian cleverly expanded the chorus and bridge sections. Further examples in his oeuvre include Teo Torriatte (intro expanded into verse), The Prophet's Song (intro expanded into chorus) and One Vision (intro expanded into bridge). We can also mention Avril Lavigne's recent hit, When You're Gone.

The IV > V/IV > IV > VII progression is reminiscent of John Dowland (e.g. What If I Never Speed?).