Tom: “Huh,” I thought as I waited in a cafe, “is that a Queen track I haven’t heard before?”
Tom: Yes, it is.
Tim: Huh. How?
Tom: It’s a previously unreleased track that was recorded in 1983, and left off their eleventh album, the Works. This track nearly sat alongside Radio Ga Ga, I Want To Break Free, and Hammer to Fall.
Instead, it languished for thirty years, and has now been remastered to promote their new compilation album.
Tim: I see. And it’s not that bad, actually.
Tom: Yes, it’s still recognisably a Queen track, and every one of the band members is as good as they ever were: but it’s clearly an album track, and not one of the best at that.
Tim: Hmm. I find it starts out very strong, but sort of…drifts off a little, and that strong start might just have been the novelty of it.
Tom: Every band has the tracks they leave off the album; very few can get them onto radio playlists thirty years later. There’s something to be said for that: but personally, I’ll probably be playing Hammer to Fall a few more times before I hear this.