(Hurrah! A Queen review, just like it says on the tin…)
John Deacon’s second single and perhaps one of Queen’s lesser-known ones. Which is a shame; I’ve always had a soft spot for this song and recent re-hearings have only heightened that. It’s not flash or fancy, there’s less overdubs on it than before and the whole thing has room to breathe and live, without being suffocated by yet another layer of guitar from Mr May.
Of course, News of the world really marks the beginnings of Queen’s move away from the intense, heavy, overlayered sound that marked their first five albums, a move that represents a move away from the certainty of a sound they knew how to make, to explore new, unfamiliar terrain. It’s a move that would see them reach some very strange places (see Hot Space - but only if you have to), before they’d attempt something of a return to their roots in the 80s. Of course, exploration of other styles was always a Queen trait, as shown on their last two albums especially, but the next few years would see them more consciously try to find a new style overall, rather than the one that people recognised as “Queen”.
As part of that, Spread your wings looks back and forward, in a way. Back, because many of the classic elements are there: Freddie’s piano setting the backbone of the song (John plays it in the video, but this is wrong); Brian’s overdubbed guitars - less, but still there; Roger’s drums still pounding away. Forward, because of the aforementioned “space” in the song and also the lyrics.
Queen didn’t do “story” songs - this is one of the few. And, to be honest, it’s not much of a story: Sammy is bored in his job of a sweeper at The Emerald Bar; he dreams of leaving and “nothing in this world, nothing would make him stay”… except his boss, who rubbishes his dreams of freedom and chides him for not doing his job properly. Queen, ever the optimists, play the voice of freedom, calling Sammy to make the break. But the story’s unresolved: does he leave and chase his dream? We never know.
It’s a slight story, but one perhaps people can connect with - how many people have got fed up with their jobs, but never quite had the guts to follow their dreams? Queen were never too bothered about making great statements (Freddie once compared their songs to disposable tissues) and this song doesn’t - but it does connect, which makes its relatively poor performance all the more mysterious.
(Interestingly, John would return to this theme on I want to break free, which sounds like a great anthem of freedom, but isn’t necessarily… but we’ll get there later. And that was a hit).
Overall, this is a goodie: a bright, optimistic song, not earth-shattering, but saying something people can sort of relate to. Freddie sings it for all its worth (he called it “a real singer’s song”), as he always did, and overall you come away smiling. Perhaps Sammy did leave the Emerald Bar after all. 7
Video: We’re back in Roger’s garden. It’s still cold (see We will rock you). The band perform the song and get cold. Freddie and Roger mime really badly. What’s more interesting is if you get to see any of the “making of” footage. The director forgets who Brian is, referring to him only as “the guitarist”. Freddie decides the only answer to the cold is to get drunk, leading to the director asking someone to ask him to put the whiskey bottle down. It’s not good.
