‘Killer Queen’ was written by Freddie Mercury and appeared on their third album ‘Sheer Heart Attack’.
The band was formed in London. They are an example of a typical rock band line up:
- Freddie Mercury – vocals, piano
- Brian May – guitar
- John Deacon – bass guitar
- Roger Taylor – drum kit
The song reached number 2 in the British charts and earned Mercury his first Ivor Novello award (he received another for Bohemian Rhapsody). The song is about an upper-class prostitute. Unusually it begins with six finger clicks that continue into the song.
Melody
- Mainly syllabic
- Backing vocals use vocables (‘ah’ and ‘ooh’)
- Verses start with an anacrusis (upbeat)
- Melodies often rising by a major 6th
- Word-painting of the word ‘wild’
Harmony & tonality
- Song is in Eb major
- Begins in C minor. The key can be ambiguous.
- Diatonic
- Circle of fifths is used
Texture
- Mainly homophonic as it is melody and accompaniment
- Use of imitation and layering
- Polyphonic in verse 2
- Three-part texture during the guitar solo
Tempo, metre & rhythm
- Tempo is moderato at 112 bpm
- Time signature is 12/8 with occasional bars of 6/8
- Lots of syncopation
- Triplets in bar 17
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