Backtracking 1986: Queen's A Kind Of Magic

According to my scrobbles over the past fourteen years, A Kind Of Magic is the third most popular Queen album in my collection, behind The Game at number 2 and The Miracle at number 1. A Kind Of Magic was released in America on June 3, 1986, the day after its UK debut. The album had been preceded by the single "One Vision" in November 1985 and the singles "Princes Of The Universe" and "A Kind Of Magic" in March 1986.

To say I was primed, anticipating, and ready for A Kind Of Magic would be an understatement. It felt like I was the only Queen fan in my group of friends who loved the albums that followed The Game (1980) and Greatest Hits (1981). Everyone else bailed on Hot Space (1982), though fortunately, I found a girl to share The Works (1985) and all of its singles as they were released in real time. (That's her right over there working on a jigsaw puzzle.) We've been together for more than forty years, and today is the fortieth anniversary of A Kind Of Magic's release. I bought the album on vinyl on release day, then went back a couple of weeks later, after my next paycheck, to pick up the compact disc, which was a little more expensive, but it had three bonus tracks listed as Extra Magical Ingredients:

"A Kind of 'A Kind of Magic'" – "A Kind Of Magic" (Part 2)

"Friends Will Be Friends Will Be Friends..." – an extended version of "Friends Will Be Friends"

"Forever" – a piano instrumental of "Who Wants Live Forever"

For the album's fortieth anniversary, here are my exclusive track-by-track ratings of the nine songs from A Kind Of Magic:

9 "Princes Of The Universe"

One of seven singles released from A Kind Of Magic. Used as the opening theme of the film Highlander. Watching the film is the only time I hear the song, as I usually stop the album after the first eight songs. Reportedly, the song's title is taken from the film's original working title. Other Highlander trivia: Kurt Russell was initially attached to play the title role before his girlfriend Goldie Hawn talked him out of it. With his newfound freetime, Russell signed on to do Big Trouble in Little China.

8 "Gimme The Prize (Kurgan's Theme)"

One of the two songs, along with "Don't Lose Your Head", not released as a single from A Kind Of Magic. Freddie's vocals in this one have never appealed to me, and the dialogue inserts from Highlander would be more appropriate in a remix.

7 "Don't Lose Your Head"

Love May's guitar throughout this song and was surprised to find that it was the voice of Joan Armatrading saying "Don't Lose Your Head" a few times during the song. Other than that, this song sounds like a very generic '80s track to me. Even though the guitar is stripped from it, I prefer the "Princes of The Universe" B-side, an instrumental version entitled "A Dozen Red Roses For My Darling".

6 "Pain Is So Close To Pleasure"

Often described as a Motown-sounding song, I've always thought the song would have fit in with the rhythmic tracks on Hot Space. Freddie's falsetto grates on my ears.

5 "Friends Will Be Friends"

This one drew the critics' ire and the fans' love. It sounds like an updated "We Are The Champions" to these ears. The only issue is that classic tracks by their very nature don't need updating.

4 "One Year Of Love"

I really like this ballad and especially Freddie's vocals throughout. The string orchestra is appropriately sweeping and stirring, adding extra texture to an otherwise bare bones backing track. Tasty sax work, as well from Steve Gregory, the Careless Whisper guy. Once I heard there was a rare extended version of "One Year Of Love" only available on a CD packaged with a DVD version of Highlander, I was off on a quest. Today, this quest would have been a breeze, a few clicks and done. It was almost that easy in 2002: I worked at a video store and after one call to a local distributor, The Immortal Edition of Highlander, with a bonus three song CD, showed up two days later.

3 "Who Wants To Live Forever"

Used to great effect in Highlander to show Heather growing old and dying while Connor stayed exactly the same, "Who Wants To Live Forever" is a power ballad of the highest quality. Seal performed the song at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert after Mercury's passing in 1992, and the band later donated their version of the song to the Diana, Princess of Wales, Tribute album in 1997. I find the song more moving and touching than sad and fatalistic.

2 "A Kind Of Magic"

This song plays over the closing credits of Highlander. Compared to the version released on the A Kind Of Magic album, the version used in the film is almost funereal. (If you haven't seen the film, the so-called Highlander Version was released on the 2011 double-disc version of A Kind Of Magic. There's a demo version of "A Kind Of Magic" on that second disc as well if you really need to hear how the song evolved.) Whenever the album or extended version of "A Kind Of Magic" plays, its breezy, infectious rhythm puts a smile on my face. Freddie Mercury is in fine voice, and Brian May's guitar solo is divine; his riffs throughout A Kind Of Magic are among his best in this listener's opinion.

1 "One Vision"

On any given day, you could swap "A Kind Of Magic" and "One Vision" with one another on my list. I love listening to them both, though "One Vision" has the slight edge, scrobble-wise, as it has been played a few times more. The sound of "One Vision" was such a surprise when it came out, and I loved it. It was a little like when I first heard M's "Pop Muzik", a definite what-in-the-heck-is-this moment. Then I found the extended version on the twelve-inch single of "One Vision" with a dubbed version they titled "Blurred Vision" and it was game over. I won.

I definitely liked A Kind Of Magic back then more than I do now, but I cannot deny that, under the right emotional and atmospheric conditions, the top four songs on the album can trigger high levels of serotonin in this listener. On our 1-6 scale, A Kind of Magic was a solid five back in 1986; forty years later, it's a three. 

If my memory can be trusted (and it probably shouldn't be at this point), A Kind Of Magic was only the second Queen album to be released day-and-date on the swanky new compact disc format, after The Works in 1985. To take advantage of the occasion, Queen also issued most of their older albums across Europe in 1986, including Queen's Greatest Hits. The 1986 UK pressing of the latter album was just sitting on the counter loose (no security case like other import discs were shelved with) when I went to check out with A Kind Of Magic, waiting for my impulse buy. Didn't notice until I got it home that "Somebody To Love" is mispelled "Sombody To Love" on the tray card and the back of the booklet.

One more thing...

Though A Kind Of Magic was digitally recorded, mixed, and mastered, then released globally with a DDD SPARS code, my US disc has an erroneous ADD code.