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Credit: Far Out \/ LastFM<\/p>\n
Mon 22 June 2026 18:30, UK <\/p>\n
Most fans would agree that 1986 was the last time Queen<\/a> was swinging in their classic era.<\/p>\n They were classic rock survivors. Soldiering through punk and new wave\u2019s threat, soaking up the pop trends of the 1980s, and standing as MTV stars of the day with their cross-dressing \u2018I Want to Break Free\u2019 soap opera video, Queen managed to thrust their anthemic rock opera well into the new decade with ease.<\/p>\n Once Live Aid gave the call for their scene-stealing show in 1985, Freddie Mercury\u2019s powerhouse showboating on stage at Wembley Stadium had reestablished Queen\u2019s crown as the world\u2019s premier rock band.<\/p>\n They entered 1986 at the top of their game. Further albums would follow, but that year\u2019s A Kind of Magic was the last Queen LP to truly boast canonical band standards, being the title track and its \u2018One Vision\u2019 lead single. It was a soundtrack of sorts. Only six years after scoring the Flash Gordon space opera<\/a>, Queen were roped in to gift several songs for the Highlander action movie, following the titular Scottish clan warrior\u2019s immortal duelling to face off his ultimate challenger in contemporary New York.<\/p>\n Such fantasy fodder fuelled Queen\u2019s lyrical pen, as many as six tracks on A Kind of Magic appearing in the Highlander feature, albeit in revised forms, and prompting the band to cover a shortened version of \u2018Theme from New York, New York\u2019 specifically for the film, as well as \u2018Princes of the Universe\u2019 scoring the later TV series.<\/p>\n The movie\u2019s dialogue directly shaped the title track, too. Riffing off a line that Christopher Lambert\u2019s Connor MacLeod character delivers on his own immortality, drummer Roger Taylor began work<\/a> on \u2018A Kind of Magic\u2019, handling all lyrics and sketching out the initial melody and chords.<\/p>\n Trouble was, Mercury had other ideas. Much to Taylor\u2019s annoyance, a holiday break from the sessions promoted the Queen frontman and album co-producer, David Richards, to reassemble Taylor\u2019s Highlander tune as a more chart-friendly number, as they saw it, introducing a new bass line, shifting around the ordering, and adding some instrumental spacers. Mercury\u2019s \u2018A Kind of Magic\u2019 would feature on Queen\u2019s namesake album, while Taylor\u2019s original plays out during Highlander\u2019s end credits.<\/p>\n Further reading: From The Vault<\/p>\n Highlander would meet lacklustre returns at the box office but grow as a later cult picture on video, while A Kind of Magic would storm the charts as another Queen behemoth, striking number one and going on to sell at least six million in traditional physical and digital purchases. They\u2019d also mark their final iconic clobber, kicking off the global Magic Tour in June and unveiling Mercury\u2019s distinctive white trousers and yellow jacket onstage uniform.<\/p>\n
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<\/a> The Far Out Classic Rock Newsletter<\/p>\n