October 28, 1977. Queen‘s News of the World releases on the same day as Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols.
At first look, you probably couldn’t come up with two more disparate artists than Queen and The Sex Pistols. But these two albums are more closely related then you’d think. Yes, the two were released on the same day–that much is obvious. But Queen’s album is a near-direct response to the buzz that the Sex Pistols had been building over the previous year. And what the Sex Pistols were doing in the U.K. was a direct response to what the Ramones had been doing in the U.S. during the previous year.
In short, punk rock had invaded and was targeting every big player in the rock world. And bands like Queen, with their arena theatrics and progressive approach, were in the crosshairs. So what did Queen do? They ditched the symphony orchestra and ended up with a tight, rock-forward album that leads off with a one-two punch that, ironically, is an arena-rock staple to this day.
Is Queen’s ‘News of the World’ a Punk Album?
Even with the historical context, I’ll admit that it’s a bit of a stretch to call News of the World a punk album. As you’ll hear on a few of the tracks I’ve selected below, there’s certainly a punk spirit to what Queen were doing in the studio. Which makes sense, as musicians and the music they create is a product of the environment they’re creating it in. And while Queen never went completely punk, you wouldn’t be too far off calling “Sheer Heart Attack” their “punk” song.
Take a spin through a few News of the World selections, then dive into the list that the Sex Pistols debut that dropped on the same day made.
