Quotes related to 'Sheer Heart Attack' from 'News Of The World' album

We came up with the title for the 'Sheer Heart Attack' album, and it was a song that I had an idea for, but I hadn't actually finished the song yet. By the time I had finished the song we were two albums later, so it just struggled out on the 'News Of The World' album. It's quite interesting because we were making an album next-door to a punk band, the Sex Pistols, and it really fit into that punk explosion that was happening at the time, which was happening right then. It was actually better that it happened that it came out on the 'News Of The World' album.

Roger Taylor; The Making of Innuendo, Rockline 04 Feb. 1991 #

We've just (at the time of writing), finished the new album (title of the moment News of the World). It's been exhausting but quicker than usual (about 2 ½ months) and is quite different to the last two. If any parallels were drawn I would say it's more like Sheer Heart Attack than any of the others, but it's very fresh sounding to my jaded ears. One of my own songs on the album is in fact called Sheer Heart Attack and was written in essence, at the time of that album, but was never properly finished and consequently didn't get on it. Anyway judge for yourselves now!

Roger Taylor; letter to the Fan Club, 12th of September 1977 #

You'll probably recognise the title, as it's the same as our third album. It should have been on that album, but I couldn't finish writing it in time, but it is finished now. It's quite an energetic up-tempo track.

Roger Taylor; EMI Italy, October 1977 #

It was written in essence, not completely, wasn't finished at the time of recording Sheer Heart Attack, but really we didn't have room, and it wasn't quite finished and for a number of reasons it didn't get on, and now it lives again, and actually I'm quite pleased with it, it's really pure energy, and it's one of my contributions to the new album.

Roger Taylor; BBC Radio One, 26th of December 1977 #

Our separate identities do come to the fore on this album, on which every cut is completely different from the one before it and there's no concept at all. Apart from each having contributed two tracks to the album, Roger and John have been much more involved in the playing. Roger plays rhythm guitar on some of his cuts which makes sense, because he had a better idea of how he wanted it to go. John plays acoustic guitar on one of his as well. I played maracas on it. While we may not do it that way on stage, in the studio that makes more sense.

Roger Taylor; Circus, January 1978 #

John keeps a very close eye on our business affairs. He knows everything that's going on and shouldn't be going on. If God forsakes us now the rest of the group won't do anything unless John says it's all right. Roger is very important to us in a different way. He's always been an out-and-out rock & roll fan with no time to stop and think about music and that's very good for us. Instinct. He's also the one who is most aware of facets in music, and that's essential in the band. If you listen to Sheer Heart Attack on the new album you'll see what we mean. It sounds like a punk, or new wave song, but it was written at the same time of the Sheer Heart Attack LP. He played it to us then but it wasn't quite finished and he didn't have time to complete it before we started recording. That was three years ago and now almost all these records you hear are like that period. He was into punk for a long time, but he's tired of it.

Freddie Mercury; Circus, January 1978 #

Roger had done a demo, and our usual practice was to use the demo's as a bed for the final track. Roger had sung it all, but the decision was made to get Freddie to the job for the record. Roger was keen that Freddie sing it pretty much like the demo to retain the (kind of Punkspoof?) atmosphere. Freddie didn't find it that easy since it wasn't his natural style. But it's Freddie you hear doing the verses - double tracked. However Roger's voice is there in odd lines, joining in on “Hey hey hey”, and “'ticulate”, and the choruses are, I think, all of us, but with Roger up front – the demo versions dominating – in fact it sounds to me like ALL Roger in the choruses in the mix now I listen to it… So it's a nice little melange you have there....  Of course it was a tour de force for Freddie live - it brought out his destructive side!!!! I also enjoyed it live – nice to go flat out and uncompromisingly heavy at the end of the show. Strangely enough it was Roger who would wince when someone suggested Sheer Heart Attack as an extra encore - it was totally draining for him to keep up that pattern, especially when we got into it and it got more and more extended in our enthusiasm. Taylor Hawkins from the Foo's cites SHA as one of his favourite tracks – and even he recognises the physical commitment it takes!!

Brian May; Official Website, 10th of April 2003 #

Sheer Heart Attack was really all about attitude. It was tapping very much into the punk ethos. It's a thrash. It was about the sheer frustration of being inarticulate and not being able to express your rage, I guess. It was meant to be about a teenager. I'd written some of the song a few years earlier during the period we were working on the Sheer Heart Attack album, but we hadn't recorded it properly. So I think I demoed it, and we didn't record Sheer Heart Attack until a couple of albums later.

Roger Taylor; Goldmine, 2015 #

I always liked Sheer Heart Attack. I started the song when we were doing the Sheer Heart Attack album, but didn't get ‘round to finishing it. By the time I did, punk had come along. But the song came before punk. Foo Fighters do a good version. Sheer Heart Attack sounds like a Foo Fighters song.

Roger Taylor; Mojo, July 2019 #