Overview News of the World shows Queen's songwriting less dominated by Mercury and May than previously, with
Roger Taylor and
John Deacon composing two songs each. It has been classified as
hard rock and has been regarded as a transitional album due to its shift towards a more minimalist production.
Chuck Eddy said the album was widely regarded as a "back-to-basics" offering, minimising the group's more ornate and "multi-part-epic tendencies", with some even dubbing it Queen's response to punk rock. He added, however, that the record "sounds even more often like a response to
funk", citing "Fight from the Inside" and "Get Down, Make Love", as well as the "proto-
rap sparseness" of "We Will Rock You".
Side one "We Will Rock You" "We Will Rock You" () was released as the
B-side of "We Are the Champions", and became one of Queen's biggest songs worldwide as a staple of arena and stadium sets. It was a conscious decision by Brian May to make the song simple and
anthemic ('stomp, stomp, clap, pause' per 4/4 measure), so that their live audience could be more directly involved in the show. In the
videos for 'We Will Rock You' and 'Spread Your Wings', which shows the band performing in the snow in Roger Taylor's garden, May used a copy of his guitar. He supposedly did not want to submit his
Red Special to the weather. On 7 October 2017, Queen released a
Raw Sessions version of the track to celebrate the
40th anniversary of the release of
News of the World. It shows a radically different approach to the guitar solo and includes May's count-in immediately prior to the recording.
"We Are the Champions" . According to Freddie Mercury, "We Are the Champions" had already been written in 1975 but was not recorded until 1977. Released as a single with "We Will Rock You", "We Are the Champions" reached number two in the UK and number four in the US. "We Are the Champions" was the first promotional video for which fan club members were invited to participate in the filming. The video was filmed at the
New London Theatre on 6 October 1977. Everyone received a free single of "We Are the Champions", a day before the single was released. To thank the audience for their attendance and role in making the video, Queen performed a short free concert after the shoot. It is one of the band's most popular songs. On 7 October 2017, Queen released a
Raw Sessions version of the track to celebrate the
40th anniversary of the release of
News of the World. It was made from previously unheard vocal and instrumental takes from the original multi-track tapes. It also presents for the first time the original recorded length of the track, which is two choruses more than the 1977 edited single. According to Eddy, the song is the "most punk-sounding" Queen song, highlighting its "proto-
no-wave guitar solo and proto-
Devo lyrics blaming teenage angst on D.N.A. (i.e., nature not nurture)", and the "toppling-over-itself tempo" later reprised by
Prince's "own punkest song" "Sister" (1980). with Mercury on backing vocals. In an episode of
In the Studio with Redbeard, May confirmed rumours that the song is partly inspired by the death of his boyhood pet cat. On 27 October 2017, in celebration of the album's 40th Anniversary, Queen released a specially created "hybrid version" of the track with previously unheard lead vocals by Mercury. It was accompanied with an animated lyric video of a cat exploring a place that is later revealed to be the inside of the robot of the album cover lying motionless in a field.
"Spread Your Wings" "Spread Your Wings" was written by bassist John Deacon. The piano is played by Mercury, although Deacon mimes it in the music video. The video was filmed in the back garden of Taylor's then house, when the weather was freezing, and the band performed in the snow. Mercury can be seen wearing star-shaped sunglasses in the video. May is seen playing a copy of his Red Special, owing to the cold weather conditions.
"Fight from the Inside" "Fight from the Inside" was written and sung by Taylor. In addition to the drums, he also plays rhythm guitar and bass guitar; for the latter he borrowed Deacon's instrument. It is also one of the few songs in the band's discography recorded almost entirely by one member. Guitarist
Slash has cited the guitar riff to this song as one of his favourite riffs of all time.
Side two "Get Down, Make Love" for its "psychedelic" sound effects. "Get Down, Make Love", written by Mercury, is among the most sexually oriented songs in the Queen catalogue. Eddy calls it one of the album's funkier tracks, with a "proto-
industrial-music perviness" which eventually morph into "sex-moaning
psychedelic spaces" that constitute a form of '
dub-
metal' comparable to similar parts of
Led Zeppelin's "
Whole Lotta Love". but May has cast doubt on the authenticity of this, though has confirmed the first take of the backing track was used.
"Who Needs You" "Who Needs You" was a song written by Deacon, who, along with May, plays Spanish guitar. Mercury's lead vocal is entirely
panned on the right audio channel while the lead guitar is on the left channel. May also plays maracas and Mercury plays a
cowbell. It has been described as a "tentative
reggae homage", albeit with "Spanish rather than Jamaican guitars".
"It's Late" "It's Late", written by May, was his idea of treating a song as a three-act theatrical play. It makes use of the
tapping technique.
"My Melancholy Blues" "My Melancholy Blues" was composed by Mercury. There are no backing vocals or guitars. Deacon played
fretless bass on stage during this song but used a regular fretted bass on the record. ==Artwork and packaging==