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>> home : in the queen vaults
Before you start reading this section, please keep in mind that the information on this page might
not be 100% correct. Information has been taken from various official (Greg Brooks, ...) and unofficial
(fans, ...) sources and at this point nobody is sure what is true about each track and nothing is sure
about the final product. I am not responsible for any wrong information, I'm only listing what I have
been told.
In the near future some Queen items will be released featuring a lot of unreleased stuff!
This page features the known unreleased tracks (that either appeared on bootlegs or are in hands
of certain collectors) and info about other tracks.
when, what, where
Queen's initial plan was to release a similar product as the Freddie Mercury box set, released in 2000, but
it seems that EMI has decided that no-one will buy the expensive sets. So they will *probably*
release the normal albums once again accompanied with some unreleased tracks. The first one is likely to
be A Night At The Opera which will be re-released somewhere this year (this has already been confirmed by
the fan club - tracks, dates, formats are unknown).
2014 update: ...that was approx 10 years ago and still no Queen anthology box has been released.
We only got a handful of nice stuff on the 2011 2CD re-issues.
unreleased demos
It seems that Queen have recorded more tracks than we know. Besides the common album tracks and
the B-sides there are also some unreleased demos that are either unfinished because they weren't
good enough, Queen didn't had any time left to record them or due to the fact that they had to choose
which track should be left off an album for any reason that you can think of.
Below is a list of tracks that were left off an album or never got finished.
A New Life Is Born:
from the Miracle sessions, written by Freddie. This is an extended Breakthru piano intro. It sounds almost the same
as the normal Breakthru intro, except for a few missing backing vocals. When you expect the "Now!", the song
just keeps on going featuring new lyrics and more piano. Lovely.
It's likely that there's also a demo of just the second part of Breakthru, since Breakthru is actually
a song made from two songs.
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Dog With A Bone:
a special fan club-only track from 1988, originally ment for The Miracle album. It lasts for
about 6 minutes and was played (not live, only on tape) during the fan club convention.
Available on the bootleg
The Ultimate Rarities Collection.
So far different takes have been found featuring slightly different messages from the band members.
Face It Alone:
a demo from 1990 from the Innuendo sessions. It's one of the longer demos, because this one has
a running time of 10 minutes. It's something like a three-piece demo and should be a great ballad.
Feel Like:
a recording by Queen from 1981. This is an early version of Under Pressure which lasts about 5 minutes.
The song has different lyrics and a different rhythm. David Bowie was, according to Greg, not on this
demo and was only in the studio for a very short time. All the demos after Bowie's visit feature Under
Pressure without him.
Feelings Feelings:
Queen demo, recorded in 1977 for the News Of The World album. Probably written in 1973 by Brian.
It's a nice rock and roll track, a typical 70's track. Lasts for about 2 minutes. It doesn't fit
the News Of The World theme so that might be a reason why it was left off the album.
2014 update: a take of this song was released in 2011 on the News Of The World 2CD edition.
Freedom Train:
originally started as a Queen track during the Innuendo sessions. No further info available unfortunatly.
Hangman:
a song that Queen played live at many gigs, but a studio recording never appeared on any album. A demo version
or studio live take exists on a 10" Trident acetate. It is said that Freddie wrote the lyrics and Brian
the music, although some say that it originally was a Wreckage song.
I Guess We're Falling Out:
a demo from the Miracle sessions, written by Brian. Nice pop song. The first part has some lyrics followed
by a chorus with multiple Freddie vocals singing the title. The second part contains some improvisation
words such as the famous "de da da da's".
This demo doesn't has a real ending, because it is followed by Hang On In There. However it might be
possible that there are more versions available of this demo.
Love Kills:
originally started as a Queen track. There is however no info available how far they progressed with this one.
Man Made Paradise:
originally a track by Freddie for his solo album Mr Bad Guy from 1985. There's however a Queen
version available which lasts for about one minute. A sample can be heard on the DVD The Untold Story
in Freddie's box set (it's also possible that this sample is one of Freddie's own demos without
Roger, Brian and John).
My Secret Fantasy:
an Innuendo session track from November 1990, written by John. A beautiful short track (approx. 2 and a
half minute) with a nice beat, drums, sythesizers and bass only, no guitars. Lyrics aren't very complex.
New York:
not really an unreleased Queen track, since it's featured in the movie Highlander. However except for those
few seconds in the movie, nothing else has been released. Rumours of full versions or longer versions
of this song have always been denied.
Polar Bear:
originally a track recorded by Smile in 1969, but also recorded by Queen in 1972. This Queen version is a lot
better than Smile's version. Freddie has a beautiful high voice and the song
really has a relaxed mood. Better sit down when you hear this one for the first time!
Robbery:
from 1990, the Innuendo sessions. This track has been written by Roger (although Greg said at the Dutch 2001
convention that it could also be Brian) and is 2 minutes long. A strong song with nice guitars and some
vocals in the first part. The second part is instrumental.
Sandbox:
a jam session recorded during the Game sessions in 1979. It's an instrumental piece with lots of piano and
a remarkable bass track. It was however never used for a released track and was shelved to be never used again.
Self Made Man:
a song written by Brian. Recorded in 1990 during the Innuendo sessions. It's almost 5 minutes long and features
Brian and Freddie on vocals. It starts with a soft part with Brian singing, than Freddie comes in
with some heavy guitars which turns into the soft part with Brian again and some nice sythesizer sounds.
Sounds more like a Miracle session track to me, but it's not.
Silver Salmon:
a well-known demo of Queen, but never released on a bootleg. This is an early 70's demo originally written by Tim
Staffell.
So far a few different takes have been found in the Queen vaults and one take has even made it onto a unique
10" acetate from the early 70's. It's a heavy track with some great drums in it.
There Must Be More To Life Than This:
this track originally started during the Hot Space sessions as a Queen track, but got shelved for some reasons.
Later, in 1983, this track was intended to close The Works album, until Brian and Freddie wrote Is This The
World We Created...?
Victory:
an unreleased Queen song from the early 80's. Never finished and some time later re-worked with just Freddie
and Michael Jackson. A few good takes should exist of this song.
demos of released tracks
Below you will find a list of songs that have been released on an album or as a B-side, but these are
different versions as the ones that have been actually released.
BBC sessions:
24 BBC tracks have been recorded between 1973 - 1977. One tape from 1974 featuring White Queen, The March
Of The Black Queen, Modern Times Rock 'N' Roll and Nevermore was supposed to be lost, but it seems
that it isn't! According to Greg Brooks, all 24 tracks will be released in the box, although he said
at the Dutch 2001 fan club convention that only the unreleased BBC tracks will be in the box. This
doesn't make any sense, because the Ogre Battle version on At The Beeb / At The BBC album has a missing intro
since the original BBC master tape was damaged. The Queen master tape however features this great intro
so this track should be available in the box.
2014 update: a few BBC takes were released on some 2011 2CD editions.
Action This Day:
demo from 1982. There's a version that almost sounds like the album version, but with a different chorus
and a different solo after the middle part. The rest of the song is almost the same.
Back Chat:
a demo from 1982, released on the album Hot Space. There's a demo version with quite some different lyrics
and an almost silent part in the middle featuring some vocal improvisations. Guitar sounds very rough.
Breakthru:
an early demo version, released on The Miracle album from 1989. This version has a faster and heavier
beat without any vocals.
Brighton Rock:
a very nice live take played over a backing track. Lyrics weren't ready yet and Freddie mainly sings the
high vocals. There are no backing vocals and most of the lead guitar is missing. The solo is shortened and
there are no lyrics during the final part.
Coming Soon:
this track originally started during the 1978 Jazz sessions and sounds nowhere like the released version. It's
an instrumental piece which sometimes gives a brief glimpse of the released version, but it's hard to spot.
Cool Cat:
originally recorded with David Bowie in 1981. Test pressings on vinyl of the full album were made in April 1982
featuring this version, but Bowie didn't like it. So Queen had to change it in the last month before the album's
release.
Bowie's contribution is quite small and only adds some hums plus a few words to the song. Freddie's vocals are identical,
except for the extra echoes and one extra line. It's musically a little bit different and the song has a longer
running time.
Delilah:
an early demo version, originally released on the 1991 Innuendo album. This one, probably recorded in 1990 or
early 1991, features Freddie on vocals. The music is kinda different and Freddie's voice is pretty awfull
(sorry). A sample can be found on the promotional cassette
Hints Of Innuendo.
Don't Stop Me Now / Jealousy:
a demo recording exists of Don't Stop Me Now that is followed by Jealousy: the piano outro of DSMN transforms
into Jealousy.
Flick Of The Wrist:
a nearly finished instrumental take with finished backing vocals. The take ends with the backing vocals "all
this time honey" and a piano fading out.
Funny How Love Is:
not much is known about this version, but it can be found on a few early UK cassette pressings of Queen II.
Rumoured to be a stand alone version but since nobody has seen a copy lately all info seems to have vanished
into the past.
Great King Rat:
a demo version exists recorded in the De Lane Lea Studios in 1971. Re-recorded for Queen's debut album.
This demo is a little bit longer featuring some extra guitar solos. The lyrics are similar to the
lyrics sung during the BBC sessions. Released on the bootleg In The Beginning..
but originally on a five track acetate and some promotional hand made cassettes.
2014 update: this demo was released in 2011 on the Queen 2CD edition.
Another demo version has surfaced which should be from early 1973. It sounds a bit like an acoustic version where
Freddie apparantly doesn't know all the lyrics (which makes it arguable that this version isn't from 1973 since
the lyrics were already complete in 1971, or is the 71 version perhaps not from 71?). Besides the missing lyrics they
also shortened the end.
Hang On In There:
also called A Fiddly Jam.
It was originally a part of the track Stealin', but at a certain point they decided to use it as a separate track.
A very nice demo version exists of this great track. It was played during a Miracle session and comes right
after I Guess We're Falling Out. It demo goes straight into the final part of the song where the song normally
is starting to fade out. Instead of fading out, this demo still lasts for 2 minutes featuring a lot of
interesting parts. There are hardly any vocals. The demo is followed by A New Life Is Born.
Headlong:
there are two known demo versions at the moment. Originally released on Innuendo, 1991.
The first demo version can be found on the promo cassette Hints Of Innuendo. It lasts for about 1:05 minutes
and is a rough version featuring no backing vocals.
The second one is a 5 minutes demo featuring bass and drums only with Brian on lead vocals.
I Want It All:
an instrumental demo from a Miracle session. There is nothing special about this one, except that
it's instrumental and doesn't feature the drum solo near the end. Instead it's followed by Chinese Torture.
In The Lap Of The Gods... Revisited:
an instrumental take which gets pretty repeative at the end. It has a proper ending though without the big bang.
Is This The World We Created...?:
the 'well-known' piano demo version. The master tapes were deleted for some reason and this unique demo can now
only be found on an acetate.
Jesus:
the demo version recorded in the De Lane Lea Studios in 1971. Re-recorded for Queen's debut album.
A great version with some beautiful extra guitar parts and heavy drums in the middle. Lyrics are more
or less the same. Released on the bootleg In The Beginning..
but originally on a five track acetate and some promotional hand made cassettes.
2014 update: this demo was released in 2011 on the Queen 2CD edition.
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Keep Yourself Alive:
the demo version recorded in the De Lane Lea Studios in 1971. Re-recorded for Queen's debut album. The
demo has some minor differences and a great drum solo in the middle. Released on the bootleg In The Beginning..
but originally on a five track acetate and some promotional hand made cassettes.
2014 update: this demo was released in 2011 on the Queen 2CD edition.
Khashoggi's Ship:
from The Miracle album, released in 1989. This is a demo version, recorded in November 1988 featuring
different lyrics and probably different instruments.
Las Palabras De Amor:
from the 1982 Hot Space album. There is a known demo with noticable different lyrics. The rest of the song is almost
the same, except for some small changes.
An other version is a so called "Mix 2" which can be found on a 10" acetate. It's the same as the album version
but with certain instruments mixed at a higher or lower volume.
Let Me Live:
this is the first take of Let Me Live. Recorded in 1983 with Rod Stewart. The guys should be pretty drunk
when they recorded this demo version.
Liar:
the demo version recorded in the De Lane Lea Studios in 1971. Re-recorded for Queen's debut album.
This one has a longer drum intro, which is similar to some 70's live versions, and heavier drums.
Freddie's vocals are a bit weak though. Released on the bootleg In The Beginning..
but originally on a five track acetate and some promotional hand made cassettes.
2014 update: this demo was released in 2011 on the Queen 2CD edition.
Life Is Real:
from 1982. There is a known version that is almost complete and hardly has any differences. Known
differences are the lack of some backing vocals and the different sound levels used for instruments.
Mother Love:
recorded in 1991 but unreleased untill 1995 on the album Made In Heaven. Some demo versions should exist
with Roger and Brian on vocals.
My Baby Loves Me:
the first version of Queen's My Baby Does Me, originally on The Miracle album from 1989. This one isn't
so different, although it's obvious that the lyrics are different. The whole song sounds very basic
and has a relaxed mood. It is followed by I Guess We're Falling Out.
Party:
originally released on The Miracle album from 1989. This version should be almost the same as the album
version, except that it is a stand-alone version (so it isn't followed by Khashoggi's Ship immediatly).
Recorded in November 1988.
Play The Game:
a demo version might exist featuring Andy Gibb (the youngest Gibb brother who sometimes performed with
the BeeGees) on the first verse.
Ride The Wild Wind:
very different demo version, from the 1991 Innuendo album. This demo is sung by Roger, so it's
likely that this track was originally written by him. Besides Roger's vocals it also features extra
drums. No Freddie vocals on this demo.
Sail Away Sweet Sister:
an instrumental live take which appears to be the oldest and first take for this recording, from the Game
sessions 1979. It has a lovely piano intro and ends quite unexpected.
2014 update: this demo or an alternate one was released in 2011 on the The Game 2CD edition.
Seven Seas Of Rhye:
little is known about this version. All that is known is that it appeared on a few withdrawn (only 2-3 copies
still exist) (promo) 7" singles and some Queen II LP acetate pressings. The backing track should be different,
but the differences are unknown.
Somebody To Love:
an unused section was found on the multi tracks for this track. The middle section originally feats an even
longer choir piece right after the hand clapping part. The unreleased piece is mainly based on the words
"somebody to love" and is sung in a way like they sing "find me somebody to love" during the hand clapping part.
Staying Power:
a demo from 1982. There is a version without any horns and a nice guitar solo in the middle instead of
the saxophones and horns. It's lyrically the same except for a few changes.
Stealin':
quite some different takes have been found so far.
early versions feature pieces with Hang On In There. In this early stage HOIT wasn't a separate track yet. Later
on they decided to use it as a separate song.
A very long 12 minutes demo version is found which can be seen as a very long extended version. The common
lyrics are in this track overdubbed with comments by Freddie, reacting on the common lyrics like "So what!"
and "Yeah!". The track ends with a great bass outro.
Tear It Up:
an early demo recording from 1983 exists with Brian on guide vocals. It should be quite stunning.
Tenement Funster!:
an instrumental take with a count-in intro by Roger. Sounds very similar like the released version but there
are some differences. It ends with the piano intro of Flick Of The Wrist.
The Hitman:
early demo recording from 1990 with Brian on vocals. A snippet can be found on the promo cassette
Hints Of Innuendo.
The Invisible Man:
two demos are known of this track. The first one is available on numerous bootlegs featuring Freddie on
vocals singing different lyrics and a different beat in the middle of the song.
The second one has Roger on vocals with some basic beats and music.
Too Much Love Will Kill You:
the first Queen version from 1988. A sample of this demo can be found on the bootleg
The Ultimate Rarities Collection.
It features Brian singing the main vocal parts with Freddie singing over top plus some extra drums.
Who Wants To Live Forever:
not really a demo but there's a version available in the film Highlander where Freddie sings the intro
instead of Brian. It's funny that they changed this for the album (or changed it for the movie).
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the bbc recordings
When you wonder which tracks were used for the BBC sessions, read the following summary below.
Session 1 (1973):
My Fairy King, Keep Yourself Alive, Doing All Right, Liar
this session has been released on At The Beeb in 1989
Session 2 (1973):
See What A Fool I've Been, Liar, Son & Daughter, Keep Yourself Alive
unreleased session but can be easily found on many bootlegs
Session 3 (1974):
Ogre Battle, Great King Rat, Modern Times Rock 'N' Roll, Son & Daughter
this session has been released on At The Beeb in 1989. Ogre Battle misses the long intro
on this release, because the master tape should be damaged
Session 4 (1974):
Modern Times Rock 'N' Roll, The March Of The Black Queen, Nevermore, White Queen
unreleased session. This one was lost for many years but Queen Productions recently bought a private
copy from a collector
Session 5 (1974):
Now I'm Here, Stone Cold Crazy, Flick Of The Wrist, Tenement Funster
unreleased session but it can be found on a few bootlegs
Session 6 (1977):
Spread Your Wings, It's Late, My Melancholy Blues, We Will Rock You
unreleased session but can be easily found on many bootlegs
unreleased stuff that will remain unreleased
There will be some stuff that will never be released for some reasons, like copyrights, damaged master
tapes, no approval of a band member and so on. However, when a song is in this list, it doesn't mean
it will never be released! I could be wrong or my sources could be wrong.
Ibex concert:
the complete Ibex concert wasn't available on the Freddie Mercury 2000 box set, because the sound quality
was too low. This is a good reason to keep it off the set, but why did they still release the track Rain?
The quality is the same as the rest of the tracks. Even worse in a few cases! It could be a copyright
problem, but let's hope it will be released in one of the Queen box sets.
Love Kills:
four remixes have been made by No More Brothers in 1993 and were finished in 1999 / 2000. They were
Radio Mix '93, Jazzy Mix and Symphony Mix plus an edit of the Radio Mix. All four mixes should be released as a
single in Autumn 2000 but permission was withheld for some reason. Till date they remain unreleased.
State Of Shock:
a Michael Jackson track from 1983. This demo was recorded with Freddie and Michael. It was
later re-recorded with Michael and Mick Jagger.
Due to copyright and ownership problems it's hard to tell when and how this track will be released. But
Jim Beach, Queen's manager, has some kind of plans for the unreleased Mercury/Jackson tracks.
There Must Be More To Life Than This:
a demo with Freddie and Michael Jackson, recorded somewhere 1983. It features Freddie on piano plus giving
lyrics directions and Michael singing the song.
Due to copyright and ownership problems it's hard to tell when and how this track will be released. But
Jim Beach, Queen's manager, has some kind of plans for the unreleased Mercury/Jackson tracks.
There Must Be More To Life Than This (Remix):
a 1996 remix by... John Deacon. I don't know if it's good and why it was remixed, but it was withheld from
release, probably because the information about this track came out of the EMI office without permission.
This sounds like a lame excuse to me, there has to be another reason.
Victory:
originally a Queen track, but later re-recorded by Freddie and Michael Jackson in 1983. It was never
released and some time later (re-)re-recorded by The Jacksons.
It is rumoured that Brian and Roger recorded backing vocals some time ago (early 2002) for this track.
Due to copyright and ownership problems it's hard to tell when and how this track will be released. But
Jim Beach, Queen's manager, has some kind of plans for the unreleased Mercury/Jackson tracks.
solo demo stuff
Besides Queen demos there are also solo demos by Brian, Roger, Freddie and perhaps even John. Not many
are known but a few are.
Africa By Night:
an early demo version by Freddie from the Barcelona sessions that later became Queen's All God's People.
Queen re-worked it, so why wasn't the Freddie demo available on the 2000 box set? Probably because
the Freddie demo version and the Queen demo version almost sound the same (like the Man Made Paradise demo of
Freddie and Queen), so my guess is that we will only see the Queen demo version and never the Freddie version.
Celebration:
a 1984 Roger Taylor song from the Strange Frontier sessions. The song has a similar sound as the 1987 The Cross
sound, but it isn't by The Cross!
2014 update: it turns out that this was a The Cross song after all which was released on Roger's 2013 box set
The Lot. The take on this box was edited when compared to the one that circulates among collectors.
Creatures Of The Night:
probably an unreleased demo by Freddie recorded during the Mr Bad Guy sessions, although I have no
information about this track. It's unreleased (if it exists) and will probably never see the light of day.
Goin' Back:
a demo version from 1973 by 'Larry Lurex'. It will probably be different than the version that was
released on the B-side, but this demo remains unreleased.
Green:
by Wreckage. A few different demo versions have appeared and one of them is definitly different
with different lyrics. The reason why they didn't include it might be because one version is more than
enough. However, the die-hard fan wants it all.
I Can Hear Music:
demo version of this 1973 track. It will probably be different than the version that was
released on the single, but this demo version remains unreleased.
I Can Take You Higher:
recorded by Roger in 1984 during the Strange Frontier sessions. A powerfull song about love. Two versions
are known: an edited 40 seconds version and a full version.
2014 update: it turns out that this was a The Cross song which was released on Roger's 2013 box set
The Lot.
Keep On Running:
a 1984 Roger Taylor track, recorded during the Strange Frontier sessions. The recording sounds
like a finished product, so it could have been included on the album or as a b-side, however this
was not done (no reason is known). The song is a cover which was originally performed by Spencer Davis Group.
I Can't Get You Out Of My Head:
an unreleased 1984 Roger track from the Strange Frontier sessions. It doesn't fit in the SF-theme at all,
because it has a country like feeling / mood. Nevertheless it's a nice love song but it's obvious why it wasn't
released.
2014 update: it turns out that this was a The Cross song after all which was released on Roger's 2013 box set
The Lot. The take on this box had a cut off intro when compared to the one that circulates among collectors.
Ride The Night:
an early version of Resurrection by Brian. Demo versions exist with Jamie Page on vocals (if I'm
not mistaken :-)
I Want To Take You Higher:
Roger was very productive in 1984, because besides the songs that ended up on Strange Frontier, he wrote
a few others that didn't made it to the album. This song is a heavy track about (driving) cars that
really should have been released, preferably as a b-side.
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