Queen -- Don't Stop Me Now

 

My own personal listening history with Queen began with "Another One Bites the Dust" which was one of their disco outings in 1980. But then the following year, when all of us kids were heading out to Japan after graduating from Japanese language school, I got to hear my classmate's copy of their classic "Bohemian Rhapsody" (1975) on the plane ride. Then in short order, I got to hear "We Will Rock You" and "We are the Champions" especially since the NHL's New York Islanders were using that last song as their victory anthem during their dynasty of Stanley Cup wins in the early 1980s. Having finally gotten into music by that point, I got to hear their New Wave "Radio Ga Ga".

"Don't Stop Me Now" from 1979, however, was a song that I wouldn't get to know about for many years and yet it's probably the most preferred hit among many Japanese. Sure enough, I've seen a few commercials there featuring "Don't Stop Me Now" including one where a jet plane is just pulling off all these loops in the sky; can't remember what it was selling...knowing Japanese ads, it was probably life insurance. I can possibly understand its great popularity in Japan, though. With Freddie Mercury espousing pure joyous fun for the sake of it, all those hard-working cogs wouldn't mind throwing their blazers to the wind and going all Wang Chung!

Now of course, any of you who read "Kayo Kyoku Plus" regularly and have their eyes and ears to the music scene in Japan know that I'm posting this special holiday Reminiscings of Youth because Queen and Adam Lambert showed up on last night's Kohaku Utagassen to perform "Don't Stop Me Now". It was great and nostalgic to watch them in San Francisco, but wouldn't it have been something if the band had actually shown up on the Shibuya stage in Tokyo? But the logistics would have most likely overwhelmed the production staff. Still, good to see the guys bring out the goods.

Apparently, it isn't just Japanese pop culture that picked up on the joyousness of "Don't Stop Me Now". When it was originally released in 1979, it didn't do all that well on the charts with the United States for example only having it reach as high as No. 86 on its Billboard. Since then though, it has done a slow persistent burn up to the top of many fans' favourite lists. And in 2018 through Billboard Japan, the song went up to No. 37 and then No. 32 in 2019.

"Don't Stop Me Now" was released in Japan in March 1979 which of course begs the question about which other singles were getting out there in that month.

Momoe Yamaguchi -- Be Silent（美・サイレント）

Satoshi Kishida -- Kimi no Asa （君の朝）

Southern All Stars -- Itoshi no Ellie （いとしのエリー）