10 Rock Music Songs That Were Almost Never Released
1. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen
As anyone who has seen the acclaimed-yet-flawed Queen biopic of the same name will tell you, the executives at EMI waged war with the band over the release of the song Bohemian Rhapsody.
The suits thought the song was way too long and, at nearly six minutes, it was, in terms of conventional wisdom. However, Freddie Mercury took one look at conventional wisdom, spat on it, and then strutted out the door.
To get around his corporate obligations, Mercury took the song to his good friend, the DJ Kenny Everett. After teasing the track to his listeners, Everett played it on his radio show 14 times in two days, and the public ate it up. With demand for the song rising, EMI had no choice but to put it out as a single.
Bohemian Rhapsody would have won over some fans as an elaborate album track on A Night at the Opera, but there can be no denying that the choice to release it as a single was the correct one.
It's one of the greatest songs in the history of British music, even if its B-side was the ludicrous I'm in Love with My Car.