Queen: Bohemian Rhapsody Meaning
Song Released: 1975
Covered By: Panic! At The Disco (2016), Pentatonix (2017)
Bohemian Rhapsody Lyrics
Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide
No escape from reality
Open your eyes
Look up to the skies and see
I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy
Because I'm easy come, easy go
Little high, little low
Any way...
-
Hey, has anyone realised that the only clever and tricky songs to figure out are really old? So many people have different ideas about them, but modern songs are generally really simple.
Creepy, bohemian rhapsody just came on my computer as I was typing this. -
This song was written with meaning, no doubt. What that meaning is/was is of no consequence, however. True art, especially music, is not supposed to relay a message of the writer/performer, but rather inspire you to attach your own meaning. In other words, listen to the lyrics, feel the music, relay its meaning to your own life. You don't have to have "killed a man" to understand feeling of remorse for something you may have done..
Art's greatest foe is the analyzation of it.
Just my humble opinion. -
The song was written for a japanese movie years before he had aids,
The lyrics were taken from a letter from a mad inmate to his mother
hence the "momma, just killed a man..."
Later he goes through a stage of depression the movie was however about the crazy murderer.
Freddie did a lot of songs for movie such as
"new york"
"prices of the universe"
peace
-arian shamei -
This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
-
I was told...And I am just putting it out there for some thought, that this song depicts that mercury is coming out of the closet by killing the straight guy in him and at the prime of his life(life had just begun and now I've gone and thrown it all away) he begs for acceptance from his mom...But doesn't get it apparently. He is very deep so I can imagine he is portraying that he knows what he is doing is a sin and that's why he's got a devil put aside for him. He probably had a strong religious backround and is wondering if coming out and being forward with the reality that he had homosexual tendancies would land him in hell. He knows it will but in conclusion to the song he feels so strongly about his preference that it(doesn't really matter) cause the people cloest to him probably already knew and so the song puts it in perspective of how a revealed homosexual feels on many levels. He has a lot on his plate during this time and dealing with the pressure of the closest people to him knowing what he's about and not accepting him makes him feel like no matter how much he pleads for it to be ok in their eyes and even "bismillah"'s eyes by him coming out and making it known (even to some)that he is already realizing the doom of his actions and feelings. To begin with ...Yeah he comes right out and says he killed a man- his straight side. Then he knowing the pain he caused to his mother who did not accept him for who he was, he felt that he should just kill himself thus"if I'm not back again this this time tomorrow carry on carry on" cause it doesn't really matter now that he doesn't have his mom's support (and that's really important to him cause one of his last songs before he dies was mother love..Probably trying one more time to seek his mother's acceptance before he dies of aids.
So now he's a loner with no one to keep him company but his thoughts about what he's done(more so though who he is) so he's any way the wind blows cause he is now facing total damnation and this sort of attitude lead him down the road to getting aids.
Ya know.... The whole...F*** it demeanor. Nobody cares and since I am going to hell anyway I might as well make it worth it. Maybe after this realization he started having many many partners which increased his chance of the disease he dies from. Might be a premenition of what he forsaw happening by killing the straight person off in his mind and him coming to the unbelievable realization that he can't escape from (no escape from reality) which is that he's gay.
He was always "easy come easy go" and can't believe his god will not forgive him and grant him into heaven just because he has an unacceptable sexual preference.
I am also guessing that the part where he said so you think you can love me and leave me to die....Baby can't do this to me baby... May be because the particular invididual that he was with that made that turning point in his life to come out of the closet (even in his own mind or to himself)wasn't really gay and/or did not love mercury.
So this makes it worse because he has now sinned and has accepted that this is who he is whether he wants to be or not and now everyone he loves (mother and his male lover and maybe others) have rejected him because he is gay.
So from now on he'll be any way the wind blows cause he's doesn't care anymore and can't change or feels he can't.
But this is just a opinion and also an expierience that I have seen frist hand with a amn who was a christian (so he called himself) and was gay I saw the battle he went though and maybe this is what mwercury was feeling.
No disrespect to fred I love his songs but I do wonder how people feel and I have a habit of overanalyzing things so "fred... If this is wrong I am soooo sorry...Kinda wished I knew someone who knew the truth so me and a lot of other accepting people could understand what you were going through.
Peace child -
I think the song can either be taken literally which is the way most you have taken it... It obviously can be about murder...
But I think the reason the song has become legendary is because in ways most people can relate to the feelings at one point in life... It's symbolic
1.Goals and your desires being on achievable... Can it all be a delusional fantasy?
"is this the real life-
is this just fantasy-
caught in a landslide-
no escape from reality- "
2. I think the killing of a man can be about yourself...
There have been times where I've felt like less of a person or less of a man about self-pity and regret. While you don't want to end your life you also don't see any point in continuing it....
"mama,just killed a man,
put a gun against his head,
pulled my trigger,now he’s dead,
mama,life had just begun,
but now i’ve gone and thrown it all away- "
"I don’t want to die,
i sometimes wish i’d never been born at all"
3. The fear of never being able to find what you need ... Not being able to escape from what seems like the only reality... Let me out!
"I see a little silhouetto of a man,
scaramouche,scaramouche will you do the fandango-
thunderbolt and lightning-very very frightening me-
galileo,galileo,
galileo galileo
galileo figaro-magnifico-
but i’m just a poor boy and nobody loves me-
he’s just a poor boy from a poor family-
spare him his life from this monstrosity-
easy come easy go-,will you let me go-
bismillah! No-,we will not let you go-let him go-
bismillah! We will not let you go-let him go
bismillah! We will not let you go-let me go
will not let you go-let me go
will not let you go let me go
no,no,no,no,no,no,no- "
4. The last part of the song is about picking yourself up... You have to break out of this and take control of your life... It's not all your fault and you are better then this...
"so you think you can stone me and spit in my eye-
so you think you can love me and leave me to die-
oh baby-can’t do this to me baby-
just gotta get out-just gotta get right outta here -
This song is about freddy mercury strugging with his bisexuality or just being gay. He is wanting to come out of the closet. He tells his mother about being gay and she rejects him. "mother just killed a man". The lyric any way the wind blows refers to bisexuality. He wishes he had never be born at all because he is gay and therefore different. He thinks about killing himself and then realizes that nothing really matters. He says me galileo and figaro. They were both gay. The monstrosity is homosexuality. Let me go refers to comming out of the cloest and we will not let you go is his freinds or his coscience telling him not to. He decides to come out by say so you can stone me and spit in my eye. In the end it doesn't matter,any way the wind blows.
-
I personally feel that the song first deals with the melancholy part of his life, listen how the music flows from the beginning. literally, pulling triger and killing man is the symbol of making some kind of huge mistake, mistake without mercy. Still hope exists, "mama life has just begun....". Reality is harsh as he says "....never been born at all". Nevetheless he expects to face it " carry on carry on...nothing really matters"
On the other hand its late "too late my time has come..." as if he's going to die inner pain as well as physical pain. Thats what life is all about.
But as the music turns its melody towards roch frequency... It may means whatever life may be just enjoy and rock. But I feel the pain inside that rock as the guitar plays the solo. In the middle song is full of energy.
At the end again the flows becomes slow and at last he says "....little wind blows". Reality bits futile life with no hope dominates again. -
I saw an interpretation by anonymous added on 2005-07-19 starting with the words---"sory,but your all wrong"------------------------i just want to say---aside from my own interpretation---that is the best I have heard-well writen-and I couldent have said it better myself-he is absolutely right----------------------------------------------------------extreamly accurate---we can t be certain what exactly is or was going through the artists mind but it sure as it wasnt AIDS--thats just rediculous---people of such ignorance shouldent be allowed to submit such non-sence------it takes away from the true meaning--or meaning for it to be unknown--if you don't know what you're talking about shut itand leave it to the people who realy know what we are talking about---like whoever sent in the section by anonymous
-
I hate to say this-but with all due respect who?pinkfloyd----and beleive me I am am saying this in the nicest way possible---you are and idiot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Bohemian rhapsody is not about AIDS-----he shot the dude in the head----if he was being symbolic he wouldn't have been so specific about puting the gun to the dudes head and pulling the triger-----sory--but that was some kind of stupid dude! -
okay---let me just start by saying---if you think you understand the whole song---your an idiot-please stop---------------because all the lyrics are mixed in with multiple meanings------the greatness and beauty of the music is when people like you don't get it---so don't ruin it for the rest of us who truly love music------------------------------------------but basically what the song says--hes sory ---singing to his mom----he killed a man----hes leaving -he didn't mean to hurt his momma--------------and has the devil put aside for his soul?---will they let him go----no-no-no--blah bla---you get it---if you don't get that part your a little bit slow
-
To find out the meaning of Bohemian Rhapsody, you have to know that it was originally three songs. So to figure it out youd have to find out where one song ends and the other begins. The big operatic part in the middle of it was just an interlude.
-
Just my opinion here
I think the song tells the story of a man who commits murder then ponders suicide. In the beginning he is in shock and realizing he can't escape from what he's done "no escape from reality". Then as he's telling his mother what he did he is pondering suicide and saying how useless he is anyways, "I'm just a poor boy...I'm easy come easy go". "If I'm not back again this time tomorrow carry on...goodbye everybody-I've got to go, gotta leave you all behind" definitely sounds suicidal.
The opera like part is him reliving himself murdering the man. "I see a little silhouetto of a man" he is seeing himself and then he calls himself a "scaramouche" a foolish and boastful coward. "Thunderbolt and Lightening" is a reference to him firing the weapon and the next part is very interesting. It is written "very very frightening-me" the dash between frightening and me seems to say that he is describing himself as very very frightening.
In the next part it appears as if he wants to commit suicide and some people are holding him back while others are encouraging him. This might also be a battle within himself.
He is saying he's just a poor boy and nobody loves him, and basically saying that he is a common poor boy, he is "easy come easy go". And he asks him to please "let me go" commit suicide.
The chorus responds "Bismillah [in god's name] no, we will not let you go" during this part the two sides argue over his fate. When the side that wants to stop him from commiting suicide wins- "no,no,no,no,no,no,no,no" he continues arguing saying that he is an evil man who deserves death, and that there is a place in hell waiting for him, "Let me go-Beelzebub [satan] has a devil put aside for me".
The next part is him yelling at the chorus that held him back from suicide. He is a poor boy who the people usually felt no pity for before-in his other times of need they left him to die and now they act as if they love him. "So you think you can love me and leave me to die". He is angry about this hypocrisy.
As I said before-my own opinion -
Actually, I was thinking in the different way. This songs not definitely killing a guy, even though the lyrics said it. He's trying to tell us that he's just done a very big sin! It's not just killing, anything bad can be a big sin!! So, that's the song start. In phrase bismillah, for muslims, the word bismillah is meaning of in the name of the god, and, bismillah is a word that muslims said before doing anything that's good.
I'm blur..... -
I think that Freddie had his reasons for the song, and anyone who tries to anylise it is a fool. He will be the only one with the knowlede of what it truly is about, and we should leave it at that. This isn't Shakespear, just listen to the song, think about how flippin' sweet it is and leave it at that. An interpretation of a mind as great as Freddie's is impossible, so don't mess with it.
More Queen songs »
Latest Articles
-
A new era for Millennial favorite, Linkin Park -
Anime to watch for the soundtracks… and other reasons you’re undateable -
.jpg)
Dolly, we need you -
The Stranger Things Effect: How new media is drawing Gen Z and Alpha's attention to aging media -
The most underrated soundtrack of the early 2000s -
Buy the Soundtrack, Skip the Movie: Brainscan (1994)
Trending:
Blog posts mentioning Queen
Why Does Everybody Pick On Liberace? 
Dr. Dre's Not Gonna Take This Anymore 
Kate Bush's Hill Got Taller 
Song Analysis Corner : Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody 
Great Moments in MCU Soundtracks 
Jesters of YouTube - clap clap! - entertain us! 
Suicide Songs 
Between Rock and a Heart Place 
What On Earth Happened To ABBA? 
Kurt Cobain’s Love-Hate Relationship With Punk Rock 
The Rise and Fall of Glam Rock 
The Parody Targets of Popular Music 
If You Love It So Much, Why Don't You Marry It? 
The Craziest Song Theories 
There's Your Cue, Audience! 
Blasting Back to the Past: 5 Older Artists You Should Revisit Just Posted
| Live Forever | anonymous |
| Space Oddity | anonymous |
| Remind You | anonymous |
| You've Got A Friend | anonymous |
| Austin | anonymous |
| Bel Air | anonymous |
| Firefly | anonymous |
| My Medicine | anonymous |
| Orphans | anonymous |
| Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) | anonymous |
| A Whole New World (End Title) | anonymous |
| Eyes Closed | anonymous |
| The Phrase That Pays | anonymous |
| Montreal | anonymous |
| Moonlight | anonymous |
