Innuendo

The song Innuendo was constructed like a sonic puzzle. The rhythmic base, with an air reminiscent of Boléro, was born from an improvised session between Brian May, John Deacon, and Roger Taylor. Later, Freddie Mercury contributed the melody and part of the lyrics, which Taylor would complete. The result is a piece of almost six and a half minutes, one of Queen's most extensive compositions, evoking their progressive rock roots.

The central part of Innuendo, according to Brian May, was mainly the work of Freddie Mercury. Here we find a flamenco guitar solo, followed by a classical-style bridge, and then the same solo but with electric guitars. This section is particularly intricate, with a three-bar pattern in 5/4, uncommon in popular music, followed by five bars in 3/4. The end of this flamenco section is based on the 5/4 time signature, but is actually in 6/4. The bridge, with the phrase "You can be anything you want to be", features sophisticated orchestration, created by Mercury and producer David Richards using the Korg M1 keyboard. Mercury had already worked with orchestral arrangements in his solo career and on Queen's previous album. The bridge section is in 3/4, showing Mercury's predilection for ternary time signatures, something that can also be heard in Bicycle Race and in tracks like We Are the Champions and Somebody to Love.

The recording of Innuendo spanned from early 1989 to mid-1990. Yes guitarist Steve Howe had the opportunity to participate in the song, being the only musician outside of Queen to record a guitar on a studio track. Howe and Mercury had known each other for a long time, often meeting at London's Townhouse Studios. Howe traveled to Geneva in early 1989 to record his parts. There, he met Martin Gloves, who told him that Queen was in the studio. Upon entering, Freddie Mercury asked him to play some guitar. Another version indicates that it was Brian May who requested the flamenco part, later admitting that he himself could not perform those parts.

As the opening track of the album of the same name, released in January 1991, Innuendo became the first single to reach number one in the UK in almost a decade. It also charted in the top ten in ten other countries. The album Innuendo, released on February 4, 1991, was Queen's last studio album released during the lifetime of Freddie Mercury, who would pass away in November of that same year. The album reached the top spot on the charts in the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, and Switzerland.