Skip to content
Home

Flash (Queen song) — theme to the 1980 film Flash Gordon

Theme song written by Brian May for the 1980 film Flash Gordon, performed by Queen with Freddie Mercury and Brian May sharing vocals. Noted for its dramatic chorus and success in European charts.

Author: Created: Updated:

Overview

"Flash" is the principal theme song recorded by the British rock Queen for the 1980 film Flash Gordon (1980 film). Composed by guitarist Brian May, the track serves as the signature musical motif of the movie and appears on the soundtrack album credited to the band. Vocally it features a duet between Freddie Mercury and May, with high harmonies contributed by Roger Taylor.

Image gallery

1 Image
Flashusa
en.wikipedia.org · PD

Musical characteristics and versions

The song is dramatic and theatrical in style, built around a short, rallying chorus that famously repeats the staccato exclamation often heard as "Flash! Ah-ah!" Two principal commercial forms were released: a concise single edit intended for radio and a longer soundtrack version aligned with the film's sequencing. The arrangement combines layered vocals, prominent electric guitar work and studio effects to produce an emphatic, cinematic rock sound.

Release and chart performance

Issued in 1980 alongside the film soundtrack, the single reached a modest position in the United States—peaking at #42 on the Billboard Hot 100—while enjoying stronger reception across continental Europe. It was a Top 10 hit in several countries and reached #1 in Austria. The differing single and album treatments helped the song find both radio play and placement within the film score.

Personnel and recording

While the piece is a Queen performance, the recording process emphasized layered studio production. Key contributors included:

  • Brian May — writer, lead and backing vocals on the duet, and principal instrumental overdubs
  • Freddie Mercury — lead and backing vocals
  • Roger Taylor — high vocal harmonies
  • band rhythm section — provided the core bass and drum parts on the recording

Reception and legacy

"Flash" remains one of Queen's more theatrical and film-related tracks and continues to be associated with the Flash Gordon franchise. Its distinctive chant-like chorus and dramatic delivery have ensured recurring inclusion in Queen compilations and in retrospectives of the group's work on soundtrack projects. Though not among Queen's biggest hits in the U.S., it stands out in their catalogue for its role as a full-length cinematic theme written and performed by a rock band.

Notable facts

The project is notable because it represents a major rock group's full collaboration on a movie soundtrack, with the band adapting their sound to a cinematic context. The record illustrates Queen's willingness to experiment with production techniques and theatrical vocal arrangements, and it remains a frequently cited example of rock music created expressly for film.

Queen | Brian May | Freddie Mercury | Roger Taylor | Flash Gordon | band | Billboard

History

There are two versions of this rock song by Queen: The album version, which contains entire dialogues from the first scenes of the movie, and the single version, which contains phrases from various scenes. The latter is better known worldwide. In particular, the exclamation "Gordon's alive!?" (in German: "Gordon's still alive!?") spoken by Brian Blessed (who plays Prince Vultan in the film), which can be misinterpreted as "cucumber salad" during song interrogations. The single version is also included in the 1981 Greatest Hits.

Flash is sung as a duet by Freddie Mercury and Brian May, with Roger Taylor providing background vocals. May also plays all the instruments in the song. He uses an Imperial Bösendorfer piano (with 97 keys instead of 88 with an extra octave in the low range), an Oberheim OBX synth (which he also plays in the video) and also his own Red Special electric guitar.

It was released on November 24, 1980, and while the song still made the top-50 charts in the United States, it was much more successful in Europe (especially reaching #1 in Austria). The song could be heard in the episode Not All Dogs Go to Heaven of Family Guy, in the film The Ice Princes, and in commercials for the Blackberry Playbook and Clash Royale. The song was used as the opening song at the 2007 Formula One World Championship and was used by the Miami Heat (NBA) and Philadelphia Phillies (MLB) sports teams.

Google used the song in a commercial for the NightSight feature of its Google Pixel 3 smartphone.

Music video

The music video was shot in November 1980 at Anvil Studios London, directed by Donald Norman. In the video, the band performs the song accompanied by scenes from the film Flash Gordon. The video was available on iTunes in 2011.

Related articles

Author

AlegsaOnline.com Flash (Queen song) — theme to the 1980 film Flash Gordon

URL: https://en.alegsaonline.com/art/35022

Share

Sources