Talk:We Will Rock You

Initial message
I think this article should mention some of the criticism this musical got on the press, in special the fact that the storyline sounds remarkably similar to the one Rush used for their '2112' concept album. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Pinnecco (talk • contribs) 16:40, 3 February 2005 (UTC)

"currently showing"
The phrase "currently showing" is a bit meaningless if it doesn't have a date attached. That was added 6 months ago - is the musical still showing there? If phrases like "currently" are used, the date should be specified, i.e. "As of July 2005" etc. Vclaw 1 July 2005 21:38 (UTC)

HELP!!!!!
does any one no wat kind of tempo we will rock you has and things like that — Preceding unsigned comment added by 195.144.131.12 (talk) 10:42, 5 December 2005 (UTC)
 * what are you, some kind of moron? It has a constant tempo,

I don't know what it is off the top of my head (probably about 100bpm) - all you need to work it out is: (i) a watch (ii) the ability to count --feline1 11:58, 5 December 2005 (UTC)
 * Luckily, the ability to write in actual English is not required. >:) Wahkeenah 12:30, 5 December 2005 (UTC)

Plagiarism
I'm currently taking a college level music course where the instructor made the claim that We Will Rock You was based on either a Christmas Carol or a Christian Hymn. Can anyone discredit this? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.97.220.174 (talk) 09:46, 3 February 2006 (UTC)


 * Why should we have to? The writing credit in the song is owned by Brian Harold May, that is a legal fact. If your tutor wants to allege that he plagarised it off a hymn, then it's up to *him* to prove which one. Personally I think he's talking crap. Most hymns have very simple chord progressions, as do most rock songs. Any similarity is likely to be coincidence.--feline1 11:14, 3 February 2006 (UTC)
 * My History teacher last year (Frechman year) said that Brian May was interested in Roman history, and that he wrote the song about Hannibal in relation to the three Carthaginian Wars. I'm not sure if it's true... but we did have to write something about what each of the lines in the song mean compared to what happened in the Wars.--Reed9277 01:30, 4 April 2006 (UTC)
 * We Will Rock You does have the same beat as some Vietnamese traditional tune. But still it's not plagiarised imo. I mean, should the monologue of Hamlet be considered a rip-off because Shakespeare didn't invent the words "to" "be" "or" and "not"? Likewise, Brian didn't create any of the chords, words, beats or scales used in Rockyou (or Show Must Go On or any other song he wrote), the difference is the way he organised those. Or else nobody could have been considered to have composed anything. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 200.106.169.208 (talk) 14:11, 6 April 2006 (UTC)

I think that WWRY was also partly inspired by a nursery rhyme and not a carol. I seem to recall that Brain performs something akin to this rhyme on his Back To The Light albums.

The title "We will rock you" probably draws its inspiration from the chorus of a Czech Christmas carol, translated into English: "Little Jesus, sweetly sleep". — Preceding unsigned comment added by Veritasincaritate (talk • contribs) 12:24, 13 August 2016 (UTC)

When played backwards, the song appears to say "It's Fun to Smoke Marijuana" repeatedly
I've deleted this line, it's untrue, this is supposedly the case with another Queen song, Another One Bites The Dust loki@ 17:29, 6 January 2006 (UTC)

Stomp Stomp Clap AHH
In the original studio version, form News of The World, on the first set of stomp stomp clap, we can ear a strange "AHHHH". It's quite hard to ear it, but if you put the volume to the max, you can ear it. I though that it was there by accident, but when I eard the fast version, the ahh was there again. Any Ideas??
 * Yes. This sound is caused by members of Queen going "ahhh". They did this by opening their mouths and making an "aaah" noise, and recording it onto tape using microphones. Their express purpose in this regard was to include the sound of people going "aaah" on this recording.--feline1 16:34, 14 July 2006 (UTC)

I am not sure that it was actually recorded in a church. Perhaps ithis fact is a mis-translation of the song being recorded 'a cappella'?


 * I'm not sure, but yes, I do hear that ahh. I don't know if it was on purpose or not, however...  &Oslash;&#345;  &ecirc;   &#333;&#351;  22:40, 31 January 2007 (UTC)

we will rock you song
can you give me the song that i can sing my self at home but only the paper that gives me the words to sing it and make it that you can print —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.38.129.94 (talk) 17:31, 16 February 2007 (UTC).

old comment
This I think should go in the article: During the 2004 Republican National Convention, women held in Pier 57 by the mass arrests stomped, clapped and chanted "We will, we will SUE YOU" to the NYPD.

Here's three sources:

http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2004/09/296704.shtml (in all caps about 4 paragraphs down)

http://detritus.net/steev/mt/archives/2004_09.html (september 6 2004 entry)

http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:I0YKvkit9KwJ:nyc.indymedia.org/feature/display/126233/index.php+pier+rnc+2004+%22we+will+sue+you%22&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us (10th comment down)

There's more where that came from.

I also personally witnessed it for what that's worth...

— Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.20.229.98 (talk) 22:40, 22 March 2007 (UTC)

Confusion regarding Double A-side
There's seems to be a lot of confusion on Wiki concerning the fact that WWRY was or wasn't released as a single. It wasn't released as a single in the UK, but was indeed released in the U.S. as a Double A-side with WATC and even as a single in France. As a proof one just has to look in the booklet of GVH1, Greatest Hits 1 and Greatest Hits (North American release). So this should be clearly stated in the box with charts positions, because right now, it's clearly inaccurate. VincentG 03:34, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

I have updated things concerning the Double A-side question.VincentG 22:08, 25 May 2007 (UTC)

An extended version of WWRY
I recall Pirate Radio (97.1 FM in Los Angeles many years ago) used to play an extended version of WWRY, which had a rocking guitar riff and interlude, extending the total time nearly 15 to 30 seconds. It was at the end of the existing music and the start of Freddy singing "WATC". It was NOT a live version, but a quality studio version. After the station left the airwaves, I have never heard it again. Is this the "FAST" version I have been reading about? Does anyone else recall hearing this extended version?

Earlsgately 09:54, 21 October 2007 (UTC)


 * Perhaps the version in their 1977 Peel session (it's on YouTube right now)? I've heard it before as well, so I'm pretty sure it's been issued on LP or single somewhere. Rp (talk) 19:09, 4 February 2017 (UTC)

Image copyright problem with Image:Wearethechampions.jpg
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Return the Trivia!
Ok, this is an announcement for all the Queen fans, let´s return the Trivias section that was in this article with references and very well verificated.

I hope that you will join to this. :) --189.187.138.177 (talk) 05:32, 7 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Let's read WP:AVTRIV first. It was removed six months ago and no one's complained, so it'll take a lot of work to come up with something worth retaining. ThuranX (talk) 11:43, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Stomp-Stomp-Clap re-used from Give Peace A Chance?
Saying here goes that the characteristic stomp-stomp-clap was already used in Give Peace A Chance by John Lennon. Has anybody information on this? Are there even more other songs using this musical phrase in such a prominent way? Alfe (talk) 14:54, 30 July 2009 (UTC)

Who's the idiot??
What idiot in this world put it was fucking rap rock?? That is just mentally retarded, im fixing it to it's genre that actually made sence!! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.249.28.252 (talk) 00:44, 27 October 2010 (UTC)

Made more sense than your sentence, I'm afraid.203.220.212.117 (talk) 04:19, 26 January 2018 (UTC)

Arena rock is not a genre
Arena rock is not a genre - it's pretty telling that the arena rock article has existed this long and no consensus has been reached to structure the article the same way as a genre article (or call it a genre in the lead). Perhaps it's because the sources do not exist to prove it's nothing more than an era in rock music history and/or a performance style. Music genres have distinct musical characteristics that they share in common - what identifying characteristics makes arena rock a genre? As far as I can tell, the only thing that makes this song or any others arena rock is that they were performed in arenas. What if Queen had never performed in arenas or stadiums? Would anyone be calling this song arena rock? The manner in which a song is performed live is irrelevant in determining the genre of the song from its original studio recording. If you can't understand that, I'm sorry. Y2Kcrazyjoker4 (talk &bull; contributions) 21:08, 16 March 2014 (UTC)
 * I don't want to be harsh nor aggressive with you, but arena rock is a sub genre of rock, just like funk rock, glam rock,...


 * Journey (...) were considered one of the leaders in the arena rock subgenre, but the success of their 1982 album Escape, including new keyboardist Jonathan Cain, made Journey an early leader in 1980s rock.
 * "With 1976's Leftoverture, Kansas sounded like a lighter version of Led Zeppelin, fitting squarely into a genre known as "arena rock" rather than progressive rock." (Chris Smith, The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Rock History: From Arenas to the Underground, 1974-1980, p. 29)
 * "most of the arena rock bands from the '70s and '80s produced a lot of shit, but that doesn't dilute the one worthwhile characteristic of the genre: it was fun" (CMJ New Music Report, 29 September 2003, p. 5)
 * "As the 1970s progressed, hard rock and heavy metal evolved into a more appealing, high-production genre commonly labeled stadium rock or arena rock because of its grand design to accommodate huge crowds in huge spaces." (David Lee Joyner, American Popular Music, p. 261)

Moreover you've got representative bands such as Styx, Journey or REO Speedwagon. Queen is also regarded as one of the most representative band of this (sub)genre :
 * "A strong arena-rock act, Queen's final performance was at a festival appearance at Knebworth in 1986" (Nick Talevski, Rock Obituaries - Knocking On Heaven's Door, p. 425)
 * The Queen/Thin Lizzy tour of America (...) was the tour on which Queen had all the trimmings that went with arena-rock status" (Phil Sutcliffe, Queen: The Ultimate Illustrated History of the Crown Kings of Rock, p. 74)
 * "Elton (...) was directing a rehearsal for the about-to-launch US tour of his hit London musical, “We Will Rock You,” featuring the songs of arena-rock legends Queen."
 * "In their heyday, Queen was one of the largest arena rock bands ever"

"The manner in which a song is performed live is irrelevant in determining the genre of the song from its original studio recording." : as you may have understood now, "We Will Rock You" is considered one of the most definitive arena rock songs not because it was often performed live (most Queen songs were designed to be performed live anyway) but because it incorporates elements, including its distinctive "stomp-stomp-clap" rhythm, which fits the arena rock template, as suggested by David Konow on his book Bang Your Head: The Rise and Fall of Heavy Metal : "Two years later, in 1977, [Queen] would practically invent the arena-rock anthem with "We Will Rock You." The song was designed for maximum audience participation, where everyone would stomp and clap along to its beat. Even today, whenever you stomp and clap that thunderous beat at a sporting event, Queen gets royalties." It is clear, no ? The song was created to be played in public, exactly like "We Are the Champions" or "Radio Ga Ga", two other songs which fit the arena rock template. Other references I brought next to "arena rock" provide similar comments.

To sum it up, I really don't understand why you're so suspicious. Arena rock is not simply a term or a "style" (what a ugly word you're using here !), it's definitely a genre or, if you prefer, a sub-genre of rock music. Also, to be sincere, I don't care about what the "arena rock" article, because it is not the subject of the "We Will Rock You" article. Synthwave.94 (talk) 02:19, 17 March 2014 (UTC)
 * No need to get upset: the OP was just stating a viewpoint. If you try to edit the arena rock article, a message pops up that says, "NOTE: Arena rock is a "term" and not a genre. The genre infobox is designed for use in genre articles and not terms. Do not add a genre infobox to this article or alter any content to mistakenly refer to the term "arena rock" as a genre." So even the article itself admits that it is not a genre. Also you said "I don't care about what the 'arena rock' article, because it is not the subject of the 'We Will Rock You' article." This makes absolutely no sense. Your bringing in WP:OSE actually goes against what you're saying, because comparisons "should be consistent in the content that it provides or excludes." In fact, your saying that Arena rock is a genre is inconsistent with the actual article. It is NOT a genre, and should not be in the infobox, much in the same way that cock rock isn't in any infoboxes. Johnny338 (talk) 01:10, 27 May 2014 (UTC)
 * That's your own point of view, which is irrelevant here. And yes I really don't care about what the "arena rock" article says or seems to claim. Someone decided to push his/her own point of view over this article, it is something which is quite common over music-related articles. "Arena rock" is both correctly sourced and appropriate. Five references is more than enough to prove the song is a definitive/typical arena rock song. Moreover I brought references (see above) which proved "arena rock" IS a music genre. You need better/stronger arguments to prove this song is not arena rock and to prove "arena rock" is not a music genre/subgenre. Personal point of views count for nothing. (NB : "cock rock" is considered a music genre too) Synthwave.94 (talk) 03:43, 27 May 2014 (UTC)
 * Whether you care about the arena rock article is irrelevant. An encyclopedia is supposed to show things as they are, not as we want them to be. Therefore, it would be more appropriate for you to bring these sources up in the arena rock article. I am not quite sure why you are so determined to have the infobox in this particular article say "arena rock" when the general consensus across Wikipedia is that it is NOT a genre or style of music, but rather is merely a term. Plus, this template says to "Aim for generality (e.g. Hip hop rather than East Coast hip hop)." with regard to infoboxes. And there is a difference between those two genres listed. The first is a branch umbrella term, the second is a more specific genre. If you want to see the consensus changed, then bring this up on either the arena rock talk page, or an assorted Wikiproject. Rock is a much better label in the infobox for this song, as the infobox is supposed to be a summary of what's in the article. It doesn't make sense to have this "genre" in the infobox when the article on that "genre" states that it is a term. Remind me again on how inconsistency is supposed to be a good thing. Johnny338 (talk) 22:34, 1 June 2014 (UTC)
 * The "general consensus" you're talking about is only based on pure original research. A common belief if you prefer. That's not the truth (once again read all the references added above). "Rock is a much better label in the infobox for this song". Really ? So why did I manage to find so many reliable sources describing this song as "arena rock" (or stadium rock) ? Is it just a coincidence ? Of course it isn't. If many references employ the same specific genre/subgenre then it is possible to keep it in the infobox. Also what your so-called template says is completly outdated. I saw countless infoboxes with specific genres or subgenres. Only reliability matters. However I agree a piece of consistency is better. But what is said at the arena rock article is not true. There are definitive arena rock songs (including "We Will Rock You") and definitive, representative arena rock bands (Queen, Styx, Journey, Foreigner, REO Speedwagon, Boston, etc). Oh, and don't you know something ? News of the World is described as a "The Great Arena Rock Wonder" by a Sputnik staff review. Another proof arena rock is not simply a term but a true, definitive genre/subgenre. Along with all the references I brought here, "arena rock" can stay in the infobox of this article, but adding a "composition" section would be better to make understand why it is an arena rock song. Synthwave.94 (talk) 03:44, 2 June 2014 (UTC)

The above arguments based on sources are what we should follow. I found more sources:
 * CMJ New Music Report – September 29, 2003 – page 5: "Sure, most of the arena rock bands from the '70s and '80s produced a lot of shit, but that doesn't dilute the one worthwhile characteristic of the genre: it was fun."
 * American Popular Music – page 270: "Along the way, arena rock, progressive rock, and other postpsychedelic styles seemed to forsake the concept of dance music."
 * Music Theory Online, Walter Everett, "Making Sense of Rock's Tonal Systems", December 2004: "An effort was made to reflect in the sample the most popular and/or significant styles of the day—hip-hop, hard rock, country, alternative rock, grunge, mainstream rock, arena rock, jazz-rock fusion, pre-teen idols, and catalog artists with new releases—just as the singles chart would have done in its day." (Also appears as a chapter in Allan F. Moore's Critical essays in popular musicology, Ashgate, 2007. See page 321.)
 * This Ain't the Summer of Love: Conflict and Crossover in Heavy Metal and Punk, page 10: "This Ain't the Summer of Love therefore begins not with the release of a particular record or the origin of a sound, but with the rise of a new sort of concert phenomenon: arena rock, which effectively emerged alongside the genre of heavy metal in the first years of the 1970s." On page 33 in the book, the author describes Grand Funk Railroad as a band that was formed around the concept of arena rock, a band that never paid its dues in little clubs.
 * The Rock Cover Song: Culture, History, Politics – page 138: "In this way, while the first three songs on NATO are taken from three vastly different genres (classical, soul, and arena rock), they end up sounding almost identical in Laibach's détourned versions..." The author presents Europe (band) as a Swedish arena rock band. I think the arena rock designation is certainly a performance style, and that a performance style is also a genre. I don't think performance aspects can be separated from the musical genre. Certainly in a rock anthem the music is easy to sing, while in arena rock the music celebrates its massiveness. Binksternet (talk) 03:59, 2 June 2014 (UTC)
 * Nice to see there are other reliable references which to prove what I'm saying is true (even if the CMJ New Music Report was already mentionned but anyway that's not really important). I'm pretty sure other reliable sources see "arena rock"/"stadium rock" as a (sub)genre and not as a "term". Synthwave.94 (talk) 04:11, 2 June 2014 (UTC)
 * @Synthwave.94 I would like to apologize if I seemed harsh at all in my previous arguments. I'd like to clarify what I meant: While I'm not opposed to what you're arguments on this subject are, I do believe consistency is needed in an encyclopedia. Therefore, I believe that if we are to agree on Arena rock as a genre, it needs to be something consistent throughout Wikipedia. I am going to bring this up with the Music genres task force as well as the talk page on Arena rock itself to hopefully settle this debate once and for all. Again, I apologize and I hope we can move past this discussion without becoming antagonistic towards one another in the future. Johnny338 (talk) 16:46, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
 * Yes I understand consistency is better, but this is a huge problem with Wikipedia. Consistency is not always respected. For example, there is a consensus about not calling AC/DC a metal band ... but this band appears on the list of heavy metal bands ! I am going to clean up and brought some references I mentionned above to the arena rock article anyway. I'm gonna prove arena rock is a definitive genre and not a so-called term. I only wanted to prove removing arena rock from this article is completly stupid as numerous reliable sources call this song arena rock or stadium rock. Synthwave.94 (talk) 17:06, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
 * @Synthwave.94 I have started a discussion at the music genres task force here regarding this. I would weigh in there before you start editing the arena rock article itself, to avoid a possible edit war ensuing. Johnny338 (talk) 17:12, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
 * Ok, thanks. I'd keep an eye at this discussion. Synthwave.94 (talk) 17:19, 9 June 2014 (UTC)
 * I for one view "arena rock" as "rock which is better live than on an album". The work of Boston sounds too epic to listen to their albums. The full experience must be felt live. That is what arena rock is supposed to be. AmericanLeMans (talk) 01:48, 7 June 2015 (UTC)

So, if someone plays We Will Rock You in a jazz club, is the song still 'arena rock'? My personal opinion is a setting isn't a genre. AC/DC started as a pub rock band, then they got popular and became an arena rock band. What changed in their music? Not a single thing. Arena is a setting, and can not be a genre. I mean, how does one go about recording an 'arena rock' song in a recording studio? And what if your band claims to be working in the areana rock genre, but is confined to playing 200 seat venues their entire career?122.107.170.39 (talk) 14:11, 13 April 2017 (UTC)

I thought this too actually. For the Bring Me The Horizon songs 'Drown' and 'Avalanche' it got removed for not being a genre, so how is it any different here? --Solitude6nv5 (talk) 11:11, 11 July 2017 (UTC)


 * What do you think?

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Emergency Broadcast Network
Can the band Emergency Broadcast Network get credit for their version of this song on this page? It features vocals by George H.W. Bush. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.220.212.117 (talk) 04:19, 26 January 2018 (UTC)

A Knight's Tale
I suppose the song is on the soundtrack of several movies, but I think it is odd not to mention A Knight's Tale in this article. In addition to the song itself (which according to imdb should be there, though I don't remember that), the audience at jousting tournaments perform the stomp-stomp-clap thing (which I remember very clearly). Thoughts? Nø (talk) 18:52, 18 February 2024 (UTC)