One this. One that.
Roger has stated that he was the genesis for “One Vision”. And this is his track, the real opening to the album. A plodding, driving, catchy, sound-a-like for “Radio Gaga”, this song is a perfect example of what Queen was.
Roger came up with the spine, but Freddie reworked it and pressed it into a hit single. That’s two in a row for Roger.
The song itself is basically a bassline driven bit of hypnosis that seems much better than it is. The title and thrust of the song comes from the movie “Highlander”, which Queen was providing music for. In actuality, much of the album “A Kind of Magic” is made up of songs for that movie. The opener is not, that was for ANOTHER movie, “Iron Eagle”.
This is what Queen wanted to do, apparently.
All that said, “A Kind of Magic” is a catchy ditty and not something I run from when it comes on. It just has no direction. Fades away. As Queen seemed to be trying to do.
Grade: B+
