Now I'm Here
"Now I'm Here" | ||||
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Belgian picture sleeve | ||||
Single by Queen | ||||
from the album Sheer Heart Attack | ||||
B-side | "Lily of the Valley" | |||
Released |
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Recorded | September 1974 | |||
Genre | Hard rock[1][2][3][4] | |||
Length | 4:12 | |||
Label |
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Songwriter(s) | Brian May | |||
Producer(s) |
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Queen singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Now I'm Here" on YouTube | ||||
"Now I'm Here" is a song by English rock band Queen, released on their third studio album, Sheer Heart Attack (1974). Written by guitarist Brian May, the song is noted for its gritty guitar riffs and vocal harmonies. In the UK, the song reached #11 on the charts when released as a single in 1975.[5] The song was a live favourite, performed at virtually every concert from late 1974 to 1986.[6]
Details
The song draws on May's fond experiences of the band's US tour earlier in 1974. Mott the Hoople, whom Queen was supporting, are referenced in the line: Down in the city, just Hoople and me.
It also appeared on the 1981 compilation album Greatest Hits and the 1997 compilation album Queen Rocks.[7] In March 2005, Q magazine placed "Now I'm Here" at number 33 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks.[8]
Live performances
"Now I'm Here" was a fixture of Queen's setlists, being performed on every concert tour from 1974 until the band's final tour in 1986. It was first performed on the Sheer Heart Attack Tour in Manchester on 30 October 1974.
On the Sheer Heart Attack Tour, Mercury would be seen singing the line "Now I'm here" on one side of the stage amidst the darkness and dry ice, and a few bars later, at "Now I'm there," he would "appear" on the other side of the stage, an illusion created by an identically-dressed stagehand.[9]
The liner notes of Live Killers (1979), Queen's first live album, say that the song was dropped from the setlist for some time, but had recently been reintroduced. The song was rearranged to allow Mercury to interact with the audience in a "call and response" sing along.[10] It is unclear when the song was dropped and for how long.
May continued to perform the song as a solo artist following Mercury's death in 1991. At The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert in 1992, May joined Def Leppard on stage to perform the song, which went on to become the B-side to Def Leppard's single "Tonight" and would also make it onto the deluxe edition of their Adrenalize album. It was used as the opening song on the American, Asian and Australian legs of the Queen + Adam Lambert Tour 2014–2015.
Charts
Chart (1975) | Peak position |
---|---|
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[11] | 29 |
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[12] | 32 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[13] | 29 |
UK Singles (OCC)[14] | 11 |
West Germany (Official German Charts)[15] | 25 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[16] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Personnel
Queen
- Freddie Mercury - lead and backing vocals, Hammond organ
- Brian May - guitar, piano, backing vocals
- Roger Taylor - drums, percussion, backing vocals
- John Deacon - bass
Live recordings
- Live Killers (1979)
- Concerts for the People of Kampuchea (1979) (recorded at their Christmas concert in Hammersmith Odeon, London)
- Queen Rock Montreal (1981)
- Queen on Fire – Live at the Bowl (1982)
- Live at Wembley '86 / Live at Wembley Stadium (1986)
- Hungarian Rhapsody: Queen Live in Budapest ’86 (1986)
- The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert (1992) (played by Def Leppard and Brian May)
- Live at the Brixton Academy (Brian May album) (1993)
- Live at the Rainbow '74 (2014)
- A Night at the Odeon – Hammersmith 1975 (2015)
References
- ^ "Now I'm Here :: Queen Songs". Queen Songs. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
- ^ Terich, Jeff; Karman, Chris (6 June 2012). "10 Essential Glam Rock Albums". Treblezine. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
and hard rocking riff-fests ('Stone Cold Crazy,' 'Now I'm Here').
- ^ "The 50 best Queen songs of all time". Classic Rock. 20 November 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
- ^ Simpson, Dave (26 October 2018). "Queen's 50 UK singles – ranked!". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums. London: Guinness World Records Limited
- ^ Queen on tour Queen Concerts. Retrieved 10 July 2011
- ^ Queen Rocks, Vol. 1 Allmusic. Retrieved 10 July 2011
- ^ Tracks 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks Ever! Q Magazine. Retrieved 10 July 2011
- ^ Purvis, Georg (2018). Queen: Complete Works (revised and updated). US, CA: Titan Books. ISBN 9781789090499.
- ^ Live Killers (Media notes). EMI. 1979. EMSP 330.
- ^ "Queen – Now I'm Here" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Queen" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
- ^ "Queen – Now I'm Here" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ "Queen: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Queen – Now I'm Here" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 2 August 2020. To see peak chart position, click "TITEL VON Queen"
- ^ "British single certifications – Queen – Now I'm Here". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
External links
- Official YouTube videos: original music video, Live at the Bowl (and reprise), Live at the Bowl: "Dragon Attack"/"Now I'm Here" (reprise)
- Lyrics at Queen official website
- v
- t
- e
- "Keep Yourself Alive"
- "Liar"
- "Killer Queen"
- "Now I'm Here"
- "Flick of the Wrist"
- "Lily of the Valley"
- "Stone Cold Crazy"
- "Brighton Rock"
- "Bohemian Rhapsody"
- "You're My Best Friend"
- "Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to...)"
- "I'm in Love with My Car"
- "'39"
- "Sweet Lady"
- "The Prophet's Song"
- "Love of My Life"
- "Good Company"
- "God Save the Queen"
- "Somebody to Love"
- "Tie Your Mother Down"
- "Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)"
- "Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy"
- "Long Away"
- "We Will Rock You"
- "We Are the Champions"
- "Spread Your Wings"
- "It's Late"
- "Sheer Heart Attack"
- "Bicycle Race"
- "Fat Bottomed Girls"
- "Don't Stop Me Now"
- "Mustapha"
- "Jealousy"
- "Crazy Little Thing Called Love"
- "Save Me"
- "Play the Game"
- "Another One Bites the Dust"
- "Need Your Loving Tonight"
- "Flash's Theme"
- "Under Pressure"
- "Body Language"
- "Las Palabras de Amor (The Words of Love)"
- "Calling All Girls"
- "Staying Power"
- "Back Chat"
- "One Vision"
- "A Kind of Magic"
- "Princes of the Universe"
- "Friends Will Be Friends"
- "Pain Is So Close to Pleasure"
- "Who Wants to Live Forever"
- "One Year of Love"
- "I Want It All"
- "Breakthru"
- "The Invisible Man"
- "Scandal"
- "The Miracle"
- "Innuendo"
- "I'm Going Slightly Mad"
- "Headlong"
- "These Are the Days of Our Lives"
- "The Show Must Go On"
- "I Can't Live with You"
- "Ride the Wild Wind"
- "Heaven for Everyone"
- "A Winter's Tale"
- "Too Much Love Will Kill You"
- "I Was Born to Love You"
- "Let Me Live"
- "You Don't Fool Me"
- "Made in Heaven"
- "Mother Love"
- "No-One but You (Only the Good Die Young)"
- "Let Me in Your Heart Again"
- "Love Kills"
- "There Must Be More to Life Than This"
- Category