The Invisible Man (Queen song)

"The Invisible Man" is a song by the British rock band Queen, written by drummer Roger Taylor but credited to Queen. The song is sung mostly by Freddie Mercury, with vocal contributions from Taylor. Originally released on the album The Miracle, it was released as a single in 1989. Taylor claims that he got the inspiration to create the song while reading a book, and the bassline instantly came to his imagination. The song title was inspired by the H. G. Wells novel of the same name.[3]

For the 98 Degrees song, see Invisible Man (song).

"The Invisible Man"
Artwork for UK release
Single by Queen
from the album The Miracle
B-side
  • "Hijack My Heart"
  • "The Invisible Man" (Album Version) (On the 12" and CD single versions, the extended version of "The Invisible Man" is on the A Side, while the album version is the second B Side)[1]
Released7 August 1989
Recorded1988
GenreElectro-funk[2]
Length
  • 3:57 (album version)
  • 5:04 (early version with guide vocal)
  • 4:17 (video version)
  • 5:28 (12" extended version)
Label
Songwriter(s)Queen
(Roger Taylor)
Producer(s)
Queen singles chronology
"Breakthru"
(1989)		 "The Invisible Man"
(1989)		 "Scandal"
(1989)
Music video
"The Invisible Man" on YouTube

This song marks the only time in any of Queen's songs that all four band members' names are mentioned in the lyrics. Mercury's name is announced by Taylor, and the other three by Mercury.

Music video

In the music video, a video game called "The Invisible Man" plays a large part, as a young boy is playing a game while the band (all dressed in black), who are the "bad guys" in the game, enter the real world and perform the song in his room. As they perform, the boy tries to shoot them with the game controller. From time to time, Mercury appears in various places in the child's room, vanishing before the boy can shoot him with the video controller. After Mercury emerges from the child's closet with his band in tow, John Deacon removes his cowboy hat and throws it to the floor. In perhaps a futile attempt to emulate him, the boy removes his baseball cap, and dons the other. The screen then shows an image of the band in the game once more, Deacon without a hat, and the child walks underneath them, with a "Game Over" message appearing.

A then-15-year-old Danniella Westbrook, who joined soap opera EastEnders the following year, appears in the video as the boy's sister.

Covers

A cover of the song has been done by Scatman John, in which many of the lyrics and instrumentals are replaced with scat singing. Butch Hartman, the creator of the Nickelodeon animated series Danny Phantom, has said the show's theme song was inspired by the bass line of "The Invisible Man".[4]

Track Listings

7" Single

A Side. "The Invisible Man" (Album Version) - 3:57

B Side. "Hijack My Heart" - 4:11[5]

12"/CD Single

A Side. "The Invisible Man" (Extended Version) - 5:28

2/B1. "Hijack My Heart" - 4:11

3/B2. "The Invisible Man" (Album Version) - 3:57

Personnel

Charts
Chart (1989) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[6] 13
German Singles Chart[7] 31
Holland Singles Chart (Single Top 100)[8] 6
Irish Singles Chart[9] 10
Italian Singles Chart[10] 21
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[11] 4
New Zealand Singles Chart[12] 15
Swiss Singles Chart[13] 30
UK Singles Chart[14] 12

References
  1. "Queen UK Singles Discography 1984-1991". www.ultimatequeen.co.uk.
  2. August 2016, Malcolm Dome29. "Queen albums ranked from worst to best". Classic Rock Magazine. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  3. Purvis, Georg (2007). Queen: Complete Works. Reynolds & Hearn. p. 182.
  4. "Interview with Butch Hartman, March 30th 2006". Archived from the original on 2 January 2008. Retrieved 4 June 2007.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. "Queen "The Miracle" album and song lyrics". www.ultimatequeen.co.uk. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  6. "Ultratop.be – Queen – The Invisible Man" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  7. "MusicLine". www.musicline.de.
  8. "Dutch Charts". dutchcharts.nl.
  9. http://www.fireballmedia.ie, Jaclyn Ward - Fireball Media Ltd. -. "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". www.irishcharts.ie.
  10. "Hit Parade Italia - Indice per Interprete: Q". www.hitparadeitalia.it.
  11. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Queen" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  12. "Archived copy". Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  13. Hung, Steffen. "Die Offizielle Schweizer Hitparade und Music Community - swisscharts.com". www.swisscharts.com.
  14. "Official Charts Company". Retrieved 8 August 2008.


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