Listen Now
1980… Queen enters the decade in style incorporating synth, dance, and funk into one of their biggest singles of all time. Are you a fan of this direction for the band, should they have made an entire record in this style, or do you prefer the 70s symphonic rock that made Queen famous? Episode 49 covers the eighth Queen studio album, 1980’s “The Game.” Mark, Kevin, Alex, and Chris take you on a historical journey surrounding the album as well as share our favorites and not-so favorites from the record. We go on a deep dive track-by-track listen of this album as well as share personal stories of discovering Queen’s eighth studio album “The Game.”
Subscribe, Rate, and Review:
Quick Reviews
Mark Short and sweet. Has some deep cuts worth mentioning, but don’t appreciate when they just head back to the 50’s or 60’s.
Chris Irritatingly catchy. #2 most enjoyable Queen album in terms of listening experience so far.
Alex Favorite Queen album so far. Singles kick ass and probably my fav deep cuts so far. Album cover is fantastic too.
Kevin The songs that hit here don’t hit has hard as on Jazz, and maybe it would have been more interesting had they gone all in on the change.
Love It or Flush It
| M | C | A | K | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Play the Game" | 3:30 | L | L | L | L | |
| 2 | "Dragon Attack" | 4:18 | L | L | L | L | |
| 3 | "Another One Bites the Dust" | 3:35 | L | L | B | L | |
| 4 | "Need Your Loving Tonight" | 2:50 | F | L | B | L | |
| 5 | "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" | 2:42 | T | B | L | L | |
| 6 | "Rock It (Prime Jive)" | 4:33 | L | F | L | T | |
| 7 | "Don't Try Suicide" | 3:52 | F | T | L | L | |
| 8 | "Sail Away Sweet Sister" | 3:33 | L | L | L | L | |
| 9 | "Coming Soon" | 2:51 | L | L | F | F | |
| 10 | "Save Me" | 3:48 | B | F | T | B |
Love It or Flush It Legend
L = Love. As many as you like.
F = Flush. Must flush at least one track per album.
B = Buy. Purchased for the ultimate LTS “Best Of” playlist for each of us. One per album.
T = Terminate. Should have never even existed. One per album.
The Rules
Each of us must Love, Flush, Buy, and Terminate AT LEAST ONE track on an album, no matter how great or terrible the album is. Whoever wins the “7 for the Buy” section gets an extra Buy or Terminate to use on the album. Because Chris hosts this section and thus cannot win, he gets an extra Buy or Terminate every 4 albums.
Album Information
The Game is the eighth studio album by the British rock band Queen. It was released on 30 June 1980 by EMI Records in the UK and by Elektra Records in the US. The Game features a different sound from its predecessor, Jazz (1978). The Game was the first Queen album to use a synthesizer[3] (an Oberheim OB-X). “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”, “Sail Away Sweet Sister”, “Coming Soon” and “Save Me” were recorded from June to July 1979.[4] The remaining songs were recorded between February and May 1980.[4]
A critical and commercial success, The Game became the only Queen album to reach No. 1 in the US, and became their best-selling studio album in the US, with four million copies sold to date, tying with the sales for News of the World. Notable songs on the album include the bass-driven “Another One Bites the Dust” and the rockabilly “Crazy Little Thing Called Love“, both of which reached No. 1 in the US. Reissued in May 2003 on DVD-Audio with Dolby 5.1 surround sound and DTS 5.1. The 5.1 mix of “Coming Soon” features an alternate backing track, as the final master tapes could not be found when mixing the album to 5.1.
