Innuendo

Innuendo is a 1991 album by English rock band Queen. It is the band’s fourteenth studio album and the last to be composed entirely of new material. It is also the final studio album to be released while lead singer Freddie Mercury was still alive. The album was praised by critics and fans as one of the strongest albums of Queen’s later career. It reached number one on the UK album charts (2 weeks) as well as in the Netherlands (4 weeks), in Switzerland (8 weeks), Germany (6 weeks), and Italy (3 weeks). The album was released in the United States one day after it was released in Britain. The album would be the first Queen album to go Gold in the US upon its release since The Works in 1984. It peaked at number thirty in the United States.

The album was recorded when Mercury was progressing into the final stages of his HIV/AIDS infection. Much of the material on the album deals with the band’s coming to terms with his imminent death. The theme is also reflected in the music, which can be heavy and arresting (“Innuendo” and “Headlong”), but also bleak and dark (“The Show Must Go On”,”These Are The Days Of Our Lives”,”I’m Going Slightly Mad” and “Don’t Try So Hard”), and very often both (“The Hitman” and “Bijou”).

The album cover was designed by Queen and Richard Gray. The booklets and single covers from the album are by Grandville, or are inspired by his illustrations.


Track listing

LP release

Side one
“Innuendo” (Queen) – 6:29
“I’m Going Slightly Mad” (Queen) – 4:04
“Headlong” (Queen) – 4:31