We Will Rock You (2:02)

“We Will Rock You” is a song written by Brian May and recorded and performed by Queen as the opening track on their 1977 album News Of The World. The album version consists of a stamping-clapping beat, and a power chorus, being somewhat of an anthem. The stamping effects were created by the band overdubbing the sounds of themselves stomping and clapping many times and adding delay effects to create a sound like many people were participating. According to the We Will Rock You Songfacts, Brian May said that his degree in astrophysics helped in the recording of the crucial ‘stomp-stomp-clap!” rhythm of the song. Other than the last 30 seconds containing a guitar solo, the song is generally set in acapella form, using clapping as a rhythmic beat.

As the double A-side with “We Are the Champions”, “We Will Rock You” reached number 4 on the U.S. Billboard singles chart, becoming their second hit in the U.S. On the 45 of the song’s original vinyl record release, the song was actually the flip side of “We Are the Champions” in Britain, however the American record company requested to put the two songs together as a “double A-side” because American radio stations were playing them back to back. This is a reason why the songs are often paired on the radio and at sporting events, where they are frequently played. The songs are also paired back to back on the album, and they are still played together to this day on American classic rock radio stations.