Brian May Says This Queen Song Was Heavily Inspired by Led Zeppelin
Brian May doesn’t have a problem admitting Queen was influenced by some of their peers. One of those peers, in particular, is Led Zeppelin, and there’s a specific song May…
Brian May doesn't have a problem admitting Queen was influenced by some of their peers. One of those peers, in particular, is Led Zeppelin, and there's a specific song May says was heavily inspired by Zeppelin.
May talked about this in an interview with Total Guitar saying "Now I'm Here" from the band's 1974 album Sheer Heart Attack was definitely inspired by "Black Dog".
The guitar icon said, "I owe a lot to Jimmy Page, of course – the master of the riff, and the master of getting lost deliberately in time signatures. I think that song was inspired, definitely, by the spirit of Zeppelin."
May adds, "All those wonderful things that are happening when Bonzo [John Bonham] is throwing in things which sound like they’re in a different time signature – that stuff has always fascinated me ... Those guys were not far ahead of us in age. But the first time we heard Zeppelin, we thought, 'Oh, my God, this is where we’re trying to get to, and they’re already there!'"
May adds that Queen also admired Zeppelin from a business standpoint as well. He said, "The way they handled their image, the integrity, the way they built their stage show – so many things. I suppose between Zeppelin and The Beatles and The Who, you would see where we came from. That was the kind of platform that we bounced off.
Queen is currently on hiatus from touring. However, they made sure to wish their social media followers a Happy Valentine's Day today and curated a playlist of their best love songs.
10 Most Listened-To Classic Rock Artists in the World
Classic rock might just be one of the most dominant forces in the world as evident by a study from Liberty Games.
The U.K.-based arcade/bar games company gathered data from YouTube Video Music Charts to determine several "most listed-to" figures. This data was collected between October 24-28, 2022 and spans the previous 12-month period. In addition to classic rock, other genres getting this data breakdown treatment included old-school hip-hop, old-school country and classical.
With the data, Liberty Games created a fun breakdown of the top ten most listened-to classic rock artists worldwide. Specifically, Liberty Games also identified the most listened-to classic rock acts in over 125 countries.
Keep scrolling to see the top ten most listened-to classic rock artists worldwide. (We'll also list which countries where they were streamed the most.) But first, some honorable mentions!
Honorable Mention: Chicago
Ian Showell/Keystone/Getty Images27th August 1970: American rock band Chicago, in England to top the bill at the 1970 Isle of Wight festival. From left to right; Pete Cetera (bass), James Pankow (trombone), Lee Loughnane (trumpet), Terry Kath (guitar), Walter Parazaider (saxophone) and Danny Seraphine. (Photo by Ian Showell/Keystone/Getty Images)
Honorable Mention: Bruce Springsteen
Ilya S. Savenok/Getty ImagesNEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 10: Musician Bruce Springsteen performs on stage at the New York Comedy Festival and the Bob Woodruff Foundation's 9th Annual Stand Up For Heroes Event on November 10, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science)
Honorable Mention: The Eagles
Rick Diamond/Getty ImagesNEW ORLEANS, LA - MAY 05: Joe Walsh, Glenn Frey, Don Henley and Timothy B. Schmit of the Eagles backstage during the 2012 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival - Day 6 at the Fair Grounds Race Course on May 5, 2012 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images)
Honorable Mention: Thin Lizzy
Evening Standard/Getty Images12th July 1976: Phil Lynott (1951 - 1986), singer and bass guitarist with the rock group Thin Lizzy, performs on stage. (Photo by Evening Standard/Getty Images)
Def Leppard
Mercury Records/Hulton Archive via Getty ImagesPromotional portrait of the British rock band Def Leppard, circa 1985. L-R: Steve Clark, Rick Savage, Joe Elliott, Pete Willis, Rick Allen. (Photo by Mercury Records/Hulton Archive/Courtesy of Getty Images)
Most performed songs by bands
10. Pink Floyd
MJ Kim/Getty ImagesLONDON - JULY 02: (L to R) David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Nick Mason and Rick Wright from the band Pink Floyd on stage at "Live 8 London" in Hyde Park on July 2, 2005 in London, England. The free concert is one of ten simultaneous international gigs including Philadelphia, Berlin, Rome, Paris, Barrie, Tokyo, Cornwall, Moscow and Johannesburg. The concerts precede the G8 summit (July 6-8) to raising awareness for MAKEpovertyHISTORY. (Photo by MJ Kim/Getty Images)
9. Creedence Clearwater Revival
Evening Standard/Getty ImagesApril 1970: American country rock group Creedence Clearwater Revival. From left to right; Doug Clifford, Tom Fogerty, Stu Cook and John Fogerty. (Photo by Evening Standard/Getty Images)
8. The Rolling Stones
Scott Gries/Getty ImagesNEW YORK - MAY 10: (L-R) Charlie Watts, Mick Jagger, Ron Wood, and Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones pose for a photo during a press conference to announce a world tour at the Julliard Music School May 10, 2005 in New York City. (Photo by Scott Gries/Getty Images)
7. The Beatles
John Pratt/Keystone/Getty Images19th May 1967: The Beatles celebrate the completion of their new album, 'Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', at a press conference held at the west London home of their manager Brian Epstein. The LP is released on June 1st. (Photo by John Pratt/Keystone/Getty Images)
6. Nirvana
Larry Busacca/Getty ImagesNEW YORK, NY - APRIL 10: Dave Grohl of Nirvana speaks onstage at the 29th Annual Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony at Barclays Center of Brooklyn on April 10, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images)
5. Metallica
Frazer Harrison/Getty ImagesLOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 02: Metallica (L-R) Robert Trujillo, James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett perform at the 5th Annual Revolver Golden Gods Award Show at Club Nokia on May 2, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
4. Bon Jovi
Theo Wargo/Getty Images For The Rock and Roll Hall of FameCLEVELAND, OH - APRIL 14: (L-R) Inductees Hugh McDonald, Alec John Such, David Bryan, John Bon Jovi, Tico Torres and Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi attend the 33rd Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Public Auditorium on April 14, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images For The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)
3. AC/DC
Newsmakers/Getty Images378457 01: Members of the Australian rock band AC-DC pose for a photograph after the Rock Walk handprint ceremony September 15, 2000 at the Guitar Center in Hollywood, Ca. From left: Brian Johnson, Malcolm Young, Cliff Williams, Angus Young and Phil Rudd. (Photo / Newsmakers)
2. Guns N' Roses
Amy Sussman/Getty Images for StagecoachINDIO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 30: Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses performs onstage with Carrie Underwood during Day 2 of the 2022 Stagecoach Festival at the Empire Polo Field on April 30, 2022 in Indio, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images for Stagecoach)
1. Queen
Keystone/Getty Images8th September 1976: British rock group Queen at Les Ambassadeurs, where they were presented with silver, gold and platinum discs for sales in excess of one million of their hit single 'Bohemian Rhapsody'. The band are, from left to right, John Deacon, Freddie Mercury (Frederick Bulsara, 1946 - 1991), Roger Taylor and Brian May. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)
