This 1979 Queen Single Made the Band Members Worry About Freddie Mercury

In 1979, Queen released “Don’t Stop Me Now”. On their Jazz album, the multi-platinum single was written by Queen’s lead singer, Freddie Mercury.

One of Queen’s most memorable hits, “Don’t Stop Me Now” says, “I’m a shooting star leaping through the sky / Like a tiger defying the laws of gravity / I’m a racing car passing by / Like Lady Godiva. / I’m gonna go, go, go / There’s no stopping me.”

Thrilled with the song’s success, band member Brian May admits that it also made him and other Queen members worry about Mercury.

“I thought it was a lot of fun,” May later tells Absolute Radio. “But I did have an undercurrent feeling of, ‘Aren’t we talking about danger here?’ Because we were worried about Freddie at this point. That feeling lingers, but it’s become almost the most successful Queen track as regards to what people play in their car or at their weddings. It’s become a massive, massive track and an anthem to people who want to be hedonistic. It was kind of a stroke of genius from Freddie.”

The Success of Queen After “Don’t Stop Me Now”

Queen’s Roger Taylor later admits he isn’t the biggest fan of “Don’t Stop Me Now”.

“I don’t necessarily think it’s one of our best songs. But I love the sentiment, ‘Call me Mr. Fahrenheit,’” he says, referencing a lyric in “Don’t Stop Me Now”. “It’s hilarious, and it’s become a sort of rallying cry.”

“Don’t Stop Me Now” may not be as well remembered as Queen’s “Another One Bites The Dust” and “Bohemian Rhapsody”. Still, it remains one of the most popular Queen songs today, even after all these years. It also had plenty of success in its own right.

This song has also been used in multiple movies, including Blackball in 2023 and Venom: The Last Dance, out in 2024. After the release of “Don’t Stop Me Now”, Queen had several more hits. Those include “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” and “Another One Bites The Dust”. “Another One Bites The Dust” is Queen’s final No. 1 single in the United States.

In 1991, Mercury tragically passed away, only one day after revealing he had been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS.

 “I felt it correct to keep this information private to date to protect the privacy of those around me,” Mercury said when announcing his illness. “However, the time has come now for my friends and fans around the world to know the truth. I hope that everyone will join with my doctors and all those worldwide in the fight against this terrible disease.”

Photo by Ross Marino/Getty Images

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