Album
Jazz
Jazz is Queen's seventh studio album, released on 10 November 1978. Roy Thomas Baker co-produced it, and it came out through EMI in the UK and Elektra in the US. It follows News of the World in the band's run of studio records and sits just before The Game, which would take them in a leaner direction. The cover design was Roger Taylor's idea, inspired by a similar image he had seen painted on the Berlin Wall.
Despite the title, this is not a jazz record. It moves between hard rock, pop rock and arena-sized glam, and that restless variety drew both praise and criticism at the time. It reached number two on the UK Albums Chart and number six on the US Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart. For listeners who like Queen at their most unpredictable, with the band chasing several ideas at once, it is a rewarding place to spend an evening.
Jazz: tracklist, credits and charts
13 tracks · 44:49Tracklist
- 1MustaphaFreddie Mercury3:02
- 2Fat Bottomed GirlsBrian May4:17
- 3JealousyFreddie Mercury3:14
- 4Bicycle RaceFreddie Mercury3:04
- 5If You Can’t Beat ThemJohn Deacon4:15
- 6Let Me Entertain YouFreddie Mercury3:02
- 7Dead on TimeBrian May3:23
- 8In Only Seven DaysJohn Deacon2:30
- 9Dreamers BallBrian May3:31
- 10Fun ItRoger Taylor3:30
- 11Leaving Home Ain’t EasyBrian May3:15
- 12Don’t Stop Me NowFreddie Mercury3:30
- 13More of That JazzRoger Taylor4:17
- Produced by
- Roy Thomas Baker, Queen
- Recorded at
- Mountain Studios (Montreux), Super Bear Studios (Berre-les-Alpes), Studio Miraval (Correns)
- Recorded
- Early July – 14 October 1978
- Engineered by
- John Etchells, Geoff Workman
- Labels
- Elektra, EMI, Ariola (France)
- Length
- 44:49
Line-up
- John Deacon · bass guitar, bicycle bell, electric guitar, acoustic guitar
- Brian May · electric guitar, vocals, acoustic guitar, bicycle bell
- Freddie Mercury · piano, vocals, bicycle bell
- Roger Taylor · percussion, vocals, bicycle bell, electric guitar, bass guitar
Singles
- “Bicycle Race" / "Fat Bottomed Girls” · 13 October 1978
- “Don't Stop Me Now” · 26 January 1979
- “Mustapha” · April 1979 (Germany)
- “Jealousy” · 27 April 1979 (US)
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1978–1979 | 2 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1978–1979 | 6 |
| Argentina (CAPIF) · 1978–1979 | 3 |
| Dutch Albums · 1978–1979 | 3 |
| German Albums · 1978–1979 | 5 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1978–1979 | 5 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1978–1979 | 6 |
| Portuguese Albums (Musica & Som) · 1978–1979 | 6 |
| Swedish Albums · 1978–1979 | 6 |
| French Albums (SNEP) · 1978–1979 | 7 |
All 16 charts
| Austrian Albums · 1978–1979 | 8 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1978–1979 | 13 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1978–1979 | 15 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1978–1979 | 15 |
| New Zealand Albums · 1978–1979 | 20 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2019 | 167 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Austria · 1997 | Gold |
| Canada | Platinum |
| France · 1980 | Gold |
| Germany · 1979 | Gold |
| Italy · 2024 | Gold |
| Japan · 1979 | Gold |
| Netherlands | Platinum |
| New Zealand · 2026 | 2× Platinum |
| Poland · 2009 | Platinum |
| Switzerland · 1992 | Platinum |
| United Kingdom · 1978 | Gold |
| United States · 1978 | Platinum |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
77.5
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
15k
ListenBrainz listeners
189k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
1.3k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Also released on 10 November
Every year →
More from Queen
Full discography →
Queen
1973
Queen II
1974
Sheer Heart Attack
1974
A Night at the Opera
1975
A Day at the Races
1976
Queen’s First E.P.
1977
News of the World
1977
Live Killers
1979
The Game
1980
Flash Gordon
1980
Greatest Hits
1981
Hot Space
1982
The Works
1984
A Kind of Magic
1986
Live Magic
1986
Hungarian Rhapsody: Live in Budapest
1987
The Miracle
1989
At the Beeb
1989
Innuendo
1991
Greatest Hits II
1991
Box of Tricks
1992
Classic Queen
1992
The 12″ Collection
1992
Live at Wembley ’86
1992
Five Live
1993
The Greatest 3
1995
Made in Heaven
1995
Queen Rocks
1997
The Crown Jewels: A 25th Anniversary Celebration
1998
Greatest Hits III
1999
Highlander
2000
Greatest Hits I, II & III: The Platinum Collection
2000
We Will Rock You
2002
Jewels
2004
We Are the Champions: Final Live in Japan
2004
Queen on Fire: Live at the Bowl
2004
Stone Cold Classics
2006
The A–Z of Queen, Volume 1
2007
Rock Montreal
2007
The Singles Collection, Volume 1
2008
The Singles Collection, Volume 2
2009
Absolute Greatest
2009
The Singles Collection, Volume 3
2010
The Singles Collection, Volume 4
2010
Deep Cuts, Volume 1 (1973–1976)
2011
Deep Cuts, Volume 2 (1977–1982)
2011
Deep Cuts, Volume 3 (1984–1995)
2011
Icon
2013
Live at the Rainbow ’74
2014
Queen Forever
2014
A Night at the Odeon
2015
Bohemian Rhapsody: The Original Soundtrack
2018
Riffs
2025
Pop
2025
Anthems
2025
Ballads
2025
The best of 1978
All of 1978 →
More on Elektra
The label →
Ride the Lightning
Metallica · 1984
Kill ’Em All
Metallica · 1983
News of the World
Queen · 1977
The Game
Queen · 1980
Sheer Heart Attack
Queen · 1974
A Day at the Races
Queen · 1976
Stiff Upper Lip
AC/DC · 2000
Reinventing the Steel
Pantera · 2000
Greatest Hits
Queen · 1981
Flash Gordon
Queen · 1980
Sound of White Noise
Anthrax · 1993
The Nothing
Korn · 2019
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 10 November 1978 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 10 November 1978 | |
| Wikidata | 10 November 1978 | |
| US release | 14 November 1978 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 10 November 1978 | earliest UK or European date |
49 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XE | Virgin EMI Records | 602527717678 | other |
| — | CA | Hollywood Records | 00050087245450 | remaster |
| — | XW | — | 602547025593 | deluxe |
| — | CA | Hollywood Records | 00050087522032 | remaster |
| 1978 | CA | Elektra | other | |
| 1978 | IN | EMI | other | |
| 1978 | GB | EMI | other | |
| 1978 | JP | Elektra | other | |
| 1978 | DE | EMI | other | |
| 1978 | IT | EMI | other | |
| 10 November 1978 | NL | EMI | original | |
| 10 November 1978 | GB | EMI | original | |
| 14 November 1978 | US | Elektra | other | |
| 1986 | XE | EMI | 077774621021 | other |
| 1986 | — | EMI | 077774621021 | other |
| 1 December 1986 | GB | EMI | 077774621021 | other |
| 3 February 1988 | JP | EMI | 4988006610279 | other |
| 1991 | CA | Hollywood Records | 720616106223 | other |
| 1991 | CA | Hollywood Records | 075596106221 | other |
| 17 June 1991 | US | Hollywood Records | 720616106223 | other |
| 1994 | GB | Parlophone | 077778949527 | other |
| 1994 | FR | Parlophone | 077778949527 | other |
| 1994 | IT | Parlophone | 077778949527 | other |
| 1994 | XE | Parlophone | 077778949527 | other |
| 18 May 1994 | JP | EMI | 4988006695757 | other |
| 1998 | US | Hollywood Records | other | |
| 6 November 1998 | JP | EMI | 4988006760851 | other |
| 11 February 2004 | JP | EMI | 4988006818163 | other |
| 15 June 2008 | ES | EMI | 8423793300218 | other |
| 2011 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087245450 | other |
| 2011 | — | EMI | 00602527717685 | remaster |
| 2011 | ZA | Universal | 6009143473638 | remaster |
| 22 June 2011 | JP | Island | 4988005667885 | remaster |
| 22 June 2011 | JP | — | 4988005667885 | other |
| 27 June 2011 | — | EMI | 602527717678 | remaster |
| 27 June 2011 | GB | Island | 602527717678 | remaster |
| 27 June 2011 | GB | Island | 602527717685 | remaster |
| 13 September 2011 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087245450 | remaster |
| 22 February 2012 | JP | Universal International | 4988005697639 | remaster |
| 2014 | XW | — | 602547024671 | other |
| 28 May 2014 | JP | Island | 4988005821065 | other |
| 27 October 2014 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087318338 | other |
| 4 November 2014 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087318321 | deluxe |
| 25 September 2015 | XE | Virgin EMI Records | 602547202741 | other |
| 22 October 2015 | AR | Virgin EMI Records | 9789877350678 | remaster |
| 2018 | DE | KronStudioLab International | deluxe | |
| 9 November 2018 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087400279 | other |
| 12 December 2018 | JP | Island | 4988031308967 | other |
| 19 May 2021 | JP | Universal Music | 4988031426807 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · upscaled: minor: best source 1417x1417, upscaled to 1500 (x1.06)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1417×1417 | upscaled: minor: best source 1417x1417, upscaled to 1500 (x1.06) |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |