Album
Sheer Heart Attack
Sheer Heart Attack is Queen's third studio album, following Queen and Queen II, and it arrived on 8 November 1974. After two records steeped in progressive ideas, the band turned to sharper, more direct songwriting, mixing pop-minded numbers with straightforward rock. It was produced by the band together with Roy Thomas Baker, and it points towards the sound most people now think of as classic Queen.
This was the record that took them into the mainstream. "Killer Queen" reached number two on the UK singles chart and gave them a first US top 20 hit, peaking at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album itself also reached number 12 in America, their first to make the US top 20. It is noted for its wealth of strong hard rock guitar tracks, and it is often named among the band's best work and as an essential glam rock album.
Sheer Heart Attack on Riffology
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Sheer Heart Attack: tracklist, credits and charts
13 tracks · 39:07Tracklist
- 1Brighton RockBrian May5:11
- 2Killer QueenFreddie Mercury3:01
- 3Tenement FunsterRoger Taylor2:47
- 4Flick of the WristFreddie Mercury3:18
- 5Lily of the ValleyFreddie Mercury1:45
- 6Now I’m HereBrian May4:15
- 7In the Lap of the GodsFreddie Mercury3:23
- 8Stone Cold CrazyDeacon, May, Mercury, Taylor2:17
- 9Dear FriendsBrian May1:09
- 10MisfireJohn Deacon1:50
- 11Bring Back That Leroy BrownFreddie Mercury2:16
- 12She Makes Me (Stormtrooper in Stilettos)Brian May4:10
- 13In the Lap of the Gods… RevisitedFreddie Mercury3:46
- Produced by
- Roy Thomas Baker, Queen, Brian May, Roger Taylor
- Recorded at
- AIR Studios (London), Rockfield Studios (Monmouthshire), Trident Studios (London), Wessex Sound Studios (Highbury New Park)
- Recorded
- 7 July – 22 October 1974
- Engineered by
- Kris Fredriksson, Justin Shirley‐Smith, Mike Stone
- Labels
- Elektra, EMI
- Length
- 39:07
Line-up
- John Deacon · bass guitar, keyboard, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, double bass
- Brian May · electric guitar, background vocals, piano, banjo-ukulele, acoustic guitar, lead vocals
- Roger Taylor · drums (drum set), background vocals, percussion, triangle, wind chime, lead vocals, tambourine, timpani
- Freddie Mercury · lead vocals, background vocals, piano, tack piano, organ
Singles
- “Killer Queen" / "Flick of the Wrist” · 11 October 1974
- “Now I'm Here” · 17 January 1975
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1974–1975 | 2 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1974–1975 | 12 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1974–1975 | 6 |
| French Albums (SNEP) · 1974–1975 | 6 |
| Dutch Albums · 1974–1975 | 7 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1974–1975 | 7 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1974–1975 | 9 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1974–1975 | 19 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1974–1975 | 23 |
| Scottish Albums · 2011 | 83 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Canada · 1981 | Platinum |
| Japan · 1975 | Gold |
| Poland · 2009 | Platinum |
| Netherlands · 1977 | Gold |
| Sweden · 1977 | Gold |
| United Kingdom · 1982 | Platinum |
| United States · 1975 | Gold |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
77.9
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
14k
ListenBrainz listeners
238k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
873
Deezer fans (all editions)
Also released on 8 November
Every year →![[Led Zeppelin IV] by Led Zeppelin, album cover](/img/2e61da88-39e9-3473-81d2-c964cb394952/300)
More from Queen
Full discography →
Queen
1973
Queen II
1974
A Night at the Opera
1975
A Day at the Races
1976
Queen’s First E.P.
1977
News of the World
1977
Jazz
1978
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 1974
All of 1974 →More on Elektra
The label →
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News of the World
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The Game
Queen · 1980
Jazz
Queen · 1978
A Day at the Races
Queen · 1976
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AC/DC · 2000
Reinventing the Steel
Pantera · 2000
Greatest Hits
Queen · 1981
Flash Gordon
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Sound of White Noise
Anthrax · 1993
The Nothing
Korn · 2019
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 1 November 1974 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 8 November 1974 | |
| Wikidata | 8 November 1974 | |
| US release | November 1974 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 1 November 1974 | earliest UK or European date |
37 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | CA | Hollywood Records | 00050087240714 | remaster |
| — | CA | Hollywood Records | 00050087240721 | other |
| 1974 | CA | Elektra | other | |
| 1974 | GB | EMI | other | |
| November 1974 | US | Elektra | other | |
| 1 November 1974 | GB | EMI | original | |
| 8 November 1974 | CA | Elektra | other | |
| 1976 | US | Elektra | other | |
| 1976 | JP | Elektra | other | |
| 1986 | GB | EMI | 077774620628 | other |
| 1 December 1986 | XE | EMI | 077774620628 | other |
| 1 December 1986 | GB | EMI | 077774620628 | other |
| 22 April 1987 | JP | EMI | 4988006612198 | other |
| 5 March 1991 | US | Hollywood Records | 720616103628 | other |
| 1993 | NL | Parlophone | 077778949121 | other |
| 1993 | GB | Parlophone | 077778949121 | other |
| 1993 | XE | Parlophone | 077778949121 | other |
| 1998 | JP | EMI | 4988006760813 | other |
| 1998 | US | Hollywood Records | other | |
| 21 November 2001 | JP | Universal Music | 4988006796164 | other |
| 11 February 2004 | JP | EMI | 4988006818125 | other |
| 23 March 2008 | ES | EMI | 8423793300218 | other |
| 2011 | — | — | other | |
| 2011 | — | EMI | 00602527644141 | remaster |
| 2011 | CA | Hollywood Records | 050087240721 | other |
| 14 March 2011 | GB | Island | 602527644110 | remaster |
| 14 March 2011 | XE | Island | 602527644097 | remaster |
| 16 March 2011 | JP | Island | 4988005646187 | remaster |
| 17 May 2011 | US | Hollywood Records | 050087240714 | remaster |
| 14 December 2011 | JP | Island | 4988005689894 | remaster |
| 2014 | GB | — | deluxe | |
| 26 March 2014 | JP | Island | 4988005811585 | remaster |
| 30 July 2015 | AR | Virgin EMI Records | 9789877350555 | remaster |
| 25 September 2015 | XE | Virgin EMI Records | 602547202680 | other |
| 12 December 2018 | JP | Island | 4988031308936 | other |
| — | — | Hollywood Records | other | |
| — | — | EMI | 602527644103 | other |
Cover art sources
deezer · upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| deezer ✓ | 1200×1200 | upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25) |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |
| coverartarchive | 900×900 | upscaled |