After New Adidas Campaign, Queen video gets Peterborough in music heritage guide

By editorial board on March 7, 2024

A music video by rock band Queen has helped put an area on the "world's musical stage", according to DJ Jo Whiley.

Peterborough features as a musical heritage destination in a new series of audio guides voiced by the BBC Radio 2 presenter.The National Rail guides are available to train passengers via a free app.

Train passengers will receive geo-targeted stories about the music behind 30 places they are passing through, including Peterborough.

Queen visited the city's Nene Valley Railway to film the video for the single Breakthru in 1989.

They performed on a platform attached to a moving train, the Miracle Express, which broke through a polystyrene brick wall.

"There are 30 guides, and they tell the stories behind some of the places that helped put Britain on the world's musical stage, and you can visit them by train."

She added that one of her favourite stories involved Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones having a chance encounter at Dartford railway station.

The pair had been students and bonded over a shared appreciation of Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters.

  Queen And David Bowie’s ‘Under Pressure’ Soundtracks New Adidas Campaign
The new promo from the athletic brand features Anthony Edwards, Patrick Mahomes, and Lionel Messi.

This weekend – alongside one of the biggest spectacles in the sporting calendar - the brand will kick off the campaign with a film featuring Pat Mahomes, Trinity Rodman, Lionel Messi, Linda Caicedo, Jude Bellingham, Anthony Edwards, Rohit Sharma, and the New Zealand Rugby All Blacks, dedicated to celebrating athletes dealing with pressure.

Set against the timeless and iconic anthem, ‘Under Pressure’ by Queen ft. David Bowie, the new film spotlights everyday athletes experiencing the weight of expectation and what is possible when they silence its impact with the joyous rallying cry - 'You Got This.' The 90-second film climaxes with a tribute to adidas’ star-studded roster performing at the top of their game during some of their most high-stakes sporting moments.

Brian May and David Bowie brawl over "Under Pressure" mix
"Basically it was Freddie and David fighting it out in the studio with the mix, and what happened in the mix was that most of that heavy guitar was lost"

Brian May says he “bowed out” to David Bowie in fight for mix of Queen’s ‘Under Pressure’ – but has “never liked it”, according to NME.

Queen guitarist Brian May has revealed that he has “never liked” the mix of ‘Under Pressure’, the band’s 1981 smash hit collaboration with David Bowie.

Speaking in an interview with Total Guitar (via Guitar World), May revealed that the original version of ‘Under Pressure’ “sounded massively chord-driven,” but that much of its “heavy guitar was lost” following Bowie’s input on the final mix.

Recalling the song’s creation, May said ‘Under Pressure’ was the result of spontaneous late nights in the studio, with the initial cut featuring a “pretty heavy backing track.” At first, May said he was “beaming” over the heavier guitar sound because it reminded him of The Who.

May raised that comparison to Bowie, who said “‘it’s not going to sound like The Who by the time I’ve finished with it.’” May continued: “[Bowie] didn’t want it to be that way.”

The guitarist said that the changes were made because “we all had different ideas of how [‘Under Pressure’] should be mixed,” specifically naming Bowie and Queen frontman Freddie Mercury.

“Basically it was Freddie and David fighting it out in the studio with the mix,” May recalled, “and what happened in the mix was that most of that heavy guitar was lost.”

 

May went on to reveal that he originally played the main riff of ‘Under Pressure’ on an electric guitar, but that it was replaced by the “acoustic bits which were done first as a sort of demo.” As for the final mix that was eventually released, May admitted that he “never liked it, to be honest.”

“I do recognise that it works. It’s a point of view, and it’s done very well,” he added. “People love it.”

In live shows, the guitarist said he now performs ‘Under Pressure’ “quite a bit different” to the released version, leaning into its more guitar-heavy origins. “It is a lot heavier and I think it benefits from it,” May said.

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