| "Under Pressure" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Artwork for UK release | ||||
| Single by Queen and David Bowie | ||||
| from the album Hot Space | ||||
| B-side | "Soul Brother" | |||
| Released |
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| Recorded | July 1981 | |||
| Studio | Mountain, Montreux | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 4:08 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
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| Queen singles chronology | ||||
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| David Bowie singles chronology | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
 Artwork for US release | ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Under Pressure" on YouTube | ||||
"Under Pressure" is a song by the British rock band Queen and singer David Bowie. Originally released as a single in October 1981, it was later included on Queen's 1982 album Hot Space. The song reached number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Queen's second number-one hit in their home country and Bowie's third, and also charted in the top 10 in more than 10 countries around the world.
The song has been described as a "monster rock track that stood out" on the Hot Space album, as well as "an incredibly powerful and poignant pop song".[3][4] "Under Pressure" was listed at number 31 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the '80s, and voted the second-best collaboration of all time in a poll by Rolling Stone. In 2021, it was ranked number 429 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It was played live at every Queen concert from 1981 until the end of the band's touring career in 1986.[5][6][7] Live recordings appear on the Queen live albums Queen Rock Montreal and Live at Wembley '86.
The song was included on some editions of Queen's first Greatest Hits compilations, such as the original 1981 Elektra release in North America. It is included on the band's compilation albums Greatest Hits II, Classic Queen, and Absolute Greatest, as well as Bowie compilations such as Best of Bowie (2002), The Platinum Collection (2005), Nothing Has Changed (2014), Legacy (2016), and Re:Call 3 (2017).
"Under Pressure" was sampled by American rapper Vanilla Ice for his 1990 single "Ice Ice Baby". Vanilla Ice initially did not credit Bowie or Queen for the sample, resulting in a lawsuit that gave Bowie and Queen songwriting credit. "Under Pressure" has been covered by American rock bands My Chemical Romance and the Used, and singer Shawn Mendes, whose version featured singer Teddy Geiger. Xiu Xiu also covered the song with Swans frontman Michael Gira, a version that was included on Xiu Xiu's 2008 album Women as Lovers.
- ^ "BPI certifications".
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (13 July 2023). "Essential Queen: 40 songs that will rock you". The A.V. Club.
The sleek dance-rock hybrid—informed by disco but not belonging to it—is essentially ephemeral and amorphous, built upon a lithe John Deacon bassline that anchors interwoven harmonies and melodies that build to an overwhelming crescendo culminating with Bowie and Freddie Mercury singing "This is our last dance."
- ^ a b Banas, Erica (25 May 2018). "A Look Back At "Under Pressure"". WMMR. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
there was one monster rock track that stood out among the rest
- ^ a b Whatley, Jack (24 January 2019). "The story behind David Bowie and Queen's brilliant song 'Under Pressure'". Far Out Magazine. Archived from the original on 14 August 2019. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
what remains is an incredibly powerful and poignant pop song
- ^ Queen live on tour: Hot Space (world) Queen Concerts. Retrieved 23 July 2011
- ^ Queen live on tour: The Works 1985 Archived 23 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine Queen Concerts. Retrieved 23 July 2011
- ^ Queen live on tour: Magic tour Archived 15 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Queen Concerts. Retrieved 23 July 2011