Any band would have struggled to live up to “Bohemian Rhapsody,” which became one of the best-selling songs of all time following its October 31, 1975 release. Queen responded with “You’re My Best Friend,” a charming love ballad composed by bassist John Deacon.
John Deacon writes songs
Deacon wrote one song for Queen’s fourth studio album, A Night At The Opera. His song “You’re My Best Friend” about his wife, Sheffield training teacher Veronica Tetzlaff, was a smash. He sang, “You’re my sunshine and I want you to know/That my feelings are true/I really love you/Oh, you’re my best friend.” Freddie Mercury appreciated “the almost Tamla Motown style of Deacon’s songs.” Bassist composed the tune at home. “Freddie didn’t like the electric piano, so I took it home and started learning on it, and that’s the song that came out when I was learning piano,” Deacon stated. “It was written for that instrument and sounds best on it.”
Song recording
The band recorded the song in London in August 1975 with excellent arrangements and great harmonies. Roger Taylor’s bass, snare, and hi-hat drumming complemented Deacon’s Fender bass. The tune featured Deacon playing the Wurlitzer EP-200 electric piano and Brian May playing five guitar tracks on his Red Special. “John didn’t write that many songs, but when he did—like ‘Another One Bites the Dust’ and ‘I Want To Break Free’—they were big hits,” said May. ‘You’re My Best Friend’ was a top-played song on American radio. John was Queen’s calm, black horse. We occasionally asked, ‘Have you got anything, John?’ and he was modest about his writing. ‘You’re My Best Friend’ was about his wonderful wife.”
The video
The band used the “Bohemian Rhapsody” video again after its breakthrough. Bruce Gowers directed the band’s “You’re My Best Friend” video, which features them in a vast ballroom with a beautiful chandelier and over 1,000 candles. It was filmed at Elstree Studios in London on an unusually warm spring day. The heat from candles and lighting made the session difficult without air conditioning. In the video, Deacon played Mercury’s grand piano, which he used in concert. “I refused to play that damn thing,” Mercury claimed of the electronic piano. It’s little and I hate them. Why play them when you have a great piano?
The response
Radio airplay helped the three-minute song become a smash after its June 10, 1976, US release. On July 3, “You’re My Best Friend” peaked at No.7 in the UK singles charts for eight weeks. It reached No.16 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was certified platinum in America after selling over one million copies. Later same year, country artist Don Williams’ “You’re My Best Friend” was a smash. Queen’s song appears in The Simpsons, Family Guy, and EastEnders. Shaun Of The Dead’s ending included Deacon’s lovely ballad, which The Supernaturals (1997) and Stevie Ann (2014) recorded. Queen recorded a two-minute rendition of “You’re My Best Friend” on their 1979 album Live Killers, which included songs from European gigs. Deacon lives peacefully in London with his wife, Veronica, and their six children, decades after “You’re My Best Friend” reached the charts. Muhammad Ali, another 70s superstar, observed, “If you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.” One of the most popular songs regarding the issue is Deacon’s.
