Bohemian Rhapsody Lyric Breakdown

Bohemian Rhapsody

You have already heard a song titled "Bohemian Rhapsody", haven't you ? If you never hear this song, check out this video and try to figure out the meaning of this song before you continue reading.

The song is released by Queen, a British rock band, in 31 October 1975. I can't find Freddie Mercury, the writer and the singer, explanation about its lyric on the internet. Reported from dailymail.co.uk, his only utterance was that it was ‘about relationships‘ and dailymail also mention that Mercury’s biographer Lesley-Ann Jones has revealed its hidden message – a confession by Freddie that he was gay. Is the lyric really about his sexual orientation confession? Let's break down the lyric now !!!

Bohemian Rhapsody Lyric Breakdown

 *the black ones is the lyric

Is this the real life?                                    
Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide,
No escape from reality.

The line “caught in a landslide” line is what he refers to as realising there's no getting away from the fact he is gay, although he later had a relationship with a woman again later on in the year 1984 which would suggest he was actually bisexual) – However, in 1974/5 it would’ve been much harder to deal with than the times we live in now, and furthermore - his religious background – hence “No escape from reality”. 

Open your eyes,
Look up to the skies and see,
I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy,

Feeling helpless over the situation, he wants no-one’s sorrow; possibly including the God he was brought up to believe in. 

Because I'm easy come, easy go,
Little high, little low,
Anyway the wind blows doesn't really matter to me, to me.

Mercury’s nature was quite dismissive over things – that’s how he coped with life, as a case of having to, and it worked for him. "A very complex person" - and this song deals with various aspects of his character all at the same time. 

Mama, just killed a man,
Put a gun against his head,
Pulled my trigger, now he's dead.

‘In the line “Mama, I just killed a man” he’s killed the old Freddie, his former image,’ says Sir Tim Rice, a lyricist who knew Freddie well.

The man that Mercury is talking about in the line “Put a gun against his head “– is his own head, after his first full on sexual encounter with another guy. The “now he’s dead” lyrics tell how he feels about that – his soul left with no purity, as if he has in fact died. Predominantly, his religious upbringing is leaving him feel these things – which takes us to the next line….   

Mama, life had just begun,
But now I've gone and thrown it all away.

I think in light of what I previously said, these lines are fairly self-explanatory - he has "thrown it all away" in the eyes of his upbringing/religion. 

Mama, ooh,
Didn't mean to make you cry,
If I'm not back again this time tomorrow,
Carry on, carry on as if nothing really matters.

Of course, he didn’t mean to upset his mother. Although it was believed he might not have told her directly, she would’ve found out at some point eventually. “If I’m not back again this time tomorrow, carry on" - is what he is suggesting she should do if she sees that her son has departed from her, or died, i.e. not the son she once had, not being able to accept how he has turned his back on his religion, and possibly his family over his sexual orientation. Then, he is saying she should “Carry on as if nothing really matters” - by which, for him, there's a sense of helplessness over the situation with these lyrics.  

Too late, my time has come,
Sent shivers down my spine,

There's a couple of ways to look at the line "Too late, my time has come". Firstly, in his conflicted mind, he has possibly sold his soul to the devil, so to speak - or more than likely, that he thinks his parents would see it that way. Secondly, for the showman aspect of his character, to make his mark on the world, After the release of their third album ‘Sheer heart attack’ , Bohemian Rhapsody is being penned, and , Queen have risen in popularity somewhat and are now starting to hit the big time. And yet unable to feel fully at ease with himself - he is feeling held back. It wasn’t just a gay act of Mercury's which was a fashionable way to be in the early 1970’s as guitarist Brain May first thought in the initial years of the band. As stated by Mary Austin, Mercury’s lover of seven years; once he finally admitted to her he was gay, he became at one with himself again, and was happy. Yet for a fair while before he told her, he was troubled, and according to her - "avoiding issues, which wasn't him."Fortunately, the pair remained very close friends ever after, finally leaving his house, and the main bulk of his millions to her. Forever judged by his religion, his "body's aching all the time" with guilt at the time of writing this tune. 

Goodbye, everybody, I've got to go,
Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth 

This is about Farok Bulsara (his real name) becoming 'Freddie Mercury' and persona that went with it – including, ironically, the star that was famously known as fiercely private. And yet - there's a sense of; even though that's who he is going to be from here on in, once and for all,  he feels on a personal level, a price is going to be paid, or is in fact being paid. There’s another take on the matter of leaving at the end of the tune – when the line “Just gotta get right out of here” is sung, later on - which I'll get to...

Mama, ooh, I don't want to die,
I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all 

The line "I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all" suggests that he ("sometimes") feels he can't live up to expectations, and by the mere fact it's said to "Mama", the meaning points towards those expectations of him being a particular kind of son, baring all the other lyrics in mind.  This takes us to the next part of the tune; the operatic part, in which the battle is more intense…  

I see a little silhouetto of a man
Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango
Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very frightening me
(Galileo.) Galileo. (Galileo.) Galileo, Galileo figaro
Magnifico. I'm just a poor boy and nobody loves me
He's just a poor boy from a poor family
Spare him his life from this monstrosity
Easy come, easy go, will you let me go 
Bismillah! No, we will not let you go
(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go
(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go
(Let me go.) Will not let you go(Let me go.) Will not let you go. (Let me go.) Ah
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
(Oh mama mia, mama mia.) Mama mia, let me go
Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me, for me, for me

There has been particularly a lot of speculation as to the meaning of this part. Many of the words appear in the Quran. "Bismillah" is one of these and it literally means "In the name of Allah." The word "Scaramouch" means "A stock character that appears as a boastful coward." "Beelzebub" is one of the many names given to The Devil. Mercury's parents were deeply involved in Zoroastrianism, and these Arabic words do have a meaning in that religion. Mercury claimed the lyrics were nothing more than "Random rhyming nonsense" when asked about it, but it appears once again, he was being a little too dismissive. The operatic section sees him crying out for his mother to let him go - a mother who loves him as any mother loves her son, and yet a mother who worships her faith, which frowns upon homosexuality. It concludes with him admitting defeat, and that the Beelzebub has a devil put aside for him – no-matter which way he turns, which leads to the heavy rock section, building up to yet another conclusion… 

So you think you can stone me and spit in my eye
So you think you can love me and leave me to die
Oh, baby, can't do this to me, baby
Just gotta get out, just gotta get right outta here 

This part appears to be outcome of Mercury’s anger, from the battles and confusion of his inner self, and the outter conflicting views also. He has fears of hurting his parents, worries of his mother and father unable to love him when seen in this new light. And even if his parents still loved him as they did before, their religion would disagree with his lifestyle, then becoming a weight upon their shoulders - the weight that had been his. This leaves him feeling terribly responsible, angry and frustrated with himself - then again annoyed at his loved ones. As if it's all too much, he finally wants to escape the whole situation, irately leaving everyone – “Just gotta get out, just gotta get right outta here” with a kind of ‘Fuck all this’ attitude (as almost snarled on the recording). Again, remember the earlier line “Goodbye everybody, I’ve got to go”  - the painful path taken by the private Farok Bulsara, not the showman Freddie Mercury - yet somehow, the entire song represents both sides of his character, which merge and become one…. bringing us to the final part of the song…

Nothing really matters, anyone can see
Nothing really matters
Nothing really matters to me 

Going back to the line just before the confession to his mother that he just killed “a man”, as if he confesses or not – it’s still the same outcome for him, it’s still everything that’s been said…. taking us to the final line…

Any way the wind blows...

To finish on a good note  - his mother, family, and Mary Austin always loved him, as he did them, and they still do - to this day, and are extremely proud of his legacy. 

 And then someone interpreting the song this way.........

THX FOR READING, have a good day!!!