[Intro: Queen]
Are you gonna take me home tonight
Oh down beside that red firelight?
Are you gonna let it all hang out?
Fat bottomed girls
You make the rockin’ world go round
[Verse 1: Freddie Mercury]
I was just a skinny lad
Never knew no good from bad
But I knew life before I left my nursery
Left alone with big fat Fanny
She was such a naughty nanny
Hey big woman you made a bad boy out of me
[Verse 2]
I’ve been singing with my band
Across the wire, across the land
I seen every blue-eyed floozy on the way
But their beauty and their style
Went kind of smooth after a while
Take me to them lardy ladies every time
Come on
[Chorus: Queen]
Oh won’t you take me home tonight
Oh down beside your red firelight?
Oh and you give it all you got
Fat bottomed girls
You make the rocking world go round
Fat bottomed girls
You make the rocking world go round
[Verse 2: Freddie Mercury]
Hey listen here
Now your mortgages and homes
I’ve got stiffness in my bones
Ain’t no beauty queens in this locality
I tell you
Oh but I still get my pleasure
Still got my greatest treasure
Hey big woman you gonna make a big man of me
Now get this
[Chorus: Queen]
Are you gonna take me home tonight (please)
Oh down beside that red firelight?
Are you gonna let it all hang out?
Fat bottomed girls
You make the rocking world go round (yeah)
Fat bottomed girls
You make the rocking world go round
The song is formed around an open bluesy, metallic guitar tuning, with the tune opening with its chorus.[5] It was one of the few Queen songs played in an alternative guitar tuning, being played in drop D tuning.[6] The song’s music video was filmed at the Dallas Convention Center in Texas in October 1978.[7]
Song and lyrical content
Near the end, the song references the band’s song “Bicycle Race” with Mercury shouting, “Get on your bikes and ride!” “Bicycle Race” reciprocates with the lyric, “fat bottomed girls, they’ll be riding today”. The two songs were released as a double A-sidedsingle.
Live performances
Queen performed “Fat Bottomed Girls” in concert from 1978 to 1982.[8][9][10] Since its release, the song has appeared on television and film, and has been covered by a number of artists.[7]
The song featured a different vocal arrangement from the studio recording when performed live. In live performances, the lead vocals during the chorus were sung by Freddie Mercury and harmonised with an upper voice (Roger Taylor) and a lower voice (Brian May). In the studio version, there is no higher harmony. The lead vocals on the verses are sung by Freddie Mercury, while Brian May sings the lead vocals on the chorus.
The single version (which can be found on Greatest Hits) omits the extended guitar interludes between the verses as well as fading out before the ending.[14]
In the US, the 1991 Hollywood Records reissue of Jazz included a bonus remix by Matt Wallace.
In 1992, Organized Konfusion remixed the track for inclusion on the later-cancelled BASIC Queen Bootlegs compilation. This version included an alternate vocal track by Mercury, as well as hip-hop production and added rap verses.
“Fat Bottomed Girls” was released as a double A-side with the song “Bicycle Race“, and includes the line “Get on your bikes and ride”.[14] “Bicycle Race” contains the lyrics “Fat bottomed girls, they’ll be riding today/So look out for those beauties, oh yeah”,[15] completing a double cross-reference between the two songs.
