# Why did the Highlander movie use so many Queen songs? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 1, 2019, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-the-highlander-movie-use-so-many-queen-songs/827024 "2019-01-01T06:05:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2019, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-the-highlander-movie-use-so-many-queen-songs/827024/21 "2019-01-04T02:16:13Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Hampshire actually listed several in post #12, though you may not have seen those films, or remember the heavy use of songs by one artist: > \* > Harold and Maude\* lists nine songs by Cat Stevens on its soundtrack. > _The Graduate_ lists fourteen songs by Simon and Garfunkel on its soundtrack. > _Batman_ lists six songs by Prince on its soundtrack. > > And, as snfaulkner notes, Queen had already done the _Flash Gordon_ soundtrack, too. > > A few others that come to my mind: > _Xanadu_ has five songs by Electric Light Orchestra, including a duet with Olivia Newton-John (who also performed on six songs, though she was the movie’s star; ELO never actually appears in the film). > _The Magic Christian_ has three songs by Badfinger. > _Tron: Legacy_’s soundtrack was done by Daft Punk. \*Away We Go \* featured a lot of songs by singer songwriter Alexi Murdoch. _Maximum Overdrive_’s redeeming quality is it’s AC/DC soundtrack. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2019, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-the-highlander-movie-use-so-many-queen-songs/827024/22 "2019-01-04T02:38:00Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > At least partially filmed, too, as I understand it. Who Wants to Live Forever was apparently written after watching the scene it ended up playing behind. Yes, indeed. The band got to see rough cuts of scenes to write songs to. They were able to take cues from the movie in writing the songs. ---
**Author:** ![Grestarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grestarian/32/3227_2.png) [@Grestarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grestarian)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2019, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-the-highlander-movie-use-so-many-queen-songs/827024/23 "2019-01-10T01:51:16Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > Which makes it the real question, “Why did Queen write a soundtrack, and give it their own title, instead of the movie title?” Because, strictly speaking, it wasn’t exclusively or entirely the Highlander soundtrack. _One Vision_ was originally used in Iron Eagles\* On the bootleg copy of Highlander that I used to have, it’s playing behind the closing credits. Hammer to Fall was an original off Queen II and is playing on the Merc’s cassette stereo when he goes out looking for trouble. _Pain is so Close to Pleasure_ was referenced in _One Year of Love_ as sort-of a sideways joke, but was never used in a scene in Highlander (not even the Directors Cuts). _One Year of Love_ is playing on the jukebox in the bar scene. and, conversely, _New York New York_ was used in the movie but never included on any published recordings. In fact, the official word (as of January 2019) is that the recording was lost. It’s the closing music to the scene where The Kurgan is driving like a maniac. And then there’s _Forever_, which is a beautiful instrumental piece that is clearly inspired by _Who Wants To Live Forever_ but just seems to be a lovely filler on the album. I’m glad it was included; it gives me chills more than its inspirational piece. —G! - A young pilot-as-hero movie that played at the theater where I worked. I always thought looked like it was cobbled together from remnants of the Top Gun blockbuster. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2019, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-the-highlander-movie-use-so-many-queen-songs/827024/24 "2019-01-10T02:57:41Z")
> [@Grestarian](#): > > Because, strictly speaking, it wasn’t exclusively or entirely the Highlander soundtrack. > > _One Vision_ was originally used in Iron Eagles\* On the bootleg copy of Highlander that I used to have, it’s playing behind the closing credits. > > Hammer to Fall was an original off Queen II and is playing on the Merc’s cassette stereo when he goes out looking for trouble. > > _Pain is so Close to Pleasure_ was referenced in _One Year of Love_ as sort-of a sideways joke, but was never used in a scene in Highlander (not even the Directors Cuts). _One Year of Love_ is playing on the jukebox in the bar scene. > > and, conversely, > > _New York New York_ was used in the movie but never included on any published recordings. In fact, the official word (as of January 2019) is that the recording was lost. It’s the closing music to the scene where The Kurgan is driving like a maniac. > > And then there’s _Forever_, which is a beautiful instrumental piece that is clearly inspired by _Who Wants To Live Forever_ but just seems to be a lovely filler on the album. I’m glad it was included; it gives me chills more than its inspirational piece. > —G! > > - A young pilot-as-hero movie that played at the theater where I worked. I always thought looked like it was cobbled together from remnants of the Top Gun blockbuster. Well, Hammer to Fall was on The Works from 1984. Queen II was ten years before that. And One Vision was written post-Live Aid and included in the Iron Eagle soundtrack opportunistically rather than commissioned for the movie. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-the-highlander-movie-use-so-many-queen-songs/827024.md?page=1)