Billboard #1 Hits: #483: ‘ Crazy Little Thing Called Love’- Queen. February 23, 1980. #1 4 weeks in Billboard Hot 100.
- Single: ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’- Queen
- Record Company- Elektra
- Genre: Rockabilly
- Written by Freddie Mercury
- Time: 2:42
- B-side: ‘Spread Your Wings’
- Album- The Game
- Grade: A
- Peaked at #1 4 weeks in Billboard Hot 100. #2 in UK Singles Chart, #1 in Australia, Canada, Netherlands.
‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ – seemed like a way out of left field song for Queen- Queen and rockabilly. It worked- becoming Queen’s first #1 single in the Billboard Hot 100. The song was written by Freddie Mercury as a tribute to Elvis Presley.
Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ took me five or ten minutes. I did that on the guitar, which I can’t play for nuts, and in one way it was quite a good thing because I was restricted, knowing only a few chords. It’s a good discipline because I simply had to write within a small framework. I couldn’t work through too many chords and because of that restriction I wrote a good song, I think.— Freddie Mercury
Good tribute song!
I’ve always loved that tune. Kind of cool it resulted at least in part from Freddie Mercury’s limited guitar skills.
Once again goes to show a song doesn’t need to be complicated to be great. In fact, it’s oftentimes the simple songs that are the best!
Good points. I think that is what struck me by surprise with this hit- it sounded very basic-compared to most of Queen’s previous work.
This is my favorite song by Queen.