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"Body Language" (printed as "Body Language ↑⬱") is a 1982 dance/funk song by British rock band Queen. It was written by the band's lead singer Freddie Mercury and was a hit in North America, where it received extensive radio play. However, the single only received a lukewarm response in the United Kingdom. The track was the second single released from their 1982 album Hot Space. The music video for the song was the first one to be banned from MTV for its nudity, despite the members of Queen being fully clothed.

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"Body Language"
US picture sleeve
Single by Queen
from the album Hot Space
B-side	"Life is Real (Song for Lennon)"
Released	19 April 1982
Recorded	December 1981 – February 1982
Genre	Funk[1] dance[2]
Length	4:29
Label	EMI (UK) Elektra (US)
Songwriter(s)	Freddie Mercury
Producer(s)	Queen Reinhold Mack
Queen singles chronology
"Under Pressure" (1981) "Body Language" (1982) "Las Palabras de Amor" (1982)
Music video
"Body Language" on YouTube

History

The massive success of "Another One Bites the Dust" inspired Queen to temporarily abandon their glam roots in the early 1980s, and experiment with disco, funk and soul music. "Body Language" and its parent album Hot Space were the results of this change. "Body Language" is notable for its near lack of guitar; atmospheric guitar chords sparingly dot the body of the song, while a brief two-note riff is heard during the fade out. The song's key feature was its minimal, sparse production, with the emphasis of "suggestive" lyrics, a "slinky" synth bass (played on an Oberheim OB-X), and writer Freddie Mercury's moans and groans. This song was played twice during the European leg of the Hot Space Tour, with the first performance being in Vienna on 13 May. It often got a lukewarm reaction, although the live arrangement was very different from the studio one. The song was played every night on the U.S leg and the Japanese leg, where the song achieved more commercial success.

The full title of the song, as printed both on the single and Hot Space album sleeve, is "Body Language ↑⬱". The usage and pronunciation of the arrows was never explained by any member of Queen, though the arrows did show up as part of the single's cover art and in its video, where they were painted on the bodies of models, while Freddie Mercury also wore shirts and a white leather jacket during the album's ensuing tour that had similar arrow designs.

The song features a distinctive rhythmic synth bass line as primary sound played by Mercury, making it one of the few band songs not to feature bassist John Deacon on the recording. Brian May only briefly participates on guitar towards the end of the song, being one of his least significant contributions to a Queen single.

Charts

Country	Peak position
UK[3]	25
Australia	28
Canada	3
Finland (Suomen Virallinen)[4]	5
Germany	27
Italy (Musica e Dischi)[5]	13
Netherlands	6
New Zealand	19
Poland	3
Sweden	10
United States Hot 100[6]	11
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[7]	62
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[8]	19
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[9]	30

Reaction

The drastic change caused the single to stall^{[citation needed]} at #25 on the UK charts. However, it did far better in the US, where Americans appeared to be a lot more supportive of Queen's forays into dance music. "Body Language" peaked at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number thirty on the soul chart.[10] The B-side is "Life Is Real (Song for Lennon)", this single was released just a little over a year after the assassination of the former Beatle.

In the US the accompanying music video caused a considerable amount of controversy. Due to its erotic undertones plus plentiful skin and sweat, it was deemed unsuitable for a television audience in 1982.

In a Rolling Stone Magazine review, critic John Milward described the song as "a piece of funk that isn't fun".[11]

Popular culture references

• "Body Language" was danced to in solo performances by both Blake McGrath and Jessica Fernandez on So You Think You Can Dance. "Body Language" was danced to in the Top 12 performances as a Jazz routine by Pasha Kovalev and Sara Von Gillern on So You Think You Can Dance (Season 3). It was also danced to in Season 12's Top 10 Stage dance.
• "Body Language" can be briefly heard in the 1984 documentary film Stripper, being performed to by dancer Sara Costa.
• The song was featured in an episode of Nip/Tuck.
• The Foo Fighters used "Body Language" in a video promoting the tour for Wasting Light, called "Hot Buns". Dave Grohl stated the song was used in the video, which features the bandmembers dancing naked in a shower, because "it sounds like the soundtrack for a gay porn".[12]

Personnel

• Freddie Mercury - lead and backing vocals, synthesizer, drum machine, synth bass
• Brian May - electric guitar
• Roger Taylor - electronic drums

References

External links

• Official music video on YouTube
• Lyrics at Queen official website

На других языках

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- [en] Body Language (Queen song)

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[es] Body Language (canción de Queen)

«Body Language» (impreso como "Body Language ↑⬱") (en español: "Lenguaje corporal") es una canción perteneciente los géneros dance/funk y disco/rock, escrita por Brian May y Freddie Mercury, realizada por la banda de rock inglesa Queen como parte de su álbum Hot Space en 1982, del cual fue lanzado como segundo sencillo con Life Is Real como lado B. El sencillo alcanzó y llegó tan solo al puesto veinticinco #25 en el Reino Unido, mientras que fue un mayor éxito en Estados Unidos, donde llegó al puesto once #11 y fue una canción que pegó y que sonó mucho en las radios.

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[ru] Body Language (песня)

«Body Language» (с англ. — «Язык тела») — песня английской рок-группы Queen с альбома Hot Space. Написана Фредди Меркьюри. Песня вышла в качестве сингла с песней «Life Is Real» на стороне «Б».

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