{"id":36776,"date":"2026-01-27T04:31:52","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T04:31:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/?p=36776"},"modified":"2026-01-27T04:31:52","modified_gmt":"2026-01-27T04:31:52","slug":"thats-not-rock-roger-taylor-admitted-he-opposed-one-legendary-song-solely-for-its-disco-vibe-until-a-3-word-advice-from-michael-jackson-changed-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/?p=36776","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThat\u2019s Not Rock.\u201d \u2014 Roger Taylor Admitted He Opposed One Legendary Song Solely for Its Disco Vibe, Until a 3-Word Advice from Michael Jackson Changed History."},"content":{"rendered":"

In rock history, few songs feel as inevitable as \u201cAnother One Bites the Dust.\u201d<\/strong> Its pulsing bassline, stripped-down beat, and unmistakable swagger helped define an era. Yet behind its global success lies a surprising truth: one member of Queen<\/span><\/span><\/strong> actively tried to stop the song from becoming a single. And his objection came down to one word\u2014disco<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The resistance came from drummer Roger Taylor<\/span><\/span><\/strong>, a self-professed rock purist. Written by bassist John Deacon<\/span><\/span><\/strong>, the song was built around a tight, funky groove inspired by Chic, a band synonymous with late-\u201970s disco. To Taylor, that influence crossed a line. He felt the dry, loop-like drum pattern stripped Queen of their bombast and betrayed the raw power that defined tracks like \u201cWe Will Rock You.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

During the sessions for The Game<\/span><\/span><\/em>, recorded at Musicland Studios in Munich with producer Reinhold Mack<\/span><\/span><\/strong>, tensions ran high. Taylor reportedly dismissed the track as \u201cnot rock,\u201d arguing that releasing it as a single would confuse\u2014or even alienate\u2014the band\u2019s loyal fanbase. Disco, at the time, was still viewed by many rock musicians as the enemy.<\/span><\/p>\n

While Freddie Mercury<\/span><\/span><\/strong> immediately recognized the song\u2019s potential, the internal debate dragged on. The track sat in limbo, destined\u2014at least in Taylor\u2019s mind\u2014to remain a deep album cut rather than a flagship release.<\/span><\/p>\n

Then came an unexpected intervention.<\/span><\/p>\n

While Queen were performing in Los Angeles, they were visited backstage by Michael Jackson<\/span><\/span><\/strong>, already one of the most influential artists on the planet and a huge fan of the band. When Jackson heard \u201cAnother One Bites the Dust,\u201d his reaction was instant and decisive. According to band lore, he turned to them and delivered a blunt, three-word verdict: \u201cYou gotta release it.\u201d<\/strong> He reportedly added that they were crazy not to, instantly grasping the song\u2019s crossover potential.<\/span><\/p>\n

That advice proved historic.<\/span><\/p>\n

Released as a single in 1980, \u201cAnother One Bites the Dust\u201d shot to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for three weeks. It crossed genre boundaries, reaching No. 2 on the R&B chart and dominating radio formats that Queen had never conquered before. In the United States alone, it became Queen\u2019s best-selling single, with more than seven million copies sold.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ironically, the very disco influence Roger Taylor feared became the key to Queen\u2019s biggest American triumph. While Taylor later acknowledged the song\u2019s brilliance, the episode remains a legendary example of how genre lines can blind even the greatest musicians\u2014and how one outsider\u2019s instinct can change music history forever.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In rock history, few songs feel as inevitable as \u201cAnother One Bites the Dust.\u201d Its pulsing bassline, stripped-down beat, and unmistakable swagger helped define an era. Yet behind its global success lies a surprising truth: one member of Queen actively tried to stop the song from becoming a single. And his objection came down to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36776","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36776","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=36776"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36776\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=36776"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=36776"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=36776"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}