A DAY AT THE RACES to Mark 50th Anniversary With Special Vinyl Editions

Sony Music Entertainment and Hollywood Records announced that A DAY AT THE RACES, the fifth studio album by QUEEN, is to be celebrated almost 50 years to the day with the release of two special new vinyl editions.

Initially released on December 10th, 1976, the classic album, which features the transatlantic smash 'Somebody To Love' and perennial live favorite, 'Tie Your Mother Down,' will be issued on blue marbled vinyl and a Queen Store exclusive picture disc almost 50 years to the day on December 11th, 2026.

Queen recorded their fifth studio album between Summer and Autumn 1976, and it was their first self-produced album, engineered by Mike Stone. Like the previous album, A Night At The Opera, it took its title from a film by the Marx Brothers. Brian May and Roger Taylor have often cited A Day At The Races as a continuation of the previous LP. It remains one of their most acclaimed records, reaching #5 in America (#1 in the UK), where it was issued a week after the UK release and became Queen's first American album to reach Gold status before moving on to Platinum.

The first single from the record, 'Somebody To Love,' released three weeks before the album, has become one of Queen's best-known songs, featuring beautifully complex layered vocal tracks inspired by a gospel choir arrangement. In 1993, 'Somebody To Love' took on a whole new lease on life and reached 5x Platinum status in the US when the remaining members of Queen recorded it with George Michael for the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert. Other singles from the album included Brian May's 'Tie Your Mother Down,' which became one of the band's best-loved live tracks. The Vaudeville-inspired 'Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy' and two firm fan favorites, the beautiful 12-string-driven 'Long Away,' a single in the US and New Zealand, and 'Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together),' a single in Japan, partly sung in Japanese and specifically dedicated to Queen's fans there.

A Day At The Races regularly features in lists of the best albums of all time. As it reaches its half-century, its reputation for expertly crafted songs such as 'Somebody To Love' and incredible creativity on tracks such as 'The Millionaire Waltz' grows with every passing year.

The 50th anniversary editions are available for pre-order now at https://queen.lnk.to/ADayAtTheRaces50.

Tracklist

Side One

Tie Your Mother Down

You Take My Breath Away

Long Away

The Millionaire Waltz

You and I

Side Two

Somebody to Love

White Man

Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy

Drowse

Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)

About Queen

Queen are one of the most iconic bands in history, a group whose music has soundtracked the lives of hundreds of millions of fans since their reign began more than 50 years ago.

Their musical achievements alone are unmatched thanks to album sales in excess of 300 million worldwide and such era-defining hits as 'Killer Queen', 'We Are The Champions', 'We Will Rock You', 'Another One Bites The Dust' and the history-making 'Bohemian Rhapsody', which has twice reached No.1 in the UK and is the most streamed song of the 20th century with a record-breaking 2.6 billion streams. In the US, Queen now has 8 songs with at least 1 billion streams on Spotify. Their 26x platinum 1981 Greatest Hits collection is the UK's biggest-selling album ever, exceeding 7.9 million in sales and spending a staggering 1,137 weeks on the UK chart. They remain the only band in history where every member has individually written one or more Top 5 hit singles.

Yet Queen are more than just a musical powerhouse – they are a cultural force. Legendary performances at such historic events as 1985's Live Aid concert and their own headlining appearances at London's Wembley Stadium in 1986 cemented their status as the greatest band to ever set foot on a stage, with the irreplaceable Freddie Mercury regularly voted music's greatest frontman. Their incredible story was immortalized in the acclaimed 2018 movie 'Bohemian Rhapsody', which saw actor Rami Malek win an Oscar for his stunning performance as Freddie Mercury, while the film itself became the highest-grossing musical biopic ever. Queen themselves have continued to inspire generations of musicians who have followed, from George Michael and Guns N' Roses to Lady Gaga and the Foo Fighters.

Queen's greatness can be measured in the recognition that has come with their musical accomplishments, from their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame to the prestigious Brit, Grammy and Ivor Novello Awards they have amassed, among others. But arguably their most important achievement is the enduring appeal the group and their music under the guardianship of Brian May and Roger Taylor continues to have. More than half a century after they started, this most regal of bands are as beloved now as they have ever been, their music still central to the lives of so many people. Long may they rule.