In 1981, Queen released its first Greatest Hits album, which went straight to No. 1 on the U.K. chart and international charts and peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard 200. Among the Queen classics— “Bohemian Rhapsody,” We Will Rock You,” and “We Are the Champions,” among others, was the band’s 1978 risqué anthem “Fat Bottomed Girls.”
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The naughtier track, penned by guitarist Brian May for Queen’s seventh album, Jazz, was a hit for the band and was recently featured on the 2023 edition of their Greatest Hits, Volume 1. The track was later removed from the final track list on Yoto, an audio platform aimed at children. Yoto recently partnered with Universal Music Group (UMG) to release a collection of music from the label archives, including the Queen catalog, to younger audiences.
The cut was likely a result of May’s racy lyrics — Are you gonna take me home tonight / Oh, down beside that red firelight / Are you gonna let it all hang out? / Fat bottomed girls, you make the rockin’ world go round — along with naughty nanny and Heap big woman, you made a bad boy out of me.
Yoto also included a warning for the remaining songs on the Greatest Hits album. “Please note that the lyrics in some of these songs contain adult themes, including occasional references to violence and drugs,” reads the notice. “These are the original and unedited recordings. Whilst no swear words are used parental discretion is advised when playing this content to or around younger children.”
“Fat Bottomed Girls” was initially released as a double-A side with “Bicycle Race,” which does appear in the Yoto version of Queen’s Greatest Hits. The song went to No. 11 on the UK Singles chart and peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Founded and created in 2020 by Ben Drury and Filip Denker, the Yoto audio system allows children to experience music by inserting cards to view and listen to music and animated graphics without being exposed to advertisements and other content often featured on traditional streaming platforms that may be unsuitable for children.
The Yoto Player and Yoto Mini audio platforms allow children to play and discover music with the push of an album “card” like Queen’s Greatest Hits, Volume 1, along with a series of educational audio within its library of more than 1,000 audiobooks, music, and activities. Upcoming music releases include Bob Marley and the Wailers and more from additional label partners Motown Records and Disney Music Group.
“We’re delighted to bring UMG’s unparalleled roster of artists and labels to [Yoto’s] growing global audience of kids and family listeners for the first time,” read a caption by UMG on Twitter, along with some of
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“We had to make sure the first-ever band to make their debut on a Yoto Card was someone special, and who could be better than Queen?” read another caption by Yoto on their social media pages, alongside an animated graphic from the Queen’s Greatest Hits release. “Glam, glory, attitude and endless fun – their greatest hits are the perfect fuel for making instant inter-generational musical memories. Who knows, you might just inspire a future rock star or two.”
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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