From Queenpedia.com

Credits

• Written by: Brian May
• Produced by: Queen, Roy Thomas Baker, and John Anthony
• Musicians:

Freddie Mercury - vocals, tambourine

Brian May - guitars, backing vocals

John Deacon - bass guitar

Roger Taylor - drums, percussion, backing vocals

Discography

Albums:

• Queen (1973)
• Classic Queen (1992)
• Rocks (1997)

Singles:

• Keep Yourself Alive (A-Side), 1973
• The Show Must Go On (B-Side), 1991

Alternate Versions:

• US Edit
• De Lane Lea Demo
• BBC Sessions 1 & 2
• Long Lost Retake

Compilations:

Harley-Davidson Cycles: Road Songs, Vol. 2, CD, 1998, B00000C2MQ

Soundtracks:

• Encino Man (featured in the movie but not on the soundtrack CD)

Queen Talks

Brian May, 1983, Guitar Greats, BBC Radio One

The first recording of it ever was in De Lane Lea when we did it ourselves and I’ve still got that recording and I think it’s very good and has something which the single never had. But THEY pressurised us very strongly to redo all the tracks and we redid ‘Keep Yourself Alive’ with Roy and it was pretty awful, actually. I thought it was terrible and I was very unhappy about it and I thought the De Lane Lea one was better and I eventually managed to persuade Roy that it was better as well. So, we went back in and did it again in a way that was a bit more true to the original. But there is no way that you can ever really repeat something. I have this great belief that the magic of the moment can never be recaptured and, although we ended up with something that was technically in the playing and perhaps even in the recording a bit better than the De Lane Lea thing. I still think that the De Lane Lea one had that certain sort of magic, so I was never really happy. As it turned out no one else was ever really happy either and we kept remixing it. We thought that it’s the mix that’s wrong, we kept remixing and there must have been, at least, seven or eight different mixes by different groups of people. Eventually we went in and did a mix with Mike Stone, our engineer, and that’s the one that we were in the end happiest with. That’s the one we put out.

But, to my mind ‘Keep Yourself Alive’ was never really satisfactory. Never had that magic that it should have had.

Lyrics

FREDDIE: I was told a million times of all the troubles in my way Tried to grow a little wiser, little better ev'ry day But if I crossed a million rivers, and I rose a million miles Then I'd still be where I started, bread and butter for a smile Well I sold a million mirrors in a shop in alley way But I never saw my face in any window any day Now they say your folks are telling you "be a superstar" But I tell you just be satisfied and stay right where you are Keep yourself alive, keep yourself alive Take you all your time and a money Honey you'll survive Well I loved a million women in a belladonic haze And I ate a million dinners brought to me on silver trays Give me ev'rything I need to feed my body and my soul Well I'll grow a little bigger, maybe that can be my goal I was told a million times of all the people in my way How I had to keep on tryin' and get better ev'ry day But if I crossed a million rivers, and I rode a million miles Then I'd still be where I started, same as when I started Keep yourself alive, c'mon keep yourself alive Take you all your time and a money Honey you'll survive Keep yourself alive, keep yourself alive Take you all your time and a money To keep me satisfied ROGER: Do you think you're better ev'ry day? No I just think I'm two steps nearer to my grave FREDDIE: Keep yourself alive, c'mon keep yourself alive You take your time and take more money Keep yourself alive Keep yourself alive, c'mon keep yourself alive All you people Keep yourself alive Keep yourself alive, keep yourself alive Take you all your time and a money To keep me satisfied Keep yourself alive, keep yourself alive All you people Keep yourself alive Take you all your time and money honey You will survive Keep you satisfied...

Covers

Recorded by:

• Yngwie Malmsteen, Dragon Attack: A Tribute to Queen, 1997

Chords & Tabs

• Keep Yourself Alive tab, transcribed by PD