The track was produced by, and features guitars from, Brian May and vocal performances are given by an all female Rock Musical Theatre supergroup called Woman. Woman consists of Mazz Murray, Kerry Ellis, Gina Murray and Anna-Jane Casey, all of whom have previously performed in the hit West End production We Will Rock You. The song is a loosely interpreted cover of Koko Taylor’s blues classic and, while the lyrics are wildly different, the same raw energy is present in both the vocal and Brian May’s guitar.

Brian May has continued to make headlines this year from his gardening accident during lockdown to Queen and Adam Lambert’s UK number one hit album ‘Live Around The World,’ the fruit of the band’s prolific touring around the world. Despite almost thirty years now having passed since the death of Freddie Mercury, Brian May and Queen are still going strong and securing themselves as some of rock’s greatest heroes.

Fans of the blues will definitely enjoy this new recording from Brian May as the riff and main theme tune is one of the oldest in the genre and dates back as far as most people can remember. As well as the Koko Taylor recording, the tune was also a staple of Muddy Waters who called it ‘Mannish Boy,’ and aside from the gender difference the riff and lyrical content is much the same as Koko Taylor’s ‘I’m a Woman.’ The Koko Taylor’s song, recorded in 1978, is clearly influenced by and may be seen as an answer to Muddy Waters’ tune from the 50s as it begins with the same howl and refrain of ‘Everything gonna be alright,’ which Waters begins with.

Fans of Queen and Brian May in the UK who have been living through lockdown restrictions for the majority of 2020 will likely be dying for the chance to see the guitarist live in concert once again. Fortunately for them, Queen and Adam Lambert have UK tour dates scheduled for the summer of 2021 which fans can look forward to and hope that coronavirus restrictions will be sufficiently lifted by then. Full UK tour dates for Queen and Adam Lambert 2021 are as follows:

1/06/2021 – O2 Arena – London
2/06 – O2 Arena – London
4/06 – O2 Arena – London
5/06 – O2 Arena – London
7/06 – O2 Arena – London
8/06 – O2 Arena – London
10/06 – AO Arena – Manchester
11/06 – AO Arena – Manchester
13/06 – Utilita Arena – Birmingham
14/06 – Utilita Arena – Birmingham
16/06 – O2 Arena – London
17/06 – O2 Arena – London
19/06 – O2 Arena – London
20/06 – O2 Arena – London

‘Friends in the Corner’ follows ‘Woman’ (July) and ‘Love Not Loving You’ (May) – the latter is similarly a pop anthem, while ‘Woman’ is a stripped back but powerful ballad. Any news of a new album is currently being kept secret by the singer, but these three singles suggest that we should expect big things from it!

The video for ‘Friends in the Corner’ is absolutely an ode to friendship – to campfires and hitchhiking and making up dance routines in a bus shelter. Foxes cameos as a tattoo artist, as Zara Gabiddon and Natasha Trigg, who play two best friends (with great chemistry) do all of the things that you find yourself doing on a day where it’s a bit rainy and nobody has any plans so you go camping and get matching tattoos.

At the same time, you start to recognise that the montage is tinged with tragedy; the whole thing is certainly about not taking anything, or more importantly anyone, for granted. Foxes spoke about this undertone to the video, saying: “It was a weekend away with a close group of friends and I considered them to be strong and together, but for some reason at that time they all showed a vulnerable side I’d never seen before.”

She continued, “It might have been the age we were at, but everyone’s hidden struggles came to the forefront and it made me realise the older we get sometimes the more fragile we become. It really hit home that we shouldn’t take each other for granted and we’ve really got to look out for our friends.”

It’s about friendship, love, loss, and the recognition of how impermanent life is. In a world where connection has become so challenging we need to remember to keep each other close. xx

— Foxes (@iamfoxes) September 2, 2020

For the most part, the video’s darker tone feels far away from the euphoric pop of the song itself, but you can find it the refrain of “I took it all for granted / I lived it like a dream.” Regardless, though, there’s nothing better, really, than a pop anthem about strong friendships. It’s a bit like if ‘Dancing On My Own’ was about your best girlfriends.

Following the video’s release, Foxes posted on Instagram to thank her fans for their support. She wrote that their “wonderful comments … brought tears to [my] eyes”. At the same time, she shared the artwork for the single, which features Foxes in some very cool silver makeup. This follows the theme of the previous two singles, also close ups of Foxes’ face in more great editorial makeup. The cohesion of all of this, and the quality of the two singles, all hints that something good is coming!

View this post on Instagram

Here’s the single artwork for friends in the corner – reading all your wonderful comments brought tears to my eyes today. I love you guys

A post shared by Louisa Rose Allen (@iamfoxes) on Sep 2, 2020 at 10:01am PDT

Until then, you can enjoy ‘Friends in the Corner’, ‘Woman’ and ‘Love Not Loving You’ to your heart’s content, and maybe even dip back into 2016’s All I Need, before what is undoubtedly going to be a pop sensation, dance-floor-filling, empowering comeback – some time soon, we hope!