"Queen of My Heart" is a song by Irish boy band Westlife. It was released on 5 November 2001 as the first single from their third studio album, World of Our Own (2001). It was released as a double A-side single with "When You're Looking Like That" in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The song debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart, giving the band their ninth UK number-one single in two and a half years. It became the 23rd-best-selling single of 2001 in the UK and received a gold sales certification in the UK for over 400,000 copies sold. It is the band's eighth-best-selling single in paid-for sales and ninth-best-selling single in combined sales in the UK as of January 2019.
Background The song was written by John McLaughlin, Wayne Hector, Steve Robson and Steve Mac and was produced by Mac. It was composed in the traditional verse–chorus form in B major, with Brian McFadden's, Shane Filan's, and Mark Feehily's vocals ranging from the chords of B3 to B♭5. In an interview, Kian Egan said that the song was about a person who wants to go back to their soulmate whom they have been away from for a long time.Westlife Interview Voxpop 2001
During live performances, the song is sometimes introduced with a military-style drumbeat and features more prominent arrangements, including bagpipes, a choir, accordion, flute, and strings, lending it a richer, more cinematic texture. Following McFadden’s departure, Egan and Nicky Byrne assumed his vocal parts in subsequent renditions, maintaining the song’s signature harmonies.
Music video The music video for "Queen of My Heart" was directed by Max & Dania. It features the members of Westlife in a castle with Filan and Egan in one room, Feehily and Byrne in another room, and McFadden sitting on the stairs alone. During the video, Byrne shaves his hair, giving himself a buzz cut. Towards the end of the video, many fans appear and surround the band members. There are two alternate starts of the video: a first view of the castle, and another with rain and a lightning strike of the place.
Track listings UK CD1 "Queen of My Heart" (radio edit) "When You're Looking Like That" (single remix) "Reason for Living" "When You're Looking Like That" (CD ROM video)
UK CD2 "Queen of My Heart" (radio edit) "When You're Looking Like That" (single remix) "Interview" (CD ROM)
UK cassette single "Queen of My Heart" (radio edit) "When You're Looking Like That" (single remix)
European CD single "Queen of My Heart" (radio edit) "Reason for Living" "My Private Movie"
Credits and personnel Credits are lifted from the UK CD1 liner notes.
Recording Recorded at Olympic Studios (London)
Personnel
Steve Mac – writing, production, arrangement, mixing, piano, keyboards John McLaughlin – writing Steve Robson – writing Wayne Hector – writing, additional backing vocals Chris Laws – Pro Tools engineering, engineering, drums Matt Howe – recording, mixing engineer Daniel Pursey – assistant engineering Quentin Guine – assistant engineering Lee McCutcheon – Pro Tools engineering Steve Pearce – bass Frizzy Karlsson – guitars Paul Gendler – guitars Mae McKenna – additional backing vocals Eddie Hession – accordion Bob White – bagpipes Gavin Wright – strings Alice Holsgrove – choir Christopher Baptiste – choir Daniel Udy – choir Hannah Baptiste – choir Henry Verbi – choir Laura Taylor – choir Lee Raymond – choir Louise Raymond – choir Mathew Taylor – choir Rachael Holsgrove – choir Rebekah Holsgrove – choir Samuel Udy – choir Samuel Verbi – choir Victoria Verbi – choir Kim Chandler – conducting Dave Arch – orchestral arrangement Dick Beetham – mastering
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (2001–2002)PeakpositionEurope (Eurochart Hot 100)8Europe (European Hit Radio)17 Airplay (Music & Media)7Guatemala (Notimex)2Italy (FIMI)28Italy (Musica e dischi) Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Westlife".24Netherlands Airplay (Music & Media)20Nicaragua (Notimex)5Romania (Romanian Top 100)24Spain Airplay (Top 40 Radio)28UK Airplay (Music Week)17
Year-end charts Chart (2001)PositionIreland (IRMA)14Sweden (Hitlistan)51UK Singles (OCC)23 Chart (2002)PositionSweden (Hitlistan)94Taiwan (Hito Radio)43
Certifications and sales
References
External links Official Westlife website