It's Late

"It's Late" is a hard rock song written by Queen guitarist Brian May and performed by the band for their 1977 album News of the World. The song was May's idea of treating a song as a three-act theatrical play, and the verses are called "acts" in the lyrics sheet It makes use of the tapping technique one year before Eddie Van Halen's use of the tapping technique on the Van Halen I album. May told Guitar Player Magazine that his use of the tapping technique was inspired by an unnamed bar-band guitarist from Texas. The song is notable for its length and heavy, wide vocal range (E3-E6), bluesy guitar riff, using the previously mentioned technique. "It's Late" was released as a single in the US in 1978, albeit in heavily edited form, and peaked at #72 on the Billboard charts. It was later included on the Queen Rocks compilation in 1997, and a new video was produced using footage of Las Vegas and prostitutes, inter-cut with live performances of the song. The song appears in the 2006 documentary film Kurt Cobain About A Son, and can also be heard in the Seth Rogen film Observe and Report.

[Intro] [Verse 1] You say you love me And I hardly know your name And if I say I love you in the candlelight There's no one but myself to blame But there's something inside That's turning my mind away Oh, how I could love you If I could let you stay [Chorus] (It's late) When I'm bleeding deep inside (It's late) Ooh, is it just my sickly pride? (Too late) Even now The feeling seems to steal away (So late) Though I'm crying I can't help but hear you say It's late, it's late, it's late, but not too late [Verse 2] The way you love me Is the sweetest love around But after all this time, the more I'm trying The more I seem to let you down Now you tell me you're leaving And I just can't believe it's true Oh, you know that I can love you Though I know I can't be true Oh, you made me love you Don't tell me that we're through [Chorus] (It's late) But it's driving me so mad (It's late) Yes, I know But don't try to tell me that it's (Too late) Save our love You can't turn out the lights (So late) I've been wrong But I'll learn to be right It's late, it's late, it's late, but not too late [Bridge] I've been so long, you've been so long We've been so long trying to work it out I ain't got long, you ain't got long We gotta know what this life is all about [Guitar Solo] Tell me Try to work it out, yeah Woo! Ooh Too late, yeah Too late, much too late Ah! [Verse 3] You're staring at me With suspicion in your eye You say what game are you playing? What's this that you're saying? I know that I can't reply If I take you tonight Is it making my life a lie? Oh, you make me wonder Did I live my life right? [Chorus] (It's late) Ooh, but it's time to set me free (It's late) Ooh yes, I know But there's no way it has to be (Too late) So let the fire Take our bodies this night (So late) Let the waters Take our guilt in the tide, now It's late, it's late, it's late, it's late It's late, it's late, it's late [Outro] Oh, it's all too late Whoa, oh, it's too late Come on! I'm late, too late, oh yeah Whoa!