Deacon played a larger role on the band's 1982 album "Hot Space". He played rhythm guitar on the opening "Staying Power" because of his soul and Motown-influenced style, and insisted on playing guitar on his own composition "Back Chat" and not allowing May to play any guitar solos because the style did not fit what Deacon wanted. This led to an acrimonious argument between the two. By the mid-1980s Deacon had started to play with other bands as well. He performed on the single "Picking Up Sounds" by Man Friday & Jive Junior, a supergroup also featuring Thin Lizzy's Scott Gorham, Bad Company's Simon Kirke and Mick Ralphs, and The Pretenders' Martin Chambers. and played with The Immortals, which released the track "No Turning Back" as part of the soundtrack to the film "". Deacon played bass on Mercury's single with Montserrat Caballe "How Can I Go On" and also worked with Elton John and Hot Chocolate's Errol Brown.