Brian Harold May was born in Hampton Hill, near Twickenham, just outside South West London, on the 19th of July 1947. Academically talented, May left Hampton Hill Grammar School to study Mathematics and Physics at University College London. He turned down the opportunity to study for his doctorate to allow him to stay in London and continue playing with Smile, the band he was in with Roger Taylor and that would eventually morph into Queen.

It was during his time at school that Brian and his father Harold, a draughtsman, began making the epic “Red Special” that would become the talisman and emblem of Queen. Read more about that one of a kind legendary guitar in our “Most Famous Guitars of All Time” post.

In 1970 Smile fell apart when lead vocalist and bass player, Tim Staffell, parted ways leaving Brian and Roger with a small catalog of music. Freddie Mercury joined the band and the name was changed to Queen. This left only a year until John Deacon filled the bass playing hot seat (3 bass players from Smile to Queen) and Queen were ready to re-write music history.

Throughout Queen’s history Brian has contributed greatly to Queen’s sound. Not only through the unique tones of his sixpence picked Red Special, but also with vocals (backing and lead), keyboards, writing, arranging and production.

Before Queen stopped publishing which member wrote which song, to stop band in-fighting, he was acknowledged for penning:

• We Will Rock You
• Tie Your Mother Down
• Fat Bottomed Girls
• Who Want to Live Forever
• The Show Must Go On
• Now I’m Here
• Brighton Rock
• Save Me
• I Want It All

The death of Freddie Mercury hit the whole band hard and Queen limped on with guest vocalists until John Deacon retired completely, unable to cope without Freddie. Queen, in a limited fashion, tours to today with session bass players in place of the retired John Deacon and Adam Lambert on vocals.

Brian has worked with a wide range of artists, most infamously (in guitar circles) was Star Fleet Project with one of the other all time guitar legends, Eddie Van Halen. It sounds dated today, but it has to be remembered that this was recorded in a hurry with barely any pre-production work!

Outside of music, Brian’s love of Astronomy has continued with him enjoying a long friendship with Sir Patrick Moore (longest standing TV presenter in the World, up to his death in 2012, for “The Sky at Night”) and finally finishing his thesis to become Dr Brian May. Since then he has been knighted, making him Sir Brian May.

Brian is also responsible for making this author pick up a tennis racket and stand in front of a mirror wondering what it would be like to play an electric guitar…..

Right Hand

Alternate PickingAlternate picking involves striking the string with both downstrokes and upstrokes in a continuous motion. It enhances speed and precision. Guitarists use this technique for rapid note sequences., ChankingChanking combines muting with percussive strumming, creating a sharp, rhythmic sound. It's often used in funk music. The technique involves heavy left-hand muting., CrosspickingCrosspicking is a technique where the pick alternates across multiple strings, creating a rolling sound. It mimics the sound of fingerpicking. This technique is common in bluegrass music., Economy PickingEconomy picking combines alternate picking and sweep picking for efficiency. It reduces hand movement. Guitarists use it to play fast, smooth passages., FingerstyleFingerstyle involves plucking strings directly with fingers instead of a pick. It allows complex, polyphonic music. This technique is common in classical and folk guitar., Palm MutingPalm muting involves lightly resting the palm on the strings near the bridge. It creates a dampened, rhythmic sound. This technique is common in rock and metal music., Pick SlideA pick slide involves dragging the pick along the string length. It creates a scratching sound. This effect is often used in rock music., Ska StrokeSka stroke is a rhythmic strumming technique emphasizing the off-beats. It creates a bouncy, upbeat feel. This technique is central to ska music., Tambour

Other Techniques

Amp ManipulationAmp manipulation involves adjusting amplifier settings to change the guitar's tone. It enhances sound versatility. Guitarists use it for different musical styles., ArpeggioAn arpeggio is playing the notes of a chord sequentially. It creates a broken chord sound. This technique is used in various musical genres., Finger VibratoFinger vibrato involves oscillating the finger on a fret. It adds expressiveness to notes. This technique is essential for emotional playing., HarmonicsHarmonics involve lightly touching the string at specific points to produce bell-like tones. They add tonal variety. This technique is used for special sound effects. Harmonics can be natural or artificial, depending on the method used., Heavy Effects UsageHeavy effects usage involves applying multiple effects pedals to alter the guitar's sound. It creates unique sonic textures. This technique is popular in experimental music. For example, Steve Vai, not Keith Richards., Lead GuitarLead guitar focuses on melody lines and solos. It often uses techniques like bends and vibrato. This role is prominent in rock and blues bands., Left Hand MutingLeft hand muting involves dampening strings with the fretting hand. It creates a staccato effect. This technique is useful for rhythmic precision., Rhythm GuitarRhythm guitar focuses on chord progressions and rhythmic patterns. It provides harmonic support. This role is crucial in most band settings., SlideSlide guitar uses a slide to glide between notes, creating a smooth, continuous sound. It's common in blues music. This technique adds expressiveness., Volume SwellVolume swell involves gradually increasing the volume using the guitar's volume knob or a pedal. It creates a smooth, crescendo effect. This technique adds dynamic range., Whammy Bar

Techniques Breakdown

• Modulated Arpeggios, Vocal Style Vibrato, Fast Alternate Picking, Trill Licks, Scooped Bends, Pedal Tone Triads, Harmonized Bends

  Watch this fully to get pure Brian May Technique Gems!

• Using a Six Pence Coin as a pick, Extreme Bends

• Switching pickups in and out of phase, Quarter Note Bends, Fingerpicking, Pinch Harmonics, Two-handed Tapping

• Brian May's Tone Decoded

Brian May Style amp Settings for pretty much any amp and especially for Boss Katana:
Amp Type – Brown (Aim for thicker, EVH style tone here)
Gain – 2 o clock
Volume – relatively low to makeup for the higher gain setting and Master setting
EQ – Put the bass up to 3 o clock and the middle and treble up to 12 o clock
Effects section – definitely the booster and a little bit of Mod for the phaser-style sound; a tiny bit of delay for space and a slight bit of reverb
Master – 3 o clock

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Guitars

• Brian May Red Special

This is a guitar that Brian and his father, Harold, handbuilt from a very old fireplace mantle, a table, and some Burns Tri-sonic pickups between 1964 and 1967. It featured three single-coil pickups wired in series, but with switches to change the output of a particular pickup out of phase. He used the bridge and middle pickups in-phase for the rhythm parts, and the out of phase settings for the screaming guitar leads and solos. It also had an ingenious tremolo design crafted by May.

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Amps

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  Vox AC30C2 30-watt 2 x 12

  Best Amp for Brian May Tone

Brian Used 3 early 60s Vox AC30s. Normal Channel - Tone: 6, Volume: 9.5/10 - he controlled the overall volume and got the tones needed for different sections of the song with the volume knob of his guitar

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Signal Processing

• Pete Cornish BC149 Treble Booster

• Modified Meastro Echoplex EP-2

• Foxx Phaser

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Accessories

• 

  Optima Brian May Signature Strings

  Brian Uses These Nowadays

• Late 50s/early 60s British Six Pence coin

Brian used to enjoy playing very thin strings, but due to the fact that .008 guage strings were not available, he used to make custom sets using a .008 guage banjo string.

Note that you can move away from this tab and continue to listen to the video. Enjoying reading about your favorite guitarists while enjoying their skills.

• Brighton Rock

  Brian invents the stereo delay

• Bohemian Rhapsody Solo (including mistakes)

  This video gives all of us hope

• Now I'm Here

  Sure, Brian is our focus, but John Deacon steals the show. With all the manic camp rock action happening around him, he’s laying it down thick whilst dressed like he’s popped in on his way home from the 9-5

Here are some GND selected tabs with our difficulty ratings to help you choose what challenge level is right for you.

• Now I'm Here Riff Tab

• We Will Rock You Solo

• Bohemian Rhapsody Solo

• Brighton Rock