Brian May
Brian May
Brian Harold May, CBEis an English musician, singer, songwriter and astrophysicist, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen. He uses a home-built electric guitar, called the Red Special. His compositions for the band include "We Will Rock You", "Tie Your Mother Down", "I Want It All", "Fat Bottomed Girls", "The Prophet's Song", "Flash", "Hammer to Fall", "Save Me", "Who Wants to Live Forever" and "The Show Must Go On"...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionGuitarist
Date of Birth19 July 1947
CityLondon, England
There are times when I flick through magazines and think I'm in danger of becoming a prisoner of my own hair.
I think a lot of people would be better off in America, where at least you would find some radio station somewhere that would play you.
My mum says I wanted to be a surgeon, but I don't remember that. I think from the time I knew what was happening, I wanted to be a guitar player.
I'm a much better musician than astronomer. I think the world got the right choice.
We've done an arrangement with an orchestra, but I think the best stuff tends to come when it's just the four of us.
For a time I didn't want to answer any questions about Queen. I'd like to be viewed as something alive and relevant, not some fossil.
I never took sheet music seriously. I could do better myself just by listening to other people and using my own intuition.
Not for a million - years. I mean, I like the INXS boys, but I found the process very degrading, really. Reality television has eaten away at our standards of excellence. I don't like this whole culture, which has evolved, of TV being the king.
We do play to our audience. It's very important. You can't create music in a vacuum.
I don't surf the net in general. I have someone do it for me instead, because I find it sluggish.
I'm not a person for sitting on beaches. What would I do?
I'm the nice guy who sits there signing everything that's put in front of me.
I tend not to write on guitar very often. I tend to start off with keyboards.
There are times when I've been feeling something and played a solo that I've never been able to repeat.