It’s not easy to stand out when you’re standing alongside Freddie Mercury, the Queen frontman whose exuberant stage presence matched his astonishing four-octave vocal range. But Brian May still managed to shine thanks to his absolute wizardry on the guitar. May and Mercury founded Queen in 1970 with drummer Roger Taylor, later adding bassist John Deacon to the lineup. One of the best-selling musical acts of all time, the quartet delivered immortal hits including “Bohemian Rhapsody”, “We Will Rock You”, and “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”. May’s trademark layered guitar work adorned every one, and he is still regarded among the best to ever pick up the instrument. Today, we’re exploring the life and career of one Brian Harold May as he celebrates his 79th birthday.
He Built His Own Guitar
Born July 19, 1947, in Hampton, Middlesex, England, May’s musical talents and technical ingenuity were on display from an early age. With the help of his father, Harold, he crafted his own custom guitar from makeshift materials including firewood. He used a six-pence coin as a pick.
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Later, the instrument—dubbed the “Red Special”—would accompany May on every Queen album and at every live show.
Once he had completed his guitar, May would play along to albums by Buddy Holly and the Everly Brothers. In no time at all, he was improvising his own solos.
“I would listen to the songs and want to know everything—how the harmonies worked, what made one harmony affect you in a certain way,” May said.
As a teenager, he formed his first band, the instrumental group 1984. The band gained traction, playing gigs around London and even opening for a show featuring a roster of future rock icons such as Jimi Hendrix, Traffic, Pink Floyd, and Tyrannosaurus Rex (later T. Rex).
However, May didn’t care for the direction 1984 was heading, and he left the group in 1968—the same year he earned his degree in physics from Imperial College London with honors.
The Precursor to Queen
In the summer of 1968, Brian May formed the progressive-rock outfit Smile with former 1984 bandmate Tim Staffell.
A young dental student named Roger Taylor answered their ad for a “Ginger Baker”-type drummer. Despite auditioning on bongos, Taylor was hired.
Smile recorded six songs before disbanding in 1970 when lead singer Staffell left to join the London folk-rock group Humpy Bong.
Fortunately, a recent Ealing Art College graduate named Farrokh Bulsara persuaded May and Taylor to continue their musical journeys.
Changing his name to Freddie Mercury, he joined the duo as lead singer of their new group, Queen.
In a previous interview, May recalled meeting the flamboyant frontman for the first time at a Smile show.
“He came back and he said, ‘Yeah, this was great. But you’re doing this wrong, you’re doing this wrong… what you need is me,’” the guitar virtuoso recounted.
After testing out a series of bassists, they finally settled on John Deacon. The era-defining lineup lasted until Mercury’s death in 1991 at age 45.
During that time, many of the band’s hits came straight from May, including “We Will Rock You” (1977); “I Want It All” (1989); and “Fat Bottomed Girls” (1978).
More Than a Musician
Since 2005, Brian May has toured off and on with Queen, most recently helmed by Adam Lambert.
In 2007, he completed the PhD in physics that he began in 1971 at Imperial College. May has previously consulted on NASA missions.
In addition to releasing three solo albums, he is also a dedicated animal welfare activist. In 2010, May co-founded Save Me, an organization that campaigns against fox hunting and badger culling in the United Kingdom.
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