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Brian May named the greatest ever by “Total Guitar”


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Well, saying a man is “the greatest guitarist of all time” is as absurd as saying “the most beautiful color in the world is blue”, but still... Brian May has several epic solos under his belt, his tone is unique, his style is recognizable, his playing has a lot of flair... and he also is an outstanding songwriter and arranger, besides having enjoyed a lot of comercial success with Queen. Also, please note how humble he is. The man is a class act! So, here it is, the news —as I think we haven’t discussed about this:

https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/queens-brian-may-named-greatest-guitarist-of-all-time-by-total-guitar-magazine/
 

 

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3 minutes ago, killerteddybear said:

I've never heard of Total Guitar Magazine.

It's the greatest guitar magazine of all time.

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Wrote, Sang, Composed and was a memorable player. I'm okay with this. Remember riding my Free-Spirit 10-speed to get BoRap and an Icee that day.

Oh, and built his own guitar and wired it for amazing tones. Despite the the '70s excess, management and punk that denounced them, I'm still okay with this.  

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I think the fact that he pretty much completely crafted his guitar is a further factor (vs. bolting a neck to a body and painting and wiring it, and maybe a few other DIY moves).

Agreed with the aforecited "qualifications" (seems like a dumb term to apply to legendary players in a discussion such as this), and another plus for him is he's always eloquent when he contributes to some of the documentaries I've seen.

However, one wonders if the demi-god status of Freddie Mercury in rock music might have influenced whoever did the selecting...and from what I can tell, this periodical is English so it wouldn't surprise me.

 

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7 hours ago, zorrow said:

Well, saying a man is “the greatest guitarist of all time” is as absurd as saying “the most beautiful color in the world is blue”, but still... Brian May has several epic solos under his belt, his tone is unique, his style is recognizable, his playing has a lot of flair... and he also is an outstanding songwriter and arranger, besides having enjoyed a lot of comercial success with Queen. Also, please note how humble he is. The man is a class act! So, here it is, the news —as I think we haven’t discussed about this:

https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/queens-brian-may-named-greatest-guitarist-of-all-time-by-total-guitar-magazine/
 

 

Once someone gets those epic solos recorded with their own recognizable style, a lot of flair in their playing, outstanding songwriting and arranging, and the expected commercial success that person is sort on an equal level with all the other guitar players who have achieved the same. 

Mick Mars has a recognizable style and a lot of flair.  He certainly has the commercial success.  He ain't a Brian May, though. 

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It looks like Total Guitar prefers total statements. 
However, I think one thing makes a great factor. Would the music be still played in centuries to come, like Bach, Mozart i.e.? Queen music, with Brian’s contributions included, has the potential IMO. This is where it would differ and enfolds.

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Yes, @gorch, lot of great guitar-oriented pieces written and/or performed by Brian May will definitively transcend... and not only for guitarists and musicians and rock geeks, but also in the memory of the general public. In that sense, he is hard to beat.

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Total Guitar is a UK-based magazine, so it will likely have a slight bias...

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On 6/14/2020 at 10:00 AM, zorrow said:

Well, saying a man is “the greatest guitarist of all time” is as absurd as saying “the most beautiful color in the world is blue”, but still... Brian May has several epic solos under his belt, his tone is unique, his style is recognizable, his playing has a lot of flair... and he also is an outstanding songwriter and arranger, besides having enjoyed a lot of comercial success with Queen. Also, please note how humble he is. The man is a class act! So, here it is, the news —as I think we haven’t discussed about this:

https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/queens-brian-may-named-greatest-guitarist-of-all-time-by-total-guitar-magazine/
 

 

Bolded for truth and I like Brian May.

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51 minutes ago, cmatthes said:

Total Guitar is a UK-based magazine, so it will likely have a slight bias...

In that case, wouldn't you expect it to be Clapton then, he being "God" and all?

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I can appreciate the veracity of all of the praise and accolades he's received, and he is a stellar player and amazing composer, responsible for some of the most recognizable guitar "moments" and solos in some of the most widely known anthems in the history of popular music (BoRap, We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions, etc), but... without the resurgence of Queen's popularity due to the recent movie (and the canonization of Freddy that resulted), I doubt he gets the title, even from a Brit magazine. He may be the most intelligent guitarist of all time, from designing and building the Red Special 100% from scratch*, to his brilliance as a composer, to his education (BSc in Physics and PhD in Astrophysics), the man's a genius. That doesn't make him the GGOAT. I won't speculate on who should be crowned instead, but his playing doesn't have the emotion or passion of some I'd place higher. Beautiful in tone, melody and harmony, but lacking emotion, IMO.

* (How many people WITH training and experience can actually design and wind their own pickups and preamp in addition to doing the woodwork, figuring out the custom scale and fretwork, AND design and engineer all the hardware for a new trem? All this as a teen, before any luthierie publications or resources like StewMac existed!)

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I do 100% think that Queen is the best rock and roll band of all time.

So it makes sense that Brian May would be #1.

This stuff is all subjective but there are solid factors that put Queen over the top... undeniable reasons why their achievements are unique and in a class all by themselves.

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4 hours ago, kizanski said:

In that case, wouldn't you expect it to be Clapton then, he being "God" and all?

Nah.   Even the English are bored with Clapton by now.

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