Red Special guitar
E716465
The Red Special guitar is Brian May’s iconic, custom-built electric guitar renowned for its distinctive tone and central role in Queen’s sound.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Red Special | 0 |
Statements (51)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
custom-built guitar
ⓘ
electric guitar ⓘ musical instrument ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs |
Old Lady
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
The Fireplace NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedWith | Brian May coin guitar pick technique ⓘ |
| bodyMaterial | blockboard with oak inserts ⓘ |
| bodyTopMaterial | mahogany veneer ⓘ |
| bridgeType | custom-made bridge ⓘ |
| completedIn | 1964 ⓘ |
| constructionFeature |
hand-carved by Brian May and his father
ⓘ
neck built from 19th-century fireplace mantel ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin | United Kingdom ⓘ |
| designer |
Brian May
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Harold May NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| fingerboardMaterial | oak ⓘ |
| finishColor | red ⓘ |
| genre |
arena rock
ⓘ
hard rock ⓘ progressive rock ⓘ rock music ⓘ |
| inception | 1963 ⓘ |
| inspirationFor |
Brian May Guitars Red Special replicas
ⓘ
Guild Brian May signature models NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| locationOfCreation | Feltham, Middlesex NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| mainUser | Brian May NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| manufacturer |
Brian May
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Harold May NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| neckMaterial | mahogany ⓘ |
| notableFor |
central role in Queen’s sound
ⓘ
distinctive guitar tone ⓘ |
| numberOfFrets | 24 ⓘ |
| nutMaterial | bakelite ⓘ |
| pickupConfiguration | three single-coil pickups ⓘ |
| pickupType | Burns Tri-Sonic single-coil pickups NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| scaleLength | 24 inches ⓘ |
| soundCharacteristic |
ability to emulate orchestral textures
ⓘ
harmonically rich overtones ⓘ violin-like sustain ⓘ |
| tremoloArmMaterial | hardened steel with plastic knitting needle tip ⓘ |
| tremoloSystem | custom-built vibrato system ⓘ |
| usedBy | Queen NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| usedOn |
Queen live performances
ⓘ
Queen studio recordings NERFINISHED ⓘ album A Night at the Opera NERFINISHED ⓘ song Bohemian Rhapsody ⓘ song Brighton Rock ⓘ song We Are the Champions ⓘ song We Will Rock You ⓘ |
| wiringFeatures |
individual on-off switches for each pickup
ⓘ
phase-reversal switches ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.