Brian May reacts to Bohemian Rhapsody topping Total Guitar’s greatest solo of all time poll

Brian May and Queen and Adam Lambert perform at the Fire Fight Australia, a concert for National Bushfire Relief in Sydney on February 16, 2020. - More than 24 acts are performing at the nine-hour fundraising concert for victims of the recent bushfires in Australia.

(Image credit: PETER PARKS/AFP via Getty Images)

Last year, Brian May edged out Jimi Hendrix to nab the top slot in Total Guitar and GuitarWorld.com’s greatest rock guitarist of all time reader’s poll.

Now the Queen electric guitar player been honored by the magazine’s readers once again, with Bohemian Rhapsody being crowned number one in the magazine’s 50 greatest solos of all time poll.

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month**

Join now for unlimited access

US pricing $3.99 per month or $39.00 per year

UK pricing £2.99 per month or £29.00 per year

Europe pricing €3.49 per month or €34.00 per year

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Prices from £2.99/$3.99/€3.49

Rich is the co-author of the best-selling Nöthin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the '80s Hard Rock Explosion. He is also a recording and performing musician, and a former editor of Guitar World magazine and executive editor of Guitar Aficionado magazine. He has authored several additional books, among them Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, the companion to the documentary of the same name.

Latest

Orianthi playing guitar next to her signature Orange amp

“I went to Alexander Dumble’s home and plugged into all his amps. He let me play the first one he ever made”: Orianthi’s new signature Orange is inspired by a visit to the most coveted amp maker of them all

See more latest ►

“Jimi Hendrix came in with an old Duo-Sonic. I had just put together a Strat I’d strung up left-handed, and I went, ‘I’ll trade you.’ I was docked three weeks’ pay”: Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter recalls the questionable guitar deal he made when he met Jimi Hendrix

“I blew it up and replaced it with a black-panel Deluxe. He probably doesn’t know...”: Steve Hill on the time he recorded at Foo Fighters’ studio – and broke Chris Shiflett’s prized Fender Princeton

“The finest tone we’ve ever achieved. It’s knocking industry titans off pedalboards”: Keeley has launched a new Rotary pedal – and it could be the brand’s most significant launch in some time

“We are both at the top of our game”: Steve Vai and Joe Satriani have formed a new band together – and will release new music ahead of upcoming tour dates

“It was just full of guitars, and there was no air in it. No spaces, no gaps”: Bill Wyman reunited with his old Rolling Stones bandmates on their Hackney Diamonds album, but didn't like the track he played on

“I went to this very posh house in Regent’s Park in London, knocked on the door and this 16-year-old American kid held it up. I said, ‘It’s a red guitar – I’ll have it!’” How Phil Manzanera got his trademark Roxy Music Gibson Firebird

“I got really sick, and in the hospital, I decided to teach myself how to play guitar. I was playing piano and violin classically, and it was a little intense”: Yvette Young on why choosing the guitar felt “magical” – and what it represents to her

“Gilmour says, ‘I want to play on it’ – like, he doesn’t do this’”: Body Count rip through their Comfortably Numb reimagining on the Tonight Show, as Ernie C does his best David Gilmour

“It’s everything the SLO is, all in a pedal”: Soldano’s SLO Plus could be the new hard rock pedal amp to beat – bringing both channels of the legendary SLO-100 guitar amp to the floor

“Captures the very essence of British rock ’n’ roll”: The Masquerader Standard makes one of cult UK builder Shergold’s most distinctive guitars significantly more affordable

“I hope that’s cleared up any curiosities about how we run the show”: Sleep Token’s guitar tech finally lifts the lid on IV’s entire live guitar rig – right down to his pick of choice

Get The Pick Newsletter

Most Popular