Freddie seems to have bought two pianos in those months: one in New York (1st
or 2nd December 1977), which he had shipped to his London flat and possibly
never used on any Queen recording or concert, and a huge 8 ft 11.75 in Steinway
that he acquired before or during the European leg (first documented instance
of he playing it is at Bingley Hall in May 1978). As Leroy Brown was
dropped from the set, there was no more ukelele-banjo. Roger trashed the drum
kit on the last concert of the tour, as usual.
Percussion
Drum kit
Ludwig 26" x 14" bass-drum.
Ludwig 14" x 7.5" snare drum.
Ludwig 16" x 16", 18" x 18" and 20" x 20" floor
toms.
Ludwig 15" x 15", 14" x 14", 13" x 13" and 12"
x 12" rack toms.
Ludwig 10" x 10", 8" x 8" and 6" x 6" small toms.
Remo 16" and 14" rototoms [Get Down Make Love].
Paiste 8" splash cymbal.
Paiste 18" crash cymbal.
Paiste 22" china cymbal.
Zildjian 15" hi-hats.
Zildjian 20" and 2 x 18" crash cymbals.
Zildjian 22" ride cymbal.
3 x Cowbells.
Ludwig Speed-King pedal.
Ludwig stands.
Premier sticks.
Bass-drum logo: white crest / black background [USA/Canada]
Bass-drum logo: NOTW robot [Europe]
Gong [hit once at the end of Bohemian Rhapsody]
Paiste 60" symphonic.
Bespoke beaters.
Paiste stands.
Tambourine
Unknown
Triangle [Killer Queen]
Unknown.
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Bass guitars
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Electric bass guitars
Fender Precision 1968 [main]
Fender Precision 1965 [spare]
Fender Precision fretless [´39, Melancholy Blues]
Music Man Stingray [spare - rehearsals]
Bass rig
5 x Acoustic 371 amplifiers.
3 x Acoustic cabinets.
2 x Gauss 4" x 12" cabinets.
1 x Cornish (?) bespoke control.
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Guitars
Electric six-string guitars
BHM bespoke [main]
Birch bespoke [spare, e.g. Liar in Houston]
Gibson Les Paul Deluxe [second spare]
Guitar rig
Cornish bespoke effect [trebe-booster]
EBow
Eventide harmoniser
fOXX foot pedal [phaser]
2 x Maestro tape-delay
9 x Vox AC30 amplifiers
Vox foot pedal [wah-wah]
Acoustic guitar ['39, Love of My Life]
Ovation Pacemaker 1615 twelve-string
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Piano
Piano
Depending on the venue
e.g. Bösendorfer [Houston]
Steinway 1972 D concert [Europe]
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What about the recording sessions?
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John may have used his Music Man bass for several recordings on the
album (in a 1979 interview he admitted having used it in the studio, and liking
it although not as much as he liked the Fender's). Roger played a 1967 Fender
Esquire on Sheer Heart Attack. John, according to the Fan Club magazine
in late 1977, didn't use the fretless bass on the album. The piano Freddie played
(and Brian in the case of All Dead, All Dead) was a Steinway at Island
Studios in Notting Hill and a Bösendorfer at Wessex. John most likely played
a Martin D-18 acoustic guitar on Spread Your Wings. While the album
didn't include the 'no synths' claim, they still didn't use them.
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