What kind of guitar did Brian play on the Princes of the Universe Music Video? Im looking into buying a new guitar and one like that would be perfect.
Thanks
While we're on the subject of guitars, does anyone know where I can get any Brian May-style bass guitars that used to be made by Dillion?
They apparently don't make them anymore, and I'm upset about that, as I'm actually getting good at playing bass guitar, and I want to own one of those guitars :*(
I thought it was a Flying V at first, but every flying V ive ever seen is equil on both sides. This one, one of the ends is only about half as long as the other.
Looks alot more like a Jackson Randy Rhodes V to me - with the horrible pointy headstock and ridiculously out of proportion bottom fin - talk about pandering to the 80s US rock audience.
Looks like a Jackson Randy Rhodes or one of the models produced similar to it. I'll warn you if you're wanting to get one that they are near impossible to play sitting down, standing up the weight proportion is awful and they are easy to damage cause of the strange shape. However, they do kick out the sound, especially for heavier stuff. I had one for a few years, but I did a p/x deal with it a few years back.
It's indeed a Washburn Flying V.
And as said by some others: this guitar might look very cool, playing should realy 'fit' you. This particular model Brian uses in the POTU video btw, is a very early version and in fact not such a good guitar technically...
The Dillon bass-guitars: check at Dillon themselves or try eBay :-)
It doesn't look precisely like *either* of those pictures though. I'd really need to make an overlay in Photoshop to convince myself it was one of them.
Nope, it's not. I'm quite sure it is a Jackson Randy Rhodes, just compare the shape of the body of the guitar, they are very different:
Jackson Randy Rhodes:
link
Washburn Flying V:
link
Here is Brian:
link
No doubt it's a Jackson Randy Rhodes ;)
Nope, it sure is NOT! ;-)
I know it does indeed look the same as a Jackson flying v. (or should I say 'the same as SOME Jackson flyin v's). But you can't just tell a brand from the shape! Let me tell you that BC Rich has a model that is also exactly the same, Ibanez as well, as have a couple more. Also Jackson has 'regular' Flying V's, as the Washburn you found. Even some Jackson Randy Rhoads-models have the "even" Flying V.
The "shortened" flying V has become a 'standard' shape as much as the regular flying V, the Les Paul and the Fender Stratocaster models are represented in many different brands.
But have a look at the headstock. There is a brandname/logo on there and it reads... 'Washburn'! (The old logo)
Trust Seb and me on this one!!
(Or try to find the right picture, you'll see!)
Cheers :-)
Definitely a Washburn.
For as long as I can remember it's been known to be a Washburn, and as Jeroen says, you can clearly see it says Washburn on the headstock.
the_hero wrote: couldn't he just use the red special :P
I understand the reason Brian used other guitars besides the Red Special was because he was afraid of damaging the guitar. For instance, he uses the John Birch copy in the Spread Your Wings and We Will Rock You videos because he was concerned about having it out in the cold for so long (at least I assume that's why, or maybe he just didn't for a different look for those videos).
In the Play The Game video, he used a Strat copy because, as he says on the audio commentary on the DVD, he didn't want to throw the Red Special across the sound stage to Freddie.
Presumably, with the Princes Of The Universe video, they were using so much pyro and there's the bit where he's standing on the staircase and it starts to crumble, I think he was worried that the Red Special could be damaged. So, they probably rented that white Washburn just as a means of having what was essentially a throw away guitar that if it got damaged, hey, just pay whatever it cost to rent the guitar, and you were done.
jeroen wrote: Or Brian just didn't return it! ;-)
He's known for doing that to pens and black markers!! :-)))
OK so it was a rented instrument. Which means that either:
a. Brian bought it at some point, or
b. it was given to him by the company
The latter possibility might be rather likely, as many guitar companies are known for giving instruments to well known guitarists, in hopes of securing new endorsees. They probably figured if he likes it, he may at least use it as a backup or use it, as he did, in a video. That sort of thing can get a company good publicity (consider that 20 years after the fact, a bunch of geeks on a Queen online forum are discussing the instrument).
Its a Washburn RR11V, It was used because of the weather effects he didn't want to damage the Red Special. link
Answered! :)
Basically an upgraded Randy Rhoads style V with EMG pickups, Very 80's, and No, Not impossible to play sitting down (see Alexi Laiho from Children of Bodom's videos for example)
Indeed a Washburn, My advice would be to get something else, they are horrible to play unless you are standing up the whole time, so practice at home is a pain, get a BMG Red Special instead