The Queen song Brian May thought sounded too stiff: “It wasn’t an alleyway that led very far”
No one could mistake Queen for any other band when they came on the radio. Despite each member contributing to the songwriting, their distinctive blend of vocal harmonies and musical finesse made them sound more like audio technicians than traditional musicians whenever one of their classics played. However, the pursuit of musical perfection came at a cost, and Brian May felt that ‘It’s Late’ ended up sounding too rigid when they finished recording News of the World.
Considering how often they aimed to create the perfect vocal harmony, though, News of the World felt like it was supposed to be their return to a grittier version of the group. ‘We Will Rock You’ was already a primal way of introducing a pop hit, and ‘Sheer Heart Attack’ even saw them taking a few cues out of the punk movement by making one of the most raucous tracks in their catalogue.
‘It’s Late’ occupies a little bit of a weird place on the record, though. Yes, it is a nice slice of hard rock, but considering it comes directly after the bluesy ‘Sleeping on the Sidewalk’, it does give the listener just the slightest hint of tonal whiplash whenever it plays. Looking at the guitar solo, May was also ahead of his time by tapping a handful of his phrases.
And this was recorded in 1977, almost a full year before Van Halen’s debut came out, so May was pretty early on the virtuoso soloing train, but he never thought it measured up, telling Rolling Stone, “I found it was a bit too stiff. … If I persevered with it, it would probably become second nature, but it wasn’t an alleyway which led very far, to my way of thinking. It’s a bit gimmicky.”
While May’s guitar god status has been cemented in stone for decades now, it’s understandable to see where he’s coming from. It’s still 90% better than most six-stringers could hope to be on their best day, but listening to that back-to-back with something like ‘Eruption’, it’s clear that May’s phrasing is the baby crawl to Eddie’s marathon runner.
But that was never how May saw his playing technique, anyway. He was always interested in making lavish sounds with his instrument and features like ‘Somebody to Love’ or ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’; his phrases could have worked just as well had they been played by a string section instead of a guitar.
If May couldn’t get the sounds he wanted out of just one guitar, then why not layer one on top of the other? Whereas Eddie figured that he would just dominate the instrument every time he played a Van Halen song, any Queen record is a treat for musicians because of just how many tracks May puts on every Queen hit, almost matching the intensity of their harmony singing in some spots.
‘It’s Late’ is definitely an odd duck in Queen’s catalogue, but they weren’t trying to reinvent the wheel by any means. May just wanted to try something new, and while the results may have been a bit stiff, it was an unofficial teaser for the next generation of virtuosos that would turn tapping into a rite of passage for musicians.
