“A lot in common”: The guitarist Brian May thought could replace him in Queen
The idea of replacing anyone in Queen would have been unthinkable. Every member seemed more like an essential piece of the musical machine, and even when the band tours without John Deacon or Freddie Mercury, they bill themselves as a feature with another singer and are given the bassist’s blessing to move on. If Brian May had to be counted out for a show, though, he felt that only one guitar guru could do the best job of replacing him.
Then again, that’s no small order for any guitarist to reach. Although May never claimed to be a shredder in the same way that someone like Eddie Van Halen was, his way of orchestrating his parts was as essential as Mercury’s vocals, especially when he layered different parts on top of each other to create the backing tracks.
Even when looking at performing the songs live, it’s impossible to figure out which harmony line to lay on top of each other to get the right sound. Looking at a tune like ‘Killer Queen’, getting all of the harmonies to sound right as well as making sure all of the bends are in tune is the kind of task that would make any guitarist break into a cold sweat.
That’s before someone gets to play every single piece correctly. Considering their pedigree, the solos in tunes like ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ have been etched into history, so there’s no point in trying to fly off the handle and add one’s own spice to it when people want to hear the shredding parts that May made by himself.
When asked about who would replace him in Guitarist, though, May had a few names that he had in mind to have taken his spot. But while he had high praise for people like Nuno Bettencourt of Extreme and Jeff Beck, he felt that the latter might not have had the best working relationship with the other members of Queen that he did.
In terms of supporting the lead vocal, though, May thought that Mick Ronson would have been one of the best picks to step behind his fretboard back in the day, saying, “Of my era, I’d say I had a lot in common with Mick Ronson, if that doesn’t sound bigheaded. I always found his playing truly supportive.”
Although Ronson may not have been as flashy a guitarist as May could be at the best times, what he did for David Bowie’s records can’t be overstated. Despite ‘The Starman’ being the epitome of what a rock star should be, Ronson was the one anchoring everything down to the ground, having the bluesy flair of someone like Jeff Beck while embracing the pageantry of Marc Bolan.
Even though May would never get to hear what Ronson would have sounded like performing his songs, hearing them both in their prime is a great snapshot of what glam rock could sound like if it took itself seriously. Most artists were interested in donning lipstick and letting the visuals do the talking, but May knew that Ronson had the same musical DNA that he had when stringing together the right solo.
