Brian May

• Use a coin as a pick — the rigid edge creates a brighter, more defined attack
• Treble booster (not overdrive) into the AC30 is the key — it drives the amp harmonically
• Out-of-phase pickup combinations add that slightly hollow, glassy tone character
• Vibrato is from the arm of the Red Special — set up your Strat trem for light pressure
• Harmonise everything — Queen guitar parts typically stack 3–6 layered guitar lines
• AC30 tone: volume 6–7, treble at 6, bass at 5, top boost engaged
• Pick attack is hard and precise — May hits strings firmly, which drives the booster harder
• Learn to layer guitar harmonies in 3rds and 5ths for the Queen orchestral wall of guitars
• Study "Bohemian Rhapsody" solo and "Brighton Rock" for the full Red Special vocabulary

Brian May built his guitar — the "Red Special" — from an oak fireplace mantelpiece with his father. Paired with a sixpence coin pick and a Dallas Rangemaster treble booster into Vox AC30s, it produces one of the most harmonically rich and immediately recognisable tones in rock history.