Hello Everybody, today I wish to present something very different and very personal at this very crazy time in the world. As you know we are in the grip of a global pandemic and a lot of the planet is in lockdown to attempt to close the virus down. With this lockdown society has had to find new ways to entertain itself and one individual has gone about it in a very humble and genuine way. That person is an idol of mine and he is called Dr Brian May. Yes, the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen. Brian has quietly gone about producing YouTube “Micro Concerts” and tutorials each and every evening to entertain and more importantly reassure us that there are folks out there that are thinking of you and me, so we don’t feel so isolated.
BrianMay.Com on YouTube > CLICK HERE
BrianMay.Com Main Website > CLICK HERE
Now I have a very strong emotional connection with Queen and Brian’s work, the day I was born Bohemian Rhapsody was sat at No.1 in the charts, the first piece of music I remember hearing was the guitar solo from Killer Queen, I taught myself music and piano – starting with a Stylophone! I progressed to proper home keyboards when I convinced my parents I was serious I wanted to learn. I practised Bohemian for over 20 years to get to a “passable rendition” of it…still haven’t nailed it. I did become good enough to play in a band and performed the song around the clubs of the UK….and I even had the honour of performing on a stage that Brian, Roger, John and Freddie stomped on during their 1974 tour. I had serious goosebumps that night! But I realised when I saw the videos that Brian is now posting that I hadn’t really thanked him for what he (and Queen) had given me. This was partly due to not having access to social media and partly because I was shy about reaching out. Well that ends today. I have designed a little something as a “virtual gift” to Brian and it combines elements of his career, music, his love of Astrophysics…oh and he is a BIG Star Wars fan too. This is Red (5) Special….
This is Brian’s beloved guitar the “Red Special” or as she is sometimes called, “The Lady” modelled as best I can in 3D! Brian and his father famously built this guitar from scratch using parts such as a knife blade and a 100 year old piece of wood from a fireplace mantlepiece! Luckily I didn’t have to source parts but I did have a really difficult job recreating the beautiful shape of this instrument (and all the other parts). It has the selector switches, the rotary knobs, the famous triple Humbucking pickups, a tremolo arm…the tuning head with machineheads…and if you look on the back I even added the two black access panels/repair patches you don’t normally see! However, this isn’t 100% accurate as I intended this model to form a display stand for a new…lightsaber! Well Brian is a Star Wars fan so I imagined what a saber would look like with a guitar shaped display stand and realised I could expand the triple pickups to form a cradle to hold a saber…
And the saber is a design I modified from my Altenweg Shoto design I made last year as I realised it had a bit of a Flash Gordon look to it so was a perfect hilt to use. And I’m allowed to mention Flash Gordon on this website as Queen and Brian had a little role in it. It was a spectacular mash up of movie magic and magnificent music. And as I near the end of this offering I have a few more images to share…
It turns out a guitar makes a decent display stand and I have nearly come to the end of this post…Oh wait, you may ask what connection to Astrophysics does this model and guitar have? Look closely near the white switches and you’ll see Brian’s star logo to represent his love of astronomy and his Doctorate on the subject (He’s probably even used radio telescopes like Jodrell Bank!). And why is there a 5 in the name of this model? Red 5 was Luke Skywalker’s callsign in the Death Star attack in Star Wars of course!
I want to finish by saying thanks once more to Brian and I sincerely hope he likes this, it meant a lot to model it and is my small way of saying thanks for all he has done, is doing and will continue to do for all of us in the future.
Stay safe, well and keep rockin – we appreciate Everything You Do. For Tyeth.
And NO SYNTHESIZERS were used in the making of this design!
All images and likenesses of the “Red Special” are Trademark/©Copyright and belong to Dr Brian May. All names, images logos and related material belong to their respective owners. The Blender 3D “Red (5) Special” model and renderings were made by me, For Tyeth and are ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2020.
FTSabersite 
Nice work FT how mad would it be if Brian left a comment or mentioned you on his YouTube channel. Queen are an awesome group. My brother creates music, a talent I have always been in awe of. Keep on creating. You might want to show your other creations, 3d and blender as well as Sabres and sci fi. I did years of Daleks before I wrote about whatever I like.
Hi Neil and thank you, it would be an honour if Brian checked this design out. I have been a fan since birth t seems and having seen how he has took it upon himself to create his series of MicroConcerts to help entertain and reaasure us is amazing. He does so without fanfare and it was just the right time to do something to thank him for everything. Hope you keep safe and well (and your folks).
This is awesome, nice work! Love Queen and Dr. Brian May! I wish I could have seen them in concert
Hi Mei-Mei, I too missed out on seeing themin concert but I came a close second as my bandmate Rick who I toured with was our “Freddie”. He was virtually identical (except a bit heavier as he worked as an industrial painter!” and he could belt out the songs. He was so good I had to keep reminding myself Rick wasn’t Fred.
I’m glad the Red Special worked out, as I mention it wasn’t 100% accurate as I intended to use it as a display stand but I got carried away as usual and kept adding bits of detail. I might use this model and improve it to make an Ultimate Works version! Thanks again and as always stay safe!
Beautiful virtual guitar!
Hello Resa, I wish I could take the credit for the design but that lies squarely with Mr May Sr and Jr! The Red Special just sounds like nothing else on the planet and combined with Brian’s technique it definitely is a one off. I’m just happy I got as close as I could with the model, as I mentioned to Mei-Mei above I was caught in two minds – keep it basic as a stand or add as much detail as I could manage – I fell between the two. When I get my main laptop back in action I will make some nicer renders. Thanks as always, stay safe and keep rocking!
Hi FT, that’s a nifty piece of design work and a great tribute to an excellent musician and fellow sci-fi enthusiast!
Hi TVTA, thanks I never imagined I’d become a Luthier and lightsabre builder! I’m a bit ashamed that I had left paying tribute to Brian (and Queen) for so long, I think I was too busy listening to the music first. I did build a saber named “Mercurial Sceptre” to celebrate Freddie’s birthday a few years ago and I mentioned Brian, John and Roger in that post. Glad you liked Red (5) Special – “The Lady” is so iconic (visually and sounding) it was easier to come up with a design, it was just hard to build the shape of the guitar – lightsabers are just tubes in comparison! Thanks again, keep safe and keep rocking!