Mythology is ripe with stories of special weapons that were
custom forged and then given to someone.
Mjolnir was created by the dwarves and given to Thor. ‘’Some watery tart’’ threw a sword at King
Arthur. However in real life sometimes the
gods fail to deliver and a person has to make their own weapon.
and Tie Your
Mother Down at Live Aid 1985
It is the
same guitar in each performance.
Now, most
guitar players are picky about their instrument. The guitar Jimmi Hendrix wanted was not
available left handed. So he restrung it
and played
it upside down. Brian May at 17 years old was simply unable to find a
guitar that worked for him, so the man that would go on to be ranked as one of the greatest guitar players of all time by Rolling Stone, built his own.
The guitar that he has used for over 30 years was homemade with parts from around the house. He has even stated
that the wood for the neck was taken from the fireplace at his father’s
house. The wiring and switches are all custom.
Now you
would think that anybody who could build, maintain and play a guitar for multiple
individual performances where millions watched live maybe could have done
something a bit more scholastic with his talents. Well, he did.
Brian May earned a PhD in Astrophysics in 2007 with his thesis entitled A Survey of Radial Velocities in the Zodiacal Dust Cloud.
Is it just
me or do his accomplishments make you wonder if there is maybe more I could be
doing with my life.
;)
