The Brian May Band

The Brian May Band, 1993
Left-Right: Cozy Powell, Jamie Moses, Shelley Preston, Brian May, Cathy Porter, Spike Edney, Neil Murray

The Brian May Band was formed in 1992 by Brian to allow live shows to promote 'Back To The Light' and later 'Another World'. They have toured extensively throughout Europe, North America, South America, Asia and Australasia, performing both Brian's solo and Queen material. A live album and video were released of the band at the Brixton Academy in 1994. Members of the band have also appeared on Brian's solo material, and come from a large number of notable rock groups.

Members for 'Back To The Light' (1992/3):
Drums: Cozy Powell
Guitar: Mike Caswell (1992), Jamie Moses (1993)
Keyboards: Spike Edney
Bass: Neil Murray
Backing Vocalists: Maggie Ryder, Miriam Stockley and Chris Thompson (1992), Cathy Porter and Shelley Preston (1993)
This line-up (without Cathy and Shelley) appear together on three of Brian's solo recordings from 'Another World', namely 'Slow Down', 'Maybe Baby' and 'Only Make Believe'

Members for 'Another World' (1998):
Drums: Eric Singer
Guitar: Jamie Moses
Keyboards: Spike Edney
Bass: Neil Murray
Backing Vocals: Susie Webb and Zoe Nicholas

Jamie Moses was an original member of The Brian May Band, providing rhythm and acoustic guitars alongside Brian. He has worked with many varied acts, including Tony Hadley, Jimmy Nail, Gary Barlow, The Hollies, Paul Young, The Who and Bob Geldof. He regularly makes appearances on record and at concerts with Brian and Queen, and also provided additional guitars for the Queen + Paul Rodgers 2005 European Tour.

Neil Murray was also in the original 'Brian May Band', and is one of rock's most respected bassists. He has worked with Whitesnake (1977-81, 1984), Black Sabbath (1989-90), Gary Moore, Eric Clapton, The Scorpions, Jeff Beck, Sting, and Ian Gillan, as well as contributing to Brian's solo albums and the SAS Band. He also played bass for the 'We Will Rock You' musical, and two shows with Queen + Paul Rodgers in 2008, as normal bassist Danny Miranda was in hospital.

Cozy Powell played drums in the original Brian May Band. He is one of rock's most respected drummers, having worked with Jeff Beck (1971-3), Rainbow (1976-80), ELP (1980), Whitesnake (1981-4), and Black Sabbath (1989-90). He also contributed greatly to Brian's 'Back To The Light' and 'Another World' albums, and has enjoyed singles chart success, when his single 'Dance With The Devil' hit the top 5 in 1973. 'Live At Brixton Academy' includes a Cozy drum solo in 'Resurrection', in which Cozy plays part of his 'Over The Top' track from 1979, which was originally the '1812 Overture'. Cozy was also an original member of the SAS band with Spike Edney, but was tragically killed in a car accident in April 1998.

Eric Singer joined the Brian May Band for the 1998 'Another World' tour, to replace Cozy Powell on drums. He has worked with many different artists, most notably with Black Sabbath (for 2 years), Kiss (5 years) and Gary Moore.

Cathy Porter and Shelley Preston were both original members of the Brian May Band for the 1992 and 1993 'Back To The Light' tours, but left before the 1998 'Another World' tour. Cathy starred opposite Michael Crawford in 'The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber', and has also provided backing vocals on numerous projects, including several Queen and Roger Taylor tracks. Shelley Preston has worked with Curtis Stigers, Tom Jones, Alison Moyet, Gary Moore and Beverley Craven.

Zoe Nicholas and Susie Webb both joined the Brian May Band for the 1998 'Another World' tours, replacing Cathy Porter and Shelley Preston. Between them they have worked with Dave Gilmour, The Who, Cliff Richard, The Jam and Luther Vandross, amongst others. They were also in the Abba tribute band 'Bjorn Again', before forming their own tribute, 'Fabba'.