Creator Area
Sign in Creator Area

Queen - It's A Hard Life - Guitar Tab

Practice Studio

Queen - It's A Hard Life - Guitar Tab

Sections · Loop · Speed · Metronome

Not in tune?

Select a Loop

Start of your loop
End of your loop

Speed Control

Speed
100%

Tools

BPM
Key B minor
Queen - It's A Hard Life guitar tab video
Steph Le Gratteux
Steph Le Gratteux Top Contributor
YouTube: 62Ksubs 16Kviews
Creator Page →
·
–50¢ 0 +50¢
· Tap to start

Your browser will ask for microphone permission.

Amp Settings

Classic Rock

Gain6
Bass6
Mid7
Treble6
Presence5
Master7
AI tone preset

AI-selected preset based on genre and era — adjust the knobs to taste.

Roll back the gain slightly and pick near the neck for a warmer, more open crunch.
The Works (Deluxe Remastered Version) album cover
The Works (Deluxe Remastered Version)
1984 4:07
Listen on Spotify
Queen Pop Rock 1984 B minor
Capo Advisor 0 B minor · Original key

It's A Hard Life

"It's A Hard Life" is a song by Queen, written by Freddie Mercury and released in 1984 on the album The Works. It served as the third single from that record and later appeared on the band's Greatest Hits II compilation. For electric guitar players, the song offers a rewarding mix of melodic rock rhythm work and expressive lead lines that reflect Brian May's signature layered guitar style.

  • The song was written entirely by Freddie Mercury, making it one of his more personal contributions to The Works album.
  • Brian May's guitar work on this track features the lush, multi-tracked tone he achieved using his homemade Red Special guitar.
  • Released in 1984, the track became one of three singles pulled from The Works, showing Queen's consistent chart presence that year.
Vox AC30
Amp

Vox AC30

Brian May stacks Vox AC30s cranked to full volume, letting natural tube breakup and the Top Boost channel create the chimey, harmonically rich overdrive that defines Queen's sound. Driven hard by a treble booster rather than pedal distortion, these amps deliver the compressed, singing tone central to May's signature style.

Boss DD-3 Digital Delay
Pedal

Boss DD-3 Digital Delay

May uses digital delay as a live equivalent to the tape echo (Echoplex) he favored in the studio, adding subtle spatial depth to his solos without cluttering his famously minimal effects chain. The DD-3 provides clean, repeating echoes that complement his vocal-like tone without compromising the directness of his treble booster-driven AC30 sound.

Recommended for You