I first got my hands on a guitar at the age of 13, as the brother of a schoolfriend taught me to play bass...so that I could play in his heavy metal band. Having been given a start on bass, I went on to teach myself to play guitar, picking up quite a lot from books and magazine articles. I formed a few bands with friends whilst a teenager, playing various combinations of heavy rock, indie rock and bluesy styles. I think my biggest musical influences at the time were Eric Clapton, David Gilmour and Mark Knopfler. I'm still very fond of Knopfler's playing and its his picking style that got me interested in fingerstyle playing.
I continued playing in rock bands while at university, but as I started my working life, I changed my musical focus onto fingerstyle acoustic guitar for several years.
In my late twenties, I got a bit frustrated at my limitations as a self taught guitarist and decided to branch out into piano. I took lessons for about 3 years and passed exams up to grade 7, as well as grade 5 theory. However I never completely stopped playing guitar, and I have always felt more at home on guitar than I have on piano.
Since the mid noughties I've been playing in bands again and gigging regularly. Since about 2010 I've been getting interested in folk guitarists like Martin Simpson, Sam Carter and Nic Jones, and have been performing this type of music regularly at local acoustic clubs and open mics.
When I was 15, I got my second guitar, a cheap Stratocaster copy. I was fascinated by its 'bolt together' construction. I had it apart and repainted it a couple of times, changed its pickups and did some arcane wiring mods. I also learned how setup changes could change the way that it played. I've been setting up and repairing my own guitars ever since.
I continued playing in rock bands while at university, but as I started my working life, I changed my musical focus onto fingerstyle acoustic guitar for several years.
In my late twenties, I got a bit frustrated at my limitations as a self taught guitarist and decided to branch out into piano. I took lessons for about 3 years and passed exams up to grade 7, as well as grade 5 theory. However I never completely stopped playing guitar, and I have always felt more at home on guitar than I have on piano.
Since the mid noughties I've been playing in bands again and gigging regularly. Since about 2010 I've been getting interested in folk guitarists like Martin Simpson, Sam Carter and Nic Jones, and have been performing this type of music regularly at local acoustic clubs and open mics.
When I was 15, I got my second guitar, a cheap Stratocaster copy. I was fascinated by its 'bolt together' construction. I had it apart and repainted it a couple of times, changed its pickups and did some arcane wiring mods. I also learned how setup changes could change the way that it played. I've been setting up and repairing my own guitars ever since.