guitar gallery

I must have bought it around 1960 second hand. I liked it because it was easy to have a repair man customize. I got the guy at "Clifford Essex" (name of the music shop I worked at in London when I left school - guy's name was Marco Roccia) to replace the fingerboard with a new ebony one and I fitted a deArmond pick-up on it. The same pick-ups that a lot of jazz guys put on their "f"-hole acoustics. It was easy to slide the pick-up to your best position between the bridge and fingerboard. DeArmond also supplied pick-ups to Guild and Gretsch guitars.

When I started doing sessions I realized the Gretsch sound wasn't versatile enough for studio work.
The Gretsch is on Pete Brown and his Battered Ornaments 'A Meal You Can Shake Hands With In The Dark'. (And also on Frank Ricotti 'Our Point Of View')

I swopped it for a Gretsch Country Club around 1968 or 1969. You can hear the Telecaster on the Nucleus 'Elastick Rock', Battered Ornaments 'Mantle-Piece' and Jack Bruce 'Songs For A Taylor'.

I bought it some guy in the early 1970's. I lent it to Busta when he was still in the Sharks. He sold it to a store without my knowledge to pay for his fare back to U.S. Our roadie saw it in the store window. By the time I got to the store they had sold it. When I proved to them it was stolen property the store manager was very apologetic and paid me the same money that he had given Busta.

Got this guitar in 1971. Its neck was broke in the studio and Spedding got it repared but felt not so good. Then he sold it in the mid 1980's.

I was using the Fender guitars then I decided I wanted a change of sound. I've got the new ones, not one of the old ones, and it's not been inferior to the old ones. It's a very good instrumental.

Bought in Memphis during the Sharks US tour in 1974.
And stolen in NYC in 1985 or 1986

I converted the 'V' into one pickup when I bought it because I had never ever used the second pickup on my Les Paul and I wanted to make the 'V' as simple as possible. The Les Paul is such a beautifully designed instrument I keep the two pickups so as not spoil its looks.
There was a little metal disc on this guitar inscribed 'Limited Edition No.6'.

Spedding and Snips bought two SG Jnr guitars in the Sharks days. But Spedding's was stolen in UK. He loves this guitar and bought one from Snips.

The second one was definitely stolen or lost in the U.S. around 1984. I was bringing some guitars to a Robert Gordon demo session in N.Y..
When I unloaded them onto the sidewalk I counted two guitar cases. There should have been three. The cab driver had driven off before I realized.

This black 'V' with white edging like a Les Paul was made for me in 1977 in UK by Dick Knight. One pickup and one knob.

I think 1958 or 59.
(I bought it) About 1984 after my SG was stolen. At a store in NYC.
If it gets stolen I'll just get another one. They are easy to replace where-ever I might be in the world. A special customed made guitar might be very nice but it would make me very anxious to travel with in case got damaged or stolen.

photo by Carmen Hillebrew 1999

Comment will be added soon.

Visit their website

photo by Toshio 2000

photo by Harry Veenhof 1989

This guitar was very kindly presented to me by the ESP company in Japan during my first solo tour in Japan in 1991.
This 1990's ESP has all the original design features - it even has an antique-looking off-white finishing making it look like an aged white.
I'm thinking of having the ESP logo replacing with one that reand 'Fender Notacaster'. (Not-a-caster)
This instrument is just as good if not better that any old fender I've played.

Used on R.Gordon's video clip 'Rock Billy Boogie.

It was originally a 1970's model Country Club that I had customised to look like a 1950's Duane Eddy / Eddie Cochran model.
I never like it. I really wanted a genuine old 1950's model. I sold it to a store.

Made in 1958 or 1959

I've loved the look of this model even since I saw Elvis playing one in 'Loving You'. Since the movie was probably made in the same year as my guitar, I probably own a guitar very similar to the one Elvis had. I don't particularly enjoy playing acoustic, but I figured if I have to own one it should be a beautiful looking instrument. Then it's not so bad to have to play it when I have to.

Used on his promotional video clip 'Video Life'.

I bought my 1962 Precision in about 1967 for only 50 UK Pounds. I customised it with Guild humbucking bass pickup (near the bridge). This gives it a very unique and poweful sound. I use extra light guage strings.
I've used it on all my records where I played bass. Carter Cathcart used it on 'Enemy Within' at my request.

Got it in London - late 1960's. Can't remember what happened to it.

Used for TWOTW 2012 tour.
It's a "sustainer" guitar because I need that sustain technology to get the long notes without using an amp, and I got the guitar specially for this gig.
All the guitars in the show were connected via pedals and stomp boxes direct to the PA - no amps.
If we used amps, of course, I wouldn't need a special guitar for the sustain, but amplified guitars on stage would be too loud for the string section. We hear ourselves via individual in-ear monitors.