Guitars and Life

Coffin Road - Peter May I've read some of Peter's previous novels .  In particular his Lewis Chessman trilogy.  This is again set in the Western Isles Peter's preferred setting.  We are presented with a classic amnesia story.  Man comes too on a shore in the middle of a storm, he has been shipwrecked it seems but he has no idea how, or who he is, or what is going on. A terrific page turning thriller as you want to know who our hero really is?   This is made more difficult for him and us since he can find nothing in his croft as to who he really is.  Just some odd clues.  His neighbours don't help much they tell him he is a writer researching a book.  But... he finds no notes, no writing on the laptop.  Actually... nothing at all again... Only that he is a beekeeper with some hives that are secreted somewhere he clearly didn't want them to be found in. The second thread is a teenager who is convinced her missing father isn't dead an...

2017 has started with a really good piece of news.  Back in the late 70s / early 80s Shergold guitars were one of the top British brands around growing in the Burns tradition of something unique and quirky not just based on USA designs.  A nascent band I was in that was a 5 piece that reformed itself a few months later as a 4 piece that had some success had a lead guitarist who had a Shergold Masquerader.  I remember it being a seriously good guitar - esp when compared to the Columbus Strat copy I possessed at the time.  This is the model I remember... Well Barnes and Mullins, a well known distributor in the UK, has bought the company name and set up with a 21st century make over and relaunch.  They've enlisted Patrick Eggle as the consultant to design the launch model.  Patrick has taken the Masquerader body shape, updated the headstock to avoid the friction inducing string guides and used Seymour Duncan pickups offering various pickup combinations a...

It is remiss of me but I've missed getting the annual Furtheron review of the year out before the end of the the year... oh well. Gig of the Year In days gone by this would have been hotly contested as I attended so many gigs but finances, commitments and my ears have meant less choice these days.  So from a very very small list the winners are Joe Bonamassa. CD of the year .  Rock -Going to give this to Wild by Joanne Shaw Taylor .  This has been a mainstay on my playlist since it's release.  Fantastic playing and singing - Joanne is as good as Joe Bonamassa and many many others in this genre on this outing. Folk - Has to be the superb On a Winter's Night by Cara Dillon which I bought as my Christmas listening this year.  It is a stunning album worth getting to keep for next year but frankly so good I can't believe I'll be digging out still in the summer!  Holly and the Ivy is just to die for - she has frankly one of the greatest voice...