Early memories

My first bit of guitar playing was on one that my eldest sister had been bought. My Dad bought it back from the USA when he was at sea in the Merchant Navy. Looking back now I realise that it was a wooden type
 

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Dobro”, probably worth a few bob if I still had it. I used to pose in front of the mirror on my wardrobe, bashing away with no idea what I was doing, totally out of tune. My sister however did not take to guitar playing and the instrument was sold.

Drummer

I had for a number of years wanted to be a drummer. This horrified my parents as being one of 6 children there was enough noise in the house and we really did not have enough room for a drum kit as for many years myself and my two brothers had to sleep in the same room. So the next Christmas when asked what I wanted? I replied “a guitar please”. This was quickly followed by ” Why didn’t you say, you could have had the one we sold in the summer”. But my parents agreed to buy me one. It was a second-hand (many-hand) steel strung acoustic with a violin type bridge, F sound holes and plenty of scratches. It was impossible to play above the 5th fret, I raised the bridge with a lump off my wooden school ruler, and it was still impossible to play above the 5th fret but now with no buzzes my guitar playing began. My first tunes – all worked out by ear - were the “Harry Lime theme”, “What should we do with the drunken sailor” and “Scarborough Fair”. Chords were a total mystery, as I had no books to refer to not even good old Bert’s ”Play in a Day”.