Guitar Emporium

The sixth prelude completed on the 6th February whilst taking in the horrors of the Turkey/Syria earthquake. Support the show

From the recording of about 2014 - Lights in the Mist ( which I've lost ) - probably not such a bad thing.  I found some songs which I've put back together. This one is about choices - and how its so easy to make the wrong or right choice without even knowing you're making any sort of choice at all.  Support the show

Stepan Rak was a Czechoslovakian  composer and guitarist who became well known in the UK during the 1980's and 1990's. He played a lot of his own compositions and did well with them . I think he must have been a good teacher as well. I remember seeing some of his simpler student compositions and thinking how good they were - as well as fun to play. Just right for a young pupil starting o...

I spent quite a lot of time in my twenties arranging and playing the great Irish tunes. With apologies to all the traditionalists - this one is great on the guitar. Its a nice one to wake up to on a Monday morning. Have a good week  Support the show

I still get asked to teach a lot of music from the 1990's - Oasis, The Verve, and to a lesser extent Blur, Pulp and so on. All good stuff and todays piece comes from that era, with some synthesiser added in.. Support the show

One song - using a combination of material from a session in a little studio in someones house in Wokingham with egg boxes for sound proofing - or is that my memory playing tricks. Russell was one of the most talented natural musicians I've ever come across - an excellent drummer, singer and great at putting things together. He went on to play in some good function bands before our paths went...

The bass line rhythm is how I remember the bass line for a great Steely Dan track from a long time ago . Their albums always amazed me - the precision was stunning. I remember seeing a documentary about the album Aja, I think, where they got different guitarists in to play a solo and they sorted out which one would work best for the track . I don't think there is a track of theirs I didn&apos...

This comes from about 2014 - I have recorded it somewhere else - but I think I've lost the recording ( it was on a CD called Lights in the Mist which I was trying to sell on the Folk market ).  Support the show

Todays piece had a working title that just didn't get changed. It was a bit grey and wintery and I was trying to cheer things up bit . Nylon and steel guitars against a simple accompaniment. Support the show

Also known as "Patience" in the UK. A game for solitary individuals. A bit of very slow melancholy.  Support the show

Using an old idea for a song that was recorded in about 1975 !! - I can't find the finished recording but the riff is re-used throughout . Support the show

There is very little in this piece that suggest its a Bouree. Its a bit slow and its more of a folk dance. The Double bass and acoustic guitar pairing returns after a bit of a break . Support the show

Mauro Giuliani was one of the great guitarists of the early 19th Century. I played a lot of his music ( quite reluctantly) in my early days of studying the classical guitar . I didn't enjoy his music much but I've come to appreciate it a lot more in recent times. The piece uses arpeggio techniques similar to those of Guiliani - I've altered the chord progressions quite significantly...

An upbeat Friday tune I hope as the UK continues to shiver in the unusually cold January - As you've probably realised by now I love to complain about the weather.  Support the show

Two great Leo's I know of are Leo Messi and Leo Brouwer. This is for both of them. The sporting highlight of last year (and this year) was Messi holding the World Cup - unforgettable. Leo Brouwer is a Cuban Guitarist and composer I admire greatly. I find much of his work  difficult to understand and to play . The 20 simple studies are not too bad and I have enjoyed playing some of them.  This...

After a Bach prelude - BWV 999 is a short piece from which I've borrowed the harmony just for the first few bars before moving way from the idea. Its coming out sounding very dark - that was not the intention. Support the show

Continuing the steel and nylon strung combination of guitars. The piece is about commitment - nothing profound - but the basic principle is either have a real go at something or don't - no half measures. Support the show

One for a Monday morning. Nylon and Steel string guitars - a nice combination. Based on listening to Philip Catherine / Larry Coryell/ Birelli Lagrenne - who can change a tune but just altering accents very slightly. I've had a go here.  Support the show

I sometimes hear a bird calling at night - which I don't recognise. Its not an owl - but something else which I don't recognise. If I find out I'll re-name the tune. Two acoustic guitars, ( one steel string , one nylon string) double bass and percussion.  Support the show

I don' t believe in fate too much - but occasionally it would be nice to think we have the prospect of good things happening its - In the Stars Support the show

This goes back to working with a midi guitar in the early 2000's. Easy listening was what I ended up generating out of what was an amazing piece of equipment. A Friday piece - a guitar duo with percussion and bass guitar. Support the show

I made a recording of the Chaconne from the famous Violin Partita by Bach once. Its on reel to reel and I won't be sharing that one any time soon. The middle arpeggio section when played by Segovia used to sound absolutely stunning. This piece is influenced by that section of the Chaconne. I'm fully aware it doesn't hold a candle to the Bach piece and I'm ( very defensively ) n...

A tune about being on the road - driving long distances with crazy crazy passengers . from the Can't Stop CD of 2009 . Support the show

For me this is jamming in the garage with mates for hours on end. Homespun - from about 1972 to 1975. The riff was off a very old and worn reel to reel tape taken from my Dad's Phillips 4407 ( I think ) - a very coffee table friendly tape machine.  Support the show

Typical English bloke - obsessed  with the weather. I was trying to record today and it was like a hurricane out there ( I exaggerate) . Anyway I was trying to find something jolly for a Monday morning in January . its not a great month. Two more January Mondays to go in 2023. Wishing the year away already .  Support the show