Favorite UK Guitar Shops

Subject: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: alex s
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 11:06 AM

Any nominations?

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: Hamish
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 11:18 AM

Guitar Junction, Worthing. Great selection of vintage and new guitars. Knowledgeable, enthusiastic and very friendly, welcoming staff. Positively encouraging their customers to try their wares. And free coffee. Sensible prices, too.

They had an all mahogany small-bodied 1953 Martin a couple of years ago which really spoke to me. I didn't have the readies at the time, but I still remember it fondly.

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: MikeofNorthumbria
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 11:29 AM

Guitarists visiting Tyneside should make a point of looking in on the best shop I've ever bought a guitar from.

The Guitar Shop
Old George Yard
Newcastle upon Tyne
England

Great guitars, great service, good advice and good humour. Even if you don't buy something, you'll probably learn something.

(If you play guitar and live on Tyneside then you probably know it already.)

Wassail!

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: GUEST,Ian Gill
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 11:49 AM

Snakey Jake's Eddlestone Road, Crewe.
Manson's in Exeter.
Trevor Davies, Etnam Street, Leominster.
One second hand shop I'm keeping a secret.

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 12:05 PM

Andy's in Denmark Street (London) used to be nice in the old days.

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 01:03 PM

Potter's Music on Hill Rise Richmond Surrey, was my haunt of choice for many years. I don't know if it still exists, I certainly expect Jerry to have retired from there, whatever.
Johnny Joyce used to be his luthier, and a good one he was too.
I bought my [American]Epiphone 12 string there in about 1968, it cost me all of £110 ☺

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: bubblyrat
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 05:03 AM

There are two good ones in Brighton,or there were 5 or 6 years ago ; one was a huge,mail-order type Emporium,the other was a small,intimate little place on the East side of town. I played & admired a Martin "Lonnie Donegan" there--but I couldn't afford it at the time.But my partner at that time, Bev, did well for mandolas at that shop !
   "Mr Pinks" in Pokesdown,Bournemouth, was a great place,too.

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: GUEST,Ray
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 12:07 PM

The one you're thinking of with the Mandolins in Brighton will be TAMCO - probably the best mandolin shop in the world - with mandolins from around £250 to just short of £13,000. The guitars are quite nice too!
Ray (No connection other than being a satisfied customer.)

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: GUEST,Ian Gill
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 07:29 PM

Hmm.. I'd forgotten Peter Wright's guitar shop in Yeovil - by 'Takeaway Alley'- did a great repair job on my old Guild for a very reasonable price. Also East Coast Music on York Street in St. Helier, Jersey C.I. is a friendly and welcoming place with second hand bargains in the back room - got a pretty L'arrivee from there a few years ago and always drop in when on holiday. They had a good Tacoma as well at a silly price but the chances of concealing two new guitar purchases from my wife on a camping holiday were nil...
Anyone out there know the whereabouts of Paul Towzer these days? He had a repair shop in Jackfield [opposite side of the river from Ironbridge in Shropshire] but did custom luthier work as well. Lovely guy and a great craftsman.

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: bubblyrat
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 10:04 AM

Silly of me to forget a lovely little arcade shop that I have visited many many times,and which is already mentioned elsewhere on Mudcat recently : Don Stride, in Westbourne, Bournemouth.

Subject: RE: Favorite UK Guitar Shops
From: Ross Campbell
Date: 23 Jan 10 - 09:29 AM

http://www.fretsguitarcentre.co.uk/ in Cleveleys, near Blackpool, Lancashire. Been going for about fifteen years, gradually expanding range of electric and acoustic guitars. I've bought a couple of second-hand Fyldes there (my new-bought Fyldes I got direct from Roger Bucknall at http://www.fyldeguitars.com/ ).

Hobbs Music, 105 Penny Street, Lancaster, LA1 1XN (01524 844 740) always has an interesting selection of modern and vintage instruments (no website as far as I could find).

Years ago, Golumbs in the Saltmarket in Glasgow used to have the most exotic instruments in the window, but I ended up buying my long-arm, Pete Seeger-style five-string folk banjo second-hand from somewhere else. Could probably remember more places that aren't there any more, but maybe that should be another thread.

Ross