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Many years ago I was in a queue of vehicles in Calais, waiting to board a ferry back to England.  Quite suddenly, a man jumped out of the van in front of us. It was Scottish musician Brian McNeill. Instead of ‘hello, what a coincidence’ Brian breathlessly shouted ‘my cittern has exploded’.

In fact it wasn’t a real explosion, just the screw holding the back-plate down had loosened and was on its way out. Easily sorted.

I’ve known Brian for ever. In 1975 he had recently formed the Battlefield Band and having seen Tom Gilfellon’s cittern, came to see me. I was then (briefly) living in Wark, prior to moving to Whitley Chapel, and had not long been building citterns and bouzoukis.

Brian and band member Jamie McMenemy bought bouzoukis.  The band toured these all around the US, showing and talking about their instruments everywhere they went.  They spread the word so well that for a while I sold almost as many instruments in the US as in Britain.

A few days ago Brian visited my workshop with another tailpiece problem. The brass string-plate articulates on two little lugs sticking up from the back-plate and one of these had broken. I modified and fitted a new back-plate and all was well again.  Lovely to see another old friend and his old instrument.

Brian was always the most dynamic and exciting of bouzouki players and he still is.

28 January update
Martin’s email has been unavailable recently, but is now restored.

Martin’s 2019 MS guitar had a finish problem from new, and a few months ago we arranged he should bring it to me for correcting. He also asked me to re-profile the neck, slimming it and giving it a gentle V profile.

In fact we completely re-finished the guitar and I took the opportunity to add my logos to headstock and soundboard, bringing it up to my 40th Anniversary Model appearance.

Dave Wilson’s finishing is simply the best, as here. And Martin pointed out how the soundboard logo contrasts nicely with the bear claw.

While delivering the guitar for me to work on the neck, Martin played a few of my later guitars.  He liked one in particular, a 40th Anniversary MS.  He played it for hours, and eventually suggested maybe he could borrow it for the album he was recording.  From there, we eventually agreed he should keep it.

When recently visiting again to collect the 2019 MS, he loved the newly profiled neck, the logos and Dave’s refinish, but having fallen for the Anniversary model, he is selling the MS.  It has a nice action, sounds lovely and plays perfectly.  If you are interested, you can contact him via his website martinsimpsonmusic.com

The guitar is currently with me in Hexham, but will be with Martin in Sheffield in the next few weeks.

2019 MS model guitar
Bearclaw European spruce soundboard
African Blackwood back and sides
Reprofiled Wenge neck
African Ebony fingerboard and bridge
Jescar Gold frets
Bone bridge pins
New Gotoh 510 tuners, 21:1 ratio
S logo on headstock and soundboard
Full refinish

Yesterday I spent an evening with Jim O’Boyle and Dave Richardson.  Jim is a talented concertina player and Dave, who plays mandolin, octave mandolin as well as concertina, played for many years in The boys of the Lough, along with Cathal McConnell and Ali Bain.

I’ve been friends with both for over fifty years; Dave had some of my earliest instruments.  Here he is playing the second mandolin I made him in around 1975, a time when we both had hair.

Lovely to see Jim, Dave and mandolin still in such good condition.

Danny Bradley currently has my 40th Anniversary 2D guitar on long term loan; he plays it beautifully and is a great ambassador for it.

He is a skilled guitarist who uses and controls sustain well, so the 2D with its depth of sound and great sustain suits him particularly well.  Today he sent me an audio clip of him playing ‘Sweetness of Mary’ on the 2D.

The 2D is fitted with a Highlander under-saddle pickup, but this clip was recorded using two condenser microphones.

‘The Sweetness of Mary’ arranged and played by Danny Bradley

The model 2D is based on my Model 2, a relatively large bodied guitar with 12 frets to the body.  The D version has two extra frets at the nut, making it a long scale 14 fret to the body guitar, with the bridge position unchanged.

It is tuned a full tone down as compared with a standard guitar; fitting a capo to the second fret gives standard guitar tuning, scale and string tension.  Taking the capo off opens up a fabulous full sound.

On this clip, Danny has tuned to CGCFGC, capoed at the first fret to play in C#. Capoing at the second fret would give a standard guitar scale and the commonly used DADGAD tuning.

Danny is a lovely singer and guitarist and has written some great songs.  He gigs regularly, opened for Richard Thompson on his recent tour, and will be doing several spots at the upcoming Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow.  If you haven’t already heard him, I recommend you go and hear him if you get the opportunity.

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Today Tom Fletcher recorded my latest long scale 2D guitar.  This is an African Blackwood and Douglas Fir guitar I built for Paul Aegerter of Bellingham, Washington USA. Paul kindly agreed to this recording.

Tom is a lovely guitarist, and his sensitive and lyrical arrangements bring out the sound and balance of every guitar he plays.

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Tom Fletcher plays my Brazilian rosewood and Douglas Fir Martin Simpson Signature model guitar on this recording he made recently.  It illustrates the clarity and separation of a Douglas Fir soundboard.

Tom is a lovely guitarist; he demonstrated my guitars at the charity talk I gave at Slaley village hall a few months ago.

Danny Bradley came to the Queens Hall in Hexham a couple of months ago, supporting Fairport Convention on their UK tour.  A lovely man, he plays guitar and sings his own songs along with others.

Danny is a great singer and his guitar playing is wonderful; lovely arrangements and great tone. Not super well known yet, but he soon will be.   Catch him if you get the chance.

While in Hexham, he came to visit and play a few guitars. We agreed he should borrow one and he returned recently, dithering between a Martin Simpson signature model and a long scale 2D, both Anniversary models. Both are built with old German Spruce and best Brazilian rosewood.  He finally chose the 2D; here he is in my workshop, trying it through the pickup.

Danny is currently supporting Richard Thompson on his UK tour.

Between 2008 and 2013 I gave talks on guitar making at the Whitley Chapel parish hall. Pat Wilson, who lives in Slaley, heard about this. When asking would I do one at Slaley, she unfortunately spoke to my wife Liz.  Liz got back to Pat saying I would do it and my arm would probably have recovered by then.

So a dozen years after the previous one, I will be giving a talk at the Slaley Commemoration Hall on Monday 27th January.  The entry charge is an outrageous £4.00, and a donation will be made to Medecins Sans Frontieres.

Guitarist Tom Fletcher will be playing music on one of my guitars.

Later edit:  The talk raised £160 for Medecin Sans Frontieres

Here is the flyer advertising it.