b'all fall into place easily. Often, when I made a oneand Paul McCartney recently recorded with one.off instrument, it was simply called a customI had become good friends with Archie Fisher, he of model until I could decide on something morethe brown velvet voice, who showed me the proper fitting. way to play Big Bill Broonzy. I stayed at his house In 1978, Ian Anderson from Jethro Tull contactedone night, and met his girlfriend Lucy Cowan, who me to make a guitar based on his ancient Martinplayed violin. There isnt aLucy in Shakespeare, New Yorker and I made a model which I at firstbut there is a Lucetta in Two Gentlemen of called the Anderson, but when I realised thatVerona. I made them a mandolin as a wedding Ariel was a Light and Airy Spirit, again in Thepresent. Guess what I called it?Archie introduced Tempest, I soon changed my mind. It suited theme to a Single Malt Whisky club, silly man, and very small, lightly built guitar so well. Most peoplemany years later I made him a mandolin from still spell it wrongly, the Tempest was writtenwhisky casks. I cant find any reference to whisky in about 1610, so Radio Aerials hadnt beenor Ardent Spirits in Shakespeare, even in The invented. By the time this is in print, the typefaceScottish Play, but there is reference to Aqua Vitae will no doubt have changed, but I am typing it inin Romeo and Juliet. I drink a lot of Aqua Vitae, and Arial, isnt that strange? I dont like putting extra Aqua into it.Once again I took a very practical route in theThat first mandolin became a regular model for design, the curves of the Ariel sides are exactlya while, but in an enhanced version, with carved the same as the Goodfellow and the Oberon, justspruce top and carved solid rosewood back, trimmed to different lengths. ridiculously difficult and even unpleasant to make. Despite its small folky design, the Ariel has beenIan Anderson still has one, and Martin Carthy once adopted by lots of heavier rock musicians as wellreferred to his as having saved his life when his as Ian Anderson; Laurence Juber from Wings;Jimguitar was refusing to cooperate. I even made a few Messina of Buffalo Springfield; Al Di Meola frommandolas along the same lines. Return to Forever; Frank Usher from Marillion.Can someone explain this to me? How did I get Keith Richards has one; Pete Townshend has twofrom tiny beginnings in 1973, working in a A rather special guitarInlaying a rather special guitar for Mike English in 1981. On one occasion, I did actually catch my nose between mallet and chisel, so I made a smaller mallet. Couldnt do anything about my nose.On the right is the finished guitar, but a picture taken some years later when the guitar belonged to Marilla Ness. The picture was taken in a dressing room back stage at Preston Guild Hall. The guitar includes several features far ahead of its time, particularly the neck joint.On the far right, another picture of the same guitar, again using a mirror.This is one of the staged series shot by Keith Beardmore. It is an actual reflection in a real mirror,but the mirror and frame were specially made in that perspective shape. I still have them. If you study the reflection of the floor boards carefully and compare the stage set to the pictures on page 25 you will see that the photograph has been switched left to right to make the guitar appear right handed in the mirror. Very clever stuff indeed, and a very nice guitar too.The story of the guitar is also one of reflections, it is now owned by Mike English once again.46'