Michael Watts

This month's issue of The Guitar Magazine contains (amongst a host of other wonderful articles) two pedal reviews that I wrote for the magazine. 

The first is a the new Jackson Audio Prism pedal, a high-end boost handmade…

One of my highlights of this year's Holy Grail Guitar Show was demonstrating the work of luthier Leo Buendia for the first time. It was particularly pleasing to discover that the instrument I was to play was a Modified Dreadnought in…

I have been a fan of Uli Teuffel's amazing instruments since I saw his "Birdfish" model featured in Guitarist magazine probably about 20 years ago... To me the Birdfish is the epitome of the modern electric guitar luthier's art and…

I have loved the music of Avant Garde visionary Amrit Sond for years and have had the pleasure of sharing a stage with him many times since we first met.

One of the joys of hanging out with Amrit is listening to…

This weekend I played a concert in Paris with the sublimely talented South African guitarist Derek Gripper. Derek has been one of my favourite musicians for years now since I was introduced to his music by Matthias and Matthew…

This year's Holy Grail Guitar Show was better than ever with probably the largest selection of luthier-built instruments in the world. I've attended every show since the first one in 2014 and it's been fascinating to watch the evolution of…

This week's Monday morning started off like any other until my phone buzzed signalling the arrival of this message over Instagram. 

Some 24 hours later I had successfully made my way to Ladbroke Grove and walked in…

This message from "Dangerous" Jake Maclay of Hive Ukuleles sums up a lot of the inbound traffic I have been getting recently. 

And of course he's right. Damn him. And so is everybody else. 

And so it…

I'll be wrapping up my time at this year's Holy Grail Guitar Show with a demo concert for the Boss Man himself, Mr Jason Kostal of Kostal Guitars! Here he is, demonstrating a keen eye for pattern matching and…

It's not all hand-made exoticism around here, and my love of the sublime should certainly never be confused with snobbery. A good case in point would be my guilty pleasure fondness for the Danelectro company, and indeed an abiding appreciation for all things…

I'm looking forward to demonstrating the wonderful work of Chris and Jeremy Jenkins of Lame Horse Guitars (Texas USA) at this year's Holy Grail Guitar Show (Berlin Germany) on Saturday 5th of May at 15:30

My close relationship with…

I'll be kicking off my performances at this year's Holy Grail Guitar Show (Berlin Germany) with a mini concert for this ridiculously talented, ex-Somogyi apprentice Leo Buendia of Buendia Guitars (USA/Argentina). I'm really looking forward to this because while I'm…

I recently had the pleasure of attending three masterclasses organised by The Guitar Magazine featuring a trifecta of the finest guitarists on the planet, and in this blog post I wanted to share some thoughts inspired by what I saw and heard while the memories…

After many years as a reader, fan and occasional collaborator I am now thrilled to be writing reviews for arguably the UK's most satisfying 6-string read: The Guitar Magazine!

It was with no small amount of excitement that I…

I am very happy to announce that I am now an endorsing artist for Elixir Strings!

My first encounter with these superlative strings was in 1998 when I met the wonderful Mr Terry Lees who was restringing his…

Good news for fans of the music of Bert Jansch, the BBC has just broadcast The Genius of Bert Jansch concert from December of 2013 at Royal Festival hall. That does seem like quite a long time ago now! I am…

I am delighted to announce that I will be appearing at this year's Holy Grail Guitar Show in Berlin!

The Holy Grail Guitar Show is a very special event and I have many wonderful memories of demonstrating the…

I was very touched to receive this message:

"Hi Michael: Someone linked me to your cover of Roy Buchanan's "The Messiah" - I was Roy's attorney (plus a dear friend and recording buddy - I'm a player too). The…

Happy Christmas! 

I'd like to thank you all for your support, It has been a truly amazing year and I wish you all the best for 2018, I have a good feeling about this one!

I have something for…

 

How was your Sunday? I spent mine in my happy place... Great to catch up with the legend that is @jackvasiliou at @surreystudios! . . . @kostalguitars #guitarporn #guitarsofinstagram #DADGAD #VETIVER #acousticguitar #studio #recordingstudio #musician #TheTree #MDW #signaturemodel…

I'm looking forward to playing a the institution that is Chris Woods's London Guitar Night at The Troubadour on the 5th of November! 

Here's a sneaky look at a new one I might just debut that night... 

I've been working hard with the legend that is Mark Grover of guitartranscriptions.com and I'm very happy to announce that the first transcriptions from Vetiver are now available for purchase!

There'll be more coming soon but for the…