MOON GUITARS
974 Pollokshaws Road,
Glasgow
0141 632 9526
As Wet Wet Wet re-emerge into
the limelight, dazzling grins intact, the man who crafted their guitars in the nineties, smiles. Jimmy Moon, who used to scrape a living as a chimney sweep and dairyman on Arran, is now the first port of call for Scottish rock cognoscenti in need of a guitar. He has created instruments for Del Amitri, Big Country, Altered Images and Simple Minds from his workshop, down an anonymous lane. And all self-taught, with only the help of books.
Behind a deceptively drab exterior lies a guitar lover's nirvana; all shapes and colours, fashioned from Indian rosewood, maple, mahogany, ebony and Alaskan spruce. Despite a swing towards electric guitars in the 1980s, the shop's mainstay is acoustic guitars and mandolins.
Beyond the counter is a labyrinth of rooms where 200 guitars a year are sketched, measured, cut, shaped, glued and sprayed before being displayed. The process takes between six and 12 weeks for a regular acoustic, up to nine months for a customised one. Quirky variations include a model in the colours of the Miami Dolphins, for a US sailor at Faslane, a tartan electric guitar for Iain Harvie of Del Amitri and an acoustic with Gouranga on the fingerboard for the Hari Krishna temple in Lesmahagow. Despite these, Jimmy says: ''We've had some unusual requests but on the whole guitarists are a pretty
conservative bunch.''
The instruments start at (pounds) 900, to (pounds) 3,500 for a one-off made from Brazilian rosewood with the Glasgow coat of arms. Jimmy is also happy to accept trade-ins and has a healthy collection of second-hand gems.
His first creative attempt was as a teenager when he had a bash at making a simple Appalachian dulcimer, after watching a TV programme. He may have been good with his hands, but the result sounded awful, he says.
Govan-born Jimmy's first paid job was as an apprentice engineer, but after a number of years, a chance visit to Arran saw him move there and return to his interest in guitars. ''I was a trapped tourist. I was only meant to give my mate a lift, but ended up staying and marrying the school master's daughter.'' He eked out a living running film nights and dances and working on a dairy farm and as a chimney sweep. ''I just had to do whatever to try and survive,'' he recalls.
Every night, though, he would retire to his lean-to shed and make guitars. ''I probably should have given it up but once I've got an idea, I don't let go easily.'' His break came 18 years ago when his brother Brendan, a music promoter, found a loft for rent above a recording studio in Shawlands where Jimmy could base his business. Brendan also introduced him to an up-and-coming band, Del Amitri, who were looking for a guitar. He made one, they loved it, the rest is history. ''Glasgow was jumping with bands, and once word got out, we were on our way.''
Surely this must be a dream come true for a guitar lover? Jimmy shrugs nonchalantly, ''Yeah, I've got a couple of guitars kicking around the house but it's actually the double bass I play.''
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