Guitar gods bringing the heat to The Grand, Clitheroe

FOR those about to rock'¦'¦.we salute you!
Phil Walker is all fired up about his music master class, The Story of Guitar Heroes. (s)Phil Walker is all fired up about his music master class, The Story of Guitar Heroes. (s)
Phil Walker is all fired up about his music master class, The Story of Guitar Heroes. (s)

Whatever kind of music fires your musical delight - pop, folk, country, punk or heavy metal - they all have one thing in common: the guitar.

The six-string instrument has sparked musical revolutions from the first, daring baby steps of rock and roll to Led Zeppelin, AC-DC, The Sex Pistols and Oasis.

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Guitar addict Phil Walker was 10 when he heard Jimi Hendrix, arguably the most influential guitarists in the history of modern music.

Now Walker’s must see show – The Story of Guitar Heroes - takes you on a rock and roll voyage through the eras, a live concert showcasing the guitar art of the classic rock gods.

If you like music and guitars you will love this show because Walker’s act is a rock master class.

“There’s 30 guitars, most of which sit on stage and add to the visual experience, and recreate the sound and ambience of each guitar hero: Brian May, Slash, Eric Clapton and many, many others,” said Walker.

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“A guitarist never grows old because you always have that spirit inside you, and my companion on the journey to this point in my life – my old white Fender Stratocaster – will be at my side.”

Walker is self-taught and started playing the guitar when he was six and admits that Hank Marvin, Eddie Cochran, Albert Lee and Hendrix, changed his life.

“I wanted it to be a show with something for everyone, but also to pay a tribute to the journey that the guitar has taken because it will never fall out of fashion.

“We get different generations coming to the show, boys and girls with their parents, and sometimes they come up and say that it had opened a musical door for them.

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“That’s always amazing and I hope that The Story of Guitar Heroes can inspire them because the next Jimi Hendrix is out there somewhere.”

The Story of Guitar Heroes developed from a one off show when a friend asked Walker to perform a Ritchie Blackmore (Rainbow) guitar set.

“It got me thinking how amazing it would be to see all these people in one live concert, which obviously wasn’t possible because many of them had died, but I’d developed the seed of the idea.

“I use specialist guitars, or a particular technique, for example using a six pence as a pick, which Brian May does, for the Brian May/Queen section of the show.

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“It’s surprising as it makes a real difference to the sound, though it took a while to get used to.

“And even now, I have to be really aware of the change between using that and then going back to a normal pick.

“It is not just a band on stage gigging, there’s a lot of real history and archive stuff about the artists and some fascinating footage.”

The Story of Guitar Heroes, Clitheroe Grand Theatre, June 22.

01200 421599 or www.thegrandvenue.co.uk