At school I played the violin, and later switched to trumpet. Then, one day, I was captivated by a TV programme about the great classical guitar player, Julian Bream. I knew then I had to play the guitar. A month later my sisters bought an LP by the folk singer Ralph McTell, and I started to learn to play his songs. I was an acoustic guitar purist, into Nick Drake, Roy Harper, Jethro Tull and Steeleye Span: I swore I would never get a plectrum - fingerpicking was all I needed. But after I started playing acoustic blues I got into Rory Gallagher and his electric stuff, and then all the artists I mention on another page on this site ('musical styles I teach').

Blues and rock are rich in feeling but I was at the time frustrated by their limitations in harmony and melody. When I heard jazz/rock fusion artists (John McLaughlin, Weather Report etc) I started on the long road of learning to play jazz. For a while I thought I could do it all self taught, but eventually I knew I needed help if I was going to become a professional musician, and after gaining Grade 8 in electric guitar playing I enrolled on the three year degree course in jazz and contemporary music at Leeds College of Music. I learned a lot there about harmony, composition, improvisation and musicianship. I had tuition with Adrian Ingram, which was the best thing that happened to me: it really helped improve my overall sound and ability to learn in the right way. I have also studied on courses with John Ethridge, Stuart McAllum, Mike Outram, John Parricelli and others.

Since music college I did some further study for a year in the Music School at Wakefield College, and gained the jazz Performance Diploma of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.