Change Of Heart

Neville Marten revisits the Essex guitar store where he'd spied his 'Les Paul to die for', only to come away with something else entirely

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If you read last month's column, you'll recall how I found myself getting a guided tour of Peach Guitars in Colchester, a massive emporium of droolsome delights. The shop stocks pretty much every top brand from the affordable basics, right up to Custom Shop Gibsons, Martins and Masterbuilt Fenders for wallet-scaring sums. Other boutique brands are available, too, from the likes of Collings, PRS, Knaggs and Duesenberg.

Anyway, I'd spied a Murphy Lab '59 Les Paul that looked like the guitar of my dreams but whose price tag was more on the nightmare side. So I went away to ruminate on it. Should I trade in my '56 actual Tom Murphy Goldtop, one of the first ever built? Or how about my John Cruz Master Design '56 Strat? Dare I dip into the retirement fund instead? What transpired a few days later underlined various points I've made in these monthly musings. Follow me, dear reader...