About

Well, hello…

I’m a blues musician, writer, promoter, studio owner and former specialist broadcaster, living in Essex, on the east coast of England. I’m based in Burnham-on-Crouch (which just one estuary up from the Thames if you want to look on the map!)
I’ve been a semi-pro and latterly pro musician since 1978. After playing in a variety of undistinguished punk and rock cover bands, I started an Essex-style rhythm’n’blues band called Automatic Slim in 1982 and then spent 17 years playing literally thousands of gigs all over the UK, occasionally also venturing into continental Europe. By the time we officially called it day in 1999, we’d acquired a pretty decent following and a good reputation as an entertaining energetic live band. We still get together a few times a year and before the lockdown, were working on our first new album this century! You can find out more here…
Towards the end of ‘Slim’s tenure, I also started a Texas-style blues band called The Rockin’ Armadillos with my son, Owen and stepson, Rob. We played quite a few gigs, recorded three albums (only two of which were finished and released) and made a bit of an impression on the UK blues scene before we jacked it in in 2007.
In both those bands, I never really played all that much guitar – a bit of slide on a couple of numbers and that was it – though I was determined my next project, Tim Aves & WOLFPACK would be a chance to play a bit more. Between 2010 and 2019, we played some fantastic gigs – including almost every major UK blues club and festival – and recorded a couple of albums of which I’m really proud. WOLFPACK has never formally disbanded, though it’s a year or so since we last played a gig…check our website for details.
After all these years, I’m still not a great guitar player – on a good night, I more or less get by OK – but I LOVE playing guitar! All that time, I’ve generally been nuts about guitars, amps and musical gear in general, hence this blog. In particular, I’ve long been mad about Fender guitars and amps – I have quite a few – though I’m a pretty equal-opportunity G.A.S.er these days. 🙂
I started the blog on Facebook at the beginning of the coronavirus lockdown, as one of a number of projects, designed to stop me climbing the walls in the absence of gigs to play and clients coming to our Essex recording studio, Rooks Yard. (Take a look at the studio website, if you fancy it – you’ll find us at www.rooksyard.co.uk We’ve done some great work – and we can’t wait to get back into it!)