bucks - Gary Mullins - Professional Guitarist

Blues Junior Rebuild

April 29, 2015PermalinkGuitar Repairs, Miscellaneousamp, amps, anniversary, beds, blues, bucks, cabinet, celestion, combo, edition, fender, g12h, herts, junior, keynes, milton, oxford, point, rebuild, repair, repairer, to, valve, vyse, wiring, wycombe Leave a comment

This month I spent a couple of days rebuilding my poorly Fender Blues Junior with the chaps at Vyse Amps in Pinner, London.

The amp has been my go-to combo for 8yrs, and being 12yrs old and seeing a lot of action, it has had a lot of heat cycles through the solder joints which is the root of the problems coming through. The power amp valves’ solder was beginning to crack, and the tracks on the PCB were lifting and ultimately breaking.

The solution to this – which would become endemic throughout the rest of the amp in time – was to remove all of the original components, and replace with a new circuit built in an old-school ‘point-to-point’ fashion which would enable me to make modifications or replace any faulty components much more easily for the life of the amp.

Since completely changing everything except the cabinet and reverb tank, the amp has taken on a different character, but is a beautiful alternative to the Blues Junior I knew and loved. It’s now got a Celestion G12H Anniversary Edition speaker, and in conjunction with the up-rated electronics is more articulate as a result. I’m still getting to know the amp, but can’t wait to see how it performs on gigs and shows as they come in!

’13’ at the Radlett Centre

February 25, 2015PermalinkTheate Work13, 16, 3120, acoustic, aer, albans, blues, bucks, centre, electric, guitar, guitarist, ibanez, junior, martin, musical, omc, radlett, repair, rg, st., teacher, theatre Leave a comment

Last week I played guiyar for the ‘Sticks and Stones’ production of ’13’ – a youth show about a Jewish lad moving from New York to a sleepy town, and the trials and tribulations of coming-of-age and making friends in a new place.

The music is very eclectic, covering a number of different genres including Death Metal, Reggae, Funk, and beautiful acoustic ballads.

Electric and acoustic guitars are required for this show, and quite fortunately there are not many rapid guitar changes as these are mainly done between numbers.

There are two guitar parts, and as on similar shows I had to compile both into one, reading from both pads and using a series of post-it notes to indicate what to read from which pad. It’s pretty rapid at times, but I relish the challenge to concentrate so much throughout a show. I also really enjoyed the diversity of the music and trying hard to play as authentically as possible with the tools at my disposal.

Most of the sonic variation was was modified via the selector switch on my electric guitar. The switching on the Ibanez RG3120 is really versatile, giving you power and delicacy with ease.

I did the show a few years back and really enjoyed it, and it’s nice to get my hands around it again with more experience under my belt. I look forward to doing it again too!

Christmas at Cliveden House

December 30, 2014PermalinkBig Mama Funk, Gigs, Jazz, Jazz Juice, Solo Workband, berks, big, bucks, cliveden, function, funk, guitar, herts, house, jazz, juice, london, mama, oxford, party, solo, trio Leave a comment

Christmas has been a pretty hectic time for gigs this year, with a performance on Christmas Day, and 3 on Boxing Day. Still, with them all being at Cliveden House it made for a very special couple of days.

In her regular attire, Cliveden is spectacular, but during Christmas she is even more resplendent in no small part due to the Christmas trees, and general extra decoration throughout the place.

It has been quite busy there this year, and myself and my musical colleagues have worked hard to provide the best quality jazz music possible in our time there. We’ve received a great number of positive comments, and hope to hear back from the business cards that have been handed out.

It’s now time for a quick rest before another clutch of New Year gigs, and then back into some sort of routine!

I wish you all the best for the New Year, and hope to grace a stage alongside, or in front of you sooner rather than later!

Live on Radio Blackfrog

November 18, 2014PermalinkLive Work, Solo Work175, acoustic, aylesbury, blackfrog, bucks, electric, gary, gibson, guitar, internet, jazz, london, martin, mullins, radio, solo, taylor, thame, theatre, work Leave a comment

On Sunday 15th November I had the privilege to be interviewed on Radio Blackfrog – Thame’s internet radio station. I also performed a few tunes and talk about a couple of my favourite songs and a few stories from my musical life so far!

If you missed it, you can catch up with the link here… http://www.radioblackfrog.co.uk/catch-up.html

A new venture – Aylesbury Guitar Setups and Repairs

October 7, 2014PermalinkUncategorizedaction, ayleabury, bucks, electeics, fret stone, guitar, intonation, pickups, recrown, repairs, replacement, setup Leave a comment

Since mid-August I have started offering a number of guitar repair and maintenance services to the musicians of my local area, in addition to my performances and tuition.

I’ve started off quietly but I’ve already had a number of repairs and services to do, and I feel it’s time to let my wider circle of friends, colleagues, and connections know about what I’m up to!

The main area of work I do is in general setups – reviving an instrument and refreshing elements such as action, intonation, pickup heights, and work to do with the fretboard including cleaning and fret profiling. I can also offer electrical repairs including pickup replacement and switch/control cleaning and modification.

Don’t be afraid to ask if I can cover other obscure aspects of repair – I’ve also had to recently re-glue a broken headstock, replace a classical bridge, cut deeper nut slots, and more besides.

My prices are competitive and I’m handily in the centre of Aylesbury, so quite easy to find. Please do pass on my details if you think anyone else could make use my services – I really appreciate your support and for thinking of me! Have a browse of my website and check out the Facebook page to see some of the work I’ve been doing recently.

Some recent testimonials…

“Oh my god it’s just amazing! Feels brand new, great job mate. Thank you! ” – Ross S, General overhaul, October 2014

“Hi Gary, …(I) got on very very well thanks – really loving the low action! Makes it even more fun to play now 🙂 Thanks again!” – Daryl G, Nut repair, October 2014

“Gary checked over a few problems with an old guitar of mine and had it good as new in no time. I highly recommend him – great guy and great service, cheers!” – Dan G, Electric problem, August 2014

Thanks for reading, and I hope to breathe a bit more life into a guitar of yours soon!

The Red Hot House Band!

April 2, 2011PermalinkGigs, Live Work, Red Hot House Bandallen, aylesbury, band, bucks, burrell, function, gary, guitarist, hot, house, Jeremy, keynes, melissa, milton, mullins, party, red Leave a comment

Another band I’ve recently started working with is The Red Hot House Band. Based around Milton Keynes, the band is perfectly geared to keeping the party going all night long! There’s an emphasis on fluidity, and nothing is fixed, so if a song is working we may keep the chorus going, or add a solo in, or drop down in feel and build to a climax. It keeps us on our toes, and keeps audiences grooving!

Recently we’ve been having some promo video and photo shoots. The above photo is one of the new promo shots. Check out the video below for some more as well as audio of the band!

‘Ain’t Nobody’, like Floorfillers!

February 23, 2011PermalinkFloorfillers, Gigs, Live Workain't, band, bucks, chaka, demo, floorfillers, gary, guitarist, keynes, khan, london, milton, mullins, nobody, party, saylesbuyr, wedding Leave a comment

Today was quite an exciting day. I received the mixed versions of some recordings that I’d done with one of the function bands I work with. The band is called Floorfillers, and we play quite a few contemporary tunes, as well as Disco and Motown classics. For your delectation I’ve uploaded one of the tunes we did – Chaka Khan’s ‘Ain’t Nobody’. You can listen to it on my homepage, or here.

The recording process of this was quite interesting, since the drums were recorded in one take(!) in a studio in Milton Keynes, and then bass, keys and my guitar were recorded by their respective players in their own homes. After a few emails it all came together back in Milton Keynes where the vocals and BVs were laid down before mixing.

If you need a band for your party, look no further than Floorfillers!

Pritee Hurnam – Funkify’s Big Mamma Funk!

February 21, 2011PermalinkFunkify, Gigs, Live Workaylesbury, band, big, bucks, function, funk, funkify, gary, guitarist, hurnam, mamma, mullins, party, pritee, singer, watford Leave a comment

I thought I’d take a little moment to mention one of the singers I have the privilege of working with. Pritee Hurnam is the female singer in Funkify, one of the main function bands I work in. There isn’t anyone else I’ve worked with who is as good as Pritee at getting a group of people to have a good time! I’ve seen static, near empty rooms transformed to heaving discos, and it’s all thanks to Pritee. She has a great knack of involving people in her performance, serenading a gent with ‘Somebody Else’s Guy’, encouraging them to sing ‘9 to 5’, and also copy dance moves to ‘Blame It On The Boogie’. But that’s all the practical stuff involved in being in a party band.

Not only can do she do all that better than anyone else I’ve come across, she’s also a blinding singer. She’s a true pro – I’ve seen the show go on despite her feeling really ill and flu-ed out, and she’s still done a great job! She’s one of the most consistent musicians I know, and directs her band with ease, and a thoughtfulness that shows her mind’s always on the ball. Further evidence of this is proven when she alters a set at a moments notice, depending on the mood of her audience.

She works really hard for the band, and is a cracking musician and performer. I hope you get the chance to see her to her thing soon!