THEATRE ROYAL

Replete with macro details of the decades of wear, tear and grime that proves his instruments have been anything but museum pieces, Lincoln guitarist Eddie Tatton’s Instagram account is a must-follow for fans of vintage guitars. During his decades-long career as a working musician, Tatton has played practically every gig you can imagine, from blues clubs and festival stages to orchestra pits in theatres, amassing along the way a guitar, amp and pedal collection every bit as enviable as his stellar playing abilities. Back in October 2020, we made the trip to the historic cathedral quarter that he calls home to meet the man behind the macro shots – and take a few pictures of our own.

“I started playing when I was 12,” says Eddie when we ask him the inevitable question about his gateway drug into guitar addiction. “I think it was 1977 or ’78, when everything on Top Of The Tops was incredible, or so it seemed at the time, and everything had a guitar in it. The disco thing was happening but it was all guitar-centric as well. Nile Rodgers, Chic… incredible. I just thought, ‘I’ve got to do this’ and I just copied records. I was mad into Queen, Rainbow and all that, and after that Steely Dan and the jazz kind of thing. So it just went from there really.”

After cutting his teeth on a Hondo II, Eddie moved on to a far superior instrument. “My parents were really supportive, my dad especially,” he says. “We didn’t have a lot of money in the household or anything but they bought me a Yamaha SG-1500 which, at the time, was just an amazing. Probably two weeks to learn it properly and play it. Then for the next two weeks that was all I played!”