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His name is known world-wide and yet despite his fame, whenever Hugh Manson walks down the high street no one stops to stare or point, and he never gets asked for his autograph.

The same can’t be said though for his customers who put together in a long list would read like a who’s who of the best musicians and performers to have graced the music stage.

While it’s their face the public recognise, Hugh’s has also appeared on many a stadium stage across the world but by name only on some of the best guitars money can buy.

Anyone who knows anything about guitars will know that owning a Manson guitar is like the equivalent of driving around in a Ferrari, and that’s down to the unique craftsmanship of Hugh and his team.

This year the 63-year-old is celebrating the 25 anniversary of his guitar shop in Exeter’s McCoy’s Arcade in Fore Street, which has become a renowned musical beacon. To mark this landmark feat his renowned Mansons Guitar Show is back this Saturday at Exeter’s Corn Exchange from 10am to 5.30pm.

The world of guitars beckoned for Hugh around 50 years ago when his brother Andy began making acoustic guitars. When he started getting orders for electric guitars, Hugh joined the business in 1978 and has never looked back since.

He learnt his craft from his brother who was self-taught and then was the first student in guitar making at the London college of furniture back in the ‘70s.

Hugh, who describes himself as a maker rather than a player, said: “I found out I had the touch myself. I made my first guitar, someone bought it and that’s how it went. When we started out it was really hard. It was hand to mouth and a real struggle. Then like most things in life you need a lucky break and ours was getting a good artist to work for and getting good orders. Our name became more well-known and things became easier.”

Not one to name drop unless prompted, Hugh says their big break came courtesy of Led Zeppelin, and some good advice from the Mansons' mother.

Hugh recalled: “We lived in Crowborough in Sussex at the time. Our mother said to Andy one day she heard a ‘pop star’ was living down the road and that Andy should knock on their door and ask if he had any work for him. It turned out to be John Paul Jones. He gave my brother some repairs to do and it went from there to making instruments for him, and many years later for Jimmy Page also."

With pride in his voice, and quite rightly so, Hugh adds: “I have been John’s guitar tech for about 25 years so I have toured with him and done almost every show he has done since then. I was also there for the Led Zeppelin reunion at the O2 in 2007. That's my biggest achievement; it was a big deal.

“People never thought they would play again. The whole world wanted them to play together and that one show was it. I made all the basses, was the bass tech, and spent months rehearsing with them. It was amazing.”

Hugh has also toured with Yes, Them Crooked Vultures, Nickel Creek , Seasick Steve and many others, but it’s a lifestyle he’s quite happy to leave behind and leave to his younger members of staff when requests are made by bands.

He admitted: “I’m getting a bit old for that now! A lot of our staff go off on short tours. We’ve just had someone come back from being with PP Arnold. We’ve done lots of other tours from Foreigner to Ben Harper. Luckily we have great staff who cope well with extra pressure if I'm away and my business partner Adrian Ashton has held the fort for the last 25 years in these situations.

“People always say it must be magic knowing all these famous people but if you take the analogy of racing cars, if you make good ones the outcome is you’ll meet Lewis Hamilton. The same is with guitars. We’re supposed to be at the top of the tree in terms of guitars and guitar making.”

The doors of Mansons are used to having many a famous face walk through, one of the most recent being Billy Bragg last week carrying a guitar looking very worse for wear.

Hugh said: “He came in with a smashed guitar which a Canadian airline had managed to run over with a forklift. We do lots of those. We’ve got three guitar techs working full-time every day repairing.”

Another familiar face in the shop over the years is Muse frontman Matt Bellamy. Hailing from Teignmouth, Matt and his band were regular shop customers long before they hit the big time and their loyalty helped give Mansons another of their lucky big breaks.

Hugh said: “Making all their guitars was the biggest break for us. When Matt got an advance for their first album he came in for a custom guitar to be designed and made.

"They were a struggling band like any other band. Don’t get me wrong, they’re bloody brilliant at what they do, but everyone starts at the same place, getting £30 for a gig at the local pud and now they do stadium tours worth several million.

“Every show Matt has played he has used a Manson guitar and they are on every album. That’s pretty amazing. They are one of the biggest rock bands in the world. They play stadiums in every country and have undoubtedly had offers from every guitar company there is, but they have stuck with us. For us it’s great as those guitars get played really hard. Matt puts absolutely everything into a show so they have to be built really, really well – and strong. They take a real smashing and he does literally smash them.”

So does it bother Hugh to see his works of art smashed to smithereens?

“It’s a key part of the act,” is all he will say and maybe because they have also become friends and not just customers.

He said: “These artists are just normal human beings like everyone else. Most of them don’t want to be treated like they’re on a pedestal, and the majority get so fed up with being recognised every 30 seconds. It can be a really hard life in that respect in spite of what people may think.”

Despite the high calibre of famous faces Mansons is proud to call their customers, Hugh says added to that list are mostly some amazing musicians who just play for fun.

He said: “We’ve had the shop for 25 years and over that time I have seen 11-year-olds who can play phenomenally well, but musicianship does not necessarily relate to being good on stage. It’s a completely different scenario but I maintain this industry isn’t competitive. Music should never be competitive but purely about enjoyment. Enjoying playing should come first and in second position maybe people will enjoy listening to you. It’s very relaxing playing; It’s probably similar to doing an hour of yoga because guitar playing can be somewhat therapeutic. You don’t have to be able to play like Segovia, you can just enjoy yourself.”

Hugh is that first to admit that although he obviously does “play a bit”, it’s not to any “massively competent degree”, and says his biggest buzz comes seeing the guitars he had made being used.

“I do get a buzz,” he said. “but more amazing is when you’re sat watching television and significant music for a sporting event, an advert or whatever it happens to be comes on and you say, ‘Oh my God, that’s my guitar’. I find that more amazing.

“When we first started out we were desperate for every order. Now we couldn’t possibly make every guitar we get requested to do. There’s just not enough of us and there’s not enough hours in the day.

“It could be a huge business but I don’t want to lose our hands-on, high quality reputation. I had a philosophy from day one and that was to produce perfection. Once you let that slip so does your reputation, and also morally I would not agree with it. People come to us as we’re supposed to know what we’re doing.”

(Image: Jolyon Holroyd)

Although Hugh is unwilling to expand the business in order to keep true to the heart of the business which to him is giving customers top quality both in terms of their products and service, he does design guitars which are licensed under his name for Far Eastern companies which he says is to avoid “alienating” the vast majority of the population who can’t afford to have a guitar made for them.

However, Hugh admits it is still the excitement of making something new and different that continues to keep him still stood at his workbench all these years later.

He said: “The more challenging and complicated a guitar is, the better it is to make for me. It needs to be fun to make. Our shop has 650 guitars in it and those are made by companies who mass produce guitars and they do a perfectly good job. There’s no point in me making copies; I enjoy making guitars which are more unique.”

And Hugh never knows where inspiration is going to strike or flash next.

“I was at a fireworks display last weekend and I got some pretty crazy ideas for some glittery instruments which I’m already well-known for. Things do influence you. I went to the basilica in Barcelona and made something for Muse which was influenced by the amazing architecture.

If Hugh could make a guitar for anyone, either dead or alive, he instantly names Jimi Hendrix, but is unable to pick one individual who is alive he would like to, probably because the best have already come knocking on his door.

Looking back over his career, Hugh said: “My advice to anyone starting out in guitar making is you’ve got to look at the long haul. You won’t become world famous in two years. You need to be prepared to struggle. It’s probably true with most art forms.”

What will also inspire people to turn their hobby into a career is there is no such thing as the Monday morning work blues for Hugh because he says every day is fun.

He said: “I never get up in the morning and think, oh my God. I never get the Monday blues but I might play the Monday blues!”

This week there will definitely be no need for the blues because on Saturday it will be the Mansons Guitar Show at Exeter Corn Exchange, and will mark the 25 anniversary of the shop which has been based in McCoy’s Arcade for around 13 years after moving up from Rackclose Lane.

Hugh said: “We do the show every two years. We have sold more pre-sale tickets than we ever have before by a massive amount. It’s a great day if you’re into guitars. There’s hundreds and hundreds of guitars with stands staffed by people who know what they’re saying. You can try any guitar you want and there’s demonstrations running all day.”

The list of performers include Alex Hutchings, Andrea Braido, Aziz Ibrahim and Bernie Marsden.

Revealing who he is most excited to hear, Hugh picks former Whitesnake guitarist Bernie Marsden.

“He is a really nice guy and is a great blues rock player, and a long term customer, “ said Hugh who is also excited about another special visitor who a special anniversary show wouldn’t be the same without.

“Although my brother Andy now lives and works in Portugal still making acoustic guitars, he is coming back for the show.

We did think about opening a store in London once and even went to look at premises, but I’m so glad we didn’t. I think you either run one store really well or you dissipate your resources by running two badly.

“I remember when I was at school I wrote an essay which was about why one shouldn’t open a shop on the coast because 50 per cent of your catchment area would be fish. Little did I realise when I opened a shop in a tourist area like Devon, people would come from all over the world and make it a destination on their holiday if any family member plays a guitar.

“I should go back to school and rewrite that essay.”

For more details and the show and tickets visit https://www.mansons.co.uk/guitar-show