Neal Bradley fell in the love with the guitar at the age of 5 when he saw Tex Ritter playing one astride his horse, "White Flash" in and old TV movie.
He learned to play himself at the age of 11 on a guitar his father made from a kit that cost £2 10s. Dear old Dad didn't think the spaces between the frets mattered overmuch so any chord above the third fret sounded like a strangled cat.
"I was introduced to the music of Django Reinhardt by members of the youth club my parents ran who taught me to play during the skiffle era back in the 1950s.
Though "Les Yeux Noirs" (Dark Eyes) is accepted as the official Gypsy Jazz anthem, "Minor Swing" is an equal favourite amongst the Manouche and in one concert hosted by Bireli Lagrene in Vienne, France in 2002, it was performed as the finale by 2 violins, a double bass, an accordion and 10 guitar players including Django's Grandson, David."
Neal is playing no.32 which was kindly lent for the session by Bryan Mathers who also designed this site.
Neal Bradley fell in the love with the guitar at the age of 5 when he saw Tex Ritter playing one astride his horse, "White Flash" in and old TV movie.
