Weedon also recorded prolifically for the Top Rank label under his own name. Guitar Boogie Shuffle (1959, by the American guitarist Arthur Smith) and Apache (1960, by Jerry Lordan) were minor hits, although the latter was a much greater success in the version by Weedon's disciples the Shadows. His own compositions included Sorry Robbie (1960), China Doll and the much-recorded Ginchy (both 1961). Lister); an American Folk Rhapsody Deutschmeister Kapelle/JULIUS HERRMANN; Band of the Welsh Guards/Cap

a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19thed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p.595. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.Richard Hawley tells the story of how Bert Weedon, one of Britain's most important and yet least celebrated guitar heroes, taught a nation to fall in love with the guitar. His first chart hit in 1959 Guitar Boogie Shuffle began a path that saw him becoming a major influence. He also had a number one album (albeit having a very brief stint at the top of the charts). Play in a Day sold more than a million copies and many a youngster was able to learn to play the guitar as a result. But the testimonies of some of the guitar greats is telling. Brian May claimed that Weedon influenced pretty much all guitarists of his generation. His concentration on tome and rhythm were important Bert was quite, quite possibly the most influential guitarist of all time' Neville Marten, Editor of Guitarist Techniques magazine Among those who were inspired by the televised lessons was Mike Oldfield, who told me: "I saw him on television when I was seven and immediately persuaded my father to buy me my first guitar. If it wasn't for Bert I might never have taken it up in the first place." EVERLYPEDIA (Formerly the Everly Brothers Index - TEBI) Coordinated by Robin Dunn & Chrissie Van Varik

Married to Maggie Weedon, he had two sons, Lionel and Geoffrey, eight grandchildren, and a great-grandson. [3] As a Water Rat, Weedon was highly active in charity work and fundraising, especially for children and disabled people, and was elected King Rat in 1992. [3] He was awarded an OBE in 2001 for his services to music. [1] Weedon died on 20 April 2012, following a long illness. EVERLYPEDIA (Formerly the Everly Brothers Index – TEBI) Coordinated by Robin Dunn & Chrissie Van Varik

Betts, Graham (2004). Complete UK Hit Singles 1952-2004 (1sted.). London: Collins. p.837. ISBN 0-00-717931-6. As a teenager, he was the leader of such groups as the Blue Cumberland Rhythm Boys and Bert Weedon and His Harlem Hotshots. In the 1930s and 1940s the guitar was not the ubiquitous instrument it would later become and, Weedon said: "The only time you saw a guitar was in the hands of a cowboy in a western singing Home on the Range." a b c d e f g "Influential guitarist Bert Weedon dies". BBC News. 19 April 2012 . Retrieved 20 April 2012. The first amplified guitars were beginning to appear and Weedon became an enthusiastic exponent, playing in the orchestras of Ted Heath, Mantovani and Ronnie Aldrich. His career was interrupted by a bout of tuberculosis. After he was discharged from hospital, doctors advised him to avoid smoky dancehalls and nightclubs, so he switched the focus of his career to records, radio and television. BEATLES BLAST OWN HIT DISC! 3-Year-Old Record 'Terrible Could Be Anybody the Beatles Have Another Disc in the Pop SO —And They Are Hopping Mad About It

He soon graduated to the semi-professional Dixieland jazz group Harry Gold's Pieces of Eight and performed with the violinist Stéphane Grappelli and the pianist George Shearing in the early 1940s. Weedon and the classical guitarist Julian Bream provided the music for a postwar London production of Lorca's Blood Wedding.

Broadcasts

He is survived by his second wife, Maggie, two sons, Geoff and Lionel, eight grandchildren and a great-grandson. Weedon was born in East Ham, east London, the son of a train driver who had a collection of hillbilly records and was an amateur singer. Weedon bought his first guitar aged 12 from Petticoat Lane market. (In 2003 he received an apology and damages from the BBC after the publicity for a radio programme had inexplicably claimed that he learned to play the guitar while in jail.) Weedon was born in Burges Road, East Ham, Essex (now part of the London Borough of Newham). He began learning classical guitar at the age of 12, and decided to become a professional musician. In his teens during the 1930s, he led groups such as the Blue Cumberland Rhythm Boys, and Bert Weedon and His Harlem Hotshots, before making his first solo appearance at East Ham Town Hall in 1939. [4] He worked with leading performers including Stephane Grappelli and George Shearing, and performed with various big bands and orchestras, including those of Ted Heath and Mantovani. [3] [5] GRS 1015: "Watch Your Step" / "Safe and Sound" ["As The Bert Weedon Quartet with Roy Edwards Vocal"] 7" ( Grosvenor: 1972)

Neville Marten, editor of Guitar Techniques magazine, commented that Bert Weedon's contribution to the guitar world cannot be overstated: