News

  • 1979 ~ 2009. We are delighted to be celebrating 30 years in business! All instruments produced this year will carry a commemorative label to mark the occassion.

  • FREE! A spring clean has unearthed a number of '80's and '90's guitar magazines. They're mostly GUITAR, GUITAR PLAYER, GUITARIST, INTERNATIONAL MUSICIAN and a few VINTAGE GUITAR. They're in good condition and in some cases there is complete years - e.g. all 12 issues from 1984 of GUITAR PLAYER etc. There's some fascinating articles - and photos - ranging from 10 to 28 years ago! These are free for uplift for anyone who's interested - or we can also post them out for carraige costs. The whole lot may be of interest to a collector, but we're quite happy to let them go in one's and twos. Just need the space!

  • BRYAN ADAMS took delivery of his new signature model guitar at The Caird Hall, Dundee last night. The new guitar is designed around his Moon RD3's with a few cosmetic changes. He was delighted with the result and all the more pleased that we will make a donation to his charitable foundation from every sale of this guitar. Details and spec will be on the 'Acoustic Guitars Page'

    Bryan with his new Moon - and (l-r) Keith Scott, Jimmy, Bryan and guitar tech Davy Robertson

  • Ullapool- What a great festival - in a beautiful location! We met lots of lovely people and heard some fantastic music.

    The legendary Peter Rowan has ordered a new Moon, which he will collect on his next trip in May. We have some more pics to post - so watch this space.

  • We will be exhibiting at the Ullapool Guitar Festival which is being held in the MacPhail Centre, Ullapool from 10-12 October 2008. There is a fantastic line up of acts playing over the week-end including Bob Brozman, Andy Fairweather-Lowe, Pete Rowan and Stefan Grossman. It promises to be a fantastic festival - and we'll look forward to seeing you there!

  • WANTED - LOWDEN FLAMBEAU MODEL ACOUSTIC GUITARS - MODELS LFW-2, LFW-3 & LFW -4 - MUST BE IN GOOD CONDITION. Please call or e-mail with any information

  • Due to an unprecedented run of sales, we have unfortunately had to cancel our planned exhibit at the Acoustic Guitar Show on 13th & 14th September 2008 in Cheltenham Town Hall. Apologies to folks who planned to come and visit us there - We'll be back next year!!

  • CELTIC CONNECTIONS- We will be exhibiting in the foyer of the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall for the three Saturdays of Celtic Connections - beginning Saturday 19th January 2008. Drop by and pay us a visit!

  • Jimmy's band - The Moonshiners - are hosting an event to raise funds and awareness for the sufferer's and families of Huntingtons Disease. It is to be held in Corbie Ha', Milngavie, Glasgow on Saturday 17th November. Joining them will be the amazing Roberto Cassani, Irish singer/songwriter Errol Walsh,local musician Rob Douglas & Friends Tickets are now available here at Moon Guitars -the cost is £10.00 (including buffet), which is fantastic value for what promises to be a great night of music and fun. All proceeds from this event will go to the Huntington's Association. We hope you will help us support this very worthy cause

  • Now in its third year, Dougie Maclean's Perthshire Amber Festival is becoming a 10 day event in 2007, beginning on 26th October. After it's wonderfully successful first two years in October 2005 & 2006, Perthshire Amber has been described as "a jewel of a festival- where contemporary song meets folk, roots and tradition" and "...an irresistible tapestry of tunes, rhythms...harmonies and textures". (Herald) This year Jimmy Moon will be hosting a Q & A session at 12 noon on Saturday 27th October. Advance booking is recommended, so check out the website above for details.

  • NEW Moon Guitar! The newly completed model PF-0003 is made from Pau Ferro (Bolivian Rosewood) back & sides with an Alaskan AAA 'bear claw' soundboard. Check out the review in the latest Acoustic guitar magazine (Aug/Sept Issue 17) - makes great reading! Full spec will be posted on our new look web site -coming soon!

  • We will be exhibiting at the new Cheltenham Guitar Show on 8th & 9th September 2007 in Cheltenham Town Hall. Come along if you're in the area - it promises to be a great event.

  • Check out Scotland On TV to see a short feature on our guitars

  • THE THOMAS FRASER COMMEMORATIVE GUITAR - The family of the late Thomas Fraser commissioned Moon Guitars to produce a replica of a Levin Goliath guitar. Thomas first purchased his Levin in 1961 and played it exclusively until his death in 1978. The guitar is built with the same materials as the original and finished with the same sunburst finish. We believe that this guitar is a fitting tribute to a remarkable musician. There will be photos and spec posted on the Acoustic Guitars page soon. On it's completion, we received this letter from Karl Simpson (Thomas's grandson):

    .............."Dear Moon Guitars,

    Just a note to say thanks for an absolutely brilliant job on the Thomas Fraser Commemorative Guitar. I was really bowled over when I opend the case and it is a moment that will stay with me forever.The similarity to the original is uncanny and the sound is truly superb. I cannot emphasise enough how impressed and delighted we are. Thomas would have been blown away - he was really into his music and to think he would have a guitar built in his memory is really something unique and special.

    Thanks to all the team for a great job! All the best, Karl Simpson....."

  • The Moon black semi acoustic guitar was purchased by Steve Green of Nantwich in Cheshire - and original owner, Colin Nicol, has very generously donated the proceeds to Save The Children fund. I'm sure Steve will also be delighted to know his money has gone to such a worthy cause. See Colin's letter below:

    ......"Dear Joan and Jimmy, A brief note to say thanks very much for finding a good home for the Hopf/Moon semi and in doing so, raise money for charity. I know we’d originally intended the funds from the sale (including your commission which you generously waived) to go to the Tsunami. However as things have moved on, and given all the recent trouble in the middle east , I thought it might be just as appropriate to send the money to ‘’Save the Children’’ – who continue to work in the areas devastated by the Tsunami and also in the areas affected by the recent/ongoing middle east crisis. Sadly, it isn’t difficult to identify causes requiring help out there. I was also able to ‘gift aid’ the money, which means the organization should be able to claim back an extra 28 pence for every pound and together we put in £500 – so Joan you’re best at the sums but I make this £640 in total. So thanks again for your input into a win-win situation, the purchaser gets a nice guitar, the charity gets some money and I get a bit more space around the house…for another guitar? Sincere best wishes, Colin Nicol......."

  • 03/08/06 - We are exhibiting at this year's Tonder Festival in Denmark. Our old buddy Steve Earle is headlining this year and good friend Tim O'Brien is also on the bill. Promises to be a great festival! Come along and visit us in the Instrument Tent.

  • James Blunt has taken delivery of his new Moon! He has a 0002CE model with the new Fishman Ellipse Blend system - and some custom fingerboard inlays. "Beautiful!"

  • We have recently completed a custom project for Babydaddy from the Scissor Sisters. He asked us to build an electric banjo in the shape of a 'Flying V' guitar !

    • The result is pretty spectacular - complete with the band's logo on the headstock.

    Shown above playing at the recent V Festival in Baltimore.

  • Ally McErlaine from Texas has also taken delivery of his new custom electric guitar. It's a fairly retro style guitar with a couple of Seymour Duncan PhatCat pickups. Sounds great!
  • The Glasgow Rose -Limited Edition Guitar - we are making 10 only of these beautiful guitars. The first four are gone and we have orders for two more, so time is running out! The inspiration for this guitar came from appreciation of the work of Charles Rennie MacKintosh. It is made with African Rosewood (dalbergia baroni) back & sides with AAA Sitka Spruce soundboard. We commissioned friend and artist Don McNeish from the Isle of Arran to design the headstock, fingerboard and rosette inlays. Production of these guitars is being limited to 10. The first has been sold to Mark Boyde from Edinburgh. Please contact us if you need any further information. The guitars come supplied with a specially made Ameritage presentation case.

  • Dougie MacLean has now taken delivery of his new signature model acoustic guitar. He worked closely with us on the design to get a guitar that suited his needs specifically. The guitar is made with Black Acacia back & sides and a AAA Alsakan Spruce soundboard. It features Master Series trim and has a favourite pictish symbol designed by Orkney jewellers Ortak inlaid in silver on the headstock and in MOP on the bridge wings. The guitar will also have a specially signed label. Please contact us for ordering details....

     

     

    Dougie is pictured here at the rehearsals for the 'Burns An Aw That' weekend at Culzean Castle. He performed alongside Lou Reed, Eddie Reader, and the Scottish National Orchestra.

     

  • Jimmy met with Bryan Adams at his recent Glasgow gig. Bryan nows uses our RD3(dreadnought) model as his number one stage acoustic.

     

  • After a successful Frankfurt show, a range of our guitars and mandolins will soon be stocked by Forsyth's in Manchester and also The Music Gallery in Cambridge later in the year.

     

  • We now stock our own packaged strings for Mandolin, Tenor Mandola, Octave Mandola & Bouzouki. Mail order available

  • Bandwagon Supplies in Perth arranged an "ACOUSTIC SPECTACULAR" - a special concert evening featuring MOON instruments. It was held on Monday 5th December in the Grampian Hotel, York Place, Perth. Artists who took part were :Dougie MacLean (singer/songwriter), Sandy Stanage (guitar), Stevie Lawrence & friend (various mandolin family instruments) Adam Bulley & Chaz (jazz) Wang Dang Delta (4 piece blues), Rancho Rebop & the Fullmoon Howlers (western swing/bluegrass) Graeme Duffin (guitar), Esther & Tim O'Conner (contemporary), Ross Ainslie (cittern/whistle)

     

     

  • Look out for Manus Lunny playing his custom Moon bouzouki on tour with Capercaille in Australia.

     

  • Long term Moon customer -Colin Nicol has very generously offered his Moon archtop guitar for auction to raise funds for the victims of the Tsunami disaster. Please contact for further details
  • Celtic Connections 12th Jan -30th January. We will be exhibiting in the foyer of Royal Concert Hall for the three Saturdays during the festival. Drop by and check out some new guitars and mandolins!
  • Newest famous Moon customer is Bryan Adams. He was given the opportunity to try out our RD3 dreadnought model during his recent European tour. He was so impressed, he ordered two more!
  • Music China We had plenty of visitors on our stand and there were numerous comments about our guitars being the best at the show. With over 600 exhibitors and 25,000 visitors over four days, this was quite a compliment.Our new Master Series guitars were very well received and will be featured on the web site soon.

     

  • We have some custom made cases - by Cedar Creek in the US - available for sale. They are Dreadnought and OM size and are beautifully crafted cases made with a strong wooden shell, covered with with 'mock' crocodile skin and lined with crushed velvet. Call or drop in for details

     

  • We have recently taken delivery of some exquisite Koa and Black Acacia timber and plan to produce a 'Master' series of guitars complete with specially made presentation case. These are now complete and we will hopefull have details posted soon.

     

  • 25th Anniversary In 2004 we celebrated 25 years(!) of Moon Guitars and to commemorate this milestone, we produced a special 25th anniversary model. This was a limited edition (10 only) - made from best Brazilian 'Rio' Rosewood and a choice of Alaskan Bear Claw or AAA Alaskan Sitka Spruce. Fully appointed, inlaid and fitted with a special hand engraved '25th Anniversary' silver badge, these guitars were a huge success and all 10 were sold very quickly. Details on Acoustic Guitars page.

     

  • Read the feature on Moon Guitars in the May issue(no.249)of Guitarist magazine. This was to help celebrate our 25 years in business!

     

  • Come by and check out our brand new Dreadnought - Model-RD3. Made from Indian Rosewood & Alaskan Sitka Spruce - this guitar has powerful volume and a deep rich tone. Ideal for flatpickers and strummers everywhere! You can find details of the RD3 along with the 25th anniversary guitar on the Acoustic Guitars page.

     

  • We now stock a small selection of Tutor Books for mandolin and bouzouki. Phone for details
  • Guitar number 1001 was donated to Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy In Scotland charity to be auctioned at the star studded Tartan Clef awards in Glasgow on November 1st. The guitar is a Rosewood/Spruce model and was inlaid with the Tartan Clef logo in abalone shell on the headstock and specially labelled for the event. The auction was a great success and the guitar raised a fantastic £3500.00! It was bought by Christine Stewart - a long time supporter of Nordoff Robbins and someone who enjoys singing and playing in her spare time. We were delighted with the sum of money raised for this very worthy cause
  • We have recently completed a custom bouzouki for Manus Lunny, which was built incorporating some of Manus's own ideas. He is currently touring the USA with Capercaille, and we will be posting details and pics of his new bouzouki as soon as possible.

     

  • Finished in October 2003 was guitar number 1000! To commemorate this, we decided to build something very special. Victor Smith of Flatbush Instruments in Denmark very kindly supplied us with a very old set of Rio Rosewood for the back and sides, and we have complimented this beautiful timber with very best quality Sitka Spruce for the soundboard. The guitar is fully inlaid - including the Glasgow coat of arms in silver and abalone on the headstock - and is signed by everyone here at Moon Guitars. This is a one off commemorative guitar - a real collector's item - and local collector and Moon fan, Ewen Macdonald Allan is the proud new owner. Again, we will be posting pictures soon.

     

  • Details of the new Master Series carved top mandolins and additional A Plus E Series instruments should finally be available within the next couple of weeks.

     

  • Call in to our workshops to check out our instruments. Phone first to check stock!
  • NAMM Winter Session - Anaheim - 16th - 19th January 2003 We had another successful NAMM show and should be adding a few US dealers to our 'stockists' page soon. The new A PlusE version of our Octave Mandolin and Bouzouki were very well received, as was our new Master Series fully inlaid carved mandolin. Many thanks to Scott Tichenor from Mandolin Cafe for the kind comments posted on www.mandolincafe.com

     

  • We have decided to fit the A Plus Series instruments with a 'Monteleone' style cast tailpiece as standard and have adjusted the price accordingly. This is also available as an upgrade on the Standard Series in gold or silver plate.

     

  • Since the introduction of our range of acoustic guitars in 1999, we have endeavoured to keep our prices stable. With the exception of a small increase for the inclusion of a hard case, we have maintained these prices for the past three years. Due to the usual rising costs, an increase was inevitable and this will be effective from January 2003. We believe that even with this increase, our guitars are still excellent value for money for hand built instruments.

     

  • NEW- We have recently upgraded the machine heads on the mandolin family instruments to a high quality Grover Deluxe set, which has increased the price - but we think you'll agree it's worth it!

     

  • Check out the 'Guitarist' magazine (issue 221) for a reveiw on the new guitar models. If you can't get a copy it will appear on our 'Reveiws' page soon. Pictures and specifications will be also posted on the 'Acoustic Guitars' page.

     

  • CELTIC CONNECTIONS FESTIVAL - 16 Jan-3rd Feb 2002 We had a very successful time at this year's festival. New Moon players include Manus Lunny (Bazar) of Capercaille, Findlay Napier (Model 0003E), who plays in Back Of The Moon with last year's young musician of the year Gillian Frame, and Andy Webster (Model 0001CE) of the up and coming Brolum

     

  • New Models Two new models are now available to add to the range. The 0001CE and the 0003CE are cutaway versions (of the standard 0001 & 0003) fitted with Fishman Matrix pickups. All models will now be supplied with quality hard cases. Prices have been adjusted accordingly.

     

  • At the recent CMA Awards in Nashville -Lee Ann Womack picked up the 'Best Female Vocalist' award. Guitar player Joe Manuel from her band 911, played his Moon bouzouki at the live performance. Follow the link to Lee Ann's site from the Artists page.
  • Sound Control are stocking Moon acoustic guitar Models 0001 and 0003 for their 11 stores throughout the UK. Check the specs on the Acoustic Guitars page.
  • Mushtaq used his Moon Model 0001 and mandolin on the new Damage cd 'Since You've Been Gone'. Listen to 'Maria' which he produced
  • Well known Nashville session musician John D Willis is delighted with his new bazar, and now has delivery of his second one, along with a cittern. He has worked with many top names including Hank Williams Jnr. Lee Ann Rimes and John Prine.

     

  • Moon Guitars had their place at Madonna's live web cast gig at Brixton Academy. Ali McErlaine of Texas played his Moon Acoustic with Sharleen Spiteri when they supported Madonna for the 'gig of the year'.

  • Huey from The Fun Loving Criminals checking out a Moon acoustic back stage at the Year 2000 T In The Park festival. Jimmy had a booth there for doing emergency repairs and was visited by some of the artists including FLC and Supergrass.