In November 1976, Weedon made number one, for one week, in the UK Albums Chart with 22 Golden Guitar Greats, a compilation album of guitar solos released on the Warwick label. We rehearsed the music because we wanted to show him that the British musicians were equally as good, if not better, than the American ones. As a teenager, he was the leader of such groups as the Blue Cumberland Rhythm Boys and Bert Weedon and His Harlem Hotshots.

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. 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. He said 'Because the air at Southend when the tide goes out, it's covered in mud, and the air is just as beneficial at Southend as any of the air in Switzerland'. Married to Maggie Weedon, he had two sons, Lionel and Geoffrey, eight grandchildren, and a great-grandson. And they wrote me a number to compensate for this, Mr Guitar, which they dedicated to me and I recorded it, but it wasn't a big hit.

In those days, I'm talking about the '40s again, it was a killer because they hadn't invented all the drugs that they have now. It's at the Paris Cinema which is a downstairs studio, he said 'He's here,' and there was a sort of pregnant silence. So I still play the Fender, but now I use the Parker guitar as well because it's so light and I can stand up and do the show without bending over, which for an old man is a marvellous asset. Just to pluck a few names out of the air – Brian May, Keith Richards, George Harrison and Eric Clapton.

By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions. He said, 'Sit down, son' so I sat down and he got out a classical guitar, a gut strung Martin guitar, as I remember it very vividly. Weedon placed a lot of emphasis on control of tone, and wanted to make the guitar the star of his music. In fact, when they did This Is Your Life on the BBC, Hank came on and said some very nice things, as indeed did Brian May and Eric Clapton.

As well as his hits and TV appearances at a crucial time in modern music history, Weedon's best-known contribution to British guitar style is his tutorial guide Play in a Day, first published in 1957, [4] which many stars claim was a major influence on their learning and playing. For years, Weedon was the perfect session man, especially for early British rock and roll acts like Billy Fury and Tommy Steele. The manual Play in a Day was the bible for generations of budding guitarists in the 1950s and 1960s. For example, Winifred Atwell would want a honky-tonk approach, Russ Conway something light, while Frankie Vaughan would want something quite beaty and Ronnie Hilton something else again. His playing style focused on both rhythm and melody, and was influenced by the jazz guitarists of the 1950s, notably Les Paul.

In the 1950s, Weedon played on hundreds of recording sessions for most of the leading singers and bands of the era, including Alma Cogan, Dickie Valentine and Frankie Vaughan. 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. As a featured soloist with the BBC Show Band, directed by Cyril Stapleton, Weedon could be heard almost daily on the Light Programme throughout the 1950s.The other night I was at a function and [English classical guitarist] Julian Bream was there and he said 'It's lovely to see you, Bert'. It is difficult now to imagine the vehemence with which the musical establishment, from Sir Malcolm Sargent to Steve Race, excoriated the records of Bill Haley and Elvis Presley and their effect on British youth. He joined the BBC Show Band directed by Cyril Stapleton in the 1950s, when he began to be featured as a soloist. And he walked in with this bowler hat and a rolled umbrella, and he says 'Good morning, my dear fellows. I used to go down Petticoat Lane Market and see this guitar on a stool - I'd touch it and the man would say 'Get lost!

The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band mentioned Weedon in their song "We are Normal" on their album, The Doughnut in Granny's Greenhouse (1969). In 1987 Weedon issued a video version which promised that "a beginner can play in a group in only 25 minutes". Weedon, who has died aged 91, was among the first British musicians to incorporate into his style the innovations of American country and western, boogie and rock'n'roll guitarists.Offers tips for selecting the right guitar, the correct amplifier, how to hold your instrument and plenty of tunes and exercises to get to grips with. I was playing it on all my broadcasts - I was doing a lot of broadcasts, and they hadn't done a broadcast as a solo group at that point. Beginning with Tommy Steele's 1956 debut Rock With the Caveman, he contributed guitar solos to numerous tracks by Marty Wilde, Adam Faith, Laurie London and others.