Pinky Olympicland

Well, I seem to be just about keeping up with the various travels and bobbing around of The Tickled Pink One, though maybe it's the time of year, maybe just because I'm getting on a bit, but it seems so complicated.

I've said it before and no doubt will many times more, but Jools McTootle is a genius/saint/lot better man than I, keeping this on the road.

As of this weekend, well it reached Mike in Olympicland, Landahn, and very at home it is looking with a couple of paisley friends of the Telecaster persuasion.

Nice

Where next?

Er,, better ask Jools..

La la laaa

Bit of a Catch Up

Brighton

Well, since I last posted about Pinky, the poor thing has been shunted all over the south and is now in East Anglia.

I can't for the life of me remember everything, but here are a few fotos from along the way. Normal lack of service will be resumed next week.

La la laaaa

This is the first known recording of The Tickled Pink One Enjoy

Getting to The Fat Old Man Who
Has Done a bit of recording too

Cosy Night In With Some Old Friends at FoM's Gaff

Then to TTony in Suffolk

Back to Jools - Brains Behind the Routing - somewhere posh

On The Isle

Well, we seem to be gathering a little press coverage along the way, which I'll gather together and show-and-tell you all later, but in the meantime, Jon sent me a couple of photos of Pinky getting a bit of a seeing to at the New Star on the Isle of Portland, which is pretty and cool all at the same time.

To quote the chap,

"As befitting a guitar of this shape I tuned it to open G and banged out some Stones. Nice."

Which sounds pretty good to me.

From here it is going to be crossing the country somehow to the East Coast, and I am so glad Jools is sorting these things out, and there we are.

I haven't said it for a while, but if you haven't yet - please donate Here, it can make a world of difference.



We're up to £680 with the Gift Aid, which is great, but we really want to get to four figures before Christmas, so...shake down your family, turn over your neighbours and before you blow your dosh on dodgy presents nobody wants...chip in. You know it makes sense. The rest is hysteria.

A Mention and The Passover

Well, I haven't seen it yet, but it seems that Guitarist magazine has given The Tickled Pink One's journey a mention in the current magazine, which is nice to know.

The foto here shows Taff passing Pinky over to John as it's journey continues around the bottom of the country..

As you can also see Taff gave the girl a bit of a work out with The Flatland Boogie Band just a few night agao too..

Cool, McChilly

It goes on...

 

A Cultural Time In Sherbourne

Sherborne Abbey

Well, The Tickled Pink One had a busy old time of it in Sherbourne... As you can see, first of all it was doing the sites, and very lovely it looks in that sort of company too, before being 'gigged' for the first time too.

Photos and details of that to follow, I'm sure, but the feedback from Our man Strumming was pretty satisfying..

"Used the TPO at a gig last night, very well received and made a good talking point with the public etc.
and did I say, the guitar sounded ...................................WICKED ! fat yet screams like its ass is on fire when you wick it up !!"

Can't say fairer than that...cool.

The Main bandstand in the Pageant gardens.

And Then To Sherbourne

Sherbourne, Dorset
Sometime Earlier on, like

Well, my little Pink lady has trundled on and should hopefully get it's gigging stripes by the week's end in the hands of a nice geezer called Taff.

For those of you keeping in touch with it's movements - and every girl needs a stalker these days, after all - it is just soooo on-message - it has now reached the lovely Sherbourne in Dorset where Taff has given it a fettle - the first of many running repairs over the next year, I guess - and will be doing something cool with it, but more on that later.

As for the important bit, we're upto £550 (plus £130 Gift Aid), which is good - so thanks to all who have chipped in so far.

Of course you are more than welcome to join in too Here

And Now To Shepton Mallet

Shepton Mallet, Earlier Today. Maybe.

Well, in yet another Service Station Meet, I handed The Tickled Pink One over to Doug of Maltings Audio, so it is on the way to Shepton now, in the next leg of a meandering journey.

It is likely to get 'gigged' a couple of times before it travels on from there, but hopefully more on that later...

It is nice to see that the total is climbing - we are upto £470 in donations with another £110 on top in Gift Aid - so, err, £580 so far, and therefore so good.

I really haven't got a clue how much this thing will make, but I think that is good anyway.

And on we go...

La la laaa

One Direction

Well, I collected The Tickled Pink from Simon in my usual spot in the local services, and will be passing it on to Doug either tomorrow or Tuesday, which means I get to strum the old girl like a banjo, which is all good.

And I'm pleased to say that it is standing up to les rigors de la rue quite nicely, thank-you-very-much, though it is early days of course.

Simon's take on the guitar was very positive, and the Mojo P90 continues to get a good response, which is cool. Though I think it was the pink strings that caught the eye of a couple of fellas in the service's Starbucks... All good stuff.

La la laaa

From Maesteg With Love

Well, Rob has had The Tickled Pink One for a few days now, but the Welsh weather predictably kept the wee thing indoors..

Still, the company is obviously pretty good...and I should probably leave it to Rob to have his say...

"I've enjoyed my short time with "Pinky" this week and I hope she can say the same :)

Sadly work & the great Welsh weather have got in the way of any outings, but have certainly not diminished the sustain from that pickup (wow), so here are some pics of her making herself at home..."

 

Nice.

 

 

As for what's next, well the trip reverses over the next few days and should see Pinky back in Portishead at the weekend before disappearing until the new year.

 

All good stuff though...and I'm looking forward to a bit more pink time meself.

 

 

La la laaaa

Moving On to....Maesteg

Maesteg, Yesterday Lunchtime

Well, The Tickled Pink One trundles on... It was delivered to Cardiff what seems like just the other day, to Gareth, and now he has passed it on to Rob in Maesteg for a few days more.

Just to keep the hounds off our trail, the journey will then be reversed, with lots of running down brooks and over stiles, shoes and socks in hand to lose the scent, before it ends-up back in Bristol on Friday and to me over the weekend.

Maesteg - On the Bridge End of Life

After that, I'm meant to pass it on to somebody in Dorset I think, but have totally forgotten the details of that, so I may have it wrong.

As you can see it is a good job it isn't me that is doing the disorganisational bobbins as I really can't keep up.

As fotos of the guitars are thin on the ground, here is a nice foto of Maesteg I found so you can visualise...





Oh, and with the Gift Aid we are nearly upto £500, which isn't bad for a start...


La la laaa

To Cardiff and Don't Shave The Horses

Well, young Simon has passed the Tickled Pink One across the water and over the pretty bridge to Gareth in Cardiff, for a few days culture and no doubt a wander around the Doctor Who Experience, which is all good. Can't think there is much else there to see.

Now that it has moved a couple of places on, it is starting to feel a bit more real, and when I look at  fotos of the guitar I seem a little detached, which too is no bad thing.

The foto is Pinky nestling among a small selection of Simon's guitars, catching a well earned nap. Unless his missus is reading this, in which case they are the complete set and even a couple of them are borrowed.

La la laaa

Step 2: Local Papers and Motorway Services

Well, it'll be a busy day for The Tickled Pink One today, as this afternoon sees the guitar pitching-up at my kids school where it will be photographed and hopefully loved in the local paper.

It may seem a little self-indulgent, but as they helped build it at every stage it seems fair that they should be able to launch it among their friends.

This evening sees Pinky off on a first leg of it's journey, when in what I would imagine will become traditional, it will be handed over to Simon in a Motorway Services Cafe.

As fates have turned, it will pass through a few more hands before returning back in Portishead in a week or so , and then onwards for a lot longer.

I'm going to miss the old girl

La la laaa

Step One: A Day Out In Portishead

Well, it seemed to make sense that we should start the procession of the Jook, so we took The Tickled Pink One out for the day in Portishead, it's spiritual home, as it were...

So it saw Black Nore lighthouse, some burned matches and Johnny Depp's Dingy (maybe)

To the Lighthouse

Black Nore Lighthouse

Couldn't be on tour without a back-of-the-van shot

Three Burned Matches and a Teeny Guitar

Johnny Depp's Boat - can you spot him?

Introducing The Tickled Pink One

Well, if you have followed the saga on the Jooky site, you'll know that there have been a few up and downs before we got to this point, but I'm pleased to be able to introduce you to a guitar we know as The Tickled Pink One.

In basic terms it is based on a Fender La Cabronita, and made in Portishead by The Jooky Guitar Emporium. You can find out more about the guitar Here

It has a hand stained and waxed, swamp ash body, with a delish pink ribboned top, a Mojo Pickups handwound P90 pickup and wiring loom made by the uber talented Marc Ransley specifically for this guitar, a maple/rosewood neck and is generally wicked cool and a little groovy.

What matters more is that it is to be auctioned for Breast Cancer Care in February 2013, but before that we are sending it out on a tour of the UK, being passed from one guitarist to the next, and raising more money every step of the way.

This little web site will follow the journey all the way to the auction, and we hope that you'll spread the word and help us raise a few bob as we go. If we can do that we will be, well, tickled pink.

La la laaaa