Hi all, my names Steve Forward and I have been a pro guitar player and teacher since 1996.
Having played more or less every venue there can be in the UK, at some time or another, with whoever happened to be there at the time, Im finally branching out on my own with my own music.. thats not to say I wont be joining any bands in the future.. look out for these! But in case you havent heard of me, heres how I have arrived here.. in 2007..


:: 1990 - In the Beginning...

:: Around about the time I first heard Van Halen's solo on Beat it, together with that GREAT riff from the Wrigleys commercial, All Right Now by Free, I had always wondered what it would be like to play guitar.
From that point on it took about a further 5 or 6 years before I was exposed to Jimi Hendrix's Voodoo Chile and that was it. What the hell was that guitar sound.. whats a Wah Wah ?! whos Eric Clapton ?!! Well, after exposing myself to Hendrix and Cream/early Clapton, I finally decided to learn the guitar.

:: It was 1990, and digging around in the loft I happened across my sisters old classical guitar. Many afternoons were spent with that thing, and with an action about a foot away from the fretboard it was my first taste of guitar.. Painful, slow and totally incoherant sounds eminated from that guitar back then, but we perservere dont we..

:: Many school friends were guitar players, so the usual questions like, barre chords, how you hold a pick, amps, effects etc.. were the main focal point of school.. after hooking up my keyboard at home to endlessly run thourgh a 12 bar sequence, the sisters classical just wasnt cutting it, so a fender copy was on the cards.. my first of many music shop purchases, Bah Humbug!


:: 1991 - Roger Who ?!

:: Now with a Fender squire in tow, I set about learning every song I could, including The Shadows, Hendrix and Clapton.. But it just wasnt happening! A quick but brief meeting with what was to be a great friend and huge early inspiration Roger jennings, and he put me on the right path..

:: This guy was freakin' awesome.. He taught me how to sight-read, play all the chords, and was a great help.. various projects were formed from my meeting with this great man, including a mini-band project at the local Scout hut with Rogers offspring and Metal-heads Vinnie and Louie.. Ahh heady days.. how many versions of Purple haze did we do Vinnie ?!!

**:: To Date - August 10th 2007 - Roger Jennings caught up with me finally at one of my solo gigs, it was good to see him after all these years.. hes still better than me !!


:: 1992 - Doctor Hook and the Wah ?!


:: Just like Billions of other guitarists, I was hooked... Big style.. The guitar became such an important part of my life that it took precidence over everything else, including college and going out.. I became a wood-shedder locking myself away for years, the guitar never leaving my side..

:: Jimi Hendrix pretty much dominated my early years as a guitar hero, he can still to this day amaze and inspire me, so I guess I'd have to say it was him that topped the rest.. sure Clapton was God, no question, but Hendrix just Owned on stage, and on records he was just other-wordly to me..

::After playing for about 2 years ( this was now 1993 ) I kinda reckoned I knew it all.. After being in my own little world beavering away to every Beatles, Hendrix, Clapton tune I was ready to unleash onto the world my new found dazzling fingers of fire.. at least thats what I thought anyways..

:: The opportunity arose for me to play guitar at my school in a muscial production of Romeo & Juliet, which would allow me to set myself a goal of finally playing in front of people.. scary stuff, but I soon took to it..

::Various tunes from the Everly Brothers, Stevie wonder and the zombies " shes not there " which I still play to this day were aired from a tatty old PA from my distortion pedal, right in the face of my History and Maths teachers.. that'll teach them !! ha...

:: But something happened when I played on stage, I felt relaxed and in control, more than ever.. The guitar allowed me to say something more meaningful than before and it led me to MANY more years of woodshedding, forever remembering those heady school musical days, fondly..

:: A quick trip to the local music store one day to check out these wonderful pedals on sale and i left with another overdrive pedal and my fave effect of all time.. the Jim dunlop Wah !! I could now play the intro to Voodoo Chile... man I sooo Rocked !

:: 1993 - Enter Sandman.. Paul Chisnell

:: Around 1993-1994 I started watching a local band called Crusader. It all happened by chance.. It was late one night and nowhere was open except a place called The Lord Nelson.. In we went and my mate then said to me "I know that guitar player with the curly hair !" we watched him play.. oooo.. he was using his little finger.. wow.. it all looked so effortless... I had to know more....

Every time the band played the Lord Nelson, I was there.. with Newcastle Brown Ale in hand headbanging away to this wierd guy using his little finger.. he used others, but at that time I could only use three !!

:: This left a Permanent mark on me.. this guy could play anything, any style, whatever he wanted, total control on the guitar.. wouldnt that be great to have.. to this day i still keep in touch with the man, and he still gigs around Eastbourne.. if you want to see a proper guitar player and not a pretend one. go see THE MAN.. Mr.Shredder.. lol

I finally met up with the man, and took informal lessons from him.. He was the guy on the end of the street that could play Satriani, Yngwie, Paul Gilbert licks, and Nuno tapping licks from hell.. you know the sort.. a billion notes a second with long alien like fingers.. Paul turned me onto so many GREAT players in such a short space of time and really connected me to so much theory and knowledge on those lessons, that I upped my playing from all the time to through the night as well..

:: For the next few years, Sweep picking, Speed picking, Anything FAST! ruled.. if it was flashy it was IN!
Steve vai, Metallica's Black Album, Joe Satriani, Yngwie Malmsteen were my staple, together with Van Halen and Whitesnake, and still Hendrix...

www.myspace.com/paulchisnell


:: 1994/1995 - Music, People, Places..

::1994.. A new music school had opened up a few years earlier in California called The Musicians Institute.. It was a feature on the South Bank Show.. After watching that and seeing how serious rock music could be taken, my mind was made up.. off to London I went..

:: I was going to take guitar lessons with Dave Kilminster at one point and work towards the Grade 8 rock school grades but decided I should move away and immerse myself in music for the next few years.. So a trip up to London and an audition later, I was in.. it was time to head off to " the smoke "..


:: Guitar Institute was a strange place.. Lots of guitarists all playing great, all pretending to like each other lol.. we all hated Jazz workshops but had to suffer them.. they were, to be fair, made more tolerable by Great teachers like Mario ( see pic ) and they did allow us to understand more about chords and theory on a much deeper level.. Mario was a great guy, another odd-ball.. he used to say things like " are you going to go home and practise your Licks ? your chops ? your Van Halen Riffs ? or do you want to stay here and learn about proper music ? " such a character.. " how bad do you want it ? " was his other catch phrase.. his accent was hilarious..


:: But he was a great guy, a super calm teacher, and he really did instill a good sense of discipline in me.. Many Cold winter mornings would be spent in the main teaching halls, with a click track and 30 odd guitarists all playing arpeggios and scales up and down the neck... His Harmony and Theory ruled, and I learned so many advanced Jazz concepts its a miracle I turned out to be a rock guitarist.. of sorts !

He would get old band pieces like Satin Doll, Man thats neat and Swinging on a star, and divide up the guitar class into groups all playing different parts that we had learnt. It sounded really intense all these unplugged electric guitars playing these old time jazz pieces.. but it was a great way of learning and im thankful of the experience..

:: I met, and was taught by some of the most fantastic people, and my time in London studying for my MI diploma was an extremely hard learning curve, which I remain focused on to this very day.. It also made me understand that these schools dont churn out clones. Rather, if you're a good player to start with you'll retain your identity at the other end.. This chap here, Ivor, what a guy, great jazz player..


:: Ivor was responsible for the Kellogs Pop tarts ad ( "so hot theyre cool !!" ) and the 'Holiday' theme music on BBC... He was another huge inspiration.. Other notable teachers were Nestor Garcia and Nico, a fantastic Bass player who always used to get me on the reading.. " good solo, but when are you gonna learn to read music ?!! ". Those guys whipped me into shape, so I owe the College that much. Here's a few more people who inspired me...









:: Whilst at the Guitar Institute I developed, through the Ear training classes, my ability to understand relative pitch and harmony through listening.. this guy ( see pic ) Eran Kendlar, taught me how to do this.. an amazing teacher who let me open my mind and ears to all kinds of musical ideas.. but he was a little odd.. in a good way !.. Ear training allowed me to listen to music in greater depth and transcribe it.. so no more TAB books for me.. not that I owned any to start with.. he used to call me .. " the man with the golden ears!" I loved transcribing and listening out for the different parts...




:: Merlin, a great guy, who I took some private lessons from.. He taught rhythm guitar and how to drink 10 pints in the local.. Many happy memories were spent with this man in the pub... and in class too..








:: 1995 - People you may have heard of... or not..

:: Whilst at the Guitar Institute I was fortunate to meet and watch some really good, and famous, guitarists.. notably Jennifer Batten of Michael Jackson fame.. this was of course the mid 90's and Oasis were top of the tree but I was still holding fast, Rock/Metal was my goal.. These players helped me to keep that dream alive..

::Over the course of this year, I met Joe satriani, Steve vai, Yngwie Malmsteen, on numerous occasions and a GREAT guy!.. I also Jammed with Wurzel from Motorhead The Ace of Spades no less !! Chad Smith from the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Shania Twains Drummer and great sessioneer, Winston ( see right pic ).. quite a few people, all the while learning from them, and absorbing what it was that they had that made them good musicians..

:: One great guy was Bernard Purdie.. he used to come in and do Funk Live Workshops.. he once commented on my playing " you were Dymanite, but when it came to reading the notes, you were scared like a rabbit" ( big laughs from the class ) .. But the sheer immense personality he had, drew people to him.. He would always say things like " I Wanna Know where 1 is..! " such a great drummer, solid and tight..







:: 1996 - Graduation Day

:: The year came and went.. and all too quickly.. the last few months were spent really digging in and getting on with brain crunching 10 hour a day practise sessions.. I can still hear the metronome ticking away in that little room I rented in London... But, I managed to graduate with Honours and was left feeling extremely excited by the whole thing.. a magical journey, but it SHOULD have been longer.. I have sent many students off to other music colleges like the ACM and BIMM over the years, and some have done better than others.. My opinion is that these schools are GREAT if you know what YOU want out of them at the end..

:: My grad certificate doesnt mean much to most people, but to me it was a testament as to how hard I could push myself as a guitarist, playing different styles, understanding all those Jazz concepts.. most of it has seeped through to my regular guitar playing.. and after all these years I have to say it did make some difference to my guitar playing.. for the better..

:: Like I was told at Graduation Day, The real hard work comes when you're out in the big wide world making a living being a musician..



:: The Graduation Party was a mixture of Playing, Drinking and talking.. meeting up with old friends and mingling with new ones.. I felt a closing of an ERA.. and the beginning of a new one.. I had done gigs before but in London at 18, it was a scary place.. my LIVE Pub/Club scene days were about to open its doors, and I was about to pay my dues.. I had no idea what lay ahead.. Fun Fun and more Fun ! At this graduation party I started to become friends with a GREAT guy and excellent bass player, Gareth Morgan.. None more Welsh, but it didnt harm his playing and wicked sense of humour.. he actually got me involved in some teaching at the Guitar Institute, and at 18 you can imagine how scary that was !


:: 1997 - Metalworks

:: Around this time I met up with a band called Metalworks, and it featured amongst others, Les Binks from Judas Priest and my good friend Tony Parsons from the very early Iron Maiden days.. We used to play everything from O'neils pubs, to HUGE outdoor Biker rallies.. to residencies down at Camden town.. Great fun and I met some amazing people along the way.. Including future band members..













:: I was intent on gigging my brains out.. with my new found knowledge on guitar, Tony Parsons modified my old Marshall head for more gain and we were away.. no stone was left unturned.. Most memorable moments are playing Bad Bobs in Covent Garden to those Hastings Rock Festivals. I learned a lot from this band, especially from Tony, who was a fantastic classic rock player.. we used to talk endlessly about equipment and guitars both before and after gigs..

Some funny phrases came out of this band.. notably " thats live music, just get on with it" and " hurry up,were late!" from a particularly cheery chap called Stephan.. which are still in use to this day..


:: It was during one of these Metalworks gigs, on a cold monday night, that someone came up to me and said " I was wondering if you would like to play on my album dude ? " in a half American accent.. his name was John Kutselini, a fantastic vocalist and composer, and his band was, and still is, the amazing Biomechanical .

:: During the summer of 1999 I hauled myself up to his studio to play on his Demo CD " Eight Moons ".. I had a lot of fun with John and have nothing but happy memories...He bought me a hell of a lot of Pasta for doing that Demo CD, but im really grateful for the opportunity. John has never been anything but nice to me.. a great chap..

:: When John finally wanted to put together a band I recommended Jamie Hunt a mate of mine from the Guitar Institute days to join his touring band and they went onto to great things..


:: 1999 - Preacher back in the day..

:: The band I ended up in next was Preacher with Mike.. Im still in this band to this day, and it continues to bring me a great deal of fun.. It began with a few rehersals with a drummer called Pete Cowan. We sort of carried on from where Metalworks left off, but with some new members onboard.. We would still play similar style venues and out of this we formed other bands notably the sabbath...













:: Preacher is a Classic Rock outfit and has had many laughs along the way... We used to drive around in this old Council van named " the magic bus " and used to get pulled in it all the time.. one time we were frisked late at night in Walthamstow all out of our boxes.. apart from the driver of course.. but we did have a giggle..









:: 2000-2006 :: The Sabbath

:: This is a tribute band to Black sabbath and Ozzy I was in.. It featured Mike from Preacher on vocals ( 2000 - 2004 ) and Jim Gardner on Drums, and last but not least, Pete "wolfy" Webb on Bass.

:: The Format and line up changed in 2004 when Mike left to concentrate on Preacher, and we had a new arrival on the scene from bonny Scotland, Jim mackenzie on vocals..

:: For 6 years The Sabbath were THE UK's no.1 tribute to all things Black Sabbath and Ozzy, and whatever the guys decide to do in the future I wish them all the best..


:: We played hundreds of shows and tours all across the UK, Isle of Wight, and Scotland...

:: We played at the now-famous Braintree Rock Festival on September 2nd 2006, and everyone agreed it was a great atmosphere..

:: Lots of top times were had in The Sabbath, fond memories were had all round, and I wish the guys all the best in their future endeavours..


:: 2006 - 2007 :: From Preacher To Solo Gigs...


:: Preacher carried on with a new line-up From January to September 2007...

:: Mike on vocals
:: Bins on Bass
:: Pete Cowan on Drums

:: After Playing with Preacher all these years, and in bands in general, towards the middle part of 2007 I decided to finally start writing and producing my own vocal based rock tunes. I felt I had done my apprenticeship of 10 years in various bands througout the years, and wanted to do my own thing too give myself more freedom as a musician, and er... singer... So I left all my cover bands and started heading out on my own...








:: 2007 - New Beginnings.. New Friends.. and Solo Gigs!

:: In March this year, my current partner, Karen took me to see a great guitarist and musician Mick West.. he was playing solo.. with backing tracks.. when she told me I shuddered.. oh no, cheesy or what! lol, instant karaoke feeling.. HOWEVER all was to be revealed.. I walked in the pub.. how cool was that, It Felt and Sounded every bit as good as a full band.. Not only that the whole place was alive, people dancing and clapping, really enjoying themselves.. After seeing this I got very excited at the prospect of playing anywhere, anytime, being able to load up my car at the last minute and go and entertain.. But how ? What the HECK !! MIDI !! noo... lol ..one word kept popping into my head to start with.. "cheesy" ... I remembered bits from years ago with a Commodore Amiga but that was it... However at Mick's gig it was far from cheesy, and unnatural sounding, instead, it sounded fresh and dynamic, and I could see another new project forming before my eyes... Solo Gigs !!

:: After lots of meetings with Mick, and a million helpful emails Mick helped me cobble together the perfect solo rig, utilising a crossover system that enabled me to have a very full sound, with minimum of fuss... Great job old bean ! Cheesy ? Nahh.. Compact, and reliable, and self-contained, and practical.. you betcha !!! I instantly grew fond of this idea...

:: Mick slowly started egging me on to sing, whenever I was round his studio, and one day I tried it, and liked it.. After having sung backing vocals behind singers for years before it was nothing new to me, but it felt wierd to say the least.. As for playing solo gigs.. EEEEKKKK !!! that was a very scary thought... A Thumbs up from Mick meant I had a new found confidence with singing.. It could'nt be that bad! lol could it.. no, thank god... somone once told me, "if you can talk, you can sing.." perhaps that guy had'nt seen X-factor then .. haaaa ..

:: On a cold, rainy night in Maldon one day in March, Mick hooked me up with a venue called the Jolly Sailor.. they were looking for a solo Rock guitarist, and the Date was set May 26th.. a cancellation.. I was a bit nervous.. and it was made all the more nerve-racking by me playing an electro-acoustic set at the start.. everyone was so quiet.. lol.. Isnt this what everyone wanted to hear ... " how about some Jimi Hendrix " somone asked... and after that the night went really well, lol !! Damm if only id have opened up with Purple Haze !!! " Scout Hut " style from all them years ago haa haa.

:: If it wasnt for my chance meeting with Mick West, I might never have discovered my voice, and found out about how rewarding doing solo gigs can be.. If nothing else, It was another string to my bow... So you should go see a real musician in action - www.mickwest.co.uk - Cheers me ole mucka!

:: 2007 - Summer - Rehearsals, Carl Seager, and a blast from the past

:: Also around this time, I was really stuck for rehearsing and needed somewhere, and funnily enough, the guy on the right in the photo (** TOP BLOKE Carl Seager ! ) had just the thing, a fully built recording studio in his back "garden", with a few hours spare one day a week... woo-hoo... so off I trundled every thursday morning quietly figuring out how the hell all this new solo gear went together to do what Mick West was doing.. lol.. I say 'quiet' but I do remember being very loud !!!

:: I'd also gotten hold of a real nice camcorder, so I was able to grab my performances out there on YouTube so people could actually see what I do, very cool !.. to this day I still make videos as much as I can.. Keep it steady Carl !

:: Carl Seager used to play bass with the Steve Linton band, and I had the pleasure of playing with him at one of his Rock Synchrony events with Martin Newell and Andy Trill of Fish on June 30 this year... Carl's also another Monster guitar player with a very cool vibrato, and tasty phrasing.. Another Fine Musician.. he even plays drums !

:: And so it began.. I took up the gauntlet of singing and playing live on my solo gigs, and after a few months of rehearsals, I slowly started introducing a vast array of cover tunes and instrumental tunes in my set...

:: The reaction was good, and to this day its working out really good.. so no real complaints there.. Also in that photo was my old friend from my Metalworks days, Tony Parsons.. he popped up at one of my solo gigs because he could'nt believe how I was using a laptop live.. lol .. what a blast from the past, was tops to see him again...

:: My decision to go solo was not an easy one, I have always loved playing in bands, but in order for me to play regularly, and have more control over my original songs, it simply had to be done.. This way I can now devote 100% of my time to writing and performing my own original songs live... But truth be told, I've never been this excited about a project since I started playing Guitar!! This should keep me amused for years !!...

:: 2007 - Winter - Work, Work and more work! - but im not complaining!

- :: So now, towards the end of 2007 and beyond, and I mainly play solo gigs.. and love it.

:: I also still continue to teach, and concentrated on getting a huge archive of online downloads, some of which I have already started to put online readily available for free to anyone who happened to come to my new website..

:: My Instrumental albums got with a Distribution label and were subsequently put up onto iTunes, and other Major download stores for digital download.. which was nice..

:: I also completed my first solo in-depth radio interview with KRBS 107.1FM radio in California, and also in May I completed a full length BBC interview with Sue marchant.. both of which you can check out HERE

:: My main focus was to perform live as much as possible as a solo artist and to continue making and enjoying my own music.

:: It really does feel like the closing of an old chapter, and the opening of a new one.. Again having the option of doing solo gigs now really does give me the chance to allow the future to present itself to me in a new way.

::Recently Ive been playing everywhere from pubs, Clubs, Exclusive cocktail lounges.. anywhere and everywhere.. But who knows where the next year will take me...

:: But I like this idea of allowing the future to "present" itself to me, because we can never be sure what will happen next.. all I know is that music continues to bring me a great deal of joy and sense of achievement!! oh as well as Budweiser !! I wish you all a Very Merry Xmas and Happy New Year...

:: Hopefully see you all on the road at a gig soon, If you do manage to come along, come up and say Hi !

:: 2008 - January/May **BIOG UPDATE - THE LIVE CD's and GIGGING...

:: 2008 started off busier than I have ever been.. I remain focused on playing live as much as possible with my solo show. I have 3 new live CD's available on this site and at gigs which are raw as hell, but completely live and are very popular..

:: My singing has improved loads, and my guitar playing, from playing with the backing tracks has tightened up.. which is a very odd thing to say..

:: I still believe that you cant beat a good live band, but from the audiences perspective and my own, but I am always surprised at the nice comments I recieve at gigs about my sound and set-up..

:: Last year [2007] saw a trend with some venues that only have bands on and not solo artists.. this trend is now going in the opposite direction for some venues, and im pleased to say that I go down just as well as a Full live band.. after It's still me playing the guitar and singing LIVE!.. I get bookings now from "Live Music Venues" all the time, sometimes favoured over bands, due to their unreliability.. The Woodman in Halstead is one example, and The Kings Head, Rochford.. both book bands all the time, yet have had me on quite regularly during 2007/2008.


:: Live CD's - Like I said earlier, March saw me produce 2 live cd's and one in April.. These capture a good cross section of my cover songs right at this point.. Theyre called LIVE 1, 2, 3 rather unimaginative, but to the point.. I thought it would be good to not only offer my Studio CD's but something "LIVE" in feel.. that people could grab at gigs, and put in their cars on the way home to listen to..

:: As well as being the main ( and only ) member of the solo shows, ive also learned a heck of a lot about management, liasing with venues/promoters/pubs, and how to get around the MANY obstacles that are sometimes in the way...

:: A new approach to my image/advertising was starting to spring up too.. I wanted to move away from the "ROCK/METAL" image of the old band days, so you will be seeing more "REAL" photos of me very soon.. Its all part of a conscious effort to get myself more mainstream, as nowadays I mostly am still a Rock guitar player, hard-edged blues is starting to make its way into my playing too..

:: I also watched a very moving Dick Dale video on youtube that highlighted the pitfalls of signing with a major label etc.. This totally inspired me and, as I also play Misirlou live as one of my main encores, had more impact on me as a musician.. GO DICK DALE !! - or should that be DICK DALE FOR PRESIDENT !!


:: Who knows what the rest of 2008 will bring, but well leave you in Steve's own words..

“..Ive been very lucky...”

:: With 3 live cd’s out, and two studio albums and a healthy solo gig schedule, im able to play solo gigs throughout 2007/2008...never be complacent..ever.. and i never take it for granted.. im extremely grateful to be healthy, alive(!), and creatively developed enough to express myself as a musician and artist....

..Playing solo gigs these next few years will allow me to hone my guitar playing and voice into something recognisable and original.. then I can start working towards incorporating my own blues/rock tracks into the sets..

..being busy with lots of gigs has taken a lot of luck, and hard work, my main concern is to maintain what I have, both in my personal life, and professional career and grow from there..

....I sometimes think back when I was in bands, the time it took to discover the benefits of going it alone, I should have done this years ago at 17.. but when youre young you dont listen, plus the technology wasnt there in the early 90's even, to do what Im doing now.."