European Beat: Is Bury Saint-Edmunds the New Home of the Blues?

Can a British-made acoustic guitar brand sell the blues back to Americans?

It seems like a tall order, but that’s the aim of burgeoning UK manufacturer Nineboys and its collection of intentionally distressed parlour guitars which it is selling under the Tonk Bros brand name.

Designed and made in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk (that’s pronounced Suffock, folks) in partnership with a specialist wood manufacturing company, the guitars are made from EUTR and CITEs compliant superior grade birch ply. The top and back have the bracing integrated into the design for additional strength. The bracing pattern has also been designed to maximize volume whilst maintaining strength.

The top is even thinned down to under 2mm to replicate the thickness on original blues guitars from the early 1900s to 1930s replicating the original blues guitar sound.

Colour options include “Black Wear” and “Trashed” guitar with signs of being played over a period of time. They also come with a somewhat unique-looking carry case – a wooden box with rope handles.

In a UK market still somewhat stagnant and with retailers under pressure from both online retailers and big manufacturers making ever-tighter demands on stock commitments, other manufacturers and distributors are looking elsewhere to try and grow their business.

Nineboys boss Mark Ellis is undaunted by the challenge and believes the quality of instruments will make the difference: “Of course, this is a range inspired by those early blues parlour guitars and we have tried to stay as faithful as we can to those originals. We know Suffolk isn’t the Delta, but we’re offering great instruments with good margins and I genuinely believe that dealers looking for a point of difference will have success with these. It shouldn’t matter where they have originated.

"We are living proof that you can manufacture in the UK and come up with products that are imaginative and offer great value for dealers and customers alike.”

Of course, if you want them to sound really good you’re going to have to get yourself down to the crossroads to strike a deal of a different kind.