Leon Hastwell profile picture

Leon Hastwell

Designs on Music!

About Me

Day job: Self-employed Graphic Designer, running my company Design Advantage: www.designadvantage.co.ukGuitar player of all styles, currently doing solo gigs/soirees, but on the look out for some musos to join force with, so if anyone wants to have a go let me know! Started classical guitar lessons aged 8, discovered electricity and volume aged 12, spent teens being a wannabe Van Halen/Steve Vai, went to Art College after A-Levels aged 19, got BTEC Nat. Dipl, and BA Hons Degree aged 25. Have worked in Design agencies as a full-time Art Director and Senior Designer, until taking the plunge at running my own business 'Design Advantage'. It won't make me rich, but it sure beats working for a living!

My Interests

Guitars, Record-collecting, 60's retro, Film, Countryside, Walking, Mountain-biking.

I'd like to meet:

Hell, most of my heroes are dead. I'd really like to see my Dad one last time... and Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart, Wes Montgomery, Orville Gibson, Iggy - many more I'm sure.

Music:

Yes... everything that's good and great! Give me more space, MySpace! In no particular order: Cream, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, early ZZ Top, Butterfield Blues Band, Electric Flag, Billy Cox's Nitro Function, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Band Of Gypsies, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Link Wray, Dick Dale & His Deltones, Screaming Lord Sutch, Deep Purple, Free, Small Faces, The Who, Humble Pie, The Stooges, The Doors, Love, Jefferson Airplane, Amon Duul II, Can, Leslie West, Mountain, Frank Zappa (& Mothers), Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, Jeff Simmons, Alice Cooper, Black Sabbath, Led Zepellin, Jeff Beck Group, Deviants, Pretty Things, Vivian Stanshall, Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, Traffic, Nirvana (UK), Zombies, Rolling Stones, Beatles, Elvis, Emmylou Harris, Neil Young, Crazyhorse, GNR, Velvet Revolver, Sex Pistols, The Damned, Blondie, Cult Soundtracks, Roy Buchanan, Wes Montgomery, Chet Atkins, Barney Kessell, Jim Hall, Joe Pass, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, John McLaughlin, Al Di Meola, Steve Vai, Eric Johnson, many many more.

Movies:

Withnail & I, This Is Spinal Tap, Bullitt, Barbarella, Dirty Harry, Pulp Fiction, They Call Me Mister Tibbs, Shawshank Redemption, Austin Powers x3, Se7en, Apocalypse Now!, Pi, Leon (of course!), Dumb & Dumber, Men In Black, Sudden Impact, Play Misty For Me, etc.

Television:

Guess so, but the usual stuff - Waking The Dead, Prime Suspect, Cracker, Holby City, Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty.

Books:

Lion The Witch & The Wardrobe, Alice In Wonderland, Mort, Nausea, Rock Biogs,

Heroes:

My late Dad. Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa.