BEN EGGLESTON

He'll reel you in with soaring, bluesy melodies then cast you off into the stratosphere on a flurry of pure rock. He's only 31yrs old yet has been playing guitar for 23yrs. He's probably played your town a couple of times yet you havn't heard his name before. So just who is Ben Eggleston ?Born in 1975 in Penrith, Cumbria Ben was always going to have music in his life. His father (a bass player) was in the middle of recording his bands first album in his basement home studio when Ben arrived. Ben didn't pick up a guitar and play though until he was eight but once he did, he hit the ground running. His farther introduced him to guitar music by first giving him a copy of Jimi Hendrix's Smash Hits and then further expanded his mind with Van Halen 1."When I first heard Hendrix I just stood still" Ben later told me. "I just stood motionless for the whole of side one, flipped it over and did the same for side 2. As soon as it had finished I flipped it over and played it again, only this time I remember juming around my bedroom". When asked about his initial reaction to Van Halen Ben said "I'd listened to Hendrix for about six months when Dad came upstairs and gave me a copy of VH1. It blew my mind !" he laughs. When asked about his core influences Bens response was " I was so moved by those two albums that no matter who my latest influence is, I always tend drift back to playing a mixture a Hendrix and Van Halen. They just made such a big impact on me when I was a kid y'know?". Throughout school Ben was in a string of bands and by 15 he was making his first ventures onto the stage in pubs and clubs. At 17 he was asked to replace Martin McDonald in the Penrith band Big Jake. "It was a pretty scary time for me as I was the youngest by five years. I answered this ad in the local paper and suddenly BANG!, I'm in the recording studio within a month and then out gigging accross the country 2 weeks later. We worked so hard in that band. Up and down the motorway in the back of a carpet fitters van 3 nights a week and then rehearsals 2 other nights, I think my parents thought I'd moved out. Our manager was working realy hard for us too and I remember him taking a copy of our CD over to LA to play for the guys at Geffen and East West". By this time Grunge had gripped the world and rock bands with guitar solo's were not considered viable by the major labels but it wasn't all bad news from the LA trip. " I was 21yrs old and able to tell my mates that my CD was being played in the Los Angeles Hard Rock Cafe and on a couple of the local rock radio stations. I felt like a super star" he chuckles.By 1998 Big Jake was no more and Ben relocated to Manchester to be closer to his now Wife Sam. " I was realy bummed out when that band finaly came to an end. I'd played in just about every club in the UK, met a lot of interesting people and had a realy good time so yeah, naturaly I was a bit down". I wasn't long after moving to Manchester though that Ben had found himself another gig. "I kinda joined Chevron by accident" he says, scratching his forehead. "Chevron were essentialy a Manc indie band and I'm a rock guitarist. I made friends with the guys and thought what the hell, I'll give it a bash". With Ben onboard as a songwriter Chevron took somewhat of a rockier edge and enjoyed some local success on the Manchester scene. " We were making a bit of a name for ourselves but in all honesty something just wasn't sitting right for me. There were drugs and hangers on, line up changes and poor organisation. Eventualy it just stopped being fun and I wanted to continue playing rock music whilst the rest of the guys were taking it more towards the indie vibe. I left after just 18 months".Fast forward to present day and Ben, his Wife and baby daughter are now back home in Cumbria. "Oh yeah, I'm happier than ever mate. I've set up my own business and also started a fun covers project (Breeze) with my Dad on bass and my old mate (Rob Breeze from Big Jake) on drums. We've just been having a laugh covering Whitesnake, Rainbow, Thin Lizzy etc. It's realy relaxed and fun". When asked what the future holds for him Ben replied "I'd like to get myself an agent or a manager or something. I want to put myself out there and let the industry know I'm available y'know what I mean? Bands are always having line up changes and record companies are always looking to put projects together. Guitarists are ten a penny but good guitarists are hard to find. I'm in a position now with my playing where I could jump into any situation, be it learn a set to go out on tour or come up with ideas for somebodies studio project. I'm confident and comfortable enough with my style that I could just fit right in, y'know? That's why I'm trying to get out there and put myself about a bit".------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------

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