The Repair Shop experts worked on a guitar this week and its owner got emotional as he heard it played for the first time in decades.
During Wednesday (September 23) afternoon’s episode of the BBC One programme, Pete came into the shop with his son, Tom.
What was the story behind the guitar on The Repair Shop?
They brought with them an old guitar that belonged to Pete’s late father.
He said: “What we have here is my dad’s old guitar, which he played in the late-1940s and ’50s.
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“It means quite a bit to me. In the mid-60s, when I was about 12 or 13, my dad taught me the basics of how to play… on this very guitar.
“It is [important to me]. It’s my only link back.”
Pete also said that his father used to play the instrument for him at bedtimes, instead of reading a story.
When they returned to see the handiwork a specialist guitar restorer had done, they were blown away.
It’s more like my dad was playing it, rather than when I was playing it. Emotional.
Touching the strings, Pete said: “It’s got a nice ring to it. The last time I heard it played was in the 1970s. That’s a long time ago!”
The instrument looked good as new. Tom, who had never played it properly before because of its former poor condition, gave it a whirl.
He plugged it in and strummed out a soft melody, his dad watching on in silence.
His ‘one link’ with his dad’s music
When he finished, Pete said: “That now is the one link back to my dad and his music. Yes [it’s tangible]… you can touch it, feel it, play it.”
His eyes filled with tears and he was comforted by The Repair Shop star Jay Blades.
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Afterwards, Pete revealed how hearing it played by another person took him back to his childhood, and hearing his late dad strum it.
He said: “Hearing it from the front of the guitar. It sounds strange, but when you play a guitar, you’re behind it and the sound goes forward. So it’s more like my dad was playing it, rather than when I was playing it. Emotional.”
– The Repair Shop airs Wednesdays at 4.30pm on BBC One, with a repeat episode shown later at 8pm.
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