1. Alan Murphy holding his ’62 Squier Strat with the other members of Fender’s Hot Squad
PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN HILL
Talk
to any guitarist who was around in the early to mid-80s about Alan Murphy and you’re certain to get an enthusiastic response. In fact, it would also be fair to say that younger players who discover his work now are just as impressed. Alan was an in-demand session player, rather than a household name. But that suited him just fine – he was motivated by a love of music, not the spotlight. Nevertheless, his talent and style became duly renowned in industry circles.
Not only did Alan play for Kate Bush, Go West, Level 42, Scritti Politti, Mike +The Mechanics, Berlin, Hans Zimmer and Trevor Horn among a host of others, he also worked extensively with Fender’s John Hill (director at London’s AR&D Centre) as a tone consultant, demonstrator and content artist until his untimely passing in 1989. “Alan was a major part of turning around people’s perception of CBS-era Fender into what post-CBS Fender became,” John tells us today. “We created the ‘Fender Hot Squad’ and toured all over the UK and Europe telling the Fender story through the music of every Fender era, from country and rockabilly to rock ’n’ roll, rock, prog and punk. Alan’s amazing playing and phenomenal sound turned heads wherever he went.”