That Was The Year... 2 012

London Olympics, Pageants & Garden Parties

THE MET OFFICE ISSUES severe weather warnings as heavy snow falls over much of the UK; then as the year develops they report that 2012 is the wettest year ever in England. A meteor is seen over most of the UK, and the Boat Race is halted mid-race as a man swims into the path of the on-coming boats. After the restart the oars collide and Oxford breaks a paddle so Cambridge goes on to win.

THE ALLAN HOLDSWORTH Signature guitar is released by Carvin. It’s a curious headless design with a chambered alder body that’s influenced by the Telecaster. Available with or without vibrato it features a pair of Carvin H22 humbuckers, an ebony fretboard and 24 frets beyond the zero.

OFF TO THAT GREAT GIG IN THE SKY are session guitarist Joe Moretti, Bert Weedon, Big Jim Sullivan, Jon Lord, Robin Gibb, Etta James, Davy Jones, Peter Jones (Crowded House), Whitney Houston, Earl Scruggs, Jim King (Family), Donna Summer, Bob Weston (Fleetwood Mac), Scott McKenzie, Andy Williams, Dave Brubeck, Ravi Shankar and composers Hal David and Joel Goldsmith. Others star bound are astronaut Neil Armstrong, Sir Bernard Lovell, and Sir Patrick Moore.

BRITAIN AT ITS BEST as it celebrates the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II with the Thames River Pageant and a musical garden party outside Buckingham Palace. London hosts the well organised 2012 Olympic Games where many medals are won by our sportsmen and women. The Shard building in London is officially opened, Chelmsford, St Asaph and Perth are granted city status and the Royal Albert Hall hosts the premiere of the latest James Bond film, Skyfall.

PEAVEY INTRODUCES THE PXD VICIOUS Devin Townsend Signature guitar. This through-neck seven-string beast features a V-style body, an ebony fingerboard, phosphorescent side dots and a 12th fret DT logo. It’s a hardtail with a single-coil and a humbucking pickup wired through a three-way selector switch with a solitary volume control. Naturally it comes in a custom coffin case!

GOVERNMENT DEBT EXCEEDS £1 TRILLION for the first time and the UK economy continues to shrink. With 2.7million people without jobs in January unemployment stands at a 17-year high. A second Greek debt bailout is agreed by Eurozone finance ministers and former Royal Bank of Scotland CEO Fred Goodwin loses his knighthood due to the near collapse of the bank back in 2008.

THE NEW CORNELL PEDALAMP offers portability and power in a very compact unit. This valve driven, single channel amp features a solid state rectifier, Gain, Bass and Treble controls with frequency response adjustment and a six-position Master Level switch. Robust and sporting a stainless steel finish this is one ultra smart cookie to take on the road.