Neil was born on 23rd August 1960 in Birmingham. He lived in Kings Norton and later in Hall Green, where he gave his first guitar performance at Lakey Lane junior school aged 9.

From butcher to bass player
He attended Yardley Grammar School where he achieved the distinction of becoming house rugby captain and a member of the first XV. Neil briefly played double bass in the school orchestra until being asked to leave after spinning it on it's spike during a classical rendition. He was, however, finally allowed to perform some of his own compositions prior to leaving school at the age of 15 with one O level Metalwork and a fire extinguisher. He went on to study for his City & Guilds exams at the Birmingham school of Jewellery and Silversmithing.

Neil's collection of pre-musical jobs is the stuff of Rock & Roll. Apart from being a jeweller, he worked in a butcher's shop, was an aircraft cleaner, grave digger and builder's labourer before striking it lucky as a coffee vending machine service engineer, where he worked out that he could use the firm's van to carry his gear to shows at night.

Britain's youngest pedal steel player
Neil's first professional band was called 47th Street. He also graced Chug-A- Lug, a country band in which he played guitar and pedal steel. He was reported by County Music Magazine to be Britain's youngest professional pedal steel player at that time.

He then spent a while touring the U.K. playing for various Birmingham based bands including Beretta and Broadway 66 (imaginatively named after the famous Birmingham chip shop.) He then teamed up with Fairport Convention's Dave Pegg in The Cocktail Cowboys playing guitar, bass guitar, pedal steel and mandolin.

Session work
In 1986 Neil was given the chance to visit the U.S.A. He went to Phoenix, Arizona and played for three months on the morning show at Radio Station KLSX, which was presented by U.S. celebrity Bob Bose Bell. Whilst in Phoenix, Neil was also busy finding session work, not only as a guitar player but also for his distinctive bass voice (a family heirloom inherited from his grandfather.)

Arriving back in the U.K. and actively pursuing a career playing classical guitar, Neil was asked by Mike Sheridan to join Birmingham 60's legends Mike Sheridan & The Nightriders with whom he spent 3 years before they also became Joe's backing band The Bruvvers. He was also a regular on Radio WM programme, The Barmaid's Arms, which was the brainchild of Birmingham celebrity and T.V. presenter Malcolm Stent. Neil also played pedal steel guitar on the soundtrack to the 1980's American High School dance craze film, "Shag."

Neil joined Joe on a full time basis when invited by John Taylor to form a new and permanent Bruvvers line up with Phil Capaldi in 1991.

Career highlights
Neil lists his career highlights as playing with Fairport Convention at the Cropredy Festival in 1996. Playing onstage with two other former Nightriders guitarists Jeff Lynne & Roy Wood at Mike Sheridan's 50th party and playing The Hackney Empire, Royal Albert Hall and London Palladium with Joe.
He was pleased to be asked by Sam Brown to record bass vocal on her "43 Minutes" and "Box" albums and to accompany Joe to Nashville to record on his new album...