Northern Guitars

Anybody that knows me knows that I am not musically gifted, that aside I do seem to spend an awful lot of time in music related shop. Over the years it has led to an appreciation of guitars and guitar players. Northern Guitars looks very unassuming from the outside, hidden down Call Lane.
This is a shop for those that are serious about their instrument. Quality of quantity seems to be their philosophy and the walls are lined with the sort of guitars to make any guitar buff go weak at the knees. They have the best selection of acoustic and electric guitars in Leeds as far as I am concerned. It is the place to go if you want completely honest and accurate advice and don’t want to feel pressured into buying something. Upstairs they also do service guitars so if something goes wrong this would always be my first point of call for anything guitar related.

Northern Guitars is a retro-​looking little shop with a refreshingly genuine feel. The bloke working there when I last popped in had the appearance of an authentic aging rocker and had an amiable, relaxed style of customer service with a cheeky helping of banter. Northern Guitars is not as enthusiastically stocked as Music Ground, and their guitar strap section must have been a tenth of the size, but this just adds weight to the feeling that the guys at Northern Guitars are all about the music, not the flashy accessories.
They stock some really beautiful guitars, a good range of pedals and pretty much everything else you could need including a huge range of second-​hand items.

This shop is fantastic for anything guitar related in Leeds. I first came across Northern guitars via a T-​shirt my friend was wearing. I used to work in a bar on Call Lane, Dr Wu’s, and my friend who owned it was wearing a Northern Guitars T-​shirt. I went to find out more and discovered, only a few doors down, this awesome shop.
Firstly, they sell almost anything related to electric guitars — new and used electric guitars, amplifiers, effects pedals and so on — and at much less of a price than their close neighbours Music Ground. I once went in looking for a Cry Baby wah wah pedal, with instruction from my Dad *specifically* not to get a Japanese one as they make a ‘bow wow’ sound not a ‘wah wah’ sound (honestly, it’s true!) and to my delight they had the exact one he had advised me to purchase. It wasn’t even a modern version, it was the exact pedal from the era that I needed. They even do repairs on your equipment — awesome.
Not only was that fantastic, but they also have another entire shop upstairs. This one, Northern Acoustics, is specifically for acoustic guitars. Despite the shop effectively being small sized room the owner, Val, has filled it with some of the loveliest guitars you could shop for in Leeds. Amongst others, brands include Martin, Faith and Hofner. I would tell you more but the last time I popped in he and my Dad talked guitars for so long I almost fell asleep!
Anyway. The point is — guitarists of Leeds. This is your home.