Having performed in Oman for the troops, Geri flew into Dubai for a show at the Tennis Stadium. Full production, including, sound, lights, AV and staging was supplied. The whole show was then moved to the Abu Dhabi Hilton Hotel (100 miles South West of Dubai) where, apart from the high wind nearly blowing everything into the sea, everything went very well.
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John Henry's supplied a vintage "Beige" Wurlitzer (circa '72) to The Beautiful South for their performance on Parkinson. The new Radian micro wedges were also supplied. www.bbc.co.uk

Lots of backline was supplied for Top of the Pops which was being recorded at Riverside Studios. The location now moves to BBC TV Studios at Woodlane. www.bbc.co.uk/totp

World renowned guitar salesman and all-round 'nice guy' Jez Ayscough has joined The Attic sales team here at John Henry's, London.
Said Mr Ayscough on his start: "It's great to be working for such a diverse company, I'll learn a lot here" So if it's not nailed down, don't let the boy near it! Contact Jez for all your purchasing needs. jeza@johnhenrys.com

Well at least in the shape of a Soundcraft Pro Series 5 48/32 monitor console which had resided in The Dome for the few events that happened during the year of 2000. The deal was stuctured by Spencer Brookes of Marquee Audio and commented that "John drove a hard bargain but at the end of the day he has secured a brilliant console which is Soundcrafts leading live mixer" The console has already been used during the latest run of the "Later with Jools" series on BBC2.

And to hotter climes, our long standing office in Dubai, UAE has been rushed of it's feet. The team over there has to contend with Dubai Fashion Week starting on the 18th March. European and Indian models flying in for shows with DKNY, Oasis, Top Shop and River Island. It's a hard life in the desert - yeah, right!

With the fantastic climate in Dubai, many events are held outside. One of the biggest in the calendar is the Dubai Shopping Festival. With month long events and shows, John Henry's are doing various events throughout the festival as well as providing specialist lighting to the main streets that are participating.

In Dubai our operation takes care of full production including Lights, Sound, Structures and even security and toilets if need be. Recently we have covered The Abu Dhabi Women's Union 25th Anniversary, concerts in the middle of the desert for Arabian Adventures (did somebody bring an extension lead?) and the Jebel Ali Racecourse end of Season celebrations.
Overseas Department

Over in Flightcase land, Phil, Pino and the team have been doing some sterling work, making sure that those that tour are protected! If you just so happen to be at the load-out for bands such as The Divine Comedy, Idlewild, Kylie Minogue, Sting or Bjorn Again then you'll see our cases. A few new touches to finishes and materials used means that John Henry's cases are still by far the best you can get. All are designed by people that USE them, so thought and attention to detail are tools that we use every day. When another hire company needs to contract a case manufacturer who do they use? John Henry's of course. We'll tell you who that is in the next update!
Flightcase Department

On the subject of new products, The Attic, (with it's 10,000 sq ft sales floor) has just announced the launch of the new Peterson VS-1 Virtual Strobe Tuner. Those in the know will be familiar with Peterson as the world's finest strobe tuners, an indispensable part of a technician's toolkit. The VS-1 puts the accuracy of the strobe tuner in a portable box that can fit into a guitar case. Place an order for your now £199.00 (plus VAT) or why not go all the way and try out the fully featured 490 rackmount, or free standing tuner for £509.00 (plus VAT).

Now, as Europe's largest musical equipment hire company we get through our fair share of valves. With the valve market becoming more and more complex with suppliers all branding their own valves, which were actually made in the same place, it's become a nightmare to get consistent quality goods. So, we figured that we take the bull by the horns and market our own!

With the help of our technical consultant, Mike Hill (ex MD of Marshall, so he should know what he's talking about!) we've sourced our range of valves. So, instead of a supplier getting all their valves from one place, we've gone to different factories and chosen the best valve(s) from each. Factory A may produce the best 6550, yet Factory B's 12AX7 may knock the spots of Factory A's. You get the idea. You also get the best valves, hand picked by us!

Our range consists of:

6550M - £34.00
12AX7 / ECC83 - £10.21
5881 - £12.77
6L6GC - £14.89
EL34 - £14.89
5U4G - £14.89
6V6GT / 7174 - £10.85
OC3 - £6.38
GZ34 / 5AR4 - £17.02

(all prices in pounds Sterling, exclusive of VAT)

All are matched and guaranteed, mail order them, or simply pop in and grab some.

With all these people coming in to visit the Pro-Shop, the place has been getting rather jammed. All six rehearsal studios have been packed recently with some of the biggest names in the industry. If you want to find out why we're number one, please call our Studio Manager, Andrea Westwood on 020 7609 9181 or email her, andreaw@johnhenrys.com and she'll let you know.
Rehearsals