'Dad's ashes are in the neck of my guitar'

Musician Sam Orr (behind) said he had never been asked to do such a job before but he wanted to make sure it was a fitting tribute to the dad of his friend, Mark Wood (pictured at the front)

A musician whose late dad was his "biggest supporter" has had his ashes worked into the neck of his guitar so he can still be with him at his future gigs.

Mark Wood, who has played with a number of metal bands, said his dad would travel miles to see his gigs but he died of a heart attack at the age of 68 on Christmas Day 2022.

He came up with the idea of working some of his dad's ashes into the neck of his Fender Telecaster so his dad, Keith Wood, could join him on stage.

Mr Wood, 37, approached fellow musician and close friend Sam Orr, from Chester, who agreed to do this for him.

Mr Wood, from Beverley, East Yorkshire, said his dad's death had left a "big hole" in the family.

He said his sister, Katie, had some of his ashes turned into jewellery, which left Mr Wood wondering what he could do as a fitting tribute to his dad.

Keith Wood, who was a retired teacher from Beverley, taught his son to play guitar and came along to gigs in places as far afield as Glasgow, London and Berlin, his son said.

"Dad was my biggest supporter. He just used to rock up at gigs and we'd just have a beer and a catch up," he said.

Keith Wood taught his son guitar and went on to teach others how to play, his son says

"I wish dad was still here but doing this makes me feel like he's always going to be here with me and you have always got your memories.

"This way he will still be with me at all the shows and this has given me a sense of closure."

Mr Wood said working ashes into the dotted inlays on the neck of a guitar "was something that I did not know could be done" but he knew who to ask about this.

He approached his close friend and fellow musician Sam Orr, who runs Sam's Guitars in Chester, Cheshire, and who also repairs guitars.

Sam Orr said he had never been asked to do this before and it was an honour as he had also known Keith Wood.

"At first, I was just wondering how it would work, then the more I thought about it and did a few test runs on a spare guitar neck I had, I realised it wouldn't be too difficult to complete it," said Mr Orr.

He said he mixed the ashes with a special glue as part of the painstaking work.

Sam Orr said it was an honour to do the work as a tribute to his friend's father

Mr Wood, who is retraining to be a rescue diver, said watching Mr Orr do this "was an emotional experience".

"We put some music on in the background and had a couple of beers and made a thing of it," he said.

"Sam did the work while the shop was shut and was so caring and careful and really respectful."

Mr Wood said he had only just felt ready to play the guitar and, when he did, "it felt great".

"The first thing I did was play a song that he liked - Stranglehold by Ted Nugent," he said.

"He always asked me to play that as a kid."

Mark Wood has played in bands including Manchester's Winterfilleth and he is currently a member of Impurist.

He said he hoped to play the guitar at a gig in Hull on 18 July.