Steve Bradley

Steve Bradley is the Managing Director of Strings & Things Ltd in West Sussex England. His father, Rod, opened a small retail shop in 1963, which became a well know store, Top Gear on Denmark Street. Rod became friends with Cliff Cooper who would go on to establish Orange Amplifiers. Another legendary industry veteran worked with Rod in those early years, Ken Ardent. He opened Strings & Things in 1976 when he focused on selling instrument strings. The shop became a big success due to large part with their relationship with Ernie Ball, as well as Music Man products. Rod established his relationship with Music Man after meeting Leo Fender at the NAMM Show in 1976. The following year, five year old Steve joined his father to attend his first NAMM Show. He was packing strings in the warehouse growing up, working alongside other relatives as it very much is a family business. On the 50th anniversary of the store, Steve, now the Managing Director, sat down for his NAMM Oral History interview to help us capture the great story of Strings & Things Ltd!