Made by Drew Colson
The man behind the craft
I’ve always found it difficult to focus on just one thing. Music, engineering, technology, design, woodworking and writing have all occupied large parts of my life, often at the same time.
For more than a decade, I’ve made my living through self employment, mostly as a writer and gigging musician. It’s a life that suits me, giving me the freedom to follow my interests, explore new ideas and make my own decisions about how I spend my days.
For more than a decade, I’ve made my living through self employment, mostly as a writer and gigging musician. It’s a life that suits me, giving me the freedom to follow my interests, explore new ideas and make my own decisions about how I spend my days.
01 / A COMMON THREAD
Needing to know why
I’ve always wanted to understand how things work, why they’re made a particular way, and whether I can do it myself. As a result, I’ve been pulling things apart, repairing, modifying and experimenting since I was a boy. Sometimes out of necessity, but mostly because I just want to see what’s possible.
Colson of York has grown from years of playing music, working with my hands and exploring guitar amplification. Today, it allows me to take my ideas all the way from first thoughts to a completely unique finished object, with my own designs and decisions shaping every stage.
But the story begins long before my first amplifier.
Colson of York has grown from years of playing music, working with my hands and exploring guitar amplification. Today, it allows me to take my ideas all the way from first thoughts to a completely unique finished object, with my own designs and decisions shaping every stage.
But the story begins long before my first amplifier.
An illustration of Drew’s childhood memory
02 / THE EARLY YEARS
It all started with music
I can’t remember how young I was when I found an abandoned cassette, tangled up in a hedge with tape hanging out of it.
I took it home, wound the tape back in and put it in my dad’s hi-fi system. I remember worrying about what I might hear. Maybe someone screaming or crying? Weird voices or some kind of strange recording?
Instead, I discovered music that sounded like nothing I’d ever heard before. It was wild, energetic and exciting.
It was punk rock.
I had no idea who they were, and it took me years to find out that it was The Skids.
By the time I was a teenager, I had my first electric guitar, a Marlin Sidewinder. My dad and I headed off in the car to buy it. I can’t remember where we went, but it felt like a long journey.
A couple of years later, its neck snapped, and I fitted a replacement. Not exactly guitar building, but it was a start.
Music has been a big part of my life ever since. I’ve played in cover bands, hosted musicians’ jam nights, written and recorded a few songs of my own, and spent more hours than I can count playing guitars.
Somewhere along the way, I became interested in what happens inside the amplifiers.
I took it home, wound the tape back in and put it in my dad’s hi-fi system. I remember worrying about what I might hear. Maybe someone screaming or crying? Weird voices or some kind of strange recording?
Instead, I discovered music that sounded like nothing I’d ever heard before. It was wild, energetic and exciting.
It was punk rock.
I had no idea who they were, and it took me years to find out that it was The Skids.
By the time I was a teenager, I had my first electric guitar, a Marlin Sidewinder. My dad and I headed off in the car to buy it. I can’t remember where we went, but it felt like a long journey.
A couple of years later, its neck snapped, and I fitted a replacement. Not exactly guitar building, but it was a start.
Music has been a big part of my life ever since. I’ve played in cover bands, hosted musicians’ jam nights, written and recorded a few songs of my own, and spent more hours than I can count playing guitars.
Somewhere along the way, I became interested in what happens inside the amplifiers.
03 / FAMILY INFLUENCES
Built to last
When I was about eight, my dad and grandad built an extension on my childhood home. My grandad was a bricklayer, and I remember watching him work.
He was adamant that things should be done properly. I remember him saying something along the lines of, “We’re not just throwing something up. This is going to last forever.”
That attitude stuck with me. I enjoy working with my hands and I’ve spent years repairing, modifying and making things, from cars and motorcycles to guitars and furniture. For me, there’s something satisfying about figuring out how things work, solving the problems and ending up with something you’ve made yourself.
I once saw a chair that I liked in a magazine. Instead of finding out where I could buy one, I decided to make it myself. That probably tells you a lot about how my mind works.
And I don’t pretend to be an expert at everything I try, but I do enjoy learning, experimenting and getting better at things. Whatever I’m making, I want to do it properly.
…I think my grandad would have appreciated that.
He was adamant that things should be done properly. I remember him saying something along the lines of, “We’re not just throwing something up. This is going to last forever.”
That attitude stuck with me. I enjoy working with my hands and I’ve spent years repairing, modifying and making things, from cars and motorcycles to guitars and furniture. For me, there’s something satisfying about figuring out how things work, solving the problems and ending up with something you’ve made yourself.
I once saw a chair that I liked in a magazine. Instead of finding out where I could buy one, I decided to make it myself. That probably tells you a lot about how my mind works.
And I don’t pretend to be an expert at everything I try, but I do enjoy learning, experimenting and getting better at things. Whatever I’m making, I want to do it properly.
…I think my grandad would have appreciated that.
The extension to Drew’s childhood home, being built by his dad and grandad
Drew playing live at the Field of Dreams festival in Yorkshire
04 / AN UNUSUAL PATH
From science to storytelling
My working life has taken a few turns.
I started out in a sweet factory, climbing around on tankers and collecting samples of chocolate for testing.
From there, I moved into R&D for a pharmaceuticals company, where I studied organic chemistry at university alongside my job. Over the years, I’ve also studied mechanical engineering, business and marketing, and worked across consumer electronics, engineering and technology.
Then I decided to go it alone. These days, I divide my time between writing for tech companies, playing gigs across Yorkshire, co-hosting a musicians’ jam night in York, and designing and building my amplifiers.
I started out in a sweet factory, climbing around on tankers and collecting samples of chocolate for testing.
From there, I moved into R&D for a pharmaceuticals company, where I studied organic chemistry at university alongside my job. Over the years, I’ve also studied mechanical engineering, business and marketing, and worked across consumer electronics, engineering and technology.
Then I decided to go it alone. These days, I divide my time between writing for tech companies, playing gigs across Yorkshire, co-hosting a musicians’ jam night in York, and designing and building my amplifiers.
05 / COLSON OF YORK
Something of my own
I’ve been experimenting with guitar amplifiers long before Colson of York became a business.
I began by reading about different amplifier technologies, learning about the electronics, experimenting with cabinet designs and discovering how all the individual elements influence the sound. Before long I was spending a ton of time on it.
In the summer of 2026, I decided to bring everything together under the name Colson of York.
My full name is Andrew Colley Watson, but my friends call me Drew. Take a bit from Colley and a bit from Watson, and you get Drew Colson.
Now, I’m designing and building bespoke guitar amplifiers that combine solid hardwood cabinetry, analogue amplification and my own approach to design. I’ve also taken the electronics further, developing my own original preamp circuitry rather than relying entirely on established amplifier technologies.
And when I say I’m building them, I really do mean me. Colson of York is just one person, working in a small workshop on the outskirts of York.
I source my hardwoods personally, sometimes visiting a local timber merchant in York to choose individual boards, and also using timber acquired from the Yorkshire countryside. Some of the sycamore I’ve used came from near Harrogate and has been in my possession for more than a decade.
Even the grille cloth is carefully selected, sourced from an English supplier of traditional heritage fabrics.
I have no employees, no production lines, automated processes or fixed cabinet templates. Every Colson of York amplifier is a unique, one-off creation, and every stage of its design and construction is entirely my responsibility.
And when someone takes a Colson of York amplifier home, or plays it on a stage, something I’ve spent months thinking about and working on becomes part of their musical life.
That’s a massively satisfying feeling.
I began by reading about different amplifier technologies, learning about the electronics, experimenting with cabinet designs and discovering how all the individual elements influence the sound. Before long I was spending a ton of time on it.
In the summer of 2026, I decided to bring everything together under the name Colson of York.
My full name is Andrew Colley Watson, but my friends call me Drew. Take a bit from Colley and a bit from Watson, and you get Drew Colson.
Now, I’m designing and building bespoke guitar amplifiers that combine solid hardwood cabinetry, analogue amplification and my own approach to design. I’ve also taken the electronics further, developing my own original preamp circuitry rather than relying entirely on established amplifier technologies.
And when I say I’m building them, I really do mean me. Colson of York is just one person, working in a small workshop on the outskirts of York.
I source my hardwoods personally, sometimes visiting a local timber merchant in York to choose individual boards, and also using timber acquired from the Yorkshire countryside. Some of the sycamore I’ve used came from near Harrogate and has been in my possession for more than a decade.
Even the grille cloth is carefully selected, sourced from an English supplier of traditional heritage fabrics.
I have no employees, no production lines, automated processes or fixed cabinet templates. Every Colson of York amplifier is a unique, one-off creation, and every stage of its design and construction is entirely my responsibility.
And when someone takes a Colson of York amplifier home, or plays it on a stage, something I’ve spent months thinking about and working on becomes part of their musical life.
That’s a massively satisfying feeling.
