The 1960s may have been a freedom-seeking decade, but as a young businessman wishing to sell amps and guitars Cliff at first only met with closed doors and barriers to free and fair trading. Because the major music companies refused to supply his shop with their products, he had no choice but to become a manufacturer as well as retailer. Luckily, the market for quality second-hand guitars was booming when he set up shop.

Cliff’s background was in electrical engineering. Central to his amp design ideas was the maxim once popularised by guitar design legend Les Paul: Les has always maintained that ‘people hear with their eyes’ - in other words, styling is crucial.

Brilliant orange-coloured vynide covering; robust picture-frame amp sleeves and cabs; and the 1950s retro sci-fi amplifier controls, together marked out Orange as totally unique.

The first Orange amps were supplied by a small north of England company called Radio Craft which made a versatile, top-spec 30-watt valve guitar amp - the Matamp Series 2000.     

In autumn 1968, Cliff placed an order with Huddersfield-based Matamp (named after founder Mat Mathias) to make some 100-watt`valve amps for Orange.