• Seymour Duncan Announces the Slash 3.0 Pickup Set

    Seymour Duncan Announces the Slash 3.0 Pickup Set

    SANTA BARBARA, January 13th, 2026 – Seymour Duncan, a leading manufacturer of guitar and bass pickups, effects pedals, and pedal amps, is proud to announce that the Slash 3.0 Pickup…

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  • Thomas Custom Guitars

    Thomas Custom Guitars

    Rarities from the Pacific Northwest

    Certain makes and models of electric guitars are rightfully prized for their elegant physical designs and superior craftsmanship. Even better are those also revered for their playability and particularly rich…

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  • Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    Win Big! 11 Sets! 11 Winners! Win a set of pickups from one of these sponsors: Deadline is March 15, 2026. Complete the survey below to enter giveaway. One entry…

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Fretprints: Wes Montgomery

Full House: Transcendent Jazz Masterpiece

October 30, 2025 · Wolf Marshall

Wes Montgomery is an iconic guitarist – a titan in the jazz genre. Boasting a style as unique and inimitable…

Bob Barry

Jazz Lenser, Guitar Lover

April 27, 2020 · Jim Carlton

Photographer/jazzographer Bob Barry is a busy man. Of course he enjoys frequent personal appearances at galleries and events showcasing his…

Robert Randolph Vintage Guitar magazine Facebook Live

Robert Randolph Demonstrates the “I Want It” Riff

February 2, 2017 · Robert Randolph

Robert Randolph’s new album, "Got Soul," streets on February 17. Here, he uses a SlideKing, made by Jackson Steel Guitar…

Instro-Meister Eric Penna

September 7, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Blues Switch-Up in Trabants Eric Penna’s main gig is playing bass for the garage/surf band Insect Surfers, but he side-hustles…

George Ducas: Modern Honky-Tonkin’

September 3, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Taste of “Long Way From Home” Singer/songwriter George Ducas is a Nashville traditionalist influenced by Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, and…

Boss Katana Gen 3

Big Step

May 30, 2025 · Pete Prown

The Boss Katana amplifier has a cult of devotees, many of whom have been waiting for a Bluetooth version that…

  • Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    Win Big! 11 Sets! 11 Winners! Win a set of pickups from one of these sponsors: Deadline is March 15, 2026. Complete the survey below to enter giveaway. One entry…

    Read more >>

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ARTISTS

Steve Ripley In the studio with a miscellany of tools of the trade - everything fom his favorite Tele to a National resoglas.

Steve Ripley

First Takes & Extra Takes

January 4, 2019 · Willie G. Moseley

Ed. Note: Guitarist/producer/recording artist/guitar innovator (we could add more to that list!) Steve Ripley has passed away (January 3, 2019)…

Kenny Wayne Shepherd

Kenny Wayne Shepherd

Labor of Love

April 19, 2016 · John Heidt

Kenny Wayne Shepherd called his latest record, Goin’ Home because, he says, “It was another opportunity for me to share…

Blu DeTiger

Funk-Pop Pioneer

August 12, 2025 · Ward Meeker

When she was seven years old, sibling rivalry spurred Blu DeTiger to get a bass so she could play along…

Steve Howell Fingerpicks “Stocking Feet Blues”

January 12, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Solo acoustic homage to rural-blues great Steve Howell is a veteran of blues, rock, and jazz. Here, he fingerpicks a…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Carson Creation

One Very Personal Stratocaster

May 9, 2023 · Willie G. Moseley

An itinerant Western-music guitarist who befriended Leo Fender and other employees at his up-and-coming company in the early ’50s, Bill…

The Clark Gainster

Trick Your Tweed

June 10, 2020 · Art Department

Before he got into the effects pedal biz, Michael Clark had a reputation for building killer tweed-inspired amps. In 2001…

1978 Gibson RD Artist

May 5, 2016 · Michael Wright

Throughout most of the 1970s, Les Pauls ruled the guitar roost. But toward the end of the decade, some players became…

GIBSON FIREBIRDS

Gibson Firebirds

May 4, 2015 · R.K. Watkins

Say the words “custom color” to a collector or enthusiast and most will think of “Fender.” But Gibson had its…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Boss SDE-3 Dual Digital Delay

Double Echo

November 14, 2025 · Pete Prown

Based on the famed Roland SDE-3000 rack unit, Boss’ SDE-3 combines some classic delay sounds of the 1980s, updated with…

Richmond Empire

Rocking the Dynasty

August 13, 2013 · Sean OBryan Smith

Canada’s Richmond Guitars offers instruments with a retro vibe and styling coupled with fine modern components. Their latest offering, the…

The BBE Soul Vibe

Taking Soul to New Levels

July 1, 2020 · Eric C. Shoaf

The original Shin-Ei Uni-vibe became hugely famous after Jimi Hendrix used it with Band of Gypsys (and at Woodstock). Later…

Genzler Acoustic Array Pro

Pro on the Go

July 23, 2019 · Pete Prown

As gigs at coffeehouses, street festivals, and farmers’ markets become more common, a growing legion of performers is being supported…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Taylor AD17e

Tube SaviorDream Machine

November 8, 2022 · Pete Prown

Taylor’s AD (American Dream) line aims to put affordable U.S.-made acoustics in the hands of most any player. The new…

Gibson L-00

1933 Gibson L-00

March 3, 2016 · Dave Hunter

While most of the instruments featured in this space are high-end, often elaborately ornamented models that were expensive when new…

22 Classic Modulation Effects

Mod Squad

March 27, 2017 · Michael Dregni

We celebrate devices that have altered the pitch, intensity, frequency, phase, and other characteristics in the sound, feel, and influence…

A.J.’s 1950 Fender Broadcaster

$10 at a time

July 25, 2017 · Dave Yeats

In 1950, A.J. Custer traded his triple-neck steel for a white-guard Broadcaster. Total cost was around $300, which he paid…

1938 Supertone Gene Autry Roundup

December 13, 2021 · Michael Wright

In the depths of the Great Depression, people turned to entertainment for distraction. Not that there was much to be…

Guild F-512

Iconic ’70s 12-String

December 28, 2017 · George Gruhn

Today, players typically equate the 12-string acoustic with Taylor and Martin. For its part, though, Guild’s F-512 remains one of…

Have Guitar Will Travel 099 – Trapper Schoepp

June 21, 2024 · James Patrick Regan

In episode 99 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine, host James Patrick Regan speaks with guitarist…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Steve “Frog” Forgey

August 5, 2025 · Ram W. Tuli

Season 03 Episode 04 In Episode 3.4 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by Steve “Frog” Forgey…

Kristian Borring – post-bop wizard

December 8, 2022 · Doug Yellow Bird

 Danish jazzer’s transcendent style on “Persian Hills” Kristian Borring plays a fabulous version of “Persian Hills,” from Number Junky’s…

Thomas Nordegg

Indispensible

January 24, 2017 · Oscar Jordan

At certain large-scale rock shows, there’s often a white-haired gentleman running onstage to hand guitars to artists like Steve Vai,…

Classics: November 2022

Vern Juran’s Harmony stratotone

July 13, 2023 · Ward Meeker

Like many baby-boomer kids, 11-year-old Vern Juran was into slot-car racing and bikes with ape-hanger handlebars, banana seats, and sissy…

Kinga Glyk

Real-Life Bass

January 14, 2025 · Pete Prown

Like a tightrope walker, bassist Kinga Glyk finds a delicate balance between funk-fusion virtuosity and wicked, booty-moving grooves. Deploying her…

Soul-jazz legend Calvin Keys

January 27, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Exclusive spin on “Six to Seven” Calvin Keys has worked with Jimmy Smith, Ahmad Jamal, and Ray Charles. Here, he…

The Cost of Protection

100 Years of Instrument Cases

July 10, 2018 · George Gruhn

Modern guitars are typically sold with a hard case. But that wasn’t always so. Here, we look at the history…

In Memoriam: Tom Verlaine

February 9, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Tom Verlaine, co-founder of the influential garage/new-wave band Television, died January 28. He was 73 and passed after a battle…

Xotic Guitar XSS-1 Super S Style

Tribute To The King

October 9, 2025 · Oscar Jordan

Xotic’s S-style guitar line pays homage to the man who revolutionized rock guitar in the ’80s. Hint: He was hot…

Ruppert Acouswitch and Basswitch IQ DIs

Switching Up

March 27, 2016 · Phil Feser

Ruppert Acouswitch and Basswitch IQ DIs Price: $600 each with gigbag Info: www.rmi.lu. Part DI, part preamp, and part A/B…

Premiere of Seth Lee Jones’ new 110 video!

April 12, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Filmed at one of our favorite local dive bars, Tin Dog, this is “110.” I played my main guitar, a…

Mike Campbell

Still Thrilled

April 16, 2019 · Ward Meeker

Boiled down, the music of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers is defined by a handful of essential elements: their leader’s…

2023 January Issue on Spotify

January 2, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

This month we feature Larkin Poe, Kiss, Eli “Paperboy” Reed, Julian Lage, Josh Hoyer, Rage Against The Machine, Ray Lanham,…

Jersey Boys

Horray For Hollywood

The Guitars and Amps of Jersey Boys

May 9, 2016 · Jim Elyea

Movies made in the 1950s and ’60s that included rock-and-roll music acts typically showed them performing in segments using their…

Shredding and songcraft – Kire Najdovski

December 22, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

Talas guitarist offers taste of “1985” Kire Najdovski does a great take on “Close to the Killer,” from Talas’ new…

The Yamaha THR10

Yamaha THR10

Practice Perfection?

August 19, 2014 · Phil Feser

Yamaha THR10 Price: $299 Contact: usa.yamaha.com. As a rule of thumb, practice amps are a compromise. Blissfully portable, they typically…

Kurdt Vanderhoof

These Go to XI

March 29, 2017 · Greg Prato

When it comes to thrash metal, the “Big 4” – Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax – get credit for popularizing…

Mark Tremonti

Three-Band Man

August 10, 2022 · Greg Prato

The odds of any guitarist being in a highly successful rock band are long. Chances of being in two are…

Robbie Robertson, 1943-2023

Lasting Legacy

June 11, 2024 · Dan Forte

It’s ironic that Robbie Robertson was famous mostly for his songwriting, because beneath the minimal, compositional style that marked his…

Keeley Electronics Dark Side

Floyd Explorer

May 3, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

In the multi-verse of effects, Robert Keeley’s gizmos are a thing of beauty – particularly those that provide multiple sounds.…

Travis Tritt

Studio Snap-Back

April 6, 2022 · Ward Meeker

It’s not often a superstar performer willfully steps away from creating new music for a decade. For country singer/songwriter/guitarist Travis…

Classics: December 2023

Cliff Antone’s 1952 Fender Precision

August 15, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Texas is known for music, especially Austin, which in the mid ’70s became a hotbed thanks to clubs like Armadillo…