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Zac Schulze gets straight to it!
If you’re a fan of Cream, Zeppelin, and Rory Gallagher (who isn’t?), you’ll dig Zac Schulze Gang, a British power trio that’s carrying the torch with both hands; they’ve played…
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Jon Butcher’s psychedelia mastery
Jon Butcher tales his Olympic White ’63 Strat for a rip on “Jam,” a track from his new album, “Nuthin’ but Soul.” The disc is an homage to sounds of…
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Reflecting on Steve Cropper: A Playlist
Steve Cropper was just 20 years old when his band, the Mar-Keys, began backing singers in the studios of Stax Records. They also scored a million-selling #1 hit with the…
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Boss SDE-3 Dual Digital Delay
Double Echo
Based on the famed Roland SDE-3000 rack unit, Boss’ SDE-3 combines some classic delay sounds of the 1980s, updated with a bevy of modern tricks and features. Like a lot…
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NEWSWIRE
ARTISTS
Rik Emmett Fixes it for Us!
Triumph guitarist shows how to properly play four classic songs Plenty of players on socials post video showing how…
Martin’s Gibson
Greg Martin’s infatuation with the sunburst Gibson Les Paul Standard started in 1966, when, “I saw the picture of John…
John Wetton
1949-2017
Born June 12, 1949, British bassist and front man John Wetton died of colon cancer on January 31 at the…
Eddie Perez
Versatility and Joy
Eddie Perez is back with The Mavericks, playing music influenced by Tex-Mex, R&B, ska, country, blues, and roots rock. He…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS
Guitar Picks
What's So Special About Guitar Picks
You may have one in your pocket. They only cost about 25 cents. But if you have always used one…
Fender California Stratocaster
Have you priced ’57 or ’62 reissue Strats recently? The pride of the Fender line ran about $750 when it…
Nils Lofgren Shines Solo – Again
Star Grabs Vintage J-50 for “Ain’t the Truth Enough? An in-demand sideman for more than 50 years, guitar wizard Nils…
Watkins Joker
Beat-Gen Beaut
This could be just what every well-heeled young “Beat” guitarist and singer in Britain needed in the early 1960s –…
APPROVED GEAR
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Lively Drives
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Posh Squash
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Chet Powered!
Digitech RP-200
Budget-conscious way to go ampless
Last month, I disclosed that I’ve gone ampless in 2002. Now let’s discuss how, and with what gear. My criteria…
Effects Pedals
…For All Occasions!
Effects pedals, stompboxes… call them what you will. But pretty much since the dawn of the electric guitar’s time, they’ve…
Crucial Audio’ Die Götterdämmerung Germanium Fuzz/Ring Modulator
Ring Tones
Named by Flaming Lips guitarist Steven Drozd after composer Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle opera, Crucial Audio’s lavishly named Die Götterdämmerung…
The PRS Studio
Bird Watcher
The new Studio model is the culmination of many decades of work from the design minds at PRS, as they…
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LSL Instruments’ Lucid OD and OG OD
Lively Drives
LSL Instruments is best known for high-end Leo-style guitar builds, but they’ve also started delving into overdrive pedals. The Lucid OD is their version of a Klon Centaur – one of the priciest stompboxes in human history ($5,000-plus for the first-gen gold box with the horse logo). The box offers Volume, Gain, and Tone knobs…
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The Chase Bliss Clean
Posh Squash
With is Clean compressor, Chase Bliss set out to create a pedal that would duplicate the vivid interactivity of a dirty tube amp, but with a completely clean tone. While a standard compressor can give your guitar (bass, keyboard, etc.) a professional sheen, the Clean is a stereo unit that can polish mixes or deliver…
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The Eastwood Super Axe
Chet Powered!
Wait – what? Did Eastwood just bring back the Super Axe, that incredibly rare bird from the late ’70s? Indeed, they did. A Korean-made reissue, it captures the spirit of Gretsch’s chambered curiosity. Grabbing one, the first thing you’ll notice is the oversized yet thin body, with its arched top and the enchanting lines of…
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The Bad Cat Era 30
Retro-Great
So often has the phrase “Mark Sampson era” been applied to pre-2000 Matchless amps or early examples of the Bad Cat line that the term has become a “thing” in and of itself. As applied to Bad Cat’s new Era 30, it means Sampson is back in the fold (see our interview in the March…
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Reflecting on Steve Cropper: A Playlist
Steve Cropper was just 20 years old when his band, the Mar-Keys, began backing singers in the studios of Stax Records. They also scored a million-selling #1 hit with the instrumental, “Last Night” the scored a hit in ’62 as Booker T. & the MG’s with “Green Onions,” propelled by Cropper’s razor-sharp Esquire/Harvard licks. He…
