• Duke Robillard – Lowdown

    Duke Robillard – Lowdown

    Vintage Guitar is happy to offer the premier of the new music video by Grammy nominee Duke Robillard. “Lowdown” is the  first single from his upcoming album, Blast Off!, set…

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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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The Tale of Bobby Whitlock’s D-35

Storied Board

The Tale of Bobby Whitlock’s D-35

January 24, 2017 · Daniel Wile

Plenty of musicians personalize instruments with their names or initials. So, it’s easy to assume that Robert “Bobby” Whitlock commissioned…

The Pinecaster: Early Electric Guitars 1920-1955

Nacho Baños and Lynn Wheelwright

January 17, 2023 · Michael Dregni

Four volumes, 960 pages, more than 1,000 photos and historical documents – The Pinecaster is heavier than the heaviest 1958…

Paul Gilbert

Mr. Big Takes it Down a Notch

March 28, 2014 · Ward Meeker

Paul Gilbert and the crew that makes up Mr. Big – bassist Billy Sheehan, drummer Pat Torpey, and vocalist Eric…

Two Generations of Rock: The Kentucky HeadHunters and Black Stone Cherry

Family Practice

April 15, 2021 · Will Kelly

Whether you’re talking music or family, in the rolling hills of Kentucky, roots grow deep and strong. The Kentucky HeadHunters…

Eight-String Basses

Sonic Niche

May 2, 2024 · Willie G. Moseley

Emerging in ’60s catalogs from Hagström and Framus, eight-string basses occupy a distinct place among musical instruments – their potent,…

Franck L. Goldwasser

Who Needs This Mess?

August 11, 2024 · Dan Forte

After moving from his native France to Oakland in ’83, Franck Goldwasser haunted blues clubs, quickly earning the nickname “Paris…

  • Carr Skylark Special 1×12

    Carr Skylark Special 1×12

    Take Flight

    Arriving a little more than 10 years after the original Skylark, Carr Amplifiers’ new Skylark Special adds versatility and enhanced tonal depths to squeeze a lot more into this diminutive…

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ARTISTS

Christone “Kingfish” Ingram

Evolution

June 17, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

Christone “Kingfish” Ingram’s latest album shows the 22-year-old blues prodigy flourishing with maturity and tone for days. Titled 662, the…

Good Times In Bad

The Origin of Fender’s Vintage Series

December 4, 2023 · Ward Meeker

The years leading up to CBS Musical Instruments’ 1985 sale of the Fender brand were fluid times at the instrument…

Fretprints: Kim Thayil

The Grungy Flowering of Soundgarden

December 6, 2021 · Wolf Marshall

In 1991, a movement emerged from Seattle that shook the musical world to its core. Seemingly overnight, a cadre of…

Fretprints: Foghat

Slow Ride to Boogie Wonderland

April 4, 2023 · Wolf Marshall

If the ’70s were the era of good times and excess following the tumultuous ’60s, the boogie band would be…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

John Pizzarelli Swings On A Vintage D’angelico

September 4, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Jazz Ace on an Heirloom Guitar For this exclusive rendition of “Just In Time,” swing ace John Pizzarelli grabbed the…

Gibson Les Paul Special 3/4

January 18, 2010 · George Gruhn and Walter Carter

Gibson’s double-cutaway Les Paul Special 3/4 from 1959 is one of the rarest Les Pauls from the “golden era.” It’s…

National Model N-720

Star of an Era's End

November 3, 2005 · Michael Wright

Most acoustic guitar players will likely show disdain for any instrument with a bolt-on neck. Even though there have been…

Gibson M-III Standard

Missing the Mark(et)

September 22, 2023 · Michael Wright

Gibson’s bread and butter has long been tried-and-true designs that represent remarkable innovations – even if they date back to…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

 PRS Swamp Ash Special

Narrow(field) Win

January 14, 2026 · Pete Prown

The bolt-on Swamp Ash Special has been around for nearly three decades, but PRS just retooled the U.S.-built version and…

The Hi-Tone HT30/JP 15

Living Loving Gain

March 15, 2019 · Art Department

While many have tried via transistor trickery to replicate the tone of Jimmy Page’s Hiwatt at Led Zeppelin’s legendary January…

GJ2 Arete 5-Star Featured Image

GJ2 Arete 5-Star

Monster of Rock

June 5, 2015 · Pete Prown

Bergen Guitars ST and TL Price: $3,999 Info: www.gj2guitars.com. Grover Jackson is a name forever associated with classic metal and…

Devi Ever:FX Big Distortion Sound Machine

Devi Ever:FX Big Distortion Sound Machine

Enough is Never Enough

March 3, 2016 · Pete Prown

Devi Ever:FX Big Distortion Sound Machine Price: $200 (list) Contact: www.devieverfx.com Want fuzz, crunch, and overdrive? How about all at…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Scott Sharrard

Destined for the Gig

March 2, 2017 · John Heidt

Anyone who has seen the Gregg Allman Band in person or caught its new CD/DVD, Back to Macon, Ga, knows…

Penco A-15-JD

July 29, 2023 · Michael Wright

The 1970s is often called “the Copy Era” for the dominating presence and spectacular success of Japanese “copies” of popular…

Greg Lake’s 
Zemaitis Doubleneck

Twice as Heavy

March 20, 2019 · Willie G. Moseley

With progressive-rock juggernaut Emerson, Lake & Palmer, bassist/vocalist Greg Lake (1947-2016) played more than one instrument made by the renowned…

Gretsch Roots Collection: Jim Dandy Flat-top, Dixie 6 Guitar-Banjo

Back to the Country

December 15, 2014 · Dennis Pernu

Gretsch Roots Collection: Jim Dandy Flat-top, Dixie 6 Guitar-Banjo Price: $239 retail (Jim Dandy Flat Top) and $499 retail (Dixie…

Fender’s V-Front 5B4 Super-Amp

Wonder Wedge

July 12, 2023 · Dave Hunter

Though all tweed Fender amps of the late ’40s and ’50s are lauded and lusted after, the V-front Super might…

Nili Brosh

Bright Horizons

March 16, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

The saying goes, “If you want to get something done, ask a busy person to do it.” But don’t ask…

Blues Hall of Famer Joe Louis Walker

June 29, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

“Blue Mirror” jam from “The Weight of the World” Blues Hall of Famer Joe Louis Walker grabbed his pearl-front Zemaitis…

Gary Moore: The Official Biography

Harry Shapiro

July 7, 2023 · Pete Prown

The ultimate unsung hero, Moore made a seismic impact on heavy guitarists, without being a huge star himself. That’s the…

Jim Lauderdale

Hope

July 22, 2022 · Rich Kienzle

Inspired by the pandemic, veteran singer/songwriter Lauderdale stresses resiliency and renewal on these 13 originals, enhanced along the way by…

Dave Edmunds

Dave Edmunds

Full Solo Circle

July 8, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

The career of Welsh guitarist Dave Edmunds has included hits and collaborations with other notable musicians, including Rockpile, with bassist…

Eric Sardinas

Eric Sardinas

Resonator Rock

May 3, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Resonator/slide specialist Eric Sardinas is no blues curator. While he pays homage to the music that inspires him, Sardinas is…

Kenny Wayne Shepherd

Laying Down the Blues

April 24, 2019 · Greg Prato

Blues-rock suffered a blow in 1990 with the death of Stevie Ray Vaughan. But later in the decade, a crop…

LYON_HEALY-HOME-MAIN-BIG

Lyon and Healy

April 8, 2016 · R.J. Klimpert

So what is it? Its original black-finished spruce top is simply ladder-braced from within, but its back and sides feature…

Jazz Trio

Fender’s Geddy Lee Jazz Bass and Ibanez’s Black Eagle Reissue Take On an Icon

March 2, 2017 · Ward Meeker

Though it got most of the looks in the family, Fender’s Jazz Bass is nonetheless the tag-along younger brother to…

Star Stomps

Famous Sounds Abound in New Book

December 9, 2021 · Michael Dregni

Stompboxes inspire their own special mania. While the allure of guitars is obvious with their colorful, curvaceous looks, effects are…

1965 Epiphone Emperor

December 3, 2021 · George Gruhn

The Epiphone Emperor has a long, convoluted history. It first appeared in Epiphone’s catalog in late 1935 as a response…

Fender Mike McCready Strat

Evener Flow

August 27, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

Mike McCready’s beat up sunburst ’60s Strat looms large in the history of grunge; heard on Pearl Jam’s illustrious body…

Orange Dual Baby, Gain Baby, and Tour Baby 100

Playpen Power

November 14, 2025 · Dave Hunter

For 2025, Orange has expanded on its compact Pedal Baby introduced a few years back with a new trio –…

Julian Lage

Jazz Memoir

September 1, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

The latest from Julian Lage contains mesmerizing originals featuring Bill Frisell’s supple artistry and Lage’s potent six-string imagery. View With…

Eddie Cochran’s Gretsch 6120

Don’t Mean a Thing If It Ain’t Got that Twang

August 10, 2022 · Michael Dregni

One night in the late 1950s, Eddie Cochran set the world alight onstage in the City of Angels. Though the…

Babicz Octave Blue Flame

Flaming Glory

December 29, 2010 · Chip Wilson

When a vintage-minded guitarist recollects cracking open the case of a big ol’ hollowbody and catching a glimpse of flame,…

Strymon’s Riverside Multistage Drive

Down By The River

April 16, 2019 · Phil Feser

At first glance, the Strymon Riverside Multistage Drive doesn’t look much different from the rest of the herd. But dig…

Robert Randolph and the Family Band

February 24, 2017 · Oscar Jordan

For those who like their sacred steel music a little less sacred, Robert Randolph and the Family Band’s latest is…

The Supro “Model 24”

July 25, 2014 · Dave Hunter

Okay, Zep police, sound the alarm and prepare to loose the hounds – we are finally about to lift the…

Gator Cases MiniVault

Rolling Rack

August 4, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Every gigging guitarist who lugs their own gear (so, 95 percent of us) knows firsthand how instrument cases take a…

Magnatone Panoramic Stereo

Tales of True Vibrato

January 8, 2018 · Ray Wuolo

Magnatone amplifiers date back to the 1940s and ’50s – the era of Hawaiian-steel guitar – and boasted pearloid-covered casework…

Keeley Hydra Stereo Reverb & Tremolo

The Life Aquatic

January 27, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

Stompbox wizard Robert Keeley’s latest creation packs a boatload of deep-sea diver sounds in one small package. The Hydra Stereo…

Mu-FX Boostron 3

One For All, All For One

July 9, 2018 · Michael Dregni

Leave it to Mike Beigel to create a masterpiece of a stompbox… again. The Mu-FX Boostron 3 is three pedals…

Sam Williams

Sinister Surf

January 4, 2023 · Pete Prown

Sam Williams is known as the guitarist for the roots-punk band Down by Law, but now he’s shaking it up…