K775V Kay Jazz II and K5970V Jazz Special Bass

A-Ohh-Kay

February 4, 2016 · Sean OBryan Smith

K775V Kay Jazz II and K5970V Jazz Special Price: $1,495 (K775V Jazz II electric guitar); $1,150 (K5970V Jazz Special electric…

1980 Renaissance T-200G Home thumb

Renaissance T-200G

January 8, 2014 · Michael Wright

What is it about Plexiglas? It’s so cool. You can see through it onstage. It’s dense, yet resonant. You’d think…

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…

The Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi

Smooth Successor

October 6, 2014 · Phil Feser

Electro-Harmonix Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi Price: $133 (list)/$99.75 (street). Contact: ehx.com. The Big Muff Pi overdrive is the effect…

Alan Sparhawk

Lowdown

March 3, 2017 · Michael Dregni

Blame it on a guitar. For Low’s Alan Sparhawk, the inspiration behind the band’s latest album, Ones and Sixes, came…

Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+

The Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+

September 25, 2015 · Dave Hunter

Early Mesa/Boogie Mark Series amps were something of a sensation, but even with the line now having stretched all the…

  • Rik Emmett

    Rik Emmett

    Ten Telecaster Tales

    At the risk of starting a brawl, Rik Emmett’s guitar work was arguably too good for Triumph. As evidence, his latest project centers on a custom-built Loucin that inspired both…

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ARTISTS

Eric Johnson

Eric Johnson

Epiphanies

January 24, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Eric Johnson’s new release, Europe Liv, is an impressive offering, but you wouldn’t know it from talking to the man…

Warren Haynes

Lights-Out Blues

October 4, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

Blues is the beating heart of Gov’t Mule, and guitarist/bandleader Warren Haynes can play them lights-out. Standing as evidence is…

Jeff Hanna

A Half-Century of Dirt

March 11, 2019 · Willie G. Moseley

Equal parts anniversary party, all-star jam, and “you really needed to be there” celebration, a September ’15 performance by the…

George Lynch

George Lynch

Home Run with KXM

March 25, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Creative chemistry is an under-discussed topic when it comes to a successful collaborative effort. With the right people, sparks can…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

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…

The Fender “High-Powered” Twin

May 15, 2024 · Dave Hunter

1958-’59 Fender Twin Preamp tubes: one 12AY7, two 12AX7 Output tubes: four 5881 (6L6 equivalents), fixed bias Rectifier: GZ34 (5AR4)…

The Birth of the Gretsch Duo Jet

Gretsch Gets With It!

March 4, 2022 · Edward Ball

In 1950, Leo Fender introduced the Broadcaster. The first solidbody electric Spanish guitar to bear his soon-to-be-famous name, its thin…

The Ray Butts EchoSonic

April 29, 2021 · Dave Hunter

If you want to talk star-user ratio, the Ray Butts EchoSonic is near the top of the heap. Most accounts…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Jam Pedals’ LucyDreamer Supreme

Crunchilicious

October 14, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

Like so many boutique gear companies, Jam Pedals has established a distinct sonic stamp. Its effects have an uncompromising retro…

Railhammer’s Nuevo 90 Humcutter Set

July 22, 2019 · Zac Childs

Joe Naylor has a long history of designing and marketing everything in the music business from high-end amps, guitars, basses,…

Fender’s Duel Pugilist Distortion & Dual Marine Layer Reverb

Double Trouble

December 8, 2022 · Michael Dregni

Fender launched its Pugilist Distortion and Marine Layer Reverb in 2018, after VP of Innovation Stan Cotey – who’d previously…

The Electro-Harmonix Superego Synth Engine

Synthful

March 19, 2014 · Phil Feser

Electro-Harmonix Superego Synth Engine Price: $283.60 (retail); $212.70 (street) Contact: www.ehx.com Building on the success of its Freeze Sound Retainer…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Tokai Talbo

March 7, 2022 · Michael Wright

For aficionados of copy guitars – replicas of mostly American classics that give U.S. manufacturers apoplectic fits – perhaps no…

Hot Wires - A Brief History of the Modern Guitar String

Hot Wires

A Brief History of the Modern Guitar String

June 9, 2016 · Pete Prown

If you’ve ever bent a guitar string and given it a shake, send a silent thank you to guitarist James…

Visual Sound Route 66 V3 American Overdrive

Visual Sound Route 66 V3 American Overdrive

Get Yer’ Kick

April 15, 2016 · Anders Fransson

Visual Sound Route 66 V3 American Overdrive Price: $179 (street) Contact: www.truetone.com/ Over the years, the Route 66 pedal by…

Pat Rush

Johnny, James, Et Al

March 29, 2017 · Tom Guerra

If the name “Pat Rush” doesn’t immediately ring a bell, the names of people he’s played with – Muddy Waters,…

EHX Walking on the Moon Flanger/Filter Matrix

Andy Flange

June 26, 2024 · Pete Prown

With its mouthful of a name – The Andy Summers Walking On the Moon Flanger/Filter Matrix – the latest Electro-Harmonix…

The Gretsch 6120 Tenor

December 2, 2014 · George Gruhn

This 1958 Gretsch Chet Atkins 6120 four-string tenor guitar is a very rare variation of the model. Gretsch built other…

Gibson EH-150

An Odd Gibson EH-150

10 Strings, Lap-Style

January 20, 2016 · George Gruhn

Lap-steel guitars were the first commercially available electrics – ancestors of the guitars we plug in today, regardless of their…

Fender‘s 50th Anniversary Strat

Height of the Reissue

June 11, 2015 · Ward Meeker

In celebration of the 50th “birthday” of its famous Stratocaster model, Fender has taken the reissue concept to new heights.…

Rick Holmstrom

See That Light

October 14, 2021 · Michael Dregni

After 13 years as soul/gospel/civil rights legend Mavis Staples’ guitarist and bandleader, Rick Holmstrom has earned the nickname from Staples’…

Empress ParaEq MKII Deluxe and Heavy Menace

In The Details

August 27, 2024 · Pete Prown

It’s cliché to call a parametric EQ a “Swiss Army knife,” but with Empress’ updated ParaEq MKII Deluxe, the comparison…

Mick Ralphs

Good Company

March 20, 2019 · Elliot Stephen Cohen

In 1972, one of Britain’s best bands, Mott The Hoople, still hadn’t made any impact on the charts. Its record…

Selmer Truvoice

Selectortone Automatic

May 24, 2021 · Dave Hunter

Selmer Truvoice Selectortone Automatic, ca. 1961 Preamp tubes: one ECC83, two EF86 Output tubes: two EL34, cathode-bias Rectifier: GZ34 Controls:…

MOD Kits DIY 102+ Amp Kit

Do It Yerself

July 13, 2016 · Ray Wuolo

A good friend jokingly remarked that building tube amps is the legal equivalent of taking opiates – instantly gratifying yet…

Lost Planet Airmen

Back from the Ozone

October 29, 2024 · Rich Kienzle

Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen were true country-rock and Americana pioneers. Their unique, uncompromising brew of rockabilly, R&B,…

Jussi Jaakonaho

Sunburst Finnish

July 18, 2019 · Pete Prown

There’s a vibrant instro-guitar scene in Finland and among its chief architects is Jussi Jaakonaho. Well known as a producer…

2021 April Issue on Spotify

June 4, 2021 · Doug Yellow Bird

This month, we feature Rory Gallagher, Jerry Garcia, Lyle Workman, America’s Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell, Joe Bonamassa, Cory Wong,…

Jim Campilongo

Back to the Country

March 2, 2017 · John Heidt

A misconception of his own making led to Jim Campilongo’s latest effort with the band Honeyfingers. “I enjoy my trio…

Dallas Shaftesbury 30

March 7, 2017 · Dave Hunter

We mine the rich seam of obscure vintage American tube amps on a regular basis here in the pages of…

Nils Lofgren

Great American Journeyman

March 29, 2017 · Johnny Zapp

Nils Lofgren’s resumé stretches 47 years and counting. He joined Neil Young’s band at age 19 and was a member…

Darin and Brooke Aldridge’s Family Album

Darin and Brooke Aldridge’s Family Album

Picture Perfect

April 6, 2016 · Kathleen Johnson

The husband-and-wife duo Darin and Brooke Aldridge are one of the hottest acts on the traditional bluegrass/Americana scene. The couple’s…

Zakk Wylde

Electric Heart, Acoustic Soul

February 27, 2018 · Oscar Jordan

Storming the stage like King Conan The Biker, former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Zakk Wylde was one of the highlights of…

Dan Fogelberg’s Gretsch White Penguin

June 10, 2015 · George Gruhn

Dan Fogelberg’s success as a singer and songwriter far overshadows his reputation as a musician, but the man whose tenor…

Grez Mendocino Short Scale Bass

Time-Machine Tone

April 3, 2023 · Michael Shirek

In the beginning, there was the Precision Bass. Following Leo Fender’s revelation, things branched out in all directions as builders…

Albert Castiglia

Righteous and Raucous

January 5, 2018 · Willie G. Moseley

Guitarist Albert Castiglia’s blues-based music has gone through a lot of changes since VG first interviewed him in 2008. In…

PRS Silver Sky

Stratospheric

October 14, 2019 · Pete Prown

Paul Reed Smith has for years experimented with Leo-inspired concepts, and his newest guitar, conceived in collaboration with rocker John…

Cliff Goodwin, Solo

December 1, 2023 · Ward Meeker

Joe Cocker alum plays “Leap of Faith,” Cliff Goodwin was Joe Cocker’s guitarist for a decade and has also backed…

The Hagstrom EDP46 DeLuxe

June 20, 2025 · Michael Wright

World War II was responsible for an unbelievable amount of what we today know as the modern world, from computers…

Gretsch G5260 Electromatic Jet Baritone

From Surf to Cinema

March 8, 2023 · Michael Shirek

In the days before seven- and eight-string guitars, the easiest way to go low was to grab a baritone guitar.…

Spectrum 5

December 30, 2013 · Michael Wright

Joining playful mid-’60s cultural icons such as the Ford Mustang, NBC’s “The Monkees,” the Beatles’ “Nowhere Man” and Cassius Clay, the…