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The story of the Martin F-50
Our friend Nate Westgor from Willie’s American Guitars shares the story of Martin’s first step into the booming 1960s electric guitar market. Enjoy, and have a wonderful holiday season from…
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“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Timm Kummer
Season 03 Episode 08 In Episode 3.9 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by Timm Kummer, a legendary figure in the world of collectible guitars with a…
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Reeves Gabrels’ Newest Reverend Spacehawk
For his gig with The Cure, Reeves Gabrels needed a guitar that could cover a lot of sonic territory. The folks at Reverend helped him create the Spacehawk; the latest…
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Joe Satriani
The hardest-working guitarist in show business, Joe Satriani recently wrapped up a successful Van Halen tour, a G3 Reunion tour, a live album, a residency in Las Vegas with Sammy…
NEWSWIRE
ARTISTS
Hellecasters
Hell Revisited
The hottest thing going in genre-bending music during the past year has been the award-winning Hellecasters, whose first album on…

Joe Long’s “stack-knob” Fender Jazz Bass
If you’re a fan or aficionado of vintage instruments, odds are that any early-’60s Fender Jazz Bass catches your eye.…
Rodney Crowell
Ditchin' the "Country" Connotation
In this modern world, most of us will have at least two major careers by the time we’re 40. Rodney…

Les Paul
2007 Hall of Fame Player
In 1952, Gibson’s new Les Paul model was becoming one of the company’s most popular guitars, and though there was…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS
Gibson Top Tension Banjos
Although most bluegrass banjo players consider Gibson’s Mastertone banjos with one-piece flange and flat-head tone ring – such as…
Surf Bass
Out of the Doghouse
The big twang of surf guitar is still an instantly recognizable rock and roll idiom today, more than 35 years…

Supro’s 600R DeLuxe
“The Magic of Concert Hall Sound”
In the early days of reverb, no one was thinking about surf music; they were striving instead to replicate the…

Guardians of Grandeur
The Men Who Tend to the Guitars of the Hard Rock Cafe
“A lot of people think I go in [to a sale] with an open checkbook, but that’s not the case;…
APPROVED GEAR
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Lively Drives
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Posh Squash
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Chet Powered!

Keeley Electronics Loomer
Tone Weaver
As effects pedals proliferate, so do multifunction boxes. Case in point: Keeley Electronics’ Loomer, combining three reverbs with a raging…

Eastwood Sidejack DLX 20th LTD
Horn Section
If you love twangy guitars from the ’60s, you know about Mosrites – the immortal slabs of The Ventures and…

Guild Bluesbird
Flyin’ High Again
The Guild Bluesbird has a long history that began in the 1950s with Guild’s answer to the Gibson Les Paul…
Summitt Guitar Pack
Soft case that protects and serves – in style
The Summit Guitar Pack EG201 soft case could be considered the Swiss Army knife of guitar cases. To call this…
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Classics: Tommy Castro’s ’66 Fender Stratocaster
Tommy Castro has never been much for sitting with a guitar teacher, preferring instead to rely on good ol’ time in the saddle to hone his craft. But this 1966 Stratocaster has taught him a couple lessons. The guitar entered Castro’s universe in the hands of San Francisco music legend John Newton – known on…
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Classics: Arena-Rock Alternative Amps
Mad Maxed
As rock started hitting the big time in the mid ’60s, it became clear to guitar-amplifier manufacturers that 100 watts or more was the way to go. The best approach to big power, however, would follow several paths. The stories of the high-powered amps introduced by Fender, Marshall, and Vox through the ’60s have been…
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Vivi-Tone “Skeleton
A Master’s Magnificent Misfire
The eternal question “Who invented the electric guitar?” has no single answer. By the late 1920s, many players, tinkerers, and inventors were exploring ways to get more volume from fretted instruments. Steel-string flat-tops from Martin, f-hole archtops from Gibson, and metal-bodied resonators from National were louder than their predecessors, but ran up against physical limits.…
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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 per customer, any double entries will be automatically disqualified. See previous winners!! *ELIGIBILITY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY.One entry per…
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Paul Johnson
The Hepcats Live at the Ajax Novelty Company
This isn’t live, there may not be an Ajax Novelty Company, and the three felines known as the Hepcats are actually the brainchild of Paul Johnson, whose Belairs were early-’60s pioneers of surf music. Suspend reality and dig how the “trio” expertly articulates layers of acoustic guitar. Across decades, Johnson has embraced folk-rock, psychedelia, and…



































