Kenny Wayne Shepherd

More Trouble

November 9, 2023 · Greg Prato

In 1997, the rock music being embraced by radio and MTV was primarily pop punk (Green Day), rap metal (Limp…

James Williamson & Deniz Tek

Stooge meets a Birdman

September 23, 2019 · Greg Prato

The words “proto punk” arouse recollections of furiously strummed guitars and amps cranked to 10. For many, its sound and…

Tony Valentino

75, Still Rockin’

March 29, 2017 · Elliot Stephen Cohen

Most fans of classic-rock radio know The Standells garage-punk classic “Dirty Water,” which was listed in Rolling Stone’s “Top 500…

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…

Line 6 Catalyst 100

Natural Vibe

April 4, 2023 · Pete Prown

The latest array of amp modelers from Line 6 – pioneers in the field – is the Catalyst, in 60-,…

Mark O’Connor

Virtuoso Comeback

March 4, 2022 · Pete Prown

Some musicians are multi-instrumentalists, but Mark O’Connor is something else – a multi-virtuoso. Regarded as a master on guitar, violin,…

  • Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings

    Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings

    Double-bound for Glory

    George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacher founded Electro String in 1931 to manufacture what everyone would soon call “Rickenbacker” guitars. Success came early and their lap steels set standards of quality,…

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ARTISTS

Yasmin Williams

Fearless Imagination

January 26, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

On her latest album, Urban Driftwood, Yasmin Williams’ wanderlust expands beyond the acoustic polyphony her fans know well. The songs…

Have Guitar Will Travel 079 – Tim Dugger, Ray Fulcher and Drew Castle

July 8, 2022 · James Patrick Regan

Host James Patrick Regan talks with Tim Dugger, Ray Fulcher and Drew Castle for episode 79 of “Have Guitar Will…

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…

Harvey Valdes

Switched-On Bach

March 9, 2023 · Pete Prown

Ever since Andrés Segovia elevated the nylon-string guitar to a serious classical instrument a century ago, players have been performing the…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

George Gruhn

How a Zoologist Became a Guitar animal

May 15, 2024 · Louis R. Carlozo

If you bumped into a bearded, corduroy-jacketed George Gruhn in a Nashville coffee shop, you might think you’d stumbled upon…

Replacing Rotted Tuning Keys on a ’62 ES-335

Buttons for a Buzzcock

February 8, 2022 · Dan Erlewine

Steve Garvey played bass in the seminal punk band Buzzcocks during its classic era – 1977 to ’81 – with…

Tyler Morris and a 1953 Gibson Les Paul model

March 28, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Tyler Morris and a 1953 Gibson Les Paul model Tyler Morris showcases his 1953 Gibson Les Paul goldtop and GA-70…

Fender 
Telecaster Thinline

Weight-Loss Trial

July 22, 2019 · George Gruhn

Born in turbulent times on the downslope of the “guitar boom,” Fender’s Telecaster Thinline has always existed in the shadow…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Bad Cat Black Cat 1×12 Combo

Roarin’ Back

December 23, 2023 · Charlie Wilkins

When Bad Cat Amplifiers trimmed its line to just four models with modern circuits, some wondered if they’d capture the…

Zemaitis’ CS Guitars

Super Models

March 5, 2019 · Michael Dregni

Artist. Iconoclast. Guitar builder to the stars. Tony Zemaitis was all that and more. Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards swear…

DGN Blaster

Jerry in a Box

December 23, 2023 · Pete Prown

DGN Guitars’ Dan Neafsey is known mostly for his guitar craftsmanship, notably the Kalos and Terrapin models inspired by Jerry…

Jensen Tornado Stealth Speakers

Sheer Magnetism

April 23, 2019 · Yoel Kreisler

Jensen has been in the speaker game for a very long time and its wares are some of the most…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Fractal Audio Systems AX8

Box Of Rock

March 5, 2019 · Pete Prown

Thanks to the digital revolution, guitarists can plug into a small box and access a world of sounds unimaginable a…

Blackstar HT Club 40

Blackstar HT Club 40

Monster of Rock

May 4, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Blackstar HT Club 40 Price: $699.99 (list) Contact: www.blackstaramps.com Standalone combo amplifiers that cover broad sonic terrain are popular with…

CopperSound Strategy

Strat-Jack Boost

October 13, 2022 · Bob Dragich

CopperSound pedals started in the winter of 2014 as a group of friends in Massachusetts who wanted to build pedals…

Dan’s Guitar RX: Reviving a ’56 Duo-Jet

Ugly, But An Oldy

January 11, 2024 · Dan Erlewine

Blake Burkeholder, a repair expert in my shop, has always wanted a Gretsch. So, when he found a ’56 Duo-Jet…

Oz Noy

Coming to America

April 27, 2020 · John Heidt

When Oz Noy mov-ed to New York City at age 24 in 1996, he was an established guitarist in his…

Blackberry Smoke

Blackberry Smoke

Beyond Southern Musical Borders

October 2, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

Comparisons between Blackberry Smoke and earlier Southern-rock bands may be inevitable, but the Atlanta-based quintet takes such observations in stride.…

Death By Audio’s Deep Animation

The Other Side

October 14, 2019 · Tom Guerra

If you thought envelope filters died out after Jerry Garcia passed into the great beyond, think again. Submitted as proof…

Ralph Towner, John Abercrombie Quartet, Wolfgang Muthspiel, Dewa Budjana

Fusion Heros

February 27, 2017 · Pete Prown

The ECM label is renowned for its brand of atmospheric jazz-fusion highlighted by gorgeous audio quality. Two of its guitar…

EHX Cock Fight and Key9

Pedalin’ To The Past

July 5, 2018 · Pete Prown

When it comes to sweet retro tones, the wizards at Electro-Harmonix (EHX) have been busy again, turning out a fresh…

Festive Frets

Suggested Listening for Your “Guitholidays”

December 17, 2021 · Vintage Guitar

Listen to VG’s “Festive Frets Holiday Play List” on Spotify! From the two-string refrain that kicks off Bobby Helms’ “Jingle…

Uwe Kruger

Swiss Precision for Americana

April 27, 2016 · Steven Stone

Uwe Kruger’s professional musical career began at age 15, when he and his brother, Jens, left their small town home…

Ted Greene Remembered

November 10, 2020 · Jim Carlton

You know what happened: discretionary income for the first time and the rise of the indies with things that the…

Railhammer Billy Corgan Z-One Humcutters

Clear Crunch

November 13, 2023 · Pete Prown

In the quest for tone, the secret is a combination of pickups, wood, construction, and the magic in a player’s…

The Time Jumpers

Time Machine

November 1, 2016 · Rich Kienzle

The Time Jumpers formed in ’98 as a lark for a group of A-list Nashville sidemen who loved Western swing.…

Dennis Kager

Techy’s Brain, Musician’s Heart

March 14, 2010 · P.J. Cotroneo

Amplifiers became a passion for Dennis Kager 45 years ago. And through the years, he has witnessed the zeitgeist surrounding…

Tom Feldmann’s Beginner Fingerpicking – Lesson 1

Tom Teaches the Blues!

July 7, 2017 · Tom Feldmann

Vintage Guitar is teaming with Collings Guitars and Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop to present an exclusive eight-part series on beginner…

Jorma Kaukonen

Hot Tuna, Part 1

November 23, 2015 · Dan Forte

Guitarist Jorma Kaukonen and bassist Jack Casady have been playing music together for 53 years – 40 of them as…

Ampeg’s Jet Reverb Prototype

March 1, 2017 · Dave Hunter

Ampeg is frequently credited for being not only one of the first makers to put reverb in its amplifiers, but…

Brian Setzer

What a Dude Does

August 17, 2024 · Bret Adams

You can’t keep an iconic rocker down. Brian Setzer’s The Devil Always Collects is his first album in more than…

Tinsley Ellis

Naked Truth

January 9, 2025 · Sean McDevitt

It’s hard to believe that Tinsley Ellis, one of contemporary blues’ most-prominent artists since the late ’80s, is only now…

Carl Verheyen

The Tools of Trading 8s

March 5, 2014 · Wolf Marshall

Carl Verheyen is a member of that elite (and shrinking) group of musicians known as “session guitarists.” Super-qualified pickers, they’re…

Bobby Womack

Bobby Womack

1944-2014

February 25, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Guitarist, soul singer, and songwriter Bobby Womack passed away June 27. He was 70 and had suffered from diabetes, Alzheimer’s,…

Godin A6 Ultra Baritone

Sub Sandwich

February 9, 2023 · Pete Prown

The basic premise of a baritone is that it allows guitar players to occasionally twang genuine bass notes – not…

Category 5 TBR-35 2×10

Backline Star

May 13, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

Don Ritter started Category 5 Amplification designing amps for blues players before expanding to other genres while holding to the…

Mu-FX Tru-Tron 3X

Get Tha Funk Out

September 4, 2015 · Michael Dregni

The Mu-FX Tru-Tron 3X Price: $369.63 Contact: www.mu-fx.com. Think funk. Think Bootsy Collins’ wacked-out Parliament Funkadelic Space Bass lines. Think…

Dan Fogelberg

May 26, 2020 · Willie G. Moseley

The sociopolitical attitude of the American population is often said to be gauged in reference to a town in Illinois.…

Crucial Audio’ Die Götterdämmerung Germanium Fuzz/Ring Modulator

Ring Tones

April 26, 2019 · Pete Prown

Named by Flaming Lips guitarist Steven Drozd after composer Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle opera, Crucial Audio’s lavishly named Die Götterdämmerung…

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,…

Reverend Mike Watt Wattplower

July 3, 2019 · Phil Feser

During four years of back and forth, Reverend Guitars and legendary punk-rock bassist Mike Watt (Minutemen, Firehose, Stooges), developed a…