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2025 December Issue on Spotify
This month, we feature Rick Derringer, Kid Ramos, Booker T and The M.G.’s, Steve Stevens, Phil Manzanera, Doug Aldrich, Kenny Burrell, Eric Johanson, Gary Moore, and more! Spotify is free…
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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…
Jim McCarty
Detroit Rock Royalty
Playing Detroit in 2013, Joe Bonamassa had a special treat in store for the crowd. “The best, most badass guitar…
Eric Clapton’s “Blackie”
This may well be the most desirable Fender Stratocaster on the face of the planet. And it happens to be…
Steve Khan
Backlog
Steve Khan has spent the last few albums mixing Latin music and jazz. The project has worked beautifully, culminating in…
Duke Robillard’s Swingin’ R And B!
Blues/Jazz Great Jams on “Four Bills” Duke Robillard’s custom-made J.W. Murphy 17” archtop is the perfect accomplice for this…
Alive! Guitar Revived
The Tale of Frampton’s ’54 Les Paul Custom
Gifted to Peter Frampton after a 1970 Humble Pie concert at Fillmore West in San Francisco, for years, this ’54…
Duke Robillard
Swingin’ with Singers
Robillard needs no introduction here, as he’s been one of the leading old-school players of the past 40 years –…
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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…
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ARTISTS
Randy Rhoads
Diary of an Axeman, 30 years Later
(RIGHT) Rhoads’ polka-dot guitar was built in 1979 by Karl Sandoval, with a mahogany body, modified ’60s Danelectro non-adjustable maple…
Bob Cowsill Plays a Topical Tune
New Cowsills album is an impressive self-contained work Before the Jackson 5 and the Osmonds, The Cowsills scored four Top…
Jimmy Olander’s D-Bender Baritone
Big-string licks galore! In the mood to play a bit, December cover guy Jimmy Olander grabbed a guitar he…
Pop ’N Hiss: Lynyrd Skynyrd’s (Pronounced ‘Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd’)
Down-South Guitar Assault
By early 1973, “Southern Rock” had come into its own, spearheaded by Capricorn Records and its keystone act, the Allman…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS
Ampeg R-12-R Reverberocket
1962 Ampeg R-12-R Reverberocket Preamp tubes: two 6SL7, two 6SN7 Output tubes: two 6V6, cathode-biased Rectifier: 5Y3 Controls: Volume, Tone,…
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…
Gibson’s “Non-Reverse” Firebirds
When Down Was Up
Some guitars get no respect, at least historically. At the dawn of the ’70s, Gibson’s original (1963-’65) Firebirds were already…
Gibson J-200 Rosewood
The Gibson company was founded on the belief that carved-top guitars were superior to flat-top designs, and consequently, Gibson was…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Lively Drives
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Posh Squash
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Chet Powered!
The Fractal VP4
Pedal Power
Famous for amp and cabinet models made to replace an amp for direct recording or plugging right into a PA,…
BC Audio JTX45 Octal Plex
Plexi Class
In an amp world full of boutique clones, Bruce Clement has developed a unique twist on the venerable ’60s British…
The Providence Velvet Comp, Red Rock OD, and Phase Force
Tones of Destiny
The Providence Velvet Comp, Red Rock OD, and Phase Force Price: $199 (per piece, list) Contact: www.providence.jp Providence is a…
Reverend Guitars Ron Asheton Model
Raw Power
Reverend Guitars Ron Asheton Model Price: $1,079 Info: www.reverendguitars.com. If Ron Asheton had recorded just one album in his musical…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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Plus, a Pro’s List of Repair Glues
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Rising Tides
Gibson’s Mastertone Banjos
This Gibson RB-3 five-string from 1925 is a rare piece, as is any five-string banjo from the era dominated by…
Paul Gabriel
Rollin’ With Robillard
For Paul Gabriel, the opportunity to work with fellow guitarist Duke Robillard happened decades after they’d met and first played…
Eight-String Basses
Sonic Niche
Emerging in ’60s catalogs from Hagström and Framus, eight-string basses occupy a distinct place among musical instruments – their potent,…
2Frontiers
New Old West
Categories can be bandied about – catchalls like Americana or alt this or that – but this is basically old-timey…
