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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…

Henriksen Amplifiers’ The Blu
Sound Cube
One old cliché among gigging musicians is, “They pay me for the aggravation, the music is free.” A good deal…
Charlie Musselwhite
Charlie plays The Blues… On Guitar
In a career spanning 45 years, Charlie Musselwhite has taken the blues to places it’s never been – literally (playing…

Jeff Plankenhorn’s “Alone At Sea”
Tasty slide on a square-neck Oahu Singer/songwriter Jeff Plankenhorn’s music is a rootsy mix that embraces blues and pop while…
Guyatone LG-160T
The Secret's Out!
Like plants, Japanese guitars have an almost secret life of which few people outside are aware. While many Americans in…
Egnater Tweaker 40
Small, But Mighty
Egnater Tweaker 40 Price: $1,149 (approx. $800 street). Info: egnater.com Egnater has just amplified its Tweaker line with a new…

The Roland Space Echo
Perfect Slap-Back
When Brian Setzer kickstarted the Stray Cats into action in 1979, his gear lineup was a hodgepodge of orthodox rockabilly…
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Reverend Sensei H90
Live Wire
So you want a Gibson-style solidbody that can cover humbucker-powered rock, yet also twangier/glassier tones using a P-90 pickup. Check. You also want to grab high frets via double-cutaway and…
ARTISTS

Harvey Valdes does Bach – Electrified!
Artist Plugs in to Tackle Work of a Master Harvey Valdes shows us how he does J.S. Bach’s “BMV 999…

Austin Guitarst Eric Hisaw on “Someone Else.”
Rockabilly Meets Punk! Straight outta Austin, Eric Hisaw and his early-’80s import Fender Tele play a cool living-room rendition…

Dan Wilson’s celebration of jazz legends
Homage with Superb Musicality On his latest album, “Things Eternal,” jazz wizard Dan Wilson fuses post-bop, spirituality, and the songs…

Paul Bigsby’s Myrtlewood Guitars
= Few things are as satisfying as a guitar with a good story to tell. Some vintage guitars might be…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 3
Backbone Instruments 1962-’64
In early 2009, VG columnist Peter Stuart Kohman turned his focus on Burns, the pioneering British guitar builder. We’ve compiled…

Jason Isbell
New Vistas, Old Gear
Jason Isbell’s powerful songs, compelling vocals, and formidable guitar skills have made him one of America’s most-respected singer/songwriters. A charismatic…

Soul-jazz legend Calvin Keys
Exclusive spin on “Six to Seven” Calvin Keys has worked with Jimmy Smith, Ahmad Jamal, and Ray Charles. Here, he…

Recording King Ray Whitley
As a maker of high-quality instruments, Gibson was hit hard by the onset of the Depression in the 1930s. Company…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Live Wire
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Narrow(field) Win
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Take Flight
Blackstar ID:30TVP
Tone in the Digital Domain
Blackstar ID:30TVP Price: $399.99 Info: www.blackstarampsx.com. Since forming in 2007, Blackstar has been building user-friendly amplifiers and attracting high-profile artists…

Andrew White Guitars’ Freja 1013W
Shape Shifter
Though electric guitars have undergone radical change since the world first laid eyes on Rickenbacker’s “frying pan,” acoustics have rarely…

Epiphone 1966 SG G-400 PRO
For Those About to Rock
Epiphone’s 1966 SG G-400 PRO Price: $582 (list); $349 (street) Info: www.epiphone.com Gibson’s SG is a classic design with plenty…

Positive Grid Spark Go
Ready, Set…
Following the success of its highly portable Spark and Spark Mini practice amps, Positive Grid went really small with the…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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Consentrik Quartet
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Lookout Highway
Paul Nelson
Main Man to the Blues Man
Paul Nelson is not only Johnny Winter’s second guitarist, but the blues icon’s musical director, producer, songwriter, and – many…

Laur Joamets
Metamodern Sounds In Country Picking
The time-worn, well-trodden path to Nashville traditionally starts from a Tennessee holler, Arkansas cabin, or Texas jook. For Laur Joamets…

Austin Guitarst Eric Hisaw on “Someone Else.”
Rockabilly Meets Punk! Straight outta Austin, Eric Hisaw and his early-’80s import Fender Tele play a cool living-room rendition…

Reverend’s Rick Vito Signature Soul Shaker
Built For Speed
Blues-/roots-rocker Rick Vito knows what he wants from a guitar, and the Reverend Soul Shaker is proof. An art deco-inspired…









































