Hall & Collins Signature Echo

Echo Rock

March 5, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

For guitarists whose lives are dedicated to replicating the echo effects heard on songs like Hank Marvin’s “Apache,” Hall &…

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25 Most Valuable Guitars

May 24, 2015 · Vintage Guitar

Data compiled by Alan Greenwood and Gil Hembree Vintage Guitar is marking 25 years of publication with a year full…

Tom Petersson’s Gretsch 12-string Basses

Tricked-Out Trio

December 26, 2017 · Willie G. Moseley

Cheap Trick fans are aware of his contribution to the band’s songs, but few know he actually invented the 12-string…

Keeley Electronics Dark Side

Floyd Explorer

May 3, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

In the multi-verse of effects, Robert Keeley’s gizmos are a thing of beauty – particularly those that provide multiple sounds.…

GIBSON-EB-2-HOME-MAIN-BIG

Gibson EB-2

Kalamazoo’s Biggest Bass Innovation?

October 22, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

In the mid 1950s, Gibson president Ted McCarty was paying close attention to two new instruments impacting the musical-instruments market…

2023 May Issue on Spotify

May 2, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

This month we feature Chris Duarte, Nickel Creek, Pink Floyd, J. Geils Band, Harvey Mandel, L.A. Guns, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Jackson…

  •  VG Q&A: Harmony History

     VG Q&A: Harmony History

    And an Archtop Mystery

    I recently received two guitars as gifts and am trying to learn more about them. The first is a Harmony I believe is from the early ’70s. Its serial number…

    Read more >>

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ARTISTS

Christopher Thorn

Alt-Rocker/Studio Guru

June 14, 2022 · Greg Prato

Best known as half of the guitar tandem in the ’90s alternative-rock band Blind Melon (that’s his rhythm on “No…

Seth Lee Jones

Pedal Pusher

July 27, 2022 · Pete Prown

Thanks to giants like Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes, and Sonny Landreth, we’re living in a golden age of bottleneck guitar,…

Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda

Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda

The Un-Twisted Tale of <em>Stay Hungry</em>

May 12, 2016 · Ward Meeker

Step back with us, please, to 1984; Paul McCartney gets dinged for possession of cannibis in Barbados, Carl Lewis collects…

Fretprints: John Abercrombie

Modern-Jazz Innovator

January 11, 2023 · Wolf Marshall

John Abercrombie operated in four dimensions. A guitarist of unbounded breadth and depth, he redefined space in long, improvised flights…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

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…

The G&L El Toro

April 26, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

At the beginning of 1983, Leo Fender was just more than three years into his last guitar-manufacturing venture when he…

Martin 0-28K

Martin 0-28K

June 8, 2015 · George Gruhn

The exotic figuration of Hawaiian koa wood on this Martin 0-28K from 1923 has a visual appeal that matched the…

Ronnie Wood’s ’69 Hiwatt 100 DR103

January 3, 2014 · Dave Hunter

1969 Hiwatt 100 (Model DR103 Preamp tubes: four ECC83 Output tubes: four EL34 Rectifier: solidstate Controls: Normal Vol, Brill Vol,…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Buzz Feiten Blues Pro

Buzz Feiten Blues Pro

Cantankerous Tones

March 8, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Buzz Feiten Blues Pro Price: $2,395 (list) Contact: www.buzzfeitenguitars.com Buzz Feiten is a Woodstock alumnus who has played with a…

Keeley Electronics’ D&M Drive

Tone Stacker

July 24, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

As the gear industry seeks to reach new segments, Robert Keeley has turned his attention from making products for road…

Strymon’s DIG Dual Digital Delay

Diggin’ In

March 2, 2017 · Phil Feser

Offering the heart and soul of those crystal-clear first-generation 1980s digital delays, California-based Strymon’s DIG Dual Digital Delay provides not only…

Lace Cybercaster LS

Modern Mixer

July 10, 2019 · Chip Wilson

The mere name of Don Lace’s Cybercaster may set calloused fingertips to head-scratching. After all, “cyber” connotes cutting-edge, futuristic. How…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Racer X, Bruce Bouillet, Vintage Guitar magazine

Bruce Bouillet

From The Shadow Of Racer X

January 8, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Former Racer X guitarist Bruce Bouillet overcame carpal tunnel syndrome to return to his first love – shredding. Now, he’s…

Orange VT1000 Valve Tester

June 16, 2014 · Zac Childs

Orange VT1000 Valve Tester Price: $499 Info: www.orangeamps.com. Many a Vintage Guitar reader has a stash of tubes lying about…

Check This Action: Remembering David Lindley

March 16, 2024 · Dan Forte

Much has been written about David Lindley since the 78-year-old passed away on March 3 of complications from long Covid.…

Gretsch 6119 Tennessean

Gretsch 6119 Tennessean

June 21, 2016 · George Gruhn

Chet Atkins was the most important endorser ever employed by the Gretsch company. When introduced in the 1950s, models bearing…

Fender Princeton, Deluxe, and Tremolux

Three Small Tweeds

Fender Princeton, Deluxe, and Tremolux

November 24, 2015 · Baker Rorick

From 1954 through ’59, the Fender Electric Instrument Mfg. Co. built guitar amplifiers with controls mounted atop using “chickenhead” knobs…

The Yamaha THR10

Yamaha THR10

Practice Perfection?

August 19, 2014 · Phil Feser

Yamaha THR10 Price: $299 Contact: usa.yamaha.com. As a rule of thumb, practice amps are a compromise. Blissfully portable, they typically…

Jesse Aycock

Oklahoma’s Finest

March 1, 2022 · Pete Prown

Super-sideman Jesse Aycock (Hard Working Americans, Elizabeth Cook) has a new self-titled album highlighting his understated (but mindblowing) guitar, slide,…

Gibson’s 1941 SJ-100

Second Coming

March 19, 2014 · Steven Stone

Gibson 1941 SJ-100 Price: $3,868 (list)/$2,999 (street) Info: www.gibson.com Sporting a unique “stair step” headstock, the first Gibson SJ-100s began…

Jeff Plankenhorn

New Innovations For Lap Steel

December 26, 2017 · Willie G. Moseley

Jeff Plankenhorn has always made music his way, using stringed instruments he created. He picked up guitar at age 10,…

Universal Audio Ruby, Woodrow & Dream

Model Of Perfection

August 10, 2023 · Pete Prown

With digital recording more popular than ever, audio designers are working to capture guitar tone directly, without miking an amp.…

Check This Action: Playing Guitar With The Ventures

December 8, 2022 · Dan Forte

Think of your favorite rock band, and imagine sitting in with them – or better yet, being a member. The…

Otis Redding

Otis Forever: The Albums & Singles (1968-1970)

May 13, 2024 · Sean McDevitt

Otis Redding’s death in a plane crash in late 1967 created a monumental task for producer and guitarist Steve Cropper…

Harden Engineering BluesBird

Bird Can Sing

January 27, 2022 · Michael Dregni

If you’re wondering about builder Bill Harden’s inspiration in creating the BluesBird, think Coodercaster – a customized Frankenstein’s monster of…

Weissenborn Style #4

Weissenborn Style#4

April 13, 2010 · George Gruhn

The acoustic Hawaiian guitar of Hermann Weissenborn is one of the most specialized instrument designs of the 20th century. Weissenborns…

Joe Robinson

Eyes on the Prize

October 4, 2023 · Bob Dragich

Bouncing on a trampoline in the yard of the home his father built outside Temagog, Australia, nine-year-old Joe Robinson gleefully…

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…

Racer X, Bruce Bouillet, Vintage Guitar magazine

Bruce Bouillet

From The Shadow Of Racer X

January 8, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Former Racer X guitarist Bruce Bouillet overcame carpal tunnel syndrome to return to his first love – shredding. Now, he’s…

The PRS Studio

Bird Watcher

April 1, 2022 · Pete Prown

The new Studio model is the culmination of many decades of work from the design minds at PRS, as they…

Devi Ever:FX Big Distortion Sound Machine

Devi Ever:FX Big Distortion Sound Machine

Enough is Never Enough

March 3, 2016 · Pete Prown

Devi Ever:FX Big Distortion Sound Machine Price: $200 (list) Contact: www.devieverfx.com Want fuzz, crunch, and overdrive? How about all at…

Matchless Superchief 120

May 30, 2017 · Dave Hunter

A maker at the forefront of the “boutique amp” movement, Matchless is known for its Class-A designs – that is,…

Black Cat Vibe and TWA’s Triskelion Mk. II

Opposites Attract

March 31, 2017 · Pete Prown

In today’s world of proliferating boutique pedals, guitarists have a staggering array of divergent options. Case in point, the Black…

Setting Up Effects

Certain Guidelines Apply to a Signal Chain, But Your Ears Are the Ultimate Judge

June 2, 2015 · Lisa Sharken

One question frequently asked by guitar players is how to set up effects and arrange them in a 
proper signal…

Martin 00-42 Special

June 30, 2020 · George Gruhn

It has all the appoint-ments of a Martin 00-45, particularly the abalone pearl trim around all the borders of the…

The Voxmobile

Too Fast to Live, Too Cool to Die

March 22, 2018 · Dave Hunter

Free love, slick guitars, hot cars! Few pieces of late-’60s pop culture were anywhere near as hip and groovy as…

David Ryan Harris

Songs For Other People

April 24, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

David Ryan Harris gets his greatest exposure singing and playing guitar around the world with John Mayer, but he’s been…

Richie Kotzen

Better Days Coming

July 26, 2023 · Greg Prato

Richie Kotzen is one of today’s busiest rock guitarists. In addition to being a long-time solo artist (and possessing an…

2024 May Issue on Spotify

May 9, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

This month we feature Gary Clark, Jr., The Beatles, Deep Purple, Johnny A, Scott Hebderson, Kinga Glyk, D.K. Harrell, Frank…

Johnny Winter

Guitar Slinger

May 13, 2024 · Bret Adams

Texas-born guitarist/vocalist Johnny Winter, who died at 70 in 2014, was steeped in the blues, but many of his big…

Phil “Big Dez” Fernandez

Blues Is Everywhere

April 30, 2021 · Rick Allen

6’2″/300-pound Phil “Big Dez” Fernandez is an international emissary of the blues. The French-born son of a Bosnian mother and…