Epiphone 1963 Firebird V

Legacy-Worthy

July 10, 2025 · Bob Dragich

Looking to up the ante in the market battle with Fender, in October of 1962, Gibson CEO Ted McCarty asked…

Classics: July 2021

Warren Garstecki’s 1932 Gibson HG-22

March 4, 2022 · Ward Meeker

Warren Garstecki is a collector who keys on vintage Gibsons with interesting histories, like the HG-22. Introduced in 1929, the…

Steve Stevens

Moxy at the Roxy

July 11, 2024 · Bret Adams

Steve Stevens earned stardom as Billy Idol’s songwriting partner and guitarist in the ’80s. The Grammy-winning New York City native…

The Tale of Bobby Whitlock’s D-35

Storied Board

The Tale of Bobby Whitlock’s D-35

January 24, 2017 · Daniel Wile

Plenty of musicians personalize instruments with their names or initials. So, it’s easy to assume that Robert “Bobby” Whitlock commissioned…

IK Multimedia iRig HD

Pocket Rocket

March 2, 2017 · Pete Prown

Ain’t technology grand? With a device like the iRig HD, you can plug your guitar into an iPhone, iPad, or…

Ray Cummins' latest lesson changes things up by mixing country, jazz, and blues.

Ray Cummins – Guitar Tutorial #4

March 8, 2017 · Ray Cummins

Ray Cummins' latest lesson changes things up by mixing country, jazz, and blues. He takes a simple chord progression, adds a…

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ARTISTS

Don Felder

Don Felder

Six-Stringed Summer Stock

June 23, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

Former Eagles guitarist Don Felder is spending the summer with a few friends. On an extended tour with Styx and…

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Billy F Gibbons

Return of the Revvvv

April 22, 2020 · Willie G. Moseley

Every time Vintage Guitar sets up an interview with the redoubtable Billy F Gibbons, lead guitarist/vocalist of the legendary Texas…

Tinsley Ellis

Tinsley Ellis

Tougher Than Ever

March 22, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

After decades of roadhouses, bars, and international touring, bluesman Tinsley Ellis is still going strong. A 1979 graduate of Emory…

Louis Stewart

Irish Jazz Giant

March 20, 2024 · Wolf Marshall

Next to Jameson whiskey, Louis Stewart remains Ireland’s leading export – and his playing can be just as intoxicating. The…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Gibson’s Experimental Archtop

April 6, 2023 · George Gruhn and Walter Carter

Orville Gibson invented the carved-top guitar in the 1890s. The Gibson company refined the design with the addition of f-holes…

Barney Kessel’s ES-350 Rides Again

Return Of An Icon

October 13, 2022 · Rusty Russell

Bruce Forman acquired Barney Kessel’s beloved Gibson ES-350 in mid 2021. In prep for recording Reunion!, he made the guitar…

McKinley James’ Blues

October 25, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

 Family Barn Jam! With his ’82 Gibson 335 running into a Headstrong Corduroy (20-watt/6V6) amp, McKinley James shares a…

MXR Custom Shop GT-OD Overdrive

Snappy and Smooth

March 1, 2021 · Phil Feser

From its early days with the script-logo Distortion + to the modern Zack Wlyde overdrive, MXR has been a mainstay…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

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ESP LTD Viper 256P

Metal Cruncher

January 26, 2013 · Pete Prown

ESP LTD Viper 256P Price: $399 (street) Info: espguitars.com. In the protoplasmic days of heavy metal, Tony Iommi slashed away…

Fishman’s Fluence Greg Koch Gristle-Tone Pickups

Voices Not In Your Head

July 5, 2018 · Tom Guerra

In 2014, Fishman introduced their Fluence line with the goal of combining vintage tone with freedom from the inductance problems…

Divided By 13 BTR23C Brian Ray Signature

English Flavor

March 21, 2014 · Oscar Jordan

Divided By 13 BTR23C Price: $2,800 Info: www.dividedby13.com. After years of repairing and modding amps for himself and pals like…

Oddfellow Caveman Drive

Oddfellow Caveman Drive

Tone Evolution

February 2, 2016 · Pete Prown

Oddfellow Caveman Drive Price: $174.99 (list) Info: www.oddfellowfx.com. Handmade in California, the Oddfellow Caveman Drive is a boutique pedal whose…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

EMG T-52 Set

July 22, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

EMG pickups have been around since 1976, offering a diverse line of active pickups used in just about every genre…

Breedlove Pursuit Exotic S Concert Amber 12-String CE

Tonal Transcendence

October 12, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

In 1990, Steve Henderson and Larry Breedlove quit their day jobs at Taylor Guitars and moved to Oregon, where they…

Blooming, In Progress

Larkin Poe

September 8, 2025 · Oscar Jordan

Released in January of 2025, Larkin Poe’s Bloom has Rebecca and Megan Lovell weaving powerful philosophies into strong songwriting and…

Fender AA964 Princeton

What’s (Not) in a Name

October 24, 2023 · Dave Hunter

Getting the job done – five simple knobs on the Princeton’s control panel. 1966 Fender Princeton • Preamp tubes: one…

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.…

The Pedulla Buzz Bass

Fast and Fretless

September 23, 2019 · Willie G. Moseley

Introduced in 1980, the M.V. Pedulla Buzz Bass is one of the most-enduring examples of an upscale model offered fretless.…

Paco de Lucía

The Montreux Years

January 24, 2024 · Pete Prown

“He didn’t read music – but I have never met a musician with such an impeccable ear,” says John McLaughlin…

Classics: Steve Kimock 1968 Goldstop

January 3, 2025 · Ward Meeker

It was a moment when the angels did sing. Wanting to chat with his de facto big brother, one fateful…

History of a Mystery

Kurt Hendrick and His Enigmatic Axes

December 18, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

One of the most-enigmatic brands in the history of American guitars was a line of funky solidbody electrics created by…

Jimmy Bryant

Country-Jazz Virtuoso

September 23, 2019 · Wolf Marshall

When Leo Fender strode into a cowboy bar on the outskirts of Hollywood one day in 1950, he had no…

Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit

Live From the Ryman, Vol. 2

November 7, 2025 · Rich Kienzle

Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium is a special venue for Isbell & the 400 Unit. As their stature has grown beyond roots…

Brian Setzer

The Devil Always Collects

August 11, 2024 · Bret Adams

We can always rely on Brian Setzer records to bring the swagger, no matter the project – solo, Brian Setzer…

The ViVi-Tone Aggrandizer

The ViVi-Tone Aggrandizer

March 28, 2016 · Dave Hunter

• Preamp tubes: 6C5, 6F5 • Output tubes: two 6B5 • Rectifier: 80 • Controls: Volume, on/off switch • Speaker:…

VG Q&A: Jimi Flip

Plus, Precision Bass rests and an odd Galliano

October 12, 2023 · Peter Stuart Kohman

I’ve never read why Jimi Hendrix played and set up a right-hand Strat to play left-handed. Surely, he could’ve found…

Mike Keneally

Mike Keneally

Gainfully Employed

April 1, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Mike Keneally has made a career of inconspicuously assisting Frank Zappa, Andy Partridge, Steve Vai, Dethklok, and Joe Satriani fulfill…

Monster Mike Welch

From Phenom To Blues Veteran

April 28, 2024 · Dan Forte

Twenty-seven years after his debut album at age 17, Monster Mike Welch delivers perhaps his best disc yet with Nothing…

Gibson’s Fabulous Florentines

Archtop Elite

January 3, 2025 · Wolf Marshall

The image of Elvis Presley on his 1968 NBC “comeback special” was, in a word, badass. Dressed in black leather…

Teisco Del Rey Basses

’60s Egalitarianism from Japan

July 13, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

Teisco Del Rey basses from the 1960s are exemplary of the Japanese-made instruments that swept into the American market like…

Ray Cummins demonstrates Chet Atkins fingerstyle tune “Good Old Summertime”

Chet Atkins – Good Old Summertime

August 6, 2016 · Ray Cummins

Ray Cummins demonstrates Chet Atkins fingerstyle tune “Good Old Summertime” In his first exclusive video tutorial for VG Online, Ray…

Dan’s Guitar RX: Rock-And-Roll High School(er)

Building a From-Scratch Class Project, the Conclusion

September 18, 2023 · Dan Erlewine

In my November ’22 column, Ceil Thompson’s class-project guitar was nearing completion – the lacquer coats were applied and, after…

Duane Betts

Father to Son

April 28, 2024 · Greg Prato

It’s understandable if you detect a certain Southern-rock flare in the music of singer/guitarist Duane Betts. After all, his father…

Steve Cropper

Homage to Lowman Pauling

August 5, 2015 · Michael Dregni

All but forgotten today, with his low-slung guitar, stylish rhythm licks, and tasty leads, Lowman Pauling was one of the…

Rocky Athas’ Texas ’Tude!

September 26, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Genuine Lone Star Jams Dallas guy Rocky Athas built a career playing blues in the vain of T-Bone and SRV,…

Howard Leese

Heart-less But Guitar Laden

August 3, 2022 · Wolf Marshall

Guitarist/ producer/ entrepreneur Howard Leese has come a long way since his early days with Heart in the 1970s. He…

Tom Feldmann’s Beginner Fingerpicking – Lesson 4

Tom Feldmann’s Beginner Fingerpicking – Lesson 4

August 1, 2017 · Doug Yellow Bird

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

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 3

Backbone Instruments 1962-’64

January 31, 2018 · Peter Stuart Kohman

In early 2009, VG columnist Peter Stuart Kohman turned his focus on Burns, the pioneering British guitar builder. We’ve compiled…

Belfast Bluesman Dom Martin

January 2, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Gallagher, Buchanan Inspiration! Dom Martin grew up listening to blues-guitar legends including his Irish countryman Rory Gallagher, and has created…

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Michael Schenker

Acoustic Album, Electric Gear

April 29, 2016 · Pete Prown

One of the most influential guitarists in hard rock history, Michael Schenker has imbued the music of UFO, Scorpions, and…

Gretsch’s ’55 Falcon G6136-55

Gretsch’s ’55 Falcon G6136-55

Look at that “Cadillac”

July 19, 2016 · Michael Dregni

Gretsch’s 1955 White Falcon was the pink Cadillac of guitars – quite possibly the most outlandish guitar ever produced. The…