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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…

Sean Chambers
Shoulders Of A Legend
When Hubert Sumlin sideman Sean Chambers played a gig with Savoy Brown bassist Pat DeSalvo and drummer Garnet Grimm, the…

Schertler Giulia X
The Little Things
In the mid ’80s, Swiss multi-instrumentalist Stephan Schertler decided to follow his passion for electronics and created the Schertler brand…

Small Screen, Big Pickin’
Crew Strives to Keep it Real on “Nashville”
It’s not often that prime-time network television captures an audience of working class, professional musicians. In 1968, players watched Elvis…

Chris Walz
All I Got and Gone
This traditional folk singer/guitarist’s solo debut is impressive. He’s been an educator at Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music…

A Tribute to Leslie West
Various artists
Here’s a much-deserved tribute to the Mountain guitarist who died in 2020, getting his due thanks to a procession of…

Lynyrd Skynyrd
30 Years Strong
Gary Rossington leads the charge against the challenge that has always come with being a member of Lynyrd Skynyrd. The…
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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,…
ARTISTS

Vintage Visionary
The First Golden Age of Ibanez 1973-1982
Thirty-Five years ago, Ibanez was a scrappy upstart guitar company that dared to challenge the big boys at Gibson and…

Paul Reed Smith
Roaring With Hendrix
Believe it or not, Paul Reed Smith can play the hell out of the guitar. In a world where most…

Pete Huttlinger
A Narrative (and album) From the Heart
To call Pete Huttlinger a survivor is an understatement. The notable Nashville fingerpicker has fought back from a major stroke…

Pop ’N Hiss: Robin Trower’s Twice Removed from Yesterday
Think Again
The solo career of guitar icon Robin Trower took off like a rocket in the early ’70s after he left…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

1976 Hagstrom Jimmy
In the world of archtop guitarmaking, the legendary luthier James L. D’Aquisto (1935-’95) is considered one of the greats. A…

Rick Derringer
Explore The Possibilities
Rick Derringer and his compadres in the McCoys smashed their way into the pantheon of rock and roll in the…

Andy Peake – Roots Without Boundaries
Andy Peake – Roots Without Boundaries Andy Peake is a drummer/percussionist with a long list of accomplished-guitarist friends. For proof,…

Custom Kraft Red Fury
Most guitar aficionados are comfortable with the notion of guitar brands being made by the company of the same name.…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Live Wire
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Narrow(field) Win
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Take Flight

Harmonic Design’s VP-90
Tone with Intent
Harmonic Design’s VP-90 Price: $100 Contact: www.harmonicdesign.net Harmonic Design must be doing something right. Specializing in replacement pickups, they boast…

The Orange Acoustic Pedal
Juice To Spare
Since the dawn of amplification, engineers have sought a better mousetrap – a more-transparent signal chain that preserves signal and…
The Electro-Harmonix Superego Synth Engine
Synthful
Electro-Harmonix Superego Synth Engine Price: $283.60 (retail); $212.70 (street) Contact: www.ehx.com Building on the success of its Freeze Sound Retainer…

Squier Paranormal Custom Nashville Stratocaster
No Choice Required
Can’t decide between a Tele and a Strat? The new Squier Paranormal Custom Nashville Stratocaster may ease your worried mind.…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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More Personal
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Rare Pioneer

PureSalem Bette
Unfiltered Garage Rock
If you’ve ever worked in the music retail field, you know that not everybody shares your excellent taste in guitars.…

Rex Solidbody
Italian Connection
An internet search for “Rex guitars” will turn up a fair – if confusing – amount of information about the…

A Guide to Vintage Dobros
John Dopyera left National in 1929 to begin work on a secret project – a single-cone resonator guitar he believed…

Nancy Wilson
Sister Act
After the release of the acclaimed Red Velvet Car in 2010, sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson and their band, Heart,…











































