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…

Fretprints: The Beatles’ Revolver

Sonic Floodgates

January 14, 2025 · Wolf Marshall

If any rock album can be labeled “groundbreaking,” it’s the Beatles’ Revolver. A sweepingly innovative masterpiece, it divides the ’60s…

Universal Audio Ruby, Woodrow & Dream

Model Of Perfection

July 28, 2023 · Pete Prown

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

Have Guitar Will Travel – Featuring 006 BottleRock Music Festival Pt. 3

May 13, 2019 · James Patrick Regan

One last show from BottleRock ’18, with guests including Chris Vos (Record Company), Austin Burns (Dani Bell and the Tarantist),…

Quilter Labs’ Aviator Cub

High Flyer

April 7, 2022 · Rich Maloof

Quilter Labs has gained a rep for busting popular perceptions. They’ve attempted to step up their game with this single-channel…

Gibson’s “SG” Les Paul

Classic Shape That Filled Big Shoes

September 15, 2024 · Baker Rorick

In 1961, Gibson replaced the single-cutaway Les Paul with a new line of lighter, thinner, mahogany double-cut solidbodies. Developed under…

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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…

Mick Ralphs

Good Company

March 20, 2019 · Elliot Stephen Cohen

In 1972, one of Britain’s best bands, Mott The Hoople, still hadn’t made any impact on the charts. Its record…

Mike Campbell

New Band, New Times

December 9, 2021 · Ward Meeker

Being a true rock star, Mike Campbell was never a morning guy. While living his best life amidst a pandemic,…

Thom Douvan

Thom Douvan

Motown and More

July 5, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

Released in April, guitarist Thom Douvan’s third album, All Over Again, is a mix of self-penned instrumentals (with one notable…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

The Supro 1600R Supreme and 600 Reverb

Toneful Twosome

March 27, 2019 · Dave Hunter

Supro amps from the late 1950s and early ’60s are some of the most stylish of the era, and boast…

Weymann Model 890 Jimmie Rodgers Special

Hey Hey, Tell ’Em About US

May 19, 2025 · Peter Stuart Kohman

Jimmie Rodgers has been called many things; while active from 1927-’33 he was billed as “the Singing Brakeman” and ”America’s…

The City of Guitars

Git-Shopping in Paris

July 9, 2019 · Michael Dregni

On your way to Paris for a romantic getaway? Wanting to see the sights in the City of Light? Then…

ORVILLEGIBSONA-HOME-MAIN-BIG

Orville Gibson A model

March 20, 2015 · George Gruhn

All carved-top guitars and mandolins trace their ancestry back to Orville Gibson of Kalamazoo, Michigan. However, as this A model…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Blues Guitars On A Budget

A New Breed of L-Style

February 3, 2015 · Chip Wilson

Picture the archetypal 1930s blues man, photographed with a studio backdrop, jaunty hat, knowing leer…. What else do you see?…

Andrew White Guitars’ Freja 1013W

Shape Shifter

May 30, 2019 · Chip Wilson

Though electric guitars have undergone radical change since the world first laid eyes on Rickenbacker’s “frying pan,” acoustics have rarely…

EarthQuaker Devices’ Westwood Translucent Drive Manipulator

Ground Shaker

October 3, 2019 · Zac Childs

EarthQuaker Devices has a knack for launching pedals that range from ideal tools for those seeking otherworldly sonic textures to…

Epiphone Jack Casady Signature Model

Tuna Bass

November 22, 2013 · Pete Prown

Epiphone Jack Casady Signature Bass Price: $699 (street) Info: www.epiphone.com. Rock-and-roll bassists of the ’60s like Paul McCartney, Jack Bruce,…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

J.D. Simo

Mind Control

December 8, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

The topic is psychedelic blues, and J.D. Simo is the man with the brown acid. Hypnotic wah, talking hollowbody guitars,…

Tom Keifer

Thick and Thin

February 10, 2014 · Ward Meeker

Tom Keifer is a tad young to be on the (very) long list of musicians inspired first and foremost by…

Rocky Mountain Slides Company Firecracker Aluminum Slides

Slick Slide

May 8, 2025 · Joe Bigley

Rocky Mountain Slides Company’s new “Firecracker Aluminum Slides” may look like other guitar slides but it is internally flared in…

John Abercrombie

1944-2017

May 9, 2019 · Pete Prown

After a lengthy illness, jazz guitarist John Abercrombie died August 22 at a hospital outside Peekskill, New York. He was…

Tone Electronix Animalizzer

Fuzz Feast

January 27, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

At first glance, Tone Electonix’s Animalizzer might appear to be a Big-Muff-style fuzz with too many knobs. A closer look…

Jock Bartley

The Return of Firefall

November 26, 2021 · Pete Prown

If you listened to pop radio in the late ’70s, it was hard to miss Firefall, whose soft-rock hits were…

Fishman Loudbox Mini

Little Big Man

August 10, 2023 · Pete Prown

The Fishman Loudbox Mini is just what its name says – a small amp that delivers the company’s renowned audio…

Fender Custom Color Strat main

Custom-Color Stratocasters

July 1, 2014 · R.K. Watkins

The Stratocaster was born in 1954. A solidbody with three pickups, contoured back and top, vibrato, and bolt-on neck, it…

Sonny Burgess

1929-2017

May 9, 2019 · Michael Dregni

Sonny Burgess, one of the last of the great Sun Records stars, died August 18. He was 88 and had…

Check This Action: Blue Steel

February 8, 2024 · Dan Forte

Freddie Roulette was one of the most amazing musicians I ever heard, knew, or saw – the absolute monster of…

D’Angelico’s EXL-1 and EX-SS

Deco Redux

July 23, 2014 · Chip Wilson

3rd Power Solo Dream/Switchback amps Price: $1,859 list/$1,149 street (EXL-1); $1,999 list/$1,409 street (EX-SS) Info: www.dangelicoguitars.com. Images of John D’Angelico…

Albert Castiglia

Righteous and Raucous

January 5, 2018 · Willie G. Moseley

Guitarist Albert Castiglia’s blues-based music has gone through a lot of changes since VG first interviewed him in 2008. In…

Fano Alt de Facto RB6

Classic That Never Was

February 3, 2014 · Sean OBryan Smith

Fano Alt de Facto RB6 Price: $2,495 Info: fanoguitars.com In recent years, a trend in the guitar realm has been…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Alan Greenwood

January 14, 2025 · Vintage Guitar

Season 02 Episode 1 VG’s “Buy That Guitar” podcast opens its second season with host Ram Tuli joined by Alan…

Dean DeLeo and Tom Bukovac unite on the trip the witch

Cosmic Convergence

September 9, 2022 · Ward Meeker

At a glance, there’s little reason to connect a guitarist like Dean DeLeo to one like Tom Bukovac. One is…

Mark O’Connor

Virtuoso Comeback

March 4, 2022 · Pete Prown

Some musicians are multi-instrumentalists, but Mark O’Connor is something else – a multi-virtuoso. Regarded as a master on guitar, violin,…

Fenders American Vintage Series

Devilish in Detail

December 11, 2013 · Phil Feser

Fender American Vintage Series Price: $2,400 retail/$1,999.99 street (’52 Telecaster); $2,874 retail/$2,299.99 street (’59 Stratocaster); $2,874 retail/$2,299 street (’65 Jazzmaster…

Jeff Kollman

Validating Versatiltiy

June 25, 2025 · Willie G. Moseley

A perusal of guitarist Jeff Kollman’s resumé forces a double take. Alongside decades of studio work and live gigs with…

Tinsley Ellis’ “Devil May Care” attitude

April 15, 2022 · Doug Yellow Bird

Blues ace gets rowdy on his 345 through a tweed Champ The fiery Tinsley Ellis and his ’67 Gibson ES-345…

L-5 to Super 400

L-5 to Super 400

The Story of Gibson’s Big Archtops

September 30, 2015 · George Gruhn

The archtop guitar is a uniquely American instrument which can be traced directly to the creative genius of one person…

Alvin Youngblood Hart

Alvin Youngblood Hart

Electric Gutbucket

January 24, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Alvin Youngblood Hart surfs the musical landscape of blues-based music to make his own great art. His influences range from…

Rick Nielsen

Storied Career

January 5, 2018 · Elliot Stephen Cohen

“Many years ago, I was in the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ dressing room with my son, Daxx,” recalls Rick Nielsen. “Flea…

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Electro-Harmonix Soul Food, Nano Big Muff

Add OD, To Taste

November 4, 2015 · Pete Prown

Price: Soul Food, $89.25 (list), $62.81 (street); Nano Big Muff, $95.64 (list), $69.80 (street) Info: www.ehx.com Guitarists have an insatiable…

Classics: June 2023

Danny Gattons ’51 Nocaster

February 2, 2024 · Ward Meeker

From learning a first lick to playing an entire song with friends, musicians thrive on motivations big and small. Growing…

Colin Linden

Bringing it Back Around

April 21, 2016 · John Heidt

Colin Linden’s Still Live is a step back to his first recording – a live album made three decades ago.…

Jimmy Vivino – Canned Heat Shuffle

November 29, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Solo on a Rare Martin Jimmy Vivino and his Martin Paul Simon PS 2 OM prototype (which was gifted to…

Roy Orbison’s Marshall Model 1961

Dream Baby

June 10, 2024 · Dave Hunter

One of the most-desirable vintage amplifiers ever made goes by a name it never officially had. Possibly the first Marshall…

Mayfly Goddess Chorus

Come As You Are

February 8, 2024 · Charlie Wilkins

Chorus pedals have been around for decades and for many players are an integral part of their tone. But not…

Neil Giraldo Home Main

Neil Giraldo

Road Routine

February 4, 2016 · Ward Meeker

The hard-driving husband-and-wife rock act that hits the stage as Pat Benatar and Neil “Spyder” Giraldo is responsible for more…