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Taylor® Guitars Kicks Off 2026 With Two Major Launches – The Next Generation Of Its Flagship Grand Auditorium Guitars And New Gold Label Square-Shoulder Dreadnoughts
Taylor upgrades its most iconic models, adding “Next Generation” features to its Grand Auditorium body shape while expanding its recently introduced Gold Label Collection with traditional, square-shoulder dreadnoughts EL CAJON,…
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Thomas Custom Guitars
Rarities from the Pacific Northwest
Certain makes and models of electric guitars are rightfully prized for their elegant physical designs and superior craftsmanship. Even better are those also revered for their playability and particularly rich…
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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…
Guthrie Trapp
Life After Dark
Guthrie Trapp has spent the last couple decades in Nashville, supporting major acts in the studio and on the road.…
Fender Bassbreaker 45 Combo
Hybrid Love Child
Fender’s new nine-product Bassbreaker series combines popular traditional amplifiers with modern technology. Classic tones and flexibility are the name of…
Martin D-28 and D-45
Definitive Flat-tops
Martin’s pre-WWII dreadnought guitars set the standard for the modern flat-top, and thus both have been inducted into the VG…
Cry, Baby!
The Story of the Vox Wah
Beyond being crowned “Album of the Century” by Time magazine, Marley and the Wailers’ 1977 LP Exodus is a wah-wah…
Kay’s K161 Thin Twin
Post-war Blues Box
In his day, Jimmy Reed was a huge influence on everyone from Eric Clapton and Mike Bloomfield to the Rolling…
Giffin Vikta
Feelin’ Special
Giffin Vikta Price: $2,295 Contact: www.premierbuildersguild.com Roger Giffin is a guitarmaker to the stars, having built for Eric Clapton, Pete…
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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…
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ARTISTS
George Lynch
New Roads
A lynch pin is a narrow shaft of metal that keeps a wheel from falling off – without it, the…
Fretprints: Ted Greene
Solo Guitarist Extraordinaire
Few guitarists enjoy the adulation bestowed on Ted Greene. A legend who coaxed unimaginable sounds from a humble Telecaster and…
Frank Gambale
Soulmine
Frank Gambale has had an amazing career playing the music he loves. From being the go-to guy for sweep-picking, and…
In Memoriam: Leslie West
1944-2020
Leslie West, guitarist/frontman in the pioneering hard-rock band Mountain, died December 22, 2020, after going into cardiac arrest. He was…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS
Ampeg VT-22
Preamp tubes: four 7025 (12AX7 types) Output tubes: two 5881 (a more-rugged 6L6 type), fixed-bias Rectifier: solidstate Controls: Bass Instrument…
Jorge Garcia’s FM Anthems, in Jazz
Fresh takes on revered classics Joge Garcia’s “Still Crossing” is a collection of stellar instrumental performances of familiar tunes like…
Marshall Amplifiers
From Birth to the 21st Century
From the first JTM to models for Clapton and Townshend, Jim Marshall has been building amps since the early 1960s.…
Classics: Mike Semrad’s ’57 Gibson Les Paul Custom
Mike Semrad’s musical roots run deep in his hometown of Fremont, Nebraska – at least as far back as his…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Lively Drives
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Posh Squash
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Chet Powered!
Ernie Ball Music Man Luke3
Cool-Hand Luke
The latest model in Ernie Ball Music Man’s Steve Lukather signature series was designed to answer Lukather’s demand for an…
The PRS SE Custom 24 Semi-Hollow Piezo
Swiss Army Hybrid
PRS hits on its long-running trifecta – versatility, playability, aesthetic appeal – with its new twist on the electric/acoustic hybrid,…
Epiphone’s 75th Anniversary Electar “1939” Century
Little Heartthrob
Many vintage amp connoisseurs have a special place in their hearts for the early Epiphone Electar amplifiers. David Bromberg is…
Tone Pump Solara Studio
Clean ’N Dirty
Tone Pump Solara Studio Price: $1,099 (list) Contact: www.tonepumpamplifiers.com The story is a familiar one. A guy learns to repair…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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Revisiting Room 335
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Plus, a Pro’s List of Repair Glues
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Rising Tides
Andrew Synowiec’s Ebullient Tonefest
Uplifting Instrumental Rock! Check out Andrew Synowiec and his Heritage Custom Core H-150 P90 ripping through a chunk of “Lead…
Cordoba Stage
Classical Gas
With a 1.5″/fully chambered mahogany body, the Stage – Cordoba’s first foray into the world of nylon-string electric guitars –…
Alvino Rey’s “Mini” Gibsons
Alvino Rey’s 1936 Gibson mini guitar. From its beginnings, Gibson has built custom orders and unique instruments for specific artists,…
Birthright: A Black Roots Music Compendium
Various artists
This double-CD’s 40 tracks represent a wide swath of black roots music, from zydeco to gospel, from a Mississippi fife-and-drum…
