• Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    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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Vox Guitars Invade America

From Dartford to Sepulveda

December 18, 2014 · Peter Stuart Kohman

The Vox brand may be quintessentially English, but it made a huge impact in the U.S. Riding in with the…

Multi-Generational Blues

Ronnie Baker Brooks

September 8, 2025 · Oscar Jordan

On Blues In My DNA, second-generation blues man Ronnie Baker Brooks continues the legacy of his father, Lonnie Brooks, by…

Ibanez Artcore AGS73FM and Vintage VSA500HB

Solid Semis

October 3, 2019 · Pete Prown

In the past several years, many import guitar brands have improved their build quality while continuing to offer their goods…

Roy Treviño

Joining the Conversation

May 20, 2021 · John Heidt

With his new self-titled album, South-Texas-based guitarist Roy Treviño accomplished his goals by simply being himself and letting the music…

David Bromberg

Swearing On The Blues

November 1, 2016 · Michael Dregni

David Bromberg likes to quote the great fiddler Johnny Gimble, who once famously said, “There’s only two kinds of music…

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…

  • Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings

    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,…

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ARTISTS

Jay Geils

More of That Jazz

April 13, 2017 · Johnny Zapp

Guitar maestro Jay Geils is a musical chameleon. In the ’70s, the J. Geils Band kicked out nine records that…

Have Guitar Will Travel 079 – Tim Dugger, Ray Fulcher and Drew Castle

July 8, 2022 · James Patrick Regan

Host James Patrick Regan talks with Tim Dugger, Ray Fulcher and Drew Castle for episode 79 of “Have Guitar Will…

Nils Lofgren

Great American Journeyman

March 29, 2017 · Johnny Zapp

Nils Lofgren’s resumé stretches 47 years and counting. He joined Neil Young’s band at age 19 and was a member…

Brad Gillis

Playin’ On

July 20, 2022 · Ward Meeker

A member of the cutting-edge vanguard that made the Floyd Rose locking vibrato a huge part of ’80s rock guitar,…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Rickenbacher Model 200A

August 5, 2015 · Dave Hunter

Several vintage amplifiers that have graced these pages over the years have taken us back to the early days of…

Jim Kelley FACS Reverb

January 23, 2017 · Dave Hunter

Truly a deserving name in the early era of the “boutique” amp scene, Jim Kelley is also an extremely under-recognized…

Orange OR80 Combo

Sunshine State

August 8, 2023 · Dave Hunter

Created when amps were huge and men were men – or at least had roadies to carry the gear –…

Classics: December 2023

Cliff Antone’s 1952 Fender Precision

August 15, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Texas is known for music, especially Austin, which in the mid ’70s became a hotbed thanks to clubs like Armadillo…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Wampler Pedals’ Bravado

Tone Tweaker’s Delight

April 24, 2019 · Chip Wilson

What’s a pedal platform? Nope, it’s not a carbon-fiber Pinarello mountain bike with Shimano shifters and derailleurs. It’s another term…

Gibson Theodore Standard

Flower Power

July 10, 2025 · Rich Maloof

Named in honor of Ted McCarty, the Theodore is based on a design the legendary Gibson president penciled into a…

Colby Dual Tone Booster 50

Double Versatile

August 12, 2014 · Tom Guerra

Colby DTB50 Price: $3,800 (head); $750 (cabinet) Contact: www.colbyamps.com From 1978 through 2010, Mitch Colby helped Marshall become a preeminent…

Jim Kelley Reverb Model

Legend, Resurrected

December 2, 2016 · Bob Dragich

Jim Kelley began making his highly acclaimed guitar amplifiers 1978. His big revelation came while he was still doing mods…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Home Feature Image

Rickenbacker Electric 12-Strings

Double-Bound for Glory

May 21, 2016 · Richard R. Smith

George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacher founded Electro String in 1931 to manufacture what everyone would soon call “Rickenbacker” guitars. Success…

Brian Tarquin

Brian Tarquin

No Idle Hands

May 2, 2016 · John Heidt

Brian Tarquin is more than keeping busy. In the space of six weeks, he recently released two very different instrumental…

Tsakalis Experience, Emma ON-1 Okto-Nøjs, and Mad Professor Twimble

World Sounds

July 3, 2019 · Pete Prown

It seems that every other stompbox on the market has dual-footswitch functionality, packing two entirely different circuits into one housing.…

Home Feature Image

Music Man HD-130 Reverb

November 13, 2018 · Dave Hunter

Intended to be the masterpiece of a titan in guitar-amp design, Music Man amps of the mid/late ’70s are all…

The Drew & Sebastian Avenger

Multi-“caster”

December 31, 2013 · Phil Feser

At first glance, the D&S Avenger looks like a long-lost prototype from Leo’s shop, with its offset-waist shape and familiar…

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Mick Mars

A Piece of His Action

December 17, 2015 · Lisa Sharken

Since emerging from Hollywood’s Sunset Strip in the early 1980s, Mötley Crue has defined the Los Angeles metal scene. Fueled…

Dweezil Zappa

Solo Sounds

March 3, 2017 · Oscar Jordan

To properly perform the music composed by his father, Frank, Dweezil Zappa had to revamp his playing style. The fruits…

Vinnie Moore

Heavy Melodic Shred

March 18, 2016 · Lisa Sharken

Vinnie Moore emerged in the mid ’80s, garnering praise for his work as a solo instrumentalist and for his contributions…

Steve Miller

Some People Call Him Rock Icon

January 7, 2011 · Ward Meeker

Not until after he turned 40 did it occur to Steve Miller that he never really needed to fear whether…

Dave Murray

Maiden Voyager

July 27, 2022 · Bret Adams

After 46 years, Iron Maiden is still reinforcing its stature as a legendary heavy metal band. Senjutsu, the British juggernaut’s…

Greg Martin John Sebastian’s ’59 Gibson Les Paul Standard Vintage Guitar magazine Feature Image

John Sebastian’s ’59 Gibson Les Paul Standard

Vintage Guitar magazine Presents Greg Martin's Head Shop

April 30, 2018 · Doug Yellow Bird

This is a regular series of exclusive Vintage Guitar online features where The Kentucky Headhunters’ Greg Martin looks back on…

Ampeg VT-22

Ampeg VT-22

October 15, 2015 · Dave Hunter

Preamp tubes: four 7025 (12AX7 types) Output tubes: two 5881 (a more-rugged 6L6 type), fixed-bias Rectifier: solidstate Controls: Bass Instrument…

Lari Basilio

Love, Law, and Guitars

June 29, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

Lari Basilio’s latest album, Your Love, is highlighted by spellbinding note density, feel, and whiplash twists and turns. Her forté…

Noah Zacharin: Seriously Agile Fingerstyle

February 29, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

“Lester Brown” Live From The Big Lonely From his home in a forest between Ottawa and Toronto, singer/songwriter/fingerpicker Noah Zacharin…

Buddy Merrill

1936-2021

December 2, 2022 · Rich Kienzle

Buddy Merrill, guitarist, steel-guitarist, composer, arranger, recording artist, and occasional vocalist, died December 5. He was 85. A seasoned musician…

The Gretsch 6120 Tenor

December 2, 2014 · George Gruhn

This 1958 Gretsch Chet Atkins 6120 four-string tenor guitar is a very rare variation of the model. Gretsch built other…

Jim Heath

A Reverend By Any Other Name

November 12, 2020 · John Heidt

Jim Heath is better
known to most folks as psychobilly guitar fiend The Reverend Horton Heat. But on his latest release,…

Prototypes and Pathfinders

Five Amps That Set the Tone – Or Hoped To

October 2, 2024 · Dave Hunter

Groundbreaking and undeniably collectible guitar amplifiers have made frequent appearances in this space over the years, but so have prototypes,…

Richard Williams

Kansas’ Team Player

April 14, 2020 · Bret Adams

Unleashing pent-up creativity is a gratifying experience for a band, as Kansas guitarist Richard Williams can attest. The band known…

Zac Schulze gets straight to it!

December 8, 2025 · Vintage Guitar

If you’re a fan of Cream, Zeppelin, and Rory Gallagher (who isn’t?), you’ll dig Zac Schulze Gang, a British power…

Martin’s “12-Fret” 000-42

December 21, 2013 · George Gruhn

Martin has never been a stranger to producing certain guitars in very limited quantities. But just how rare is the…

Jeff Senn and Crazy Aces

Dealing Out Twang

June 6, 2014 · Michael Dregni

When you build guitars for a living, you might unwind with another hobby – say, beer-can collecting or crochet. Not…

Furch Blue Deluxe SW

Czech Mate

January 18, 2023 · Pete Prown

You might not recogonize the Furch brand, but the Czech Republic builder has spent that last 40-plus years gaining a…

Custom-Order Gibson B-45-12

March 14, 2016 · George Gruhn

The term “rare” is applied to guitars in far too many instances. Usually an appealing term, its overuse can be…

Pat Martino

Redefined Jazzman

March 2, 2022 · Wolf Marshall

Pat Martino is a legend. He has been delighting the globe’s collective ear for more than 50 years, making an…

Rodrigo Sanchez

Philosophical Resonance

March 6, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

The latest from Rodrigo y Gabriela, In Between Thoughts…A New World, shows the acoustic duo in top form with passion,…

Judas Priest

50 Heavy Metal Years of Music

August 11, 2022 · Pete Prown

With 42 CDs containing every studio and live album by the British colossus – including 13 discs of unreleased material…

Eliza Gilkyson

Songs from the River Wind

December 8, 2022 · Rich Kienzle

In contrast to her last few, politically-focused albums, Eliza Gilkyson considers this a “love letter to the Old West.” Revisiting…

Ray Benson

Ray Benson

Where There’s a Wills, There’s a Wheel

March 30, 2016 · John Heidt

Asleep At the Wheel’s latest album is the band’s third tribute to Bob Wills. Long-time leader Ray Benson recently talked…