Prince

Rhapsody In Purple

April 20, 2017 · Oscar Jordan

A year after his death, VG remembers Prince, a musical revolutionary, whose emergence was jarring, even for the most youthful…

Chris Cain

Raisin’ Cain

April 4, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

Chris Cain returns with his 15th solo album, and it’s marvelous. Joining forces with Alligator Records, Cain continues his musical…

Fretprints: Hiram Bullock

Dangerously Funky Fusioneer

February 4, 2024 · Wolf Marshall

In the sonic constellation orbiting jazz-rock, Hiram Bullock traveled a separate trajectory. His work on “Angela,” the theme for “Taxi,”…

Stefan Grossman

Live at the BBC

January 25, 2024 · Dan Forte

Though he has dedicated much of his career to guitar instruction, Grossman has always been a formidable picker in his…

D’Angelico Excel EXL-1

Laudable Likeness

July 24, 2019 · Michael Dregni

Few vintage guitars are as vaunted as John D’Angelico’s original handcrafted Excel archtops. Building a new – and affordable –…

2022 February Issue on Spotify

February 2, 2022 · Doug Yellow Bird

This month we feature Twisted Sister, Bruce Forman, Styx, Warren Haynes, Greg Martin, Dave Specter, Eric Krasno, Graham Dechter, Eric…

  • 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…

    Read more >>

NOW AVAILABLE!

CURRENT ISSUE

Join 25,700+ subscribers & be notified when new articles & more becomes available!

ARTISTS

Vince Gill & Paul Franklin

Homage to Ray Price

June 9, 2024 · Rich Kienzle

Vince Gill and longtime friend, collaborator, and pedal-steel giant Paul Franklin share a love of country music history. Bakersfield, their…

James Elkington

Windy City Diversity

September 15, 2014 · Willie G. Moseley

James Elkington tweaked the paradigm when he began working at a luthier shop before hitting his stride as a guitarist.…

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 2

The Black Bison Leads the Herd

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…

Jimmy Leslie

From the Bay to the Swamp and Back

November 4, 2020 · John Heidt

“My intention was to do more of a singer/songwriter thing,” Jimmy Leslie says of his new CD, Surfin’ the Swamp.…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Heathkit TA-16 Starmaker

Basement Jams & Blown Speakers

October 29, 2025 · Dave Hunter

1966 Heathkit TA-16 Starmaker Combo The days when a kid would break out the soldering iron and take on a…

Easy Pickins

The Fine Art of Pick Collecting

May 9, 2018 · Chris Hewitt

You collect guitar picks? Is this a joke? Umm, no…and in a world where books are dedicated to the collectibility…

Late 1920s Gibson L-1 "Florentine" Home page main

Late 1920s Gibson L-1 (Flattop)

Gibson "Florentine"

April 9, 2015 · George Gruhn

Because I don’t know what to call this Gibson guitar, I refer to it as a “Florentine,” for lack of…

Fender’s 6G9 Tremolux

Fender’s 6G9 Tremolux

March 23, 2016 · Dave Hunter

Preamp tubes: two 7025, two 12AX7 Output tubes: two 6BQ5/EL84 Rectifier: GZ34 Controls: Bright channel: Volume, Treble, Bass; Normal channel:…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Retro and Wonderful

The EHX Mainframe Bit Crusher

December 6, 2021 · Oscar Jordan

The Mainframe Bit Crusher is a nasty little pedal that warps, mangles, distorts and produces lo-fi digital sounds and trippy…

Fender Micro Mustang

May 10, 2022 · Dennis Pernu

Fender’s Micro Mustang is a pocket-sized contraption offering 12 amplifier models including classic Fender, “British,” and “American,” along with 12…

Ya’ Gig What Ya’ Pay For

Incase’s Tour Bag is ultra-functional, durable

May 27, 2020 · Phil Feser

It wouldn’t be a surprising reaction. “A $200 gig bag?” And one could reasonably assume the price includes a guitar.…

T-Rex Replicator

Daily Echo

May 30, 2019 · Michael Dregni

Among the arcana of tone, few things inspire as much devotion – even obsession – as echo. The Holy Grail…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams: Funky Syncopation

July 29, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Fine pickin’ on “The Way You Make Me Feel” Husband-and-wife team Martin D-18, while Teresa comps on an Emmylou Harris…

Walrus Audio Eons Five-State Fuzz

November 13, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

Hot on the heels of its Ages Five-State Overdrive and Eras Five-State Distortion, Walrus Audio has unleashed the Eons Five-State…

100 Years of Boston’s MFA

Playable Exhibits

May 9, 2019 · Michael Wright

Musical instruments – guitars – present an interesting philosophical dichotomy. On one hand, they’re utilitarian objects whose very purpose –…

Gibson’s Mastertone Banjos

Gibson’s Mastertone Banjos

July 10, 2015 · George Gruhn

This Gibson RB-3 five-string from 1925 is a rare piece, as is any five-string banjo from the era dominated by…

Gibson ES-300 Prototype

Les Paul and the First Gibson ES-300

April 20, 2010 · Lynn Wheelwright

When a guitar junkie hears the words “soapbar” and “P-90,” the mental image is usually that of a cream-colored rectangle…

Epiphone’s 75th Anniversary Electar “1939” Century

Little Heartthrob

March 15, 2019 · Michael Dregni

Many vintage amp connoisseurs have a special place in their hearts for the early Epiphone Electar amplifiers. David Bromberg is…

The Beach Boys

Great Vibrations

October 4, 2016 · Michael Dregni

It’s ironic – and tragic – that Brian Wilson leads off his long-awaited memoir explaining the voices he hears in…

Dan Auerbach

Black Keys’ Road Map Back to Blues, British Rock

March 6, 2014 · Michael Dregni

Forget about the classic quartet. Forget the power trio. Forget any preconceived shortcomings you may have concerning a rock-and-roll duo.…

Strymon Cloudburst

Celestial Seasonings

February 8, 2024 · Pete Prown

Equipped with powerful delay, modulation, and pitch-shifting abilities, Strymon’s new Cloudburst stretches its “Ambient Reverb” label by adding space and…

Check This Action: The Salad Days of British Blues

October 29, 2024 · Dan Forte

What springs to mind when you hear the term “British blues movement”? Is it covers of Slim Harpo, Muddy Waters,…

EarthQuaker Devices Zoar

Fuzz Fury

October 28, 2024 · Pete Prown

An all-analog, transistor-based fuzzbox, EarthQuaker’s new Zoar is billed as a “Dynamic Audio Grinder Distortion Pedal.” In plain English, it…

Alex Masi

Alex Masi

Danger Zone

May 22, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Grammy-nominated guitarist Alex Masi has been maneuvering his way through the shark-infested waters of the music industry since the 1980s.…

Seth Lee Jones

Pedal Pusher

July 27, 2022 · Pete Prown

Thanks to giants like Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes, and Sonny Landreth, we’re living in a golden age of bottleneck guitar,…

Nils Lofgren Shines Solo – Again

September 26, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Star Grabs Vintage J-50 for “Ain’t the Truth Enough? An in-demand sideman for more than 50 years, guitar wizard Nils…

Don’t Call it Fusion: Julien Kasper’s “Upon a Green Hill”

February 29, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Beck (et al) Connection! The music made by Julien Kasper is connected to Miles, Beck, Hendrix, Mahavishnu, and Scofield, but…

Have Guitar Will Travel – 028 Featuring Mark Agnesi

June 9, 2020 · James Patrick Regan

In the new episode of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan speaks with Mark Agnesi, Gibson’s Director of…

Carvin DN640K

January 27, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

Doubleneck instruments have always been a unique niche in the guitar market, for good reason. They’ve also carried an air…

Tom Principato

Bridging the Big Pond

March 2, 2017 · Willie G. Moseley

Tom Principato’s 18th album, Live and Still Kickin’! portrays the energy of its title and was recorded on two continents.…

Loar LH-309 VS Archtop

One Cool Cat

June 10, 2014 · Pete Prown

Loar LH-309 VS Archtop Price: $569.99 (street) Contact: theloar.com As the retro craze delves deeper into six-string history, a spate…

Michael Gregory Jackson inspires on “Meditation in E

August 30, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

Classic ’70s Bluesy-Jazz Flavor Jazz guitarist Michael Gregory Jackson changes it up by using a classic (and seldom-seen) ’59 SG…

Ray Edenton

1926-2022

July 27, 2023 · Rich Kienzle

Ray Edenton, acknowledged rhythm-guitar master of Nashville’s A-Team, died September 21 at his home in Goodlettsville, Tennessee. He was 95,…

Fingerpicked Country-Folk, Malcolm Holcombe-Style!

January 17, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

Redoubtable singer/songwriter and a beloved ’58 Gibson Malcolm Holcombe shows us how he does “Good Intentions,“ from his new album,…

Kristian Borring

Up From Down Under

September 1, 2023 · Pete Prown

Born in Denmark, Kristian Borring now lives in one of the most-remote major cities on earth – Perth, on the…

Dave Alvin & Jimmie Dale Gilmore

Southwest Survivors

May 30, 2025 · Rich Kienzle

TexiCali marks the latest chapter in the partnership of L.A. roots-rock vet Dave Alvin and revered West Texas singer/songwriter Jimmie…

Bad Cat Jet Black Combo

Back in Black

September 17, 2024 · Charlie Wilkins

Guitar players around the globe praised Bad Cat’s Black Cat amp for its tone, but wanted more punch. Its ear…

Home Feature Image

Top 50 Guitar Songs of the ’60s

May 25, 2015 · Vintage Guitar

Data and info compiled by Alan Greenwood and Ward Meeker Vintage Guitar marked 25 years of publication with a year…

Fishman’s Aura Spectrum DI, ToneDEQ

Potent Preamps

March 13, 2019 · Pete Prown

Unlike most electric guitarists, acoustic-electric pickers tend to worry about preamps. A lot. This front stage is critical because acoustic…

Wolf Hoffmann

Mean Business

October 11, 2021 · Bret Adams

Traditional heavy metal is still a thriving beast thanks to bands like Accept, whose latest studio album, Too Mean to…

John Mayall

1933-2024

May 30, 2025 · Pete Prown

Drummer Mick Fleetwood was only briefly a member of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, but that was enough to launch his platinum…