• Duke Robillard – Lowdown

    Duke Robillard – Lowdown

    Vintage Guitar is happy to offer the premier of the new music video by Grammy nominee Duke Robillard. “Lowdown” is the  first single from his upcoming album, Blast Off!, set…

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  • 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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Fletcher Bright and Bill Evans with Norman and Nancy Blake

May 15, 2016 · Michael Dregni

  This jam session recorded in veteran fiddler Fletcher Bright’s living room in Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, exudes a warmth, passion,…

Coppock Guitars

Vintage Rarities from the Pacific Northwest

June 3, 2023 · Peter Blecha

The obscure Coppock brand of electric guitars first surfaced in 1994, with the publication of Electric Guitars & Basses: A…

Santana IV

January 27, 2017 · Dan Forte

Describing Carlos Santana’s guitar playing, Greg Rolie, the Santana band’s original keyboardist, declares, “It’s real music; it’s not just a…

Schertler Giulia X

The Little Things

September 11, 2023 · Charlie Wilkins

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

Epiphone Joe Pass Emperor-II PRO

Archtop Ruler

January 24, 2017 · Michael Dregni

In the early 1950s, the grand old luthiers like Epiphone and Gibson couldn’t believe there would ever be a market…

Alex Haddad and Kyle Lewis

Two Times the Vibes

March 14, 2019 · Johnny Zapp

Nashville’s Them Vibes hearken to the two-guitar teams of yesterday. Established by the songwriting duo of front man Brother Love…

  • Carr Skylark Special 1×12

    Carr Skylark Special 1×12

    Take Flight

    Arriving a little more than 10 years after the original Skylark, Carr Amplifiers’ new Skylark Special adds versatility and enhanced tonal depths to squeeze a lot more into this diminutive…

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ARTISTS

Michael Johnny Walker

Michael Johnny Walker

Vintage Attitude Required

July 5, 2016 · Johnny Zapp

The term “vintage” isn’t always literal when it comes to gear, but it certainly can be used to describe attitude.…

Sue Foley: Tribute to Female Pickers

March 19, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

 Revisiting the Work of Pioneers From Austin by way of Ottawa, Sue Foley is known worldwide as a blues…

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Chris Isaak

Sun Worship

May 9, 2014 · Ward Meeker

Most pop-music fans became aware of Chris Isaak through his 1991 hit “Wicked Game” and its uber-high-profile video, directed by…

Racer X, Bruce Bouillet, Vintage Guitar magazine

Bruce Bouillet

From The Shadow Of Racer X

January 8, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Former Racer X guitarist Bruce Bouillet overcame carpal tunnel syndrome to return to his first love – shredding. Now, he’s…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

The (Way) Back Beat: A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody

Fretted cheesecake advertising through the years, Part Two

April 5, 2024 · Peter Stuart Kohman

Last month, we began looking at some of the more entertaining fretted instrument advertising of the 20th century, in what…

Gibson GA-20

The Gibson GA-20

November 16, 2015 · Dave Hunter

Behold, this specimen that checks off all the right boxes for fans of vintage amps; beautifully clean, it has a…

Classics: October 2023

Michael Bloomfield 1963 Fender Stratocaster

June 11, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Antonio Mazzara’s passion for music started at age 10, when he started playing a nylon-string classical guitar before moving up…

Freddie King’s ’73 ES-355

Thinline Crown

June 11, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Influenced by Robert Johnson, T-Bone Walker, Lightnin’ Hopkins, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson, and others including jump-blues…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

EHX Lizard Queen

Filthy Fuzz

March 20, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

In 2021, JHS Pedals founder Josh Scott teamed with graphic designer Daniel Danger to design a ’70s-style/E-H-inspired fuzz pedal. The…

Area 51 Fuzzwah

Two Great Tastes

May 30, 2019 · Michael Dregni

Fuzz wahs are nothing new, of course. Released under scores of badge-engineered monikers, they’ve promised aural overload ranging from sirens…

EMG T-52 Set

July 22, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

EMG pickups have been around since 1976, offering a diverse line of active pickups used in just about every genre…

Jammy Instruments’ Jammy G

Digital Six

January 27, 2022 · Pete Prown

Digital, MIDI, and synth guitars have been around for decades. One newer entry in the field is the Jammy G,…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

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…

In Memoriam: Tom Verlaine

February 9, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Tom Verlaine, co-founder of the influential garage/new-wave band Television, died January 28. He was 73 and passed after a battle…

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…

Add Some of Dickie Betts’ Style to Your Playing

August 29, 2024 · Doug Yellow Bird

Add Some of Dickie Betts’ Style to Your Playing Hey there! Just wanted to share that mandolinist Andrew Hendryx and…

Gibson Style R Harp Guitar Feature Image

Gibson Style R Harp Guitar

February 3, 2015 · George Gruhn

Harp guitars with a standard six-string guitar neck and varying numbers of sub-bass harp-style strings have been made by a…

Del Casher

“Papa of the Wah-Wah” Marks Its 50 Years

April 26, 2019 · Dave Hunter

The wah pedal is one of the most widely used effects in popular music, employed by artists playing rock, blues,…

Tone King Royalist MKIII

Firebreather U.K. Three-Speed

August 28, 2024 · Charlie Wilkins

British tube amps from the mid ’60s and early ’70s have inspired countless designs emulating their beloved tones. In 2014,…

Steve Cropper

Friend, Legend

June 12, 2025 · Ward Meeker

Even before he began to record seminal music using an Esquire plugged into a Harvard amp – creating one of…

Rick Holmstrom

See That Light

October 14, 2021 · Michael Dregni

After 13 years as soul/gospel/civil rights legend Mavis Staples’ guitarist and bandleader, Rick Holmstrom has earned the nickname from Staples’…

SurfyBear Compact Reverb

Bringin’ Springs

April 18, 2024 · Bob Dragich

Reverb got a big push into the world of guitar when Leo Fender installed Hammond’s Accutronics Type 4 Spring Reverb…

The Eastwood Super Axe

Chet Powered!

December 5, 2025 · Pete Prown

Wait – what? Did Eastwood just bring back the Super Axe, that incredibly rare bird from the late ’70s? Indeed,…

John Leventhal

Tele-Singing Architect of Americana

March 27, 2019 · Zac Childs

When Shawn Colvin’s Steady On won a Grammy in 1989, John Leventhal was instantly transformed from NYC sideman to in-demand…

Rory Gallagher’s Photo-Finish

Legend’s Best

October 13, 2021 · Tom Guerra

The year 1977 saw upheaval in rock and roll, from the death of Elvis Presley and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s plane crash…

Gretsch G5260 Electromatic Jet Baritone

From Surf to Cinema

March 8, 2023 · Michael Shirek

In the days before seven- and eight-string guitars, the easiest way to go low was to grab a baritone guitar.…

B&G Guitars’ Caletta Standard Build

Small But Mighty

December 8, 2022 · Rich Maloof

B&G Guitars are made in Tel Aviv by a talented shop that translates the best traits of traditional guitars into…

Keeley Electronics Dark Side

Floyd Fare

July 28, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

In the multi-verse of effects pedals, Robert Keeley’s compressors, dirt boxes, and workstation gizmos are a thing of beauty –…

Fender Jazz Bass

October 10, 2014 · Peter Stuart Kohman

“Stack-knob” is a catch phrase that for decades has perked the ears of collectors; these relatively rare examples of the…

Nat Talks Strings!

July 11, 2025 · Vintage Guitar

The Strings of Power Hey there! Nate Westgor from Willie’s American Guitars dives into the world of guitar strings, discussing…

The 1912 Martin 000-28

The 1912 Martin

January 12, 2015 · George Gruhn

      By 1912, players of fretted instruments were familiar with steel strings. Mandolins, which were enjoying their period…

Eastwood Marksman 5

Bullseye!

October 13, 2015 · Zac Childs

Eastwood Marksman 5 Price: $999 (retail) Info: www.eastwoodguitars.com. Reviving great and unusual designs from the past has been the focus…

Six-Strings, 60 Years Ago

A Likely First

February 15, 2016 · Michael Dregni

Had he survived to this day, Elvis Presley – cultural icon extraordinaire – would be 80 years old. The man…

Ray Cummins' latest lesson changes things up by mixing country, jazz, and blues.

Ray Cummins – Guitar Tutorial #4

March 8, 2017 · Ray Cummins

Ray Cummins' latest lesson changes things up by mixing country, jazz, and blues. He takes a simple chord progression, adds a…

HeadRush MX5

Many Riches

October 13, 2022 · Pete Prown

In 2021, Ibanez re-tooled its hollowbody line to devise big surprises like the Japanese-made AF95, a full-bodied archtop with a…

Album of the Year

February 8, 2017 · Vintage Guitar

From 2012 to the present — read about each Readers' Choice Awards Albums.

Reverend Billy Corgan

Smashing Sounds

January 9, 2023 · Pete Prown

Reverend’s new twist on its Billy Corgan Signature guitar updates several features but remains a stylish retro-meets-modern solidbody. The most…

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…

The Eastwood Super Axe

Chet Powered!

December 5, 2025 · Pete Prown

Wait – what? Did Eastwood just bring back the Super Axe, that incredibly rare bird from the late ’70s? Indeed,…

Julien Kasper

Non-Traditional Jazz

October 17, 2024 · Willie G. Moseley

 Berklee School of Music guitar professor Julien Kasper isn’t fond of having his music called “fusion,” especially given the connotation…

The Clark Gainster

Trick Your Tweed

June 10, 2020 · Art Department

Before he got into the effects pedal biz, Michael Clark had a reputation for building killer tweed-inspired amps. In 2001…