• 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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Donald Duck Dunn

Donald “Duck” Dunn

"Duck’s" Gaggle: The Basses of Donald Dunn

August 4, 2013 · Ward Meeker

Nearly every musician who plays popular music – be it soul, R&B, pop, or the others – has been influenced…

Arlington Guitar Show 2014

October 24, 2014 · Lisa Sharken

[caption id="attachment_19064" align="alignleft" width="300"] '50s Fender Deluxe amp at Wildwood Music of Texas[/caption] [caption id="attachment_19065" align="alignleft" width="225"] '53 Harmony Stratotone…

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,…

Ace Frehley

The Space Man’s Cover Plan

May 9, 2017 · Greg Prato

Few guitarists in hard rock have proven as influential as Ace Frehley; just about any guitarist interviewed after the mid…

Kevin Keaton’s 1958 Esquire

Swamp Thing

June 17, 2022 · Ward Meeker

June 10, 2020, was a summer night like most in the life of Kevin Keaton, a postal mail carrier and…

Guild Jetstar

High Flyer

October 14, 2019 · Bob Cianci

In 1964, Guild launched its original Jetstar as the company’s budget-friendly solidbody. With a more-conventional shape than the S-200 Thunderbird…

  • 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

Sheryl Bailey’s “Homage”

December 31, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Jazz star’s tribute to Pat Martino – “The Velvet Hammer” A leading proponent of modern jazz guitar, Sheryl Bailey has…

Fretprints: Fenton Robinson

Unsung Blues Icon

June 4, 2022 · Wolf Marshall

In the encyclopedia of American music, there oughta be a picture of Fenton Robinson next to “unsung blues hero.” Drop…

Have Guitar Will Travel 091 – Kenny Vaughan

February 12, 2024 · James Patrick Regan

In Episode 91 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, host James Patrick Regan circles back with Kenny Vaughan, guitarist in Marty…

John Pizzarelli

From Stage to Seven-String

April 28, 2024 · John Heidt

The John Pizzarelli Trio is back on the road supporting its latest album, Stage and Screen. Joined by Isaiah J.…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 8

Late ’65: Transistors, Troubles, and Takeover!

February 14, 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…

Recording King Ray Whitley

August 24, 2025 · George Gruhn and Walter Carter

As a maker of high-quality instruments, Gibson was hit hard by the onset of the Depression in the 1930s. Company…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Tommie James

August 6, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Tommie James Season 01 Episode 05 In Episode 5 of “Buy That Guitar,”…

The BBE Soul Vibe

Taking Soul to New Levels

July 1, 2020 · Eric C. Shoaf

The original Shin-Ei Uni-vibe became hugely famous after Jimi Hendrix used it with Band of Gypsys (and at Woodstock). Later…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

ESP GL-56

Is it Really Vintage?

March 15, 2012 · Pete Prown

Like the “aged” guitars crafted by Fender and Gibson, this ESP solidbody looks like an ancient road warrior, one that’s…

Supercool “800,” The Thneed, and ’77 Fuzz Blender

Hip Sounds

October 28, 2024 · Pete Prown

Supercool Pedals is a Canadian company that makes stompboxes that sound hip and look seriously groovy. Among its offerings is…

Louis Electric Buster

Beyond Deluxe

March 6, 2015 · Zac Childs

Louis Electric Buster Price: $1,595 (street) Contact: louisamps.com. Lou Rosano has been building amps in the Fender vein for more…

Supro Super 1606 and Reverb 1605R

Little Amps That Could

July 10, 2019 · Michael Dregni

In guitardom, players far too often believe there is nothing more sonically pleasing than a tall stack. Yet, plenty of…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Samantha Fish: Slide-Blues Fury!

May 13, 2025 · Doug Yellow Bird

“I’m Done Runnin’” on a D-18 VG readers know Samantha Fish is the real deal. Here, she uses a Martin…

Jazz Trio

Fender’s Geddy Lee Jazz Bass and Ibanez’s Black Eagle Reissue Take On an Icon

March 2, 2017 · Ward Meeker

Though it got most of the looks in the family, Fender’s Jazz Bass is nonetheless the tag-along younger brother to…

Epiphone USA Coronet

Simple Screamer

May 30, 2025 · Bob Cianci

Single-pickup guitars are flat-out cool: think Leslie West, Keith Richards, Johnny Thunders, Steve Marriott, Johnny Marr, and Jimi Hendrix. Once…

EarthQuaker Devices’ Space Spiral Modulated Delay

Will You Repeat That?

March 13, 2019 · Chip Wilson

One particularly well-worn joke about playing a bad note advises you to play it twice so folks will think you…

API Audio TranZformer GT and LX

Stripped Down

July 10, 2019 · Phil Feser

Automated Processing Inc. (API) is best-known for its high-end mixing consoles for broadcast and recording, along with the mic preamps,…

Joel Shapira

Solo Flight

July 18, 2019 · John Heidt

Guitarist Joel Shapira has released a string of fine recordings, but his latest, In Essence, is his first stab at…

Ibanez Artcore AF105NT

Class Axe

October 1, 2014 · Pete Prown

Ibanez has always had two distinct personalities – first as a purveyor of shreddy solidbodies for the hard rock/metal crowd,…

Have Guitar Will Travel – 050 Featuring Mike Varney

May 6, 2021 · Art Department

In the new episode of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan speaks with the legendary Mike Varney, founder…

Gibson Everly Brothers SJ-200

Full Dress

March 20, 2024 · Michael Shirek

Gibson has always had a knack for producing distinctive guitars. The EDS-1275 in Cherry finish will forever be tied to…

Peavey Vypyr VIP2

Backline in a Box

May 7, 2014 · Oscar Jordan

Peavey Vypyr VIP2 Price: $199.99 Contact: www.peavey.com For more than 40 years Peavey’s ongoing evolution while building guitars, amps, and…

JHS Pink Panther

Diamond Delay

July 3, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

To mark the 10th anniversary of its original Pink Panther delay, JHS has created an updated edition that packs a…

Aerosmith

1971: The Road Starts Hear

March 10, 2023 · Bret Adams

This long-lost relic was recorded before the band’s 1973 debut LP, with guitarists Joe Perry and Brad Whitford (aged 21…

Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater

Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

July 8, 2018 · Bob Cianci

The Chicago resident has been exciting blues audiences worldwide for decades. But he built his reputation working the local club…

2025 December Issue on Spotify

January 7, 2026 · Doug Yellow Bird

This month, we feature Rick Derringer, Kid Ramos, Booker T and The M.G.’s, Steve Stevens, Phil Manzanera, Doug Aldrich, Kenny…

Steve Winwood

Voice of a Guitar Great

April 28, 2020 · Dan Forte

It would seem contradictory to describe someone as both underrated and a virtuoso, but such is the case with Steve…

Gibson GA-200 Rhythm King Vintage Guitar magazine

Gibson GA-200 Rhythm King

July 9, 2015 · Dave Hunter

Preamp tubes: two 12AX7, one 12AY7, two 6BJ8, two 6SK7, one 6V6 (used as a voltage divider) Output tubes: two…

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,…

Dutch Kazoo Analog Fuzz Pedal

OD Treat

October 28, 2014 · Ray Wuolo

Dutch Kazoo Analog Fuzz Pedal Price: $225 retail Info: www.dutchkazoo.com It’s not easy for a new boutique overdrive or distortion…

Spacey T

Spacey T

Eclectic Journeyman

June 21, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Tracey Singleton, better known as Spacey T, is a post-Hendrix guitar wizard with an eclectic soul and chops to match.…

McGregor Pedals’ Crunch and Crunch Plus

Transparent Pair

May 5, 2022 · Phil Feser

McGregor Pedals founder and self-proclaimed “Chief Mad Scientist” Garth McGregor Heslop hand-wires pedals in his Vancouver shop. Two of them…

Dave Specter

Chicago Deep Dish

October 4, 2022 · Pete Prown

There are many styles of blues guitar, from haunting Delta acoustic to volcanic blues-rock. Hailing from the mecca of Chicago,…

Johnny Nicholas

Full-Circle in Louisiana

November 30, 2021 · Willie G. Moseley

Johnny Nicholas has been playing “roots music” since long before the term existed. A childhood friend of Duke Robillard, he…

Classics: March 2022

Chris Leuzinger’s 1952 Gibson Les Paul

November 17, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

If your radio was tuned to a country station even for a few minutes anytime in the last 30 years,…

Hall & Collins Signature Echo

Echo Rock

March 5, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

For guitarists whose lives are dedicated to replicating the echo effects heard on songs like Hank Marvin’s “Apache,” Hall &…

Ana Popovic

Blues Jazz & Soul

January 5, 2018 · Oscar Jordan

Ana Popovic brings to her music an inspiring drive and work ethic. Super-appreciative of her fans, she recently released three…

Freddie Krc gets “Dandy” on a ’64 SJ

December 10, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

FTop-Flight Tune by Texas Stalwart You can’t blame Freddie Krc for loving his ’64 Southern Jumbo, which he’s using here…

Amptweaker’s FatMetal Distortion

Amptweaker’s FatMetal Distortion

Metal To the Pedal

April 14, 2016 · Tom Guerra

With all of the subgenres of heavy metal out there, it was only a matter of time before the pedal…

Harmonic Design’s VP-90

Harmonic Design’s VP-90

Tone with Intent

August 3, 2015 · Tom Guerra

Harmonic Design’s VP-90 Price: $100 Contact: www.harmonicdesign.net Harmonic Design must be doing something right. Specializing in replacement pickups, they boast…

June Millington

Rock-Guitar Hero

October 8, 2019 · Dave Rubin

Fanny, the legendary all-girl quartet from the early ’70s, kicked to the curb the notion of “they play good… for…