-
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…

Alex Lifeson
Rush Keeps Rollin
“A lot of critics perceived us as being pretentious,” says Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson of his band’s early years. “We…

Ewan Currie’s Hairy Tones
Sheepdogs guitarist plays “So Far Gone” Ewan Currie and his band, The Sheepdogs, do retro-rock the right way. Here, Ewan…

The String Sling
Trapper Keeper
Almost all of us have a guitar – maybe even two – we like a bit more than “the other…

Seymour Duncan SFX-07 Shape Shifter
Vintage Trem Sounds & Beyond
Seymour Duncan’s reputation when it comes to pickups (from dead-on vintage replicas to his own designs) has been well established…

Stanley Clarke
Godfather of Bass
Despite being widely credited for pushing the electric bass past its status as a rear-of-the-stage device intended to simply help…
Orianthi Lights It Up
New Music, Signature J-200 With her still-newish signature Gibson J-200, Orianthi strums and sings a chill version of the hard-rocking…
-
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,…
ARTISTS

Andy Gill
The Gang’s All Here
One of the most original-sounding guitarists to emerge from the post-punk/new wave movement of the late ’70s was Gang of…

Manny Charlton
Dog Days
“I always say it’s the song, the performance, and then the production.” Nazareth guitarist/producer Manny Charlton believes those three things,…

Sue Foley’s Pinky Tele
Powerhouse Blues on “Dallas Man” Sue Foley and her band (Corey Keller on drums and John Bradley on bass) tear…

Ewan Currie
Hairy Tones in The Sheepdogs
There are a lot of retro bands, but few get the sonics correct. Hailing from central Canada, The Sheepdogs conjure…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

The Epiphone Devon Tremolo EA-35T Combo
Tonally TransAtlantic
After giving the upstart Fender a run for its money in the amplifier department throughout the 1950s, Gibson segued into…
Classics: November 2023
Al Caiola’s Gretsch Prototype
Robby Zolezzi has been a touring pro guitarist since he was 18 years old, having taken up the instrument at 11, spurred by…

Raul Malo’s Instrumental Side
Mavericks frontman with a vintage Jazzmaster Though he is renowned and beloved for his vocals in the Mavericks, Raul…

Rex Solidbody
Italian Connection
An internet search for “Rex guitars” will turn up a fair – if confusing – amount of information about the…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
-
Live Wire
-
Narrow(field) Win
-
Take Flight

Tx-Watt Flagship
Tone Big as Texas
For more than three decades on the Texas roadhouse circuit, guitarist Jack Kay’s love of vintage Fender and Marshall tones…

Eastwood Sidejack DLX 20th LTD
Horn Section
If you love twangy guitars from the ’60s, you know about Mosrites – the immortal slabs of The Ventures and…

Tremcaster Single Ninety
Best of Both Worlds
Today’s guitar market is one of extreme preferences. For some, the idea of countless options and exotic woods and craftsmanship…
PRS 25th Anniversary Swamp Ash Special NF
From Jimi to Eric to Angus
PRS 25th Anniversary Swamp Ash Special NF Price: $3,908 (retail)/$2,329 (street) Contact: PRSguitars.com. The PRS 25th Anniversary Swamp Ash Special…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
-
More Personal
-
Rare Pioneer

Jack Bruce 1943-2014
Jack Bruce, an icon of electric bass, died October 25 in Suffolk, England. Best known for his work with Cream…

Jonathan Wilson
Charlotte to Cali
Jonathan Wilson is having a very good year. His Gentle Spirit CD (Bella Union), a hippie-soul drenched 80 minutes of…

T-Rex Replicator
Daily Echo
Among the arcana of tone, few things inspire as much devotion – even obsession – as echo. The Holy Grail…

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 4
Shadows and Light
In Beat-era England, before The Beatles, one band reigned supreme – The Shadows. Starting as Cliff Richard’s backing group, this…














































