R. C. Allen

R.C. Allen

1934-2014

October 3, 2014 · Ward Meeker

R.C. Allen, a noted luthier who built archtops for local and regional players of note and was a fixture at…

Eric Sardinas

Eric Sardinas

Resonator Rock

May 3, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Resonator/slide specialist Eric Sardinas is no blues curator. While he pays homage to the music that inspires him, Sardinas is…

Eastwood’s Airline Bighorn

Goin’ “Old-Store”

August 23, 2013 · Phil Feser

Most everyone has seen a department-store-catalog guitar (or two!) from the ’60s or ’70s. With their funky, cool body shapes…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guests Robb Lawrence and Kim Shaheen

January 29, 2026 · Doug Yellow Bird

Season 03 Episode 10 In Episode 3.10 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by Robb Lawrence and…

Ibanez Artcore Expressionist AM93QM

Semi-Hollow Magic

May 13, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

There comes a time in a guitarist’s life when one becomes hollowbody curious, and semi-hollow guitars are often the gateway…

Supro’s 600R DeLuxe

Supro’s 600R DeLuxe

“The Magic of Concert Hall Sound”

January 23, 2017 · Michael Dregni

In the early days of reverb, no one was thinking about surf music; they were striving instead to replicate the…

  • Rush

    Rush

    Rush 50

    The goal of any anthology is to capture the broad scope of an artist’s career. Rush 50 is a strong attempt, starting with their first singles (previously unreleased) all the…

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ARTISTS

Greg Howe

A New Wheelhouse

July 2, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

Greg Howe is a globe-trotting, guitar-clinic-teaching, concert-performing fusion monster. He’s known for taking risks and pushing his playing into fresh…

Humble Pie At the Fillmore

Frampton Reflects

May 5, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

By the time Humble Pie reached “breakthrough” status in the U.S. thanks to its live album, Performance – Rockin’ the…

The Gringo Pistoleros’ Larry Wilson

December 2, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Classic P-90 tones! The Gringo Pistoleros’ Larry Wilson shows us a bit of “I Can Still Remember When,” from the…

Jeff Beck

He Can’t Help It… He Just Keeps Getting Better

February 26, 2014 · Dan Forte

In 1985, speaking of the ’83 Action Research into Muscle Distrophy (A.R.M.S.) Tour that united Yardbirds alumni Jeff Beck, Jimmy…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Classics: February 2022

Chuck Panozzo’s Gibson ES-125

October 6, 2022 · Ward Meeker

For nearly five decades, Chuck Panozzo has been the bassist in Styx, enjoying the ride as it went from playing…

Ibanez Tube Screamer

March 8, 2014 · Michael Dregni

From the first notes of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “Texas Flood,” you can hear it loud and clear; that snarly tone…

The “Last” Trainwreck?

May 8, 2015 · Dave Hunter

Ken Fischer’s prolonged illness and subsequent death at the age of 61 remains one of the great tragedies of the…

The Marshall Major

Force Commander

March 3, 2022 · Dave Hunter

Any player who shows up these days with a 200-watt guitar amp will elicit a hearty, “Are you out of…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Gallagher Bluegrass Bell

Ready, Set, Ring

April 18, 2024 · Michael Shirek

Pickers sure love to talk about their guitars, and more than a few will enthusiastically tell you about their favorite…

Rebel Boards’ Rockstar Pedalboard

Songs from the Wood

March 3, 2015 · Rich Maloof

Rebel Board’s Rockstar Pedalboard Price: $159 (Rockstar); $199 (Rockstar Pro) Info: www.rebel-boards.com. Puzzle-piecing a pedalboard together is equal parts fun…

GJM Guitars Tenoroc

Designed To Rock

January 18, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

Road-warrior guitarists with years of gigs under their belt who later design guitars have an advantage over builders without that…

Fender Jimi Hendrix Stratocaster

Flipped Axis

March 1, 2017 · Michael Dregni

Pity the poor right-handed masses. Emulating the vibe of Jimi’s various Strats has always been tough on them. Some players…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Guild Aristocrat M-75

April 7, 2010 · George Gruhn and Walter Carter

Guild didn’t intro-duce a true solidbody electric guitar until 1963, but the Aristocrat of 1954 gave the appearance that Guild…

Wes Beech

Life in The Plasmatics

October 29, 2025 · Ward Meeker

From the moment he met Rod Swenson and Wendy O. Williams, things for Wes Beech were never really “normal.” Walking…

Allen Hinds

Finding His Spot

April 15, 2019 · John Heidt

Allen Hinds has spent a considerable amount of his 60 years playing guitar, and has kept busy lately with two…

Led Zeppelin

Zep On The Beeb

November 1, 2016 · Pete Prown

This three-CD set builds on an earlier reissue of Zep recordings for the BBC from 1969 and ’71, adding a…

Steve Stevens

Return of the Ray-Gun Ace

April 27, 2020 · Pete Prown

Best known as Billy Idol’s guitar ace for the past 25 years, Steve Stevens won early fame for Idol’s 1983…

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…

The Charvel Model 4

January 25, 2016 · Michael Wright

Certain guitar brands develop a mystique among aficionados – sometimes it’s even deserved! Somewhere on this continuum lie Charvel USA…

Guild’s S-200 T-Bird

Cult-Fave Phoenix

July 9, 2018 · Bob Cianci

Sometimes admired, often maligned, the cult classic Guild S-200 T-Bird has enjoyed a rebirth in the hands of Black Keys…

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…

Mike Zito

February 27, 2017 · John Heidt

Mike Zito’s latest serves up large helpings of boogie, blues, and roadhouse-ready rock. His guitar work is stellar as usual…

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.…

Gibson’s Memphis ES-275

History Now

July 9, 2018 · Pete Prown

Take a quick glance at the Gibson Memphis ES-275 and you might think this is a venerable Gibson from decades…

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SynapticGroove’s SlackJaw OD/Boost/Fuzz

Fuzz for Grown-Ups

May 2, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

SynapticGroove’s SlackJaw OD/Boost/Fuzz Price: $239 Info: www.synapticgroove.com Last year SynapticGroove entered the stompbox arena with the Snapperhead Overdrive/Distortion, attracting high-profile…

Steve Vai

Vai/Gash

December 25, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

Recorded during two weeks in 1991, Vai/Gash is a collaboration between Steve Vai and late singer Johnny “Gash” Sombrotto, expressing…

Earthquaker Devices Special Cranker

True Grit

April 3, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

Plenty of stompbox fans remember the single-knob simplicity of Earthquaker Devices’ Speaker Cranker Overdrive. Kicking it up a notch, the…

John Pizzarelli

Better Days

June 10, 2022 · Pete Prown

In just over a one-week period in April of 2020, John Pizzarelli turned 60, lost his father (famed jazz guitarist…

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…

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…

Micki Free

Feel and Tone

November 3, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

  He was the real-life team member on the infamous Charlie Murphy/Prince basketball game parodied on “Chappelle’s Show,” but Grammy…

Chemistry Design Werks’ Holeyboard 123

May 10, 2022 · Julian Burtell

Chemistry Design Werks’ Holeyboard 123 is made of 1/8″ aluminum with overlapping surfaces that can be adjusted from 13″ to…

Raul Malo’s Instrumental Side

November 1, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

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

Gary Clark Jr.

Live North America 2016

May 26, 2017 · Oscar Jordan

Gary Clark Jr. has brought back the soaring psychedelic blues-rock guitar solo. After a backlash of post-Hendrix overkill, replaced with…

The Fender Stratocaster

Aiming High

July 5, 2017 · Richard R. Smith

In 1953, Leo Fender started planning a new standard guitar – the Stratocaster. His partner, Don Randall, who headed Fender…

2023 August Issue on Spotify

August 2, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

This month we feature Steve Lukather, Dominic Miller, Steve Khan, Sam Kiszka, Selwyn Birchwood, Dave Davies, Brennen Leigh, and much…

Classics: September 2023

Bill Fudge’s Micro-Frets Huntington

May 2, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Several years before he became a luthier who deserves much greater recognition, Ralph Jones sold new Fender guitars and amps…

ZVEX Woolly Mammoth 7

Fuzzy Beast

March 6, 2017 · Michael Dregni

Zachary Vex masterminds some of the most radical and downright fun pedals known to mankind. And as he states in…

Universal Audio’s OX Amp Top Box

The Tube Abides

October 14, 2019 · Ray Wuolo

Since the mid ’60s, electrical engineers have been trying to drive a stake into the heart of the vacuum tube,…

MICHAEL ANGELO BATIO

Michael Angelo Batio

The Fine Art of Face Melting

May 17, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Michael Angelo Batio is one of the most prodigious guitarists on Earth. Since his stint with the rock band Holland…

The Move, Santana, Derringer

Under the Radar

May 2, 2017 · Pete Prown

Sometimes great bands and albums don’t bubble to the surface of fame, depriving fans of brilliant music. The Move is…