Gibson GA-80T Vari-Tone

May 6, 2015 · Dave Hunter

In the late ’50s and early ’60s, Gibson was apparently convinced the Vari-Tone switch was the way of the future,…

Hilary Gardner’s jazz/country connection

September 30, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Classic sounds on “Silver on the Sage” Hilary Gardner and her band are devout fans of classic cowboy (and other…

Newman Guitars’ Honeycomb Chambered Jr.

Way Cool Version

June 7, 2023 · Tom Guerra

Following Ted Newman Jones’ passing in 2016, protégé Jeff Smith took over Newman Guitars and is furthering the vision, using…

Ivan Pongracic and Jeremy DeHart

Atlantis Rising

September 9, 2024 · Pete Prown

Lords of Atlantis is something a surf supergroup, comprised of members from The Madeira, Aqualads, Insect Surfers, and The Manakooras…

Jesse Johnson

Jesse Johnson

Quad City Funk

March 24, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

In the early 1980s, Jesse Johnson traveled from Rock Island, Illinois, to Minneapolis and found fame with The Time and…

Peter Tuffrey

British Guitarists 1952-1972: Electric Pioneers

October 29, 2024 · Pete Prown

Peter Tuffrey is an author of general-interest books (several about English trains) who is adroit at compiling information. This one…

  • Rik Emmett

    Rik Emmett

    Canadian Custom

    Rik Emmett is a master of many guitar styles and other artistic endeavors. As co-lead vocalist/guitarist in the hard-rock trio Triumph from 1975 to ’88, he experienced life as a…

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ARTISTS

Van Wilks

Stormin’ out of Austin

March 29, 2017 · Willie G. Moseley

Texas-born guitarist/vocalist Van Wilks’ first new album in a decade, 21st Century Blues, is full of loud Texas tones. Born…

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Pete Huttlinger

A Narrative (and album) From the Heart

August 13, 2014 · Willie G. Moseley

To call Pete Huttlinger a survivor is an understatement. The notable Nashville fingerpicker has fought back from a major stroke…

Tinsley Ellis’ new dimension

April 30, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Unplugged, and Worth the Wait! A prominent blues artist since the late ’80s, Tinsley Ellis grabbed the ’37 National Style…

Charlie Starr: Open-Tuning Magic on “Azalea”

June 28, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Blackberry Smoke frontman on a vintage Gibson Enjoy a bit of the supremely tasty “Azalea,” played by Charlie Starr and…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Epiphone by Gibson Firebird 500

Race on

January 6, 2023 · Michael Wright

Gibson will forever be celebrated for its heritage of innovation, including guitars that didn’t look like the common perception 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…

Gibson Johnny Smith

June 29, 2015 · George Gruhn

In 1961, Gibson’s Johnny Smith model not only associated Gibson with one of the most popular guitar stylists of the…

Dallas Rangemaster

The Dallas Rangemaster

January 26, 2015 · Michael Dregni

Eric Clapton christened it “woman tone.” On the famed 1966 “Beano” album, John Mayall’s Blues Breakers With Eric Clapton, the…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Blackstar HT Club 40

Blackstar HT Club 40

Monster of Rock

May 4, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Blackstar HT Club 40 Price: $699.99 (list) Contact: www.blackstaramps.com Standalone combo amplifiers that cover broad sonic terrain are popular with…

National Dueco

Still Resonating

January 8, 2018 · Michael Dregni

Blues man Charlie Parr recently philosophized in VG that National resonator guitars are as much mechanical creation as musical instrument,…

The MXR Custom Badass ’78 Distortion

Company Hot Rod

January 24, 2014 · Zac Childs

Dunlop Custom Badass ’78 Distortion Price: $79 Info: jimdunlop.com Custom Badass is a new division of MXR that offers the…

Gomez Amplification “G” Reverb

Wet, Hot, or Blue

April 6, 2010 · Phil Feser

As amp builders go, Dario G. Gomez is about as fresh as they come. Though he has been repairing tube…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Fuchs Audio Technology Full House-50 Combo

The Art of the Deal

December 27, 2017 · Pete Prown

The Fuchs Full House-50 1×12 is a compact amp that strives to deliver a range of tones in a small…

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…

Have Guitar Will Travel 080 – Fender’s Stan Cotey

August 9, 2022 · James Patrick Regan

In Episode 80 of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan welcomes guitarist and Fender R&D team member Stan…

Joe Peña

Bad Breakups, Free Guitars

June 26, 2020 · John Heidt

“[My ’59 Les Pal Junior] sounds so good that whoever’s going to play the main part in a song plays…

Eastwood Sidejack DLX 20th LTD

Horn Section

August 4, 2024 · Pete Prown

If you love twangy guitars from the ’60s, you know about Mosrites – the immortal slabs of The Ventures and…

Way Huge Saffron Squeeze MkII

Way Huge Saffron Squeeze MkII

Fresh-squeezed

July 7, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Twenty years after its launch, the Way Huge Saffron Squeeze compressor has been improved upon. Doing fierce business with an…

Hangin’ with Kid and Lisa “Little Baby” Andersen

September 5, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Smooth, Funky Blues With Soul Kid Andersen worked with Charlie Musselwhite and Elvin Bishop before scoring his current gig with…

James Williamson & Deniz Tek

Stooge meets a Birdman

September 23, 2019 · Greg Prato

The words “proto punk” arouse recollections of furiously strummed guitars and amps cranked to 10. For many, its sound and…

Pop ’N Hiss: Vanilla Fudge’s Near The Beginning

Proto-Prog Tour De Force

February 4, 2022 · Willie G. Moseley

Rock fans recall the New York quartet Vanilla Fudge for its dramatic reworkings of pop hits; the band melded classical…

Mike Campbell

Got Lucky

December 8, 2025 · Bret Adams

Mike Campbell is one of the most-heard guitarists on earth thanks to his work in the legendary Tom Petty and…

Epiphone Empero1965 Main

1965 Epiphone Emperor

November 1, 2022 · George Gruhn

The Epiphone Emperor has a long, convoluted history. It first appeared in Epiphone’s catalog in late 1935 as a response…

Strymon Sunset Dual Overdrive

Category Killer?

April 26, 2019 · Rich Maloof

Taste in overdrives is so subjective. A player might luck into a stellar $50 mini pedal or feel the absolute…

Pop ’N Hiss: Humble Pie’s Smokin’

Free Wailin’

October 11, 2023 · Bret Adams

British rockers Humble Pie were steeped in blues and R&B influences that coursed through vocalist/rhythm guitarist Steve Marriott. When they…

Marty Walsh

Marty Walsh

With a Little Help From Friends

January 27, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

Marty Walsh has plied his trade for decades, though relatively few may be familiar with his efforts. A Los Angeles…

Gibson M-III Standard

Missing the Mark(et)

September 22, 2023 · Michael Wright

Gibson’s bread and butter has long been tried-and-true designs that represent remarkable innovations – even if they date back to…

The Watkins Dominator

Crying V

March 18, 2019 · Dave Hunter

Is there any more stylish vintage amp than the V-front Watkins Dominator? This creation is delightfully twee yet utterly enticing…

Glenn Hughes

Golden-Voiced Bassist

December 26, 2017 · Greg Prato

In the past year, Glenn Hughes has experienced highs like being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame…

The Micro-Frets Saga

Genius in MD

March 18, 2019 · Ward Meeker

Had fate been just a notch kinder, Ralph Jones might today be a ’60s counterculture icon alongside Bob Dylan, Muhammad…

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 –…

Bill Pitman

1920-2022

June 9, 2023 · Jim Carlton

One of the last surviving members of the record industry’s famed Wrecking Crew, Bill Pitman died at his home in…

Echopark Traditional American Acoustic

Small-Body Stunner

January 25, 2017 · Steven Stone

Echopark Guitars is the brainchild of Gabriel Currie, who opened the establishment in 2006, after many years of working as…

Greg Howe

Return to Rock with Maragold

December 10, 2014 · Oscar Jordan

Greg Howe continues to evolve, pushing his artistry into fresh territory. One of the most successful artists on Shrapnel Records,…

Fano Alt de Facto RB6

Classic That Never Was

February 3, 2014 · Sean OBryan Smith

Fano Alt de Facto RB6 Price: $2,495 Info: fanoguitars.com In recent years, a trend in the guitar realm has been…

Scott T. Jones’ battle, axes

April 1, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

Rippin’ Midwestern Jazz-Rock St. Louis’ own jazz-fusion mainstay Scott T. Jones runs through a few tunes – on a few…

Strymon’s Riverside Multistage Drive

Down By The River

April 16, 2019 · Phil Feser

At first glance, the Strymon Riverside Multistage Drive doesn’t look much different from the rest of the herd. But dig…

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 Aristocrats

Duck

October 29, 2024 · Pete Prown

Featuring Guthrie Govan on guitar and Bryan Beller on bass plus über-drummer Marco Minnemann, this terrifying trio blows minds every…

Jerron Paxton

Country-Blues Scholar

August 12, 2025 · Pete Prown

Hailing from Los Angeles, Jerron Paxton is a remarkable bluesman, able to conjure sounds of the rural, interwar South through…

Billy squire Vintage guitar magazine

Billy Squier

Recollections, Guitar Collection

March 1, 2015 · Ward Meeker

Much has been written and said about Billy Squier and how his 1981 album, Don’t Say No, provided the spark…