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Artists
Ally Venable
Connection
On Money & Power, Ally Venable wields the power of wisdom and emotional connection. It’s an album about empowerment and comeuppance, but there’s plenty of playtime with guest stars Shemekia Copeland and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram. An audio bluesfest, it’s songwriting brings substance carried by guitarists swinging for the fences. What does the albums title represent?What
Samantha Fish
Blues Belle Stretches Out
In 2012, Samantha Fish’s Runaway was named Best Artist Debut at the Blues Music Awards. Known for her energetic blues-rock concerts, she released two departures in 2017 – the R&B-tinged…
Larry Mitchell
“Great Time To Be a Guitar Player”
Larry Mitchell’s guitar-centered “Ah ha!” moments run the gamut from Roy Clark, Van Halen, Prince, and Elvis. With a string of instrumental records, Mitchell is also a Grammy-winning producer and…
Jerry Douglas
Resophonic Resonance
Dobro master Jerry Douglas’ first solo album in seven years, The Set mixes old and new compositions painting gorgeous rural landscapes with his amazing band. Cello and violin mingle with…
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Sean Chambers
Shoulders Of A Legend
When Hubert Sumlin sideman Sean Chambers played a gig with Savoy Brown bassist Pat DeSalvo and drummer Garnet Grimm, the result was blues-rock ecstasy. Live From Daryl’s House Club is the next best thing to being there. Fans of incendiary slide playing and Rory Gallagher, look no further. How did you meet Pat and Garnet?I
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Lari Basilio
The Artist’s Way
On Lari Basilio’s latest record, Redemption, art and life collide to make beautiful music. Effortless instrumental guitar techniques merge with rib-sticking melodies to captivate and astonish. Bassist Leland Sklar and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta are back to add rhythmic fire, but Basilio’s muse is life’s challenges and, of course, super cool gear. You became a mother.
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Dudley Taft
Life At Full Speed
A songwriting blues-rocker in the purist sense, Dudley Taft is succeeding in an era when nothing comes easy for his ilk. His new album, The Speed of Life, required a departure from the norm; while his previous three were recorded at his own studio in Cincinnati, this one used down time during a European tour
Reggie Young
Memphis R & B to Nashville Studios
Reggie Young passed away on January 17, 2019. Here is an extensive interview he did with VG in 2001. Reggie Young is one of the most recorded guitarists in history.…
Anthony Gomes
Blues, Rock, and Joy
Blues-rock connoisseur Anthony Gomes stays on point with his latest, High Voltage Blues. Leaning into the heavier side, Gomes’ feisty recipe of catchy tunes, smokin’ licks has gained him a…
Letritia Kandle
and the Magnificent Grand Letar
Run down the list of early electric-guitar innovators and an all-male group typically comes to mind – Les Paul, Alvino Rey, Charlie Christian, Merle Travis, and the like. However, Letritia…
Elliot Easton
Driving The New Cars
In the late 1970s, The Cars rolled out of Boston to become the preeminent American band to carry the “new wave” flag. Its sound was fittingly sleek, while sporting obvious…
Lloyd Loar
An Alternative View
The Master Model instruments created at Gibson in the early 1920s are famous for their sound and build. Credit for their design is often laid at the feet of “acoustic…
Ronnie Montrose
Motor Scooters and Rifle Guitars
Veteran guitarist Ronnie Montrose is still rocking and still recording. The renowned player’s fret efforts first came to public attention with Van Morrison over two decades ago, and his further…
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Jonas Reingold
Bass Mechanic
Acclaimed as bassist for The Flower Kings, Jonas Reingold is a master four-stringer. He’s recorded with many artists, including Jon Anderson (of Yes), and has become an integral part of Steve Hackett’s band, re-creating the complex bottom of early Genesis. Twenty years ago, Reingold started the prog group Karmakanic (repeat it slowly a few times),
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Tommy Emmanuel
One-Man Orchestra
Tommy Emmanuel is a real guitarist in its truest sense. On Live At The Sydney Opera House, he stands onstage with only an acoustic guitar, and mesmerizes a packed house. His virtuosity employs country, Celtic, and folk fingerpicking styles that lift the spirit. The set is loaded with fan favorites, but a song suggestion from
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Jedd Hughes
More Personal
After landing on American shores in 2002 to study bluegrass, then shifting into a career as a country singer/songwriter/picker, Jedd Hughes has spent 20 years on an alternate – but rewarding – path as A-list session player and touring sideman. While being busy tempered his flow of original music, in 2014, he returned to songwriting.
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Classics: Norman Harris
Rare Pioneer
As a teenager who just wanted to play music, Norm Harris lived with the reality that he and his band weren’t going to be millionaires anytime soon. So he did what musicians do – side-hustled. But when most were manning the counter at a music shop or serving tables, Harris was up at the crack
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The Doobie Brothers
Road Rules
If you’re making a list of beloved bands with a long string of hook-heavy hits, the Doobie Brothers will surely be on it. Their new album, Walk This Road, features the creative core of vocalist/guitarist Patrick Simmons, vocalist/guitarist Tom Johnston, multi-instrumentalist John McFee, and vocalist/keyboardist Michael McDonald. The news of Walk This Road generated significant
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“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guests Robb Lawrence and Kim Shaheen
Season 03 Episode 10 In Episode 3.10 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by Robb Lawrence and Kim Shaheen. Robb’s experience in the vintage market spans from the golden age of electric-guitar innovation to the modern world. Beyond simply studying the history, he lived it, documented it, and played alongside giants who
Joanna Connor
Going Viral
Her overnight success was decades in the making, but a video gone viral of a jaw-dropping slide guitar performance at the 2014 North Atlantic Blues Festival has helped bring Joanna…
Elliot Easton
Different Directions
Lefty guitarist Elliot Easton has chosen a different route for his most recent musical venture, but its sonic direction should come as no surprise to any fan who has followed…
Trey Gunn
Touch-Guitar Tip of the Hat
When profiled by Vintage Guitar in 1992, Trey Gunn was playing a Chapman Stick alongside guitarist Robert Fripp in a band called Sunday All Over the World. Gunn’s two-handed tenacity…
Mike Morgan
Back With the Blues (and More)
On Mike Morgan and the Crawl’s tenth album and first new release in 15 years, 63-year-old Morgan shows maturity, command, and vision. The singer/guitarist grew up in Hillsboro, Texas, between…
Lemmy Kilmister
In the 25-plus years that Motorhead has been purveying its fast, furious, high-decibel entertainment, there have been changes and there have been constants. The World’s Most Brutal Heavy Metal Band…
Nils Lofgren
The Secret Weapon
Guitar wizard Nils Lofgren has been an in-demand sideman for more than 50 years, working with Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, and solo…
Julian Taylor’s draw-you-in style
Rich voice, intriguing compositions Folk singer/guitarist Julian Taylor draws you in with his rich voice and intriguing compositions. His new album, “Pathways,” was co-produced with fellow Canadian Colin Linden, who…
Jay Jay French
Twisted Tales
There are music-business survivors, and then there’s Jay Jay French. Twisted Sister’s founder/co-lead guitarist/manager has led a life of wild highs and lows, personally and professionally. Some were common pitfalls,…
Pete Seeger
1919-2014
Renowned folk singer/songwriter, musicologist, organizer, and political activist Pete Seeger died January 27 at a hospital in New York City. He was 94 and passed from natural causes. Seeger was…
Check This Action: A Year In Their Life
Recently, I stumbled onto one of those “reaction” videos by a New Zealander named Courtney, who wasn’t sure if she’d ever seen footage of the Beatles or even heard their…
Fretprints: Ronnie Montrose
America’s Metallic Answer
The cultural and musical hotbed that was San Francisco in the ’60s produced numerous important bands – Santana, Grateful Dead, Steve Miller, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jefferson Airplane, Big Brother, and…
Jol Dantzig
Back to Hands-On at Hamer
Jol Dantzig with a Hamer Monaco III. Photos courtesy Jol Dantzig. When the Hamer Standard first appeared in an unassuming black-and-white ad in a guitar magazine in the mid 1970s,…
George Cummings
Remembering Mississippi and Dr. Hook
George Cummings is best known as the original guitarist for Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show. Born in Meridian, Mississippi, his father’s amateur picking set a course. As a teenager…
Storied Board
The Tale of Bobby Whitlock’s D-35
Plenty of musicians personalize instruments with their names or initials. So, it’s easy to assume that Robert “Bobby” Whitlock commissioned someone to inlay the “RW” in the fingerboard of his…
Mark Bosch
New York State of Mind
As the longtime lead guitarist for Garland Jeffreys and Ian Hunter, Mark Bosch’s resumé reads like a who’s who of the rock and roll world. Over the past four decades,…
Pop ’N Hiss: King Crimson’s Red
Commendable Coda
In the late ’60s, a new style of rock emerged in Britain, influenced by classical music and fronted by bands like Yes, Genesis, and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Dubbed “progressive…
Corey Harris goes back to his roots
Great take on Skip James’ “Special Rider Blues” Corey Harris used his Germandt koa-body parlor guitar to do this exclusive rendition of Skip James’ “Special Rider Blues,” one of the…
Bob Spalding
Latest Ventures
More than 60 years since their inception, The Ventures are still a rockin’ band, featuring longtime guitarist/bassist Bob Spalding and drummer Leon Taylor (son of original drummer Mel Taylor) plus…
Andy Summers
Fresh Harmonics
Guitarist in the megastar band the Police, author, photographer, and solo artist Andy Summers can never be accused of having false modesty. His dedication to music led to being in…
Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Blues From the Backroads
Stepping into the spotlight to play the blues with the classic bands that backed Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf, most guitarists would sweat bullets. Not so Kenny Wayne Shepherd. He…
John Hammond
Ripe to Write
John Hammond has been in the music business for 44 years and is respected and revered by colleagues everywhere. So it may be a surprise to hear that he has…
