• Duke Robillard – Lowdown

    Artists

    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 for release February 20 on Nola Blue Records. “When thinking about a powerful song to launch the album, I chose a hard-rocking Tom Waits tune

    Read more >>

In Memoriam: Guitar Shorty

David Kearney, a.k.a. Guitar Shorty, passed away April 20. The award-winning blues guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist who brought joy to the world with his showmanship, humor, and emotional artistry was…

Tracii Guns

Black Diamond Shine

There’s no denying that with Tracii Guns manning L.A. Guns’ lead-guitar slot, the sleaze veterans become a different animal. Since re-entering the fold in 2016, Guns – a single-cut-wielding maestro…

Charlie Daniels

Same Ol' CD

There are more facets to veteran Charlie Daniels’ entertainment enterprises than many of his fans may realize. Not only has the affable guitarist released 29 albums since 1971, he’s also…

Stroger lays it down on “Bob’s Back in Town”

Chicago Blues Mainstay and His Legendary Bass Enjoy as Chicago mainstay bassist Bob Stroger uses his 1960 Jazz Bass (with its original pickups) plugged into an Ampeg B2-RE head and…

Nate Bergman

Skankin’ With Lionize

The members of Lionize blend heavy rock with reggae to create infectious tunes… kind of like if the guys in Deep Purple were Rastafarians wrapped in trippy sci-fi imagery. Nate…

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…

Fretprints: Fran Beecher

Rock-and-Roll Guitar Begins

The ripples that anticipated a rock-and-roll tsunami were in motion in the 1940s, when pop, “race records,” and country converged to produce rock’s first wave. Until then, pop music ranged…

Tracy G

Dio Disciple

Ronnie James Dio had a knack for collaborating with talented guitarists – Ritchie Blackmore in Rainbow, Tony Iommi in Black Sabbath/Heaven and Hell, and several in his solo band, Dio.…

Have Guitar Will Travel 085 – Michelle Malone

Host James Patrick Regan talks with singer/songwriter Michelle Malone about the inspiration behind her new album, “1977,” and life on the road to support it. The music brings a Laurel…

The Steepwater Band

More Players, More Music

The Steepwater Band, based in Chicago, has been a trio for most of its career, purveying guitar-based Americana. Guitarist Jeff Massey, bassist Tod Bowers, and drummer Joseph Winters recently added…

Hangin’ with Kid and Lisa “Little Baby” Andersen

Smooth, Funky Blues With Soul Kid Andersen worked with Charlie Musselwhite and Elvin Bishop before scoring his current gig with Rick Estrin & the Nightcats. One of the best blues…

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…

Bob Bain

The Silent Giant

His name may be unfamiliar to even the most shrewd audiophile and TV/movie buff, but his clean, economic, and tasteful guitar style has filled the ears and hearts of millions.…

Steve Knight

Jazz For People

Chicago resident Steve Knight’s first album, Persistence, takes listeners back to the days of warm jazz-guitar tones, popular tunes, group interaction, and feel. With inspired accompaniment from drummer Jeff Stitely…

Carl Filipiak

Knack for Jimi

After 20 years of play-ing and recording his blistering fusion of jazz and rock, Carl Filipiak’s latest record, I Got Your Mantra, mixes his mastery of the instrument with his…

Popa Chubby

Bowing to the Father Figures of Blues

People tend to notice when Ted Horowitz (a.k.a. Popa Chubby) sets foot onstage to tune up. They might not notice as he spins the volume knobs on his amps to…

Roy Clark

Planes, Guitars, and Automobiles

Legendary multi-instrumentalist Roy Clark has owned a number of the first “consumer items” listed in this article’s subtitle, and he collects the latter two. Knowing that Clark is into aviation…

Jeff “Skunk” Baxter

License To Thrill

To a generation of music fans, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter was one of the most recognizable guitarists of the early ’70s. On TV shows like “Midnight Special” and “American Bandstand,” he…

The Return of Jerry Kennedy’s 00-18

Seventy Years Gone

Nashville legend Jerry Kennedy has won Grammy awards and owned numerous collectible instruments. And if Guinness World Records tracked such things, he’d likely own the mark for most years passed…

Johnny Rivers

A conversation with..

There are perhaps a handful of guitar riffs so distinctive they become indelibly associated with an artist. For Johnny Rivers, the opening of “Secret Agent Man,” which he wrote with…

Chuck Berry Greg Martin

God gave us rock n’ roll and Chuck Berry was one of His messengers

Vintage Guitar magazine Presents Greg Martin's Head Shop

This is a regular series of exclusive Vintage Guitar online articles where The Kentucky Headhunters’ Greg Martin looks back on influential albums and other musical moments. We have lost the…

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Hosts “Storied Strings” Exhibit

Guitars In Art

Dr. Leo Mazow’s vision for the new “Storied Strings: The Guitar in American Art” exhibition at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts stemmed from the overwhelming popularity of (dare it…

Pop ’N Hiss: The J. Geils Band’s “Live” Full House

Detroit Get-Down

You heard of the Boogaloo?” singer Peter Wolf bellows as the J. Geils Band roars through “Hard Drivin’ Man.” “You heard of the Boston Monkey? You heard of the Philly…

Bill Frisell

Bill Frisell

For the December ’14 issue of Vintage Guitar magazine, Dan Forte interviewed Bill Frisell. Here’s a look at the many guitars used by the ultra-versatile superpicker. The issue is available at www.store.vintageguitar.com. This…

P.K. Dwyer

Doing something different

P.K. Dwyer didn’t take the normal route to the blues. It wasn’t until he was in his late 40s that his obsession started. “I was looking for a Jimmy Reed…

John Brinkmann, 1937-2013

Pioneering Promoter of the Vintage-Guitar Market

John Brinkmann, an innovator of the guitar-show concept and pioneer in the vintage-guitar market, passed away October 8. He had been battling diabetes and a heart condition. Brinkmann was one…

Don Wilson

1933-2022

Don Wilson, co-founder and last remaining member of the Ventures’ “classic” lineup, died in his hometown of Tacoma, Washington, on January 22. He was 88 and passed away from natural…

Dave Specter

Chicago Deep Dish

There are many styles of blues guitar, from haunting Delta acoustic to volcanic blues-rock. Hailing from the mecca of Chicago, Dave Specter plays electric blues that comes from deep immersion…

Tom Petersson

Lower-End Innovator

It’s been a long time comin’… Like his longtime bandmate, Rick Nielsen, Cheap Trick bassist/songwriter Tom Petersson collects classic stringed instruments. Now a resident of Nashville, Petersson still plays the…

Larry Collins

1944-2024

Larry Collins, a guitar prodigy mentored by renowned flatpicker Joe Maphis, and half of the ’50s brother/sister act The Collins Kids, died January 5 in Santa Clarita, California. He was…