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Artists
Thomas Custom Guitars
Rarities from the Pacific Northwest
Certain makes and models of electric guitars are rightfully prized for their elegant physical designs and superior craftsmanship. Even better are those also revered for their playability and particularly rich tonal qualities. Thomas guitars, on the other hand, are usually noted for their odd (sometimes controversial) shapes and zany features. Built by the late guitarist/machinist/luthier/and
Have Guitar Will Travel – 035 Featuring Joe Robinson
In Episode 35 of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan speaks with guitarist Joe Robinson. Mentored by Tommy Emmanuel and his late brother, Phil, Joe won “Australia’s Got…
Alvin Youngblood Hart
Electric Gutbucket
Alvin Youngblood Hart surfs the musical landscape of blues-based music to make his own great art. His influences range from Howlin’ Wolf, Link Wray, Thin Lizzy, and Skip James, to…
Have Guitar Will Travel 074 – Molly Moore with her guitarist Ariel Bellvalaire and MUNA’s Josette Maskin
Episode 74 of “Have Guitar Will Travel” opens with host James Patrick Regan speaking with Molly Moore and her guitarist, Ariel Bellvalaire. Ariel grew up in the Connecticut and moved…
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2025 December Issue on Spotify
This month, we feature Rick Derringer, Kid Ramos, Booker T and The M.G.’s, Steve Stevens, Phil Manzanera, Doug Aldrich, Kenny Burrell, Eric Johanson, Gary Moore, and more! Spotify is free or available without ads via a paid subscription. Go to www.spotify.com and search “Vintage Guitar magazine,” or if you already have an account Listen to
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Jason Isbell
New Vistas, Old Gear
Jason Isbell’s powerful songs, compelling vocals, and formidable guitar skills have made him one of America’s most-respected singer/songwriters. A charismatic performer, his critically-lauded albums, solo and backed by the formidable 400 Unit, have earned six Grammys and nine Americana Music Awards. With an eclectic style melding country, blues, and Southern rock, his appeal transcends genres.
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Gibson’s “SG” Les Paul
Classic Shape That Filled Big Shoes
In 1961, Gibson replaced the single-cutaway Les Paul with a new line of lighter, thinner, mahogany double-cut solidbodies. Developed under the aegis of Ted McCarty and introduced as the “new Les Paul,” it exemplified the company’s reinvigorated marketing emphasis. According to Les Paul himself, it was designed and introduced without his consultation or knowledge. In
Happy Traum
Folk Guru: 1936-2024
On July 17, folk music lost one of its guiding lights with the death of Happy Traum at age 86. A major player in the Greenwich Village and Woodstock scenes,…
Pop ’N Hiss: Vanilla Fudge’s Near The Beginning
Proto-Prog Tour De Force
Rock fans recall the New York quartet Vanilla Fudge for its dramatic reworkings of pop hits; the band melded classical influences with solid musicianship in the first steps toward the…
Andy Timmons
Back to the Bread ’N Butter
After a decade pushing his craft to new creative realms, Dallas-based guitarist Andy Timmons is once again purveying original instrumental guitar rock. His 2006 album, Resolution, was his band’s last…
R.L. Burnside
North Mississippi Blues Legend
R.L. Burnside is a truly original blues artist and an American treasure. He hails from the hill country of North Mississippi. And in the hills, they play a different style…
Mike Zito
Back to Solo Soul-Searching
Following a stint of nearly four years in the Royal Southern Brotherhood, Texas-based guitarist Mike Zito is focusing on his solo career and has a new album, Keep Coming Back.…
Sebastià Gris’ flavorful Two-for One
Fresh from Barcelona Sebastià Gris used his Gibson SG as eye-candy to play a sample of “Clickbait,” from his latest album, “Oli, All i Julivert.” It was custom-finished by…
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Albert King’s THC Flying V
Coterie Complete
Robert Johnson has been a fixture in the vintage-guitar community for more than a half-century. As a player and music producer, he has collected an assortment of instruments and music memorabilia, particularly related to his home town of Memphis. One of his guitars recently became part of a recording project that began at the renowned
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Fretprints: Larry Carlton
Revisiting Room 335
In 1978, Larry Carlton was atop the unforgiving environs of L.A.’s music studios, where technical prowess, precision, creativity, tone, and groove are minimum requirements and mere competence promises a short work day. Carlton’s grasp of myriad styles, inventiveness, versatility, inimitable phrasing, distinctive sound, and taste ingratiated him to discriminating artists, producers, and band leaders in
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Outlaws
Rising Tides
By the mid ’70s, Southern rock emerged as one of the most-exciting and successful genres in pop music, thanks to the Allman Brothers Band and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Another important early Southern-rock band making its mark with country influences was Outlaws – the Tampa group nicknamed “Florida Guitar Army.” Rhythm guitarist Henry Paul, lead guitarists Hughie
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“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Timm Kummer
Season 03 Episode 09 In Episode 3.9 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by Timm Kummer, a legendary figure in the world of collectible guitars with a passion for unearthing, restoring, and dealing in rare instruments. Over his 45 years in the industry, Timm has built a reputation for specializing in “true
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Reeves Gabrels’ Newest Reverend Spacehawk
For his gig with The Cure, Reeves Gabrels needed a guitar that could cover a lot of sonic territory. The folks at Reverend helped him create the Spacehawk; the latest version is the Spacehawk Supreme he uses here to play an instrumental take on “Two Chords And A Lie” running through an MXR Super Compressor,
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Tommy Castro
Circling Back
In a career spanning four decades, Tommy Castro has crafted a commendable catalog and built a devout following with his soul-infused music, informed by the blues, R&B, pop, and rock and delivered with conviction. Beloved for his guitar work and vocal style, he has carved his own niche. Born and raised in San Jose, California,
John McLaughlin
50 Years in Fusion
The name John McLaughlin is synonymous with jazz-rock fusion, the genre he helped invent and sustain for the past 50 years. At the end of 2017, the guitarist will be…
Have Guitar Will Travel 094 – John Notto (Dirty Honey) III
In episode 94 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine! Host James Patrick Regan speaks with John Notto guitarist for Dirty Honey for the third time! Dirty…
In Memoriam: Lasse Wellander
Lasse Wellander, longtime guitarist in ABBA and a renowned studio and solo musician, died April 7. He was 70 and briefly battled cancer. Wellander grew up in Nora, Sweden, and…
Michael Schenker
Golden Guitar Jubilee
Incredibly, it’s been 50 years since Michael Schenker recorded his first guitar bit on a studio album – the Scorpions’ debut, Lonesome Crow. To celebrate the anniversary, the guitar great…
Rick Nielsen
Rockford State of Mind
One of the godfathers of the vintage guitar phenomenon, Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen was in an ebullient mood when he contacted VG… and not just because he’d acquired yet…
Steve Hackett
No Limits
Steve Hackett is one of the busiest guitarists around, regularly issuing new studio and live albums. His latest, Live Magic at Trading Boundaries, focuses on his classical/acoustic compositions. Included are…
Paul Nelson
Sideman Steps Out
Manhattan native Paul Nelson has been influenced by many great guitarists – some of whom gave him lessons, gigs, and/or recording opportunities. But that hasn’t kept him from recording two…
Bassist Greg Lake Passes
Bassist/vocalist Greg Lake, a force in the advent of progressive rock in the early 1970s with Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP), died December 7 following a battle with cancer. He was 69.…
Fretprints: Ted Greene
Solo Guitarist Extraordinaire
Few guitarists enjoy the adulation bestowed on Ted Greene. A legend who coaxed unimaginable sounds from a humble Telecaster and famously avoided the spotlight, he left an indelible mark on…
Ghalia Volt’s Stompin’ slide!
Belgium Born, Delta Fostered Brussels native Ghalia Volt moved to the U.S. in 2013 to busk in music-rich cities like Chicago, St. Louis, Memphis, Nashville, and Clarksdale, Mississippi, where for…
Harvey Valdes
Switched-On Bach
Ever since Andrés Segovia elevated the nylon-string guitar to a serious classical instrument a century ago, players have been performing the music of J.S. Bach – the gold standard of classical-guitar…
Seymour Duncan
Story of an Electric Guitar Guru
Seymour Duncan is one of the most unassuming human beings on the face of the Earth, bar none. His name is held in high regard in many circles, especially those…
Jimmy Vivino – Canned Heat Shuffle
Solo on a Rare Martin Jimmy Vivino and his Martin Paul Simon PS 2 OM prototype (which was gifted to him by Paul!) share an unplugged take on Canned Heat’s…
Stephen Ulrich
One-Man Band
New York-based guitarist Stephen Ulrich is known for the suspenseful “crime jazz” and surf-rock tones of his instrumental trio, Big Lazy, but he has a side career writing soundtrack music.…
Bryan Bassett
Foghat’s Slide Secret
A half-century after its inception, Foghat has just one original member – drummer Roger Earl – yet the quartet is cranking out British blooze better than ever. Part of this…
Geddy Lee
Rush RX for my Favorite Headache
Geddy Lee is a man who needs very little introduction. With just over three decades as the unmistakable lead vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist in Rush, Lee has forged a potent…
Marc Ford
The Vulture
Fans of The Black Crowes remember Marc Ford as the gifted guitarist who played on what many consider the band’s best albums, The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion, Amorica, and…
George Kilby, Jr.
The Succinct Approach
George Kilby, Jr.’s Six Pack is, he says, a “collection of singles” rather than an EP or album. Kilby graduated from Princeton, where his mentor, J.K. Randall, introduced him to…
Joe Louis Walker
Indisputable Cred
Joe Louis Walker has enjoyed a long and enviable career making artistically satisfying music while entertaining audiences all over the world. He’s a genre-busting artist who knows how to please…
Uli Jon Roth
Return to Tokyo
In the 1970s, rockers were cranking out now-classic live sets with stunning regularity – Jimi Hendrix’s Band of Gypsys in 1970, the Allman Brothers’ At Fillmore East in ’71, Deep…
Johnny Hiland
The eagle has landed
For an artist who hadn’t yet seen his first solo release when VG spoke with him 18 months ago, Johnny Hiland had made a lot of inroads. His well-deserved reputation…
