Bryan Sutton

Into His Own

Bryan Sutton ranks as one of the most accomplished and in-demand acoustic players in Nashville. In 1991, fresh from high school, he joined the gospel group Karen Peck and New…

J.D. Simo

Remembering Duane Allman

Chicagoan J.D. Simo began playing professionally at age 10 and just five years later was on the road full-time, eventually ending up in Nashville. He faced tough times while making…

Geddy Lee

Bass Conservator

In its 40-plus years, Rush evolved on its own terms. Mixing rock and jazz influences, the band’s 19 studio albums fostered a cultish fan base of prog-rockers, headbangers, and others…

Jimmy Olander

From Banjo to B-bender

The double-bender guitar and Jimmy Olander go hand-in-hand. The innovative guitarist of Diamond Rio fame is a converted banjo player who is now mastering a whole new double-bending style that…

Eric Krasno

Front Man

Because Eric Krasno isn’t quite busy enough performing 188 dates a year with Soulive, moonlighting with the band Lettuce, or producing Norah Jones and Aaron Neville, he recently felt the…

Lincoln Goines

The Bass Choir

Check out the credits on many jazz, pop, and Latin albums over the past four decades and you’ll see the name Lincoln Goines. As a session player, sideman, and teacher,…

Saucerful of Strats

Pink Floyd Catalog Gets a Massive Reissue

By any standard, Pink Floyd has one of the mightiest catalogs in rock and roll – a 14-album pantheon dating from 1967 to ’94 that has few rivals. Every so…

 Isaiah Mitchell

Crowe’s Feat

When not playing with the Black Crowes, guitarist Isaiah Mitchell works with Earthless, a power trio that just released Night Parade of One Hundred Demons. With just three tracks –…

Jim Kweskin

Where Jazz Meets Folk

Jim Kweskin grew up in Stamford, Connecticut, and in 1958 entered Boston University, placing him near coffee houses at the height of the Folk Boom. Mixing early jazz with folk,…

Sue Foley

Still Playing Pinky

Sue Foley’s Paisley-finished Telecaster is the one guitar to which she has remained true since her debut album, Young Girl Blues. After 29 years, it only seemed right to dedicate…

Keith Nelson

Axes, Amps, Bikes, and Tats – The Rock And Roll Life of Buckcherry's Keith Nelson

  Since launching its self-titled debut album in 1999, the SoCal hard-rock band Buckcherry has stood as a unit swimming against a tide of acts that look too much alike,…

Selwyn Birchwood

Blistering Blues

If you think the days of ferocious blues guitar are behind us, cue up Selwyn Birchwood’s latest, Exorcist. Within its grooves are blistering licks galore and the Florida guitarist’s powerful…

John Scofield

Variety is the Spice

Veteran jazz guitarist John Scofield has released a second album with Uberjam, which includes drummer Adam Detich, guitarist Avi Bortnick, and guest keyboardist John Medeski. It’s full of funk and…

Les Paul Remembered

When news of the passing of Les Paul spread through the guitar community August 13, 2009, reaction was swift and heartfelt. Claimed by complications of severe pneumonia at a hospital…

Michael Gregory Jackson inspires on “Meditation in E

Classic ’70s Bluesy-Jazz Flavor Jazz guitarist Michael Gregory Jackson changes it up by using a classic (and seldom-seen) ’59 SG Special running through a Polytone Mini Brute with an Eminence…

Adrian Belew

Musical Modernist

Bleeps, squawks, and other sounds emanate from the guitars of Adrian Belew, who has gigged with the likes of Frank Zappa and Talking Heads, not to mention his quarter-century association…

Gretchen Menn

Abandon All Hope

Every musician aspires to create music that will resonate through the ages and Abandon All Hope, by Zepparella guitarist Gretchen Menn, is an ambitious effort based on Dante’s Alighieri’s Inferno.…

Jim Weider

Telecaster Master, Camp Counselor

Ever dream of hanging out with a couple handfuls of guitar legends while breathing fresh mountain air and (mostly) unplugging from the world? If so, Jim Weider has something you’ll…

George Lynch

New Roads

A lynch pin is a narrow shaft of metal that keeps a wheel from falling off – without it, the whole thing collapses. Same holds true for George Lynch, the…

Randy Rhoads

Diary of an Axeman, 30 years Later

(RIGHT) Rhoads’ polka-dot guitar was built in 1979 by Karl Sandoval, with a mahogany body, modified ’60s Danelectro non-adjustable maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard and bow-tie inlays, two DiMarzio…

Ernie Hawkins

Pittsburgh's own acoustic bluesman

For a guy who’s released several of the best country blues albums in the past decade, Ernie Hawkins is relatively unknown. Ernie caught the blues bug back in his teens,…

Scott T. Jones

Midwest Fusion Ace

A lot of guitarists aspire to play jazz-rock, but it’s a high bar. Based in St. Louis, Scott T. Jones hits the mark – and then some, heard on his…

Jackie Venson

Emotional Intelligence

Soul-pop stylist Jackie Venson has been conquering the road-warrior touring circuit, and gained an enviable spot on Gary Clark, Jr.’s tour. The Strat-wielding songstress’ new EP, Transcends, extends her melodic…

Jeff Hanna

A Half-Century of Dirt

Equal parts anniversary party, all-star jam, and “you really needed to be there” celebration, a September ’15 performance by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band at the Ryman Auditorium kicked off…

Peter Frampton

Part One: The Humble Pie Years

Formed with two formidable front men in Steve Marriott and Peter Frampton, Humble Pie was one of the earliest “supergroups” to emerge from the British Invasion and embody aspirations beyond…

Ty Tabor

On a Roll

King’s X guitarist Ty Tabor is on a roll. Despite the band being on hiatus due to bassist Dug Pinnick’s health issues, Tabor stays busy with side projects like Jelly…

Pop ’N Hiss: Led Zeppelin’s IV

Heaven Sent

It’s impossible to overstate the influence Led Zeppelin’s “untitled” fourth album – call it IV, ZoSo, Runes, Four Symbols, whatever – has had on musicians of all stripes. Released November…

Pat Martino

Redefined Jazzman

Pat Martino is a legend. He has been delighting the globe’s collective ear for more than 50 years, making an undeniable impact on guitarists across the spectrum; Pete Townshend, Carlos…

Eric Johnson

Getting Up Close With Eric Johnson

Eric Johnson’s latest release, Up Close, is his most lively studio project to date. With a looser vibe and the luxurious tones we’ve come to expect from Johnson, it gets…

Douglas Naselroad

Instrumental Healing

Music heals the soul. For many, crafting the instruments that make music has healing power, too. In 2012, the non-profit Appalachian Artisan Center in Hindman, Kentucky, hired Douglas Naselroad to…