Dana Sutcliffe

Here’s the Scoop

Many know Dana Sutcliffe from his classic guitar design, the Alvarez Dana Scoop produced from the late 1980s through the early ’90s. But most are likely unaware that today he…

James Elkington

Windy City Diversity

James Elkington tweaked the paradigm when he began working at a luthier shop before hitting his stride as a guitarist. Born and raised in a small English village northwest of…

Born In Chicago Documents ’60s Revival

Disciples Of The Blues

A new documentary on the blues revival of the late ’60s opens with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band performing live – not in a smoky nightclub, but at a fraternity…

DAN ROSE AND HIS TASTY TAKE ON A CLASSIC

DAN ROSE AND HIS TASTY TAKE ON A CLASSIC! Dan Rose used his ’58 ES-175 (with a PAF at the neck) plugged into a Fishman Loudbox to play the Rodgers…

James Elkington

Windy City Diversity

James Elkington tweaked the paradigm when he began working at a luthier shop before hitting his stride as a guitarist. Born and raised in a small English village northwest of…

Andy Bassford

The Harder They Strum

Legendary fish-out-of-water reggae guitarist Andy Bassford has been a first-call sideman for decades. Now, he’s stepping out front with his first solo album – a remake of the soundtrack to…

Ally Venable

Heart of Texas

On her fourth album, Ally Venable serves up a heaping helping of poignant songs wrapped in Texas-style blues-rock. Ballsy wah work, gutsy bottleneck slide, and special guests make her new…

S’Alright (Or Left)

Southpaw Guitars Marks 35 Years

Even before they started jamming together on old Gibson acoustics in the mid ’70s, Jimmy Duncan and Bill Townsend, co-founders of the lefty-dedicated Southpaw Guitars, were avid fans of music.…

Pop ’N Hiss: Humble Pie’s Smokin’

Free Wailin’

British rockers Humble Pie were steeped in blues and R&B influences that coursed through vocalist/rhythm guitarist Steve Marriott. When they finally broke with 1971’s Performance: Rockin’ the Fillmore, Marriott, guitarist…

Johnny A.

On the fast track

When VG first caught up with guitarist Johnny A. in 2001, his instrumental release, Sometime Tuesday Morning, was perking ears all over the place. Before he signed to Steve Vai’s…

Mike Vernon

Surf-Guitar Ace Mike Vernon Chills on “Lucky Boy” Surf-instro revivalist Mike Vernon grabbed his (semi-hollow) Gretsch Tennessee Rose (with flatwounds) plugged into his Roland 77 to play “Lucky Boy.” Named…

Kim Simmonds

Half a Century with Savoy Brown

Now in its 46th year, the Savoy Brown band, fronted by founder/lead guitarist Kim Simmonds, has returned to its blues-and-boogie roots following a foray as a power trio in which…

Nalle Colt

Keeping Old-School Alive

Vintage Trouble has emerged as one of the hardest working bands on the music scene. Laced with an ultra-cool visual style and a soulful vision, singer Ty Taylor and guitarist…

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…

Dan Wilson

Akron’s Finest

On Things Eternal, jazz-guitar wizard Dan Wilson fuses post-bop, spirituality, and the songs of Stevie Wonder into a satisfying musical journey. The album is a celebration of those who have…

Jim Campilongo & Steve Cardenas

Mutual Musical Idiosyncrasies

Steve Cardenas and Jim Campilongo have been playing guitar together for a long time, though the constellations only recently aligned so they could record. Captured on three nights in September…

Lance Lopez

Supersonic Blues Machine

Lance Lopez is a guitar-slinging blues machine that burns like Texas hot sauce in August. He has scorched the festival circuit for years with an enviable body of work and…

Gwenifer Goes “Cattywomp”

Fierce fingerstyle! Hailing from Wales, former punk-rock drummer Gwenifer Raymond’s fingerstyle playing is inspired by greats like John Fahey and Mississippi John Hurt. Her latest, “Last Night I Heard the…

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…

Ed Sanner

Fuzz Redux

While not well-known in California guitar lore, Ed Sanner’s electronics designs have been heard by millions of guitar fans, and he has recently returned to building unique stomp boxes. Sanner…

Fretprints: Roy Lanham

Hillbilly Jazz Takes Hollywood

Woefully under-recognized guitarist Roy Lanham was a favorite of leading country and jazz pickers and rock innovators; Merle Travis extolled his musicianship, and when Barney Kessel sought him out for…

Joe Peña

Bad Breakups, Free Guitars

“[My ’59 Les Pal Junior] sounds so good that whoever’s going to play the main part in a song plays it. I insist! I think the pickups are late ’60s…

Emmett Chapman

Emmett Chapman, inventor of the Chapman Stick, died at his home on November 1. He was 85 and had battled cancer. An innovative jazz guitarist, Chapman played a long-scale nine-string…

Anson Funderburgh

New Voice of the Rockets

One of the great ironies of blues music is that several of the “new” blues acts have by now sustained longer careers than legends like Little Walter, Otis Spann, or…

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…

Ray Benson

Where There’s a Wills, There’s a Wheel

Asleep At the Wheel’s latest album is the band’s third tribute to Bob Wills. Long-time leader Ray Benson recently talked about it with Vintage Guitar. How did Still the King…

Vince Gill & Paul Franklin

Homage to Ray Price

Vince Gill and longtime friend, collaborator, and pedal-steel giant Paul Franklin share a love of country music history. Bakersfield, their 2013 collaboration, paid homage to the timeless, twang-heavy music of…

Sugar Hill Set Marks 25 Years

In an industry where success is measured in weeks or months rather than years, marking a 25th anniversary is no small feat. But Barry Poss, founder and head of Sugar…

Rik Emmett

Triumphant Return

Triumph was one of the leading arena-rock acts of the late ’70s and early ’80s. Striking gold and platinum with albums including Allied Forces, Never Surrender, and Thunder Seven and…

Brian Setzer

Still Rockin’ the Holidays

Brian Setzer’s guitar – usually a Gretsch 6120 – is the compass that leads him down various musical roads, live and in the studio. Widely credited with launching a rockabilly…