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Artists
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
Larry Coryell
The Godfather of Fusion Returns
Photo courtesy In+Out Records. In the mid ’70s, the guitarist grabbed a Hagstrom Swede and formed the funky Eleventh House; later in the decade, Coryell could be heard playing lush…
Reunited
Bruce Forman Honors Barney Kessel
From 1957 to ’60, guitarist Barney Kessel, bassist Ray Brown, and drummer Shelly Manne recorded four LPs for Contemporary Records as a group called Poll Winners, a byproduct of each…
Jimmy Johnson
Chicago bluesman Jimmy Johnson passed away January 3 in Harvey, Illinois. He was 93. Born November 25, 1928, in Holly Springs, Mississippi, Johnson (VG, September ’20) grew up picking cotton,…
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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
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Classics: Jeremy Graf’s 1961 Fender Stratocaster
A lifelong vintage-guitar nut who has had “a million guitars,” Jeremy Graf’s all-time favorite is this 1961 Stratocaster. A native of Knoxville, Tennessee, Graf was just seven when, for reasons he doesn’t remember, he asked for an Elvis Presley record. His mother obliged and brought home Elvis’ Golden Records, a compilation of ’50s hits. “That
Band of Heathens’ Gordy and Ed: Low-Key and Tasty!
Austin heroes play vintage-laden twofer Gordy Quist and Ed Jurdi use a few of their favorite things to play “Heartless Year” and “Don’t Let the Darkness,” from the new…
Rick Vito – Cadillac Man
Rick Vito – Cadillac Man Make sure to check out Rick Vito’s latest album “Cadillac Man” available now at Blue Heart Records. Be sure to follow Rick at www.RickVito.com for…
Mick Abrahams
This Was (And Still Is…)
British guitarist Mick Abrahams is best remembered for his work on Jethro Tull’s first album, This Was, followed by a stint as the founder/leader of Blodwyn Pig. Abrahams has stayed…
Craig Ross
Rock and Roll, Alive and Well
Craig Ross is an integral part of the Lenny Kravitz sound. As lead guitarist and songwriting collaborator since the early ’90s, Ross has forged an impressive body of work alongside…
Fretprints: The Beatles’ Revolver
Sonic Floodgates
If any rock album can be labeled “groundbreaking,” it’s the Beatles’ Revolver. A sweepingly innovative masterpiece, it divides the ’60s in half, evades categorization, anticipated Sgt. Pepper and the “white…
Punky Meadows
Heavenly Guitar
In the 1970s, glam-rockers Angel carved a niche with five albums of arena-rock anthems and an image that stood in antithesis to their Casablanca label mates, Kiss. After retiring from…
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John Sykes 1959-2025
Remembering a Heavy Hero
The guitar universe was rocked on January 20 by the announcement of John Sykes’ death from cancer, at age 65. Forty years ago, the British guitarist rocked with high-volume bands like Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake, establishing himself before “shred” guitar had a name. Blazing on a Les Paul Custom, he was as fast as any
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The Supro Thunderbolt S6420
Lightning Strikes
Despite their catalog-grade status, Supro amps have been used by several noteworthy guitarists. For many, the sturdy Thunderbolt is the preferred workhorse. It’s been a long time since Supro amps were any kind of secret find or hidden gem; players have long recognized the eccentric splendors of certain mid-sized examples, with their thumping tremolo and
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Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings
Double-bound for Glory
George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacher founded Electro String in 1931 to manufacture what everyone would soon call “Rickenbacker” guitars. Success came early and their lap steels set standards of quality, performance, and tone. On the other hand, the company’s electric bass viols and violins excited segments of the industry but never sold well. Same for
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Joey Molland
The word “underrated” is belabored in music journalism, but Joey Molland was just that. As co-guitarist in Badfinger, he was part of a quartet signed to the Beatles’ Apple Records, yielding glorious AM hits like “Come and Get It,” “Day After Day,” and “No Matter What.” The foursome fell into obscurity and tragedy a few
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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
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David Bowie’s Young Americans
David Bowie was always creatively restless. The English musician decided to step away from the glam rock he’d recorded for a few albums concluding with 1974’s Diamond Dogs, which included a few songs with tinges of soul, R&B, and funk. On tour promoting the album, he played a handful of soul covers. Bowie had long
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…
Mark Farner
Keen to Collaborate
Spiritual beliefs and the power of music have helped Mark Farner deal with life’s inevitable highs and lows. The singer/songwriter/guitarist achieved astonishing success fronting Grand Funk Railroad in the ’70s;…
Edgy Alt-Blues from Jesse Dayton and Samantha Fish
Duo rips on “Settle For Less” Proving that sparks can fly when regional styles collide, Texas native Jesse Dayton and Kansas City’s own Samantha Fish dole out edgy alt-blues on…
Revealing Jesse Ed Davis
Douglas K. Miller
Jesse Ed Davis was an unsung guitar hero – unless you were a legend like Eric Clapton, John Lennon, George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Rod Stewart, Conway Twitty, Taj Mahal, Jackson…
Gustavo Assis-Brasil
Chromatic Dialogues
While guitarists have more platforms than ever when it’s time to showcase their music, rising above a sea of marketing-savvy musicians makes it difficult to gain recognition. Gustavo Assis-Brasil is…
Steve Cropper
Friend, Legend
Even before he began to record seminal music using an Esquire plugged into a Harvard amp – creating one of the favorite pairings in history – Steve Cropper was the…
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…
Chris Poland
Metal Fusion Equinox
Chris Poland’s signature legato was born from tragedy. As a teen, his left hand accidentally punched through a plate-glass window and cut tendons in his fingers. He lost the ability…
Eli Cook
All Over the Map
Eli Cook’s seventh album, High-Dollar Gospel, is an Americana-style showcase of sounds, instrumentation, and varied tunings played on an interesting mix of guitars – a National tricone, a Rockbridge SJ…
Pop ’N Hiss: Thin Lizzy’s Jailbreak
Fight Or Fall
At the dawn of 1976, Thin Lizzy was in trouble. Neither of the quartet’s previous two studio albums, Nightlife and Fighting, had sold well. With pressure mounting from Vertigo Records,…
Jim Weider
Shinin’ On
Few American guitarists have roots in Americana as deep as those of Jim Weider. For 15 years following The Band’s reformation in 1983, he was the sole guitarist, contributing heavily…
Chris Thomas King
Bluesman For The New Millennium
Me, My Guitar And The Blues is the uncompromising new release from acclaimed guitarist, bluesman Chris Thomas King. The album echoes inspired, atmospheric, authentic Delta/Bayou blues journeys from King as…
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…
Craig Ross
Rock and Roll, Alive and Well
Craig Ross is an integral part of the Lenny Kravitz sound. As lead guitarist and songwriting collaborator since the early ’90s, Ross has forged an impressive body of work alongside…
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…
Tommy Castro
'Guilty' of Paying His dues
Tommy Castro is a charismatic singing gunslinger who has developed a sound featuring stinging blues leads floating atop hard-charging, old-school R&B. And he is one of a handful of artists…
Damon Johnson
Cooper to Country
Photo: Stephen Jensen. Damon Johnson is a working man’s player, honed on the chops of Skynyrd and Zeppelin. His technique and influence spawned the early-’90s rock band Brother Cane, which…
Steve Hillage
Echoes of Earlier Times
Steve Hillage has followed his muse through 40 years making music as a member of the psychedelic band Gong, a solo career, and a partnership with Miquette Giraudy as the…
Ron Wood
Stone Solo
“I’ve always wanted to rock,” gushes 63-year-old Ron Wood, whose journey from the shy 10-year-old washboard player in older brother Ted’s ’50s skiffle group to the renowned veteran guitarist in…
Blooming, In Progress
Larkin Poe
Released in January of 2025, Larkin Poe’s Bloom has Rebecca and Megan Lovell weaving powerful philosophies into strong songwriting and visceral musicianship. Bold lap-steel lines merge with phat Strat tones,…
Dallas Perkins dazzles on “Mexican Puppets”
Dallas Perkins: Elemental Experiments Progressive-rock shredder Dallas Perkins brings it with “Mexican Puppets,” a track from his new instrumental album, “Experimental Truth.” That’s his ’94 PRS Custom 24, and the…
