•  Joey Molland

    Classic Instruments

     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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  • Gibson EDS-1275 and EMS-1235

    Gibson EDS-1275 and EMS-1235

    It’s hard not to associate doubleneck electric guitars with images of Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page or fusion guru Mahavishnu John McLaughlin in the ’70s; however, the fact is that by the time the Big Js were stopping shows with these multi-headed beasts, they were already relics of the past. Doubleneck Spanish guitars got their first…

  • Michael Bloomfield’s ’63 Telecaster

    Michael Bloomfield’s ’63 Telecaster

    This Guitar Killed Folk!

    A silver-spoon teen who loved sneaking into Chicago’s southside blues clubs, Michael Bloomfield reveled in absorbing all he could from the many legendary players he saw perform in the city’s famed joints. The de facto lessons served Bloomfield well as he went on to contribute to the works of many famed performers while forging his…

Gretsch 6130 Round-up

Head ‘em out!

March 29, 2019 · Ward Meeker

The romantic concept of the “Old West” – an enduring element of American pop culture – was spurred by pulp…

1978 Dean Z

May 25, 2005 · Michael Wright

The mid 1970s were a turbulent time in guitar history. The American guitar establishment – at least Gibson and Fender…

Fender’s 1951-’54 Telecaster

In Detail

September 13, 2017 · Ward Meeker

Fender’s first Spanish-style guitar was a lesson in functional simplicity with its solid body, single pickup, and bolt-on neck. And…

1971 Dumble Special 16 #0001

Prehistoric Beast

December 6, 2022 · Dave Hunter

1971 Dumble Special 16 • Preamp tubes: three 12AX7 • Output tubes: eight 6L6GC (most likely) • Rectifier: solid-state •…


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…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Willie G. Moseley

Season 03 Episode 01 In Episode 3.1 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by longtime VG contributor Willie G. Moseley, who describes himself as a “stereotypical Babyboomer…

Custom Kraft Red Fury

Most guitar aficionados are comfortable with the notion of guitar brands being made by the company of the same name. But when it comes to guitars made by one company…

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Gretsch’s “Golden” Tenors

In the 1950s and early ’60s, the electric guitar was establishing itself as a key part of the new voice of popular music. Amplification provided its volume, and innovative artists…

Park 75

Park 75 Preamp tubes: three ECC83 (12AX7 equivalents) Output tubes: two KT88 Rectifier: solidstate Controls: Volume II, Volume I, Treble, Middle, Bass, Brightness Output: approximately 75 watts RMS We might…

  • Dan’s Guitar RX: A 1955 Gibson Touch-up

    Dan’s Guitar RX: A 1955 Gibson Touch-up

    Team Effort.

     To keep work flowing in my shop, repairs often become a group effort. Recently, Gene Imbody, T.K. Kelly, Paul Schmittauer, and I worked to repair a beautiful ’55 Les Paul Special and GA-30 amp belonging to Jake Curtis, who inherited the set from his grandfather, Vernon Benschoter. They’re both in very good condition, and Jake…

  • McKinley James’ Blues

    McKinley James’ Blues

     Family Barn Jam! With his ’82 Gibson 335 running into a Headstrong Corduroy (20-watt/6V6) amp, McKinley James shares a taste of his new album, “Working Class Blues,” with this run at “Call Me Lonesome.” In the October issue, he tells us how the album was made in the family barn with the only backing…

L-5 to Super 400

L-5 to Super 400

The Story of Gibson’s Big Archtops

September 30, 2015 · George Gruhn

The archtop guitar is a uniquely American instrument which can be traced directly to the creative genius of one person…

Perfect Curves Fender’s Stratocaster Turns 60

Perfect Curves

Fender’s Stratocaster Turns 60

February 4, 2016 · Ward Meeker

Sixty years down the road since its creation, the Fender Stratocaster is the default image of the electric guitar for…

Gibson Super 400 PN

January 27, 2014 · George Gruhn

The Gibson Super 400 Premiere cutaway acoustic first appeared in Gibson literature in the 1940 catalog, on a page showing…

Gibson’s Earliest Dreadnought

Gibson’s Earliest Dreadnought?

February 18, 2016 · George Gruhn and Walter Carter

Gibson was a late entry into the flat-top guitar market, offering its first model in 1926, but Gibson was a…


John Sebastian & Arlen Roth

Reimagine the Lovin’ Spoonful

In the ’60s, the Lovin’ Spoonful boasted one of the most impressive song catalogs in rock and roll. During the age of psychedelia and college courses examining the Beatles and…

The Audiovox 736 Electric Bass and 936 Amp

Rare Pair

Eight decades ago, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer revealed the story of Paul H. Tutmarc debuting his latest invention – a solidbody electric bass. The 1935 article includes a photograph showing the…

The Pedulla Buzz Bass

Fast and Fretless

Introduced in 1980, the M.V. Pedulla Buzz Bass is one of the most-enduring examples of an upscale model offered fretless. Designed by luthier Michael Pedulla in Brockton, Massachusetts, it was…

Jabo, Vince, and Broadcaster 0048

Special Addition

It’s routine for Vince Gill, as one of Nashville’s true connoisseurs of electric and acoustic gear, to receive tips about rare guitars for sale. In 2012, one such call shined…

Classics – May 2021

This 1940 ES-250 with serial number 96385 left the Gibson factory bound for retailer New York Band on October 25, 1940 – the same day as the first ES-300, which…

Classics: Arena-Rock Alternative Amps

Mad Maxed

As rock started hitting the big time in the mid ’60s, it became clear to guitar-amplifier manufacturers that 100 watts or more was the way to go. The best approach…

  • Rocky Athas’ Texas ’Tude!

    Rocky Athas’ Texas ’Tude!

    Genuine Lone Star Jams Dallas guy Rocky Athas built a career playing blues in the vain of T-Bone and SRV, but his new album, “Livin’ My Best Life,” is more Houston/BFG-flavored. Here, he and his ’69 Gibson Les Paul Custom (running through an Ibanez TS-10 and a Fender Reverb tank going to a vintage Lab…

  • Gibson’s Crest Models

    Gibson’s Crest Models

    Gibson has produced two guitars bearing the “Crest” name. While both designs date to the 1960s, they’re very different instruments. The first incarnation was a single-cutaway with design ties to the L-5CT, while the second looked more like a fancy ES-335 with a shortened neck. In almost every way – size, construction materials, appointments, and…

Martin 000-18HS

The Martin 000-18HS

September 3, 2015 · George Gruhn

According to Martin company records and research by late Martin Historian Mike Longworth, Cable Piano Company, in Atlanta, special-ordered at…

National N-275

April 19, 2016 · George Gruhn

Gibson is widely known for its guitars, mandolins, and banjos, but many are unaware the company built instruments for nearly…

Italian Smorgasbord

The Goya Rangemaster 116 SB

April 27, 2020 · Michael Wright

American guitars made in the 1950s and ’60s constitute an almost-holy canon, yet most players in that era took their…

“Unicorn”: Ca. 1910 Rafael Casana

November 17, 2022 · R.E. Brune

This extremely rare guitar has been dubbed the “Unicorn” by virtue of the fact that for all his fame, it…