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Music
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
Alvin Lee & Co.- Live at the Academy of Music, New York 1975
The good news is that we don’t have to listen to yet another version of “I’m Going Home,” the 10-minute jam that propelled Alvin Lee to fame at Woodstock. No question, Alvin Lee…
Otis Taylor – Recapturing the Banjo
Multi-instrumentalist Taylor has never been afraid to push the blues envelope, both stylistically (ranging from Appalachian to psychedelic to explorations with jazz pianist Hiromi Uehara) and lyrically (boldly addressing social and racial issues).…
Andy Timmons Band
To translate one of the touchstones of popular music is not something most guitarists would attempt, but Timmons and his trio take the Beatles’ classic and turn it into an instrumental rock album…
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Paul Johnson
The Hepcats Live at the Ajax Novelty Company
This isn’t live, there may not be an Ajax Novelty Company, and the three felines known as the Hepcats are actually the brainchild of Paul Johnson, whose Belairs were early-’60s pioneers of surf music. Suspend reality and dig how the “trio” expertly articulates layers of acoustic guitar. Across decades, Johnson has embraced folk-rock, psychedelia, and
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Yes
Close to the Edge: Super Deluxe Edition
Are you a high-fidelity audio geek? If the answer is, well, yes, this Rhino release brings together an HD experience of Close to the Edge in no fewer than four versions, plus rarities and a ’72 concert. For starters, the 2025 remaster sounds as close to the analog 1972 mix as you’re going to get
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Pink Floyd
Have You Got It Yet? – The Story of Syd Barrett and Pink Floyd
It’s understandable that fans warily approach the flood of pseudo-documentaries and biopics. Add the fact that the late Syd Barrett, Floyd’s original guitarist/leader, suffered from mental illness, and exploitation alarms are sure to go off. But this documentary handles the subject with dignity instead of sensationalism. Interviews by longtime Floyd cover artist Storm Thorgerson with
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio- Close But No Cigar
No disrespect to bassists but there’s just something about a funked-up organ trio that sticks to your backbone. Made popular in the cool music joints of the ’50s and ’60s, organists Jimmy McGriff,…
Hot Club of Cowtown
Proper Records
Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys and Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grapelli’s Hot Club both blended early 20th century blues and jazz with the folk music of their culture. Both featured hot-shot fiddlers…
GA-20
Crackdown
When a band names itself after a ’50s Gibson amp, plays Silvertone and Harmony guitars, and devotes an entire album to Hound Dog Taylor, any self-respecting blues fan should take notice. But the…
Eric Lindell – Low On Cash, Rich In Love
Eric Lindell’s second album is full of great songs and inspired playing while his hipster feel and look match his guitar grooves. You get an idea with the opener, “Lay Back Down” –…
Molly Maher and Her Band of Disbelievers
Molly Maher is blessed. She writes songs that ring true. Her singing is a fine balance of deep and soulful, somewhere between Lucinda Williams and Emmylou Harris. And to top it all, she…
Mike Watt
In 1995, Minutemen and Firehose co-founder/bassist Mike Watt unfurled his solo debut, Ball-Hog or Tugboat? Testament to Watt’s influence (and legendary affability), the credits were an honor roll of indie/alt whizzes; Nels Cline,…
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The Wildhearts
In the raging ’90s, The Wildhearts blasted out of Newcastle upon Tyne like some unholy melding of Guns ’N Roses, Cheap Trick, and The Replacements. Hard rock, power pop, and punk still make up their secret sauce, heard on this latest effort with original singer/guitarist Ginger Wildheart. Ben Marsden plays lead, while Kavus Torabi adds
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Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band
Honeysuckle
Resonator-slide specialist Reverend Peyton returns to his primary influences – early 20th-century African-American music – compelling him to shout from the hollers and the hills. Rootsy, acoustic, inter-war blues is the specific genre, and Peyton doesn’t hold back. With top-tier tutelage from the likes of David “Honeyboy” Edwards, T-Model Ford, and Robert Belfour, he masterfully
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Mike Campbell with Ari Surdoval
Heartbreaker: A Memoir
In his autobiography, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers guitarist Campbell admits he’s quiet and shy. Self-doubt plagued him his entire life, and when problems arose in the Heartbreakers, a lack of confidence had him blaming himself first, even when he wasn’t responsible. Perhaps his attitude was psychologically rooted in his impoverished childhood and coming from
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Alan Gogoll
Lioness Lullabies
Venture online and watch a few videos by Tasmanian guitarist Alan Gogoll and you’ll see he’s nothing short of a phenomenon. On acoustic, he conjures artificial harmonics in a manner that almost defies gravity. Better still, he never shows off these chops – everything on Lioness Lullabies is in the service of the song and
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Jimmy Vivino
Gonna Be 2 of Those Days
A veteran vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist and purveyor of blues, R&B, and rock’, Jimmy Vivino has an incredible résumé. A longtime fixture in Conan O’Brien’s house band, he has played on movie, radio, and Broadway projects and worked with Levon Helm, Hubert Sumlin, Al Kooper, Jimmie Vaughan, Donald Fagen, Warren Haynes, Laura Nyro, along with innumerable others. He’s
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Thin Lizzy
The Acoustic Sessions
Thin Lizzy’s first studio release in decades, this album reimagines tracks recorded 50+ years ago by the trio of vocalist/bassist Phil Lynott, guitarist Eric Bell, and drummer Brian Downey. The songs are from Lizzy’s first three albums – 1971’s Thin Lizzy, ’72’s Shades of a Blue Orphanage, and ’73’s Vagabonds of the Western World. Recently,
Iggy & the Stooges – Raw Power
Sony Legacy
Nearly four decades on, the reviled fathers of punk continue to inspire the underground masses. With the reissue of their seminal ’73 release, Raw Power, offers a lot of Iggy to enjoy. Reissued…
Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver – Hard Game of Love
Hard Game of Love
For the last six years, if you wanted to hear Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver do secular bluegrass, you had to attend a live concert, since gospel material has been all they’ve recorded. With…
The Best of Sessions at West 54th – Volume 1 (DVD)
Although this DVD is over two years old, I think it’s still the best live performance music DVD out there. What makes it so good? Not only are the production values top-notch, but…
John Lee Hooker, Jr.
It’s one thing to be the offspring of a famous performer, but quite another to share his name and still be able to forge your own identity. After a number of years in…
Gene Bertoncini – Concerti
Bertoncini hits the jackpot; the nylon-string guitar whiz is joined by a string quartet for a set of music that is both challenging and exquisite to hear. Familiar tunes like “East of the…
John Prine: The Tree of Forgiveness
When John Prine walks out on stage these days, he’s often greeted with a long, thunderous standing ovation in recognition of his songwriting craft. Not even Mr. Dylan gets that. Prine has released…
Big Dez – You Can Smile
For decades, France has welcomed expatriate American blues and jazz artists. It was inevitable that seeds would be sown; the results in jazz music going back at least as far as the 1930s,…
Steve Earle – Washington Square Serenade
Whether or not you appreciate the politics that have dominated his latest records, it’s hard to deny that Steve Earle is a brilliant songwriter. On his latest, Earle has gone back to a…
A Small Part of the ’60s
Every musician I’ve spoken to who was around to witness or participate in the birth of rock and roll, from Carl Perkins to J.J. Cale to Jeff Beck, agrees that it was like…
Barry Levenson – Heart to Hand
Barry Levenson has most all the tools; the heart, the hands, the chops, and experience. What places this release a step ahead is the production, which in this is also the work of…
Bob Seger – Face The Promise
Anyone who saw Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band’s Letterman appearance several weeks ago can attest that he’s lost none of his power or edge during his decade-long hiatus. But, as his…
Vinny Roth
Red Wine Sunshine and Loud Guitars
Vinny Roth proves adept at mixing funk, rock, and fusion to make a record that sounds fresh and new – and yet still seems to fit like an old shoe. There are numerous…
Bucho – Omit the Harsh
Bucho is a pretty amazing little band. They mix different music into what one would have to call “modern soul.” If you like funk, you’ll find lots of it here. If you like…
Robert Gordon: Memphis Rent Party
There’s no city like Memphis when it comes to music. And thankfully, there’s Robert Gordon to chronicle its story. Gordon has written books and helmed documentaries about Muddy Waters, Stax Records, and, of…
Florence Joelle
Zoltan Records
Florence Joelle sings rock and roll like Billie Holiday might, croons a torch ballad as Wanda Jackson may, and spices it all with a bit of Patti Smith attitude. Add to that Joelle’s…
Buzzcocks
Late For The Train: Live & In Session (1989-2010)
On the punk-rock timeline, some bands haven’t quite received their just acknowledgment. Two Australian bands, The Saints and Radio Birdman, come to mind, as do groups like Flamin’ Groovies and Dr. Feelgood, which…
Dave Hunter
Les Paul Praises
Here is a coffeetable book and then some! It’s a 224-page hardcover, with 400-plus exquisite photographs chronicling the rise and fall – and rise again – of the Gibson Les Paul. All its…
Nate Najar
This Is Nate Najar
Nate Najar plays accessible jazz on a classical guitar and applies classical technique to match. This album showcases the music veteran playing a variety of tunes that range from Chopin’s “Prelude in E…
Tab Benoit – Fever For the Bayou
Benoit has a feel and authenticity to his playing. His records always bring a smile of familiarity to my face when I first hear them, like an old coat that you haven’t worn…
Nancy Wright
Play Date!
The ubiquitous saxophonist of the San Francisco blues scene for 30 years, Nancy Wright finally stepped to the fore and released her solo debut in 2009 – a fine instrumental outing in a…
Son Volt – A Retrospective: 1995-2000
Spinning off from the roots-rock trailblazers Uncle Tupelo, Jay Farrar’s Son Volt is famed for its honest, no-nonsense, straight-to-the-heart songs. A Retrospective: 1995-2000 is a fine greatest hits celebration with six unreleased bonus…
