-
Music
Smith/Kotzen
Black Light/White Noise
This is the third album from rock veterans Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden) and Richie Kotzen (The Winery Dogs). The busy axeslingers – especially Kotzen, who is always involved in solo and band projects – released their full-length debut and an EP in 2021. Smith-Kotzen has happily blossomed into a going concern. What’s interesting about Smith/Kotzen’s
Song of the South
You’re always taking a chance with a DVD that concerns a band and yet none of the band members take part in the production. That’s the case here. While there are no Allman…
Little Walter – The Complete Chess Masters (1950-1967)
Hip-O Select/Geffen
Someday someone will make a great movie about rock and roll, maybe even blues. Until then, we’re stuck with crap like Cadillac Records, which takes more than “artistic license” in telling the story…
The Hacienda Brothers – Hacienda Brothers
Hacienda Brothers
Take one of the most road-tested rock-a-bluesy guitarists in the game, the Paladins’ Dave Gonzalez, and add country/conjunto/Cajun soul man Chris Gaffney, and you’ve got the makings of something special. Add David “D.B.”…
-
Chris Walz
All I Got and Gone
This traditional folk singer/guitarist’s solo debut is impressive. He’s been an educator at Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music for three decades, but his approach is by no means academic. He not only reveals the influence of folk and blues legends such as Doc and Merle Watson, Elizabeth Cotten, Etta Baker, Dave Van Ronk,
-
Nels Cline
Consentrik Quartet
ls Cline long ago established a parallel career as an eclectic instrumentalist and contemporary jazz virtuoso. His fourth Blue Note album is an extended set that unveils Consentrik Quartet, his new band with acoustic bassist Chris Lightcap, drummer Tom Rainey, and tenor/soprano saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock. Their concepts are ambitious and their sound is free, Cline
-
Charlie Musselwhite
Lookout Highway
John Mayall is invariably cited for the succession of guitar greats who passed through his band. But Charlie Musselwhite just might be the American equivalent. In a 60-year career, his six-stringers have included Harvey Mandel, Luther Tucker, Louis Myers, Tim Kaihatsu, Robben Ford, Fenton Robinson, Johnny Heartsman, Junior Watson, Andrew “Jr. Boy” Jones, John Wedemeyer,
Jack White
Willie Wonka Rocks
Jack White was recently crowned the Willy Wonka of the rock and roll world by Rolling Stone, and a better description of the man, his music, and his Third Man Records enterprise would…
Chris Hillman
Flying High
To understand this album’s significance, it’s worth recounting the highlights of Chris Hillman’s distinguished career. An admired West Coast bluegrass musician, in 1964 he picked up an electric bass and joined the original…
Black Label Society
Doom Crew Inc.
BLS’ 11th album has Zakk Wylde sharing duties with guitarist Dario Lorina. Huge tones, harmonized lines, and blistering solos dwell in the realm of metal-infested stomp and fretboard intensity. Dedicated to their roadcrew…
Joan Osborne
Songs Of Bob Dylan
Osborne could sing a dictionary and make it sound good, and though she’s written much of her best material, she’s proven to be a stellar interpreter – be it Motown, blues, Americana, or…
Yarn
UFO
On its third album, this Brooklynbased country/roots band pushes further into the darker side of Americana. Guitarist/lead vocalist Blake Christiana guides the band, with Trevor MacArthur on guitar and vocals, Andrew Hendryx on…
Ron Dziubla
Wabi-Sabi
Lately, Dziubla (pronounced JOObluh) has become the saxophonist of choice for everyone from Ricky Martin to Duane Eddy – with sessions with Deke Dickerson, Elmore James, Jr. and the soundtrack to Burlesque along…
-
Popa Chubby
I Love Freddie King
The latest from blues dynamo Popa Chubby is a star-studded tribute to the late great Freddie King. Produced by Mr. Chubby and Mike Zito, I Love Freddie King is a blues guitar love-fest covering some of King’s most potent and popular songs. With Popa fronting the band on guitar and vocals, guests include Eric Gales,
-
Rush
Rush 50
The goal of any anthology is to capture the broad scope of an artist’s career. Rush 50 is a strong attempt, starting with their first singles (previously unreleased) all the way to their final live recordings in 2015. In between are reams of epic studio and stage recordings, summing up the band’s career in one
-
Rik Emmett
Ten Telecaster Tales
At the risk of starting a brawl, Rik Emmett’s guitar work was arguably too good for Triumph. As evidence, his latest project centers on a custom-built Loucin that inspired both a book and accompanying music. “Magic Power” this is not. On Ten Telecaster Tunes, Emmett delivers 10 solo performances on the instrument he calls Babs,
-
Check This Action: Up Jumped Elmore
When someone recently asked me to recommend the most essential Elmore James album, I answered, “Any and all.” I’ve never heard a bad Elmore cut, and I’ve heard nearly everything he recorded. Everybody knows that he set the standard for slide guitar in electric blues, but he was also a fantastic singer and wrote some
-
Greg Koch
Blues
The Gristle Master returns with scintillating blues and the influences that made him the six-string slayer he is today. On this live recording, Koch uses an array of guitars including his signature Reverend, a Deluxe Tele, Custom Shop Les Paul, and a Custom Shop Strat while sharing stages with Larry McCray, Jimmy Hall, Malford Milligan,
-
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
Don Diego
The Guitar Album, Volume #1
The title might sound generic, but even a cursory perusing of the repertoire and execution explains why it’s so fitting. Eclecticism can be dangerous, but Italy’s Diego Geraci has the versatility to pull…
Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Dirt on My Diamonds, Vol. 1
It’s easy to summarize Kenny Wayne Shepherd’s raw-yet-modern blues approach. Joined by co-vocalist Noah Hunt, Shepherd delivers a lyric straight up. His remarkable guitar chops allow him to create riveting instrumental interludes that…
Fred McDowell – The First Recordings, Steakbone Slide Guitar, Leve
These three CDs of Mississippi Fred McDowell all show different sides of the great Delta bluesman. Rounder’s The First Recordings were recorded by famed musicologist Alan Lomax in 1959, yet among the 14…
Richie Kotzen
Soul Survivor
Richie Kotzen may not be a household name, but with nearly 20 albums and countless group projects on his resumé, he’s on the verge. Coming to prominence in ’89 after being signed to…
Rick Holmstrom
See That Light
After 13 years as soul/gospel/civil rights legend Mavis Staples’ guitarist and bandleader, Rick Holmstrom has earned the nickname from Staples’ herself as “Pops Jr.” He’s also played alongside Rod Piazza, William Clarke, and…
Jonny Two Bags
Entering his 15th year as Mike Ness’ guitar foil in Social Distortion, Jonny “Two Bags” Wickersham steps out with a platter of his own. Social D fans hoping for a stopgap collection of…
Jon Koonce
Self-distributed
The guiding force behind Johnny and the Distractions circa 1980, Jon Koonce’s new release looks back on that time and his upbringing in Portland, Oregon. Songs from the Little Village on the River…
Kenny “Blue” Ray – Git It!
I’ve lost count! I believe this is Kenny’s sixth self-produced CD. And, as have its predecessors, Git It, his most recent effort, again illustrates Blue Ray’s dedication to the blues craft. Rumor has…
Steve Khan
Backlog
Steve Khan has spent the last few albums mixing Latin music and jazz. The project has worked beautifully, culminating in this effort that takes tunes from Thelonious Monk, Bobby Hutcherson, Ornette Coleman, Steve’s…
Tony Bacon – Willie G. Moseley
Into The Spotlight
Whatever were they thinking? In hindsight, it’s tough to fathom how Gibson could scrap the Les Paul Standard at the end of 1960 and replace it in ’61 with a new design, the…
Hill Country Revue
Razor & Tie
Rock and roll doesn’t get much grittier than Hill Country Revue, the band started by North Mississippi Allstars member Cody Dickinson. The group is Dickinson and Kirk Smithhart on guitars, Daniel Robert Coburn…
Pieta Brown
Red House Records
Put two great guitar players like Bo Ramsey and Richard Bennett together with one of the best songwriters to appear in the past decade, and there’s a chance you’ll get a great record.…
Peter Frampton
Somethin’s Happening/Frampton
Mike Barfield – Living Stereo
Living Stereo
Joe Moss – Maricela’s Smile
Joe Moss is a veteran bluesman who expands the palette a bit here. The 13 cuts are not standard three-chord fare, and various other forms of music are sprinkled into the mix. “Suburban…
Pat Metheny Group – The Way Up
Early press about this made a big deal about it being one big composition. But there’s so much variation that it works to the ear as separate pieces, too. And they all sound…
Chris Duarte – Blue Velocity
It’s great to hear a plain-old guitar record. They used to be all over the place, but these days not so much. And while I’ve always been a Duarte fan, here he seems…
The Anthony Wilson Trio – Our Gang
This is a little different thing for Anthony. His past few albums have been him leading a big band, doing marvelous arrangements and playing guitar to die for. Here, it’s just him, Joe…
Dumpstaphunk
The New Orleans funk ensemble known as Dumpstaphunk has been at it for a decade now. Led by Ivan Neville on keys, the band consists of Nikki Glaspie on drums and vocals, guitarist…
Paul Reed Smith
Lions Roaring in Quicksand
The new album by guitar builder Paul Reed Smith and his band, Eightlock, offers soul-based sounds with deep grooves, three drummers, and three guitarists. Veteran drummer Dennis Chambers, bassist Gary Grainger, and guitarists…
Burke Long
This infectious record has the homemade feel of mom’s Sunday dinner. North Carolina boy Burke Long evokes writing models like Rodney Crowell and Gene Clark for the almost California country of “About Love,”…
Shelby Lynne
Everso Records
Revelation Road comes from an artist who knows exactly what she wants and how to get it, and can come up with an end product that displays brilliantly the worth of the work…
