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Music
2026 February Issue on Spotify
This month, we feature Tinsley Wllis, Jimmy Aaughan, Duke Levine, Joshua Hedley, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Pink Floyd, Coyote Motel, Julian Lage, Jocelyn Gould, 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 the complete
Kentucky Thunder
Self-distributed
First, this Kentucky Thunder has nothing to do with Rickey Skaggs’ band. And instead of bluegrass, they serve up hot-buttered white Southern soul, a la Delaney and Bonnie. Since the band has four…
Allen Hinds
The Good Fight
The latest from the Lord of Legato features compositions that blur the line between prog, fusion, and Americana. From the majestic to the bucolic, Allen Hinds leaves it all in the ring with…
Mike Bloomfield – I’m Cuttin’ Out
When the late Mike Bloomfield burst onto the guitar scene in 1965 – on the Paul Butterfield Blues Band’s self-titled debut and Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dylan – it was like nothing…
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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
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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,
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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
Slightly Stoopid & Friends
Slightly Stoopid is a group of friends who have been making music since their teenage days, mixing reggae, funk, R&B, and punk. They also play acoustic rock that lets two front men, Miles…
Firecracker – The Wailin’ Jennys
Firecracker – The Wailin’ Jennys The second release from the tri-girl musical aggregate from Canada proves that even with a new contributor (songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Annabelle Chvostek), the Jennys’ music is still very tasty. The…
Oz Noy & Andrew Synowiec
Recreational Substance
Fusion guitar experts Oz Noy and Andrew Synowiec join forces for an album of shameless note density and post-bebop shred. Eight compositions run the gamut between energetic shuffles, wide interval ballads, and twisted…
Robbie Robertson
429 Records
It’s been more than a decade since Robbie Robertson has issued a solo record, and closer to two since he offered a pop/rock disc. How to Become Clairvoyant is unique in the Robertson…
Michael Schenker’s Temple of Rock
Despite Michael Schenker’s infamy as a member of the Scorpions, UFO, and MSG, he seems to have put his demons behind him. On this new album, Schenker is a clean, mean, guitar-playing machine.…
Nick Curran and the Nitelifes – Doctor Velvet
You know how some records just ooze fun? That’d be this one. Nick and his group mix jump blues, boogie, and greasy rock and roll into a perfect stew. And throughout the affair,…
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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,
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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,
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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
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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,
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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
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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,
Jeff Beck
Portait of the Guitarist As A(n Older) Man
After years of on and off seclusion, Jeff Beck miraculously morphed into a road warrior this past decade. His tour with ZZ Top last year provided the raw material for this new live…
Wes Montgomery: His Life and His Music
Oliver Dunskus
You don’t have to be a bebopper thumbing a Gibson L-5 to appreciate the music of Wes Montgomery – arguably the greatest jazz guitarist of all time. While his fan base includes Carlos…
Dave Alvin – West of the West
The Great American Music Galaxy
Dave Alvin is one of America’s best songwriters, and as such runs the risk of alienating casual fans when he does an album of covers. But then again, maybe not… The idea with…
Coco Schumann – 50 Years in Jazz
German jazz guitarist Coco Schumann came of age in the generation following the breakthrough jazz recordings of Django Reinhardt and much of his own guitar work is deeply influenced by the legendary Gypsy.…
Lucinda Williams
Exile On A Gravel Road
There’s that old saw about a good double album being a better single album if it wasn’t for an artist’s hubris. But Lucinda Williams’ first doubleheader doesn’t fit that bill. If anything, it’s…
The Peacemakers
The Peacemakers
Mike Keller has played lead with, among others, the post-SRV Double Trouble, Doyle Bramhall, Sr., Marcia Ball, and the Fabulous Thunderbirds – in other words, the elite of the Austin blues scene. He…
Kombo – Cookin’ out
Kombo is Ron Pedley on keyboards, and Jon Pondel on guitars. They’ve got lots of great help too, with guys like Steve Ferrone, Matt Bissonette, and Sharon Hendrix. The music is the same…
Squirrel Nut Zippers
Beasts of Burgundy
Rare it is when a band forms, blows the doors off with their music, falls apart, regroups – and hits new highs. In fact, this first new album from the Squirrel Nut Zippers…
Kid Ramos – Kid Ramos
If you can call his ongoing stint with the Fabulous Thunderbirds “woodshedding,” then guitarist David “Kid” Ramos has definitely paid his dues. He replaced Jimmie Vaughan – Texas-sized shoes to fill, if ever…
The Eagles- Hotel California 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition
Dark Desert Highway
It’s been more than 41 years since Hotel California was released, but no matter – this fresh reissue let’s us reflect on a record that’s sold a staggering 48 million copies. And in…
Eric Bibb – Diamond Days
Bibb is a fine guitarist and singer, and here proves a very capable songwriter. It’s hard to pin him down – you could call him a folk singer, but his blues and pop…
Tom Principato – Not One Word
Tom’s put out some stuff on record before, and it’s been pretty good. This one’s a little bit different. As the title says, there’s not one word. It’s all instrumental, and Tom does…
Fleetwood Mac
Live Deluxe Edition
Like the Beatles, Eagles, and CSNY, Fleetwood Mac benefited greatly by having multiple singer/songwriters – one of which was Stevie Nicks. Fingerstyle ace Lindsey Buckingham and the meticulous rhythm section of John McVie…
Gustav Lundgren
Gustav Lundgren is boldly going where few other Gypsy jazz guitarists dare: the daunting and little-known world of Django Reinhardt’s later bebop music. Swede Lundgren is prolific in both the worlds of standard…
Jimmy “Duck” Holmes
Mississippi Blues Holdout
The unique and insular Bentonia style may be the deepest and darkest of all blues. Skip James personified the music: he sang haunted songs in an eerie, high-pitched voice that would send a…
The Band – The Last Waltz DVD and CD Boxed Set
If there were ever a group of musicians for whom the term “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” fit like a glove, it was The Band. Perhaps even more…
Pat Metheny – Imaginary Day Live
Eagle Eye Media
A lot can transpire with Pat Metheny in 10 years, but it’s nice to be able to look back at this 1998 concert, filmed with multiple cameras and excellent sound at the gorgeous…
The Mike Eldred Trio
The Mike Eldred Trio’s latest was recorded at Memphis’ hallowed Sun Studios, but the deep blues are straight outta the Delta. Eldred needs little introduction here. The former Fender Custom Shop manager, he’s…
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…
Lucinda Williams
Ghost Stories
From Bobby Troup’s “(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66” to Bob Dylan’s “Highway 61 Revisited” and more, the roads we’ve traveled have inspired our music. Enter U.S. Highway 20, stretching 1,500 miles across…
Jack Knife and the Sharps – Ace Cafe
Jack Knife and the Sharps are a staple on the bar scene in Minneapolis-St. Paul. They have a reputation of serving up good old-fashioned rock and roll spiced by rockabilly, country, and ’50s-style…
Spirit
Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus
