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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
Drive By Truckers – The Dirty South
The Dirty South
I confess, these good ol’ boys have become one of my favorite rock and roll bands. There double-disc opus, Southern Rock Opera, was one of my favorite records from the past couple of…
The Del McCoury Band – Del and the Boys
Anyone who thinks bluegrass music is just about doing songs performed by dead guys – but doing ’em faster, hasn’t heard the Del McCoury band. Their latest album on Ricky Skaggs’ Celli Music…
Patty Larkin – Watch the Sky
Patty Larkin is one of the finest acoustic guitarists in the world. On her 12th release, Watch The Sky, she focuses on her songwriting, singing, and multi-instrumental talents. The final results are as…
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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
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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,
Kansas – Two for the Show: 30th Anniversary Edition
Sony/Legacy
One iconic artifact of the late-’70s rock scene was the ubiquitous “double live album,” a marketing ploy usually timed for the Christmas rush, but one that also yielded much good music. Following the…
Tony Bacon – 50 Years of Fender
In 1950, Leo Fender began production of the first solidbody electric guitar, and music hasn’t been the same since. Celebrating the anniversary of the event, this book provides a year-by-year chronicle of the…
Subdudes – Street Symphony
It’s a good thing the Subdudes decided to “put the band back together” in ’02. In this set of music, their first since Hurricane Katrina devastated their hometown of New Orleans, they touch…
Mike Stern
Trip
Mike Stern’s latest speaks to the triumph of his spirit and twisted sense of humor. In a freak accident while waiting for a cab, he tripped and broke both arms. This left him…
Keith Cameron
The Year (or so) of Mudhoney rolls on. The long-running Seattle foursome has experienced a resurgence of interest lately. The latest example: this well-researched and crisply written biography from rock journalist Keith Cameron,…
Dusty Springfield – Dusty in Memphis & Dusty in London
Ironically enough, these showed up in my mailbox on the day Dusty succumbed to breast cancer. Certainly one of the best pop/soul singers of the past 30 years, she has remained criminally underexposed.…
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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,
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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
Sarah Harmer – You Were Here
Canadian musicians have long found it necessary to come south to the US of A if they want to make it big. Sarah Harmer is one of a long line of Canadians lured…
Brad Allen Williams
Brad Allen Williams is a fine guitarist who has served the last few years as a sideman to numerous artists, most notably José James. Fans of his work with other folks might be…
Steepwater Band – Revelation Sunday
Precision, Passion, and Soul
The Steepwater Band’s 2004 release, Dharmakaya, was a very strong effort, and this is an equally strong followup. The band is a modern version of the classic rock trio many grew up loving.…
Ricky Skaggs with Kentucky Thunder – History of the Future
History of the Future
From the opening accapella vocal lines of “Shady Grove,” Ricky Skaggs’ History of the Future roars out of your speakers with full-throttle devil-be-damned, fire-breathing bluegrass. Clay Hess’ first guitar solo is so jaw-droppingly…
Jas Obrecht
Blues Primordial
When did blues guitar begin? Many people think of Charley Patton, but in this book historian Jas Obrecht teaches us the idiom began long before that Delta legend – back to the turn…
Mimi Fox – Perpetually Hip
The first thing you notice about Mimi Fox when she begins the single-note original melody of the title track (the first cut of this double-CD) is her bell-like tone (more highs than the…
Backyard Tire Fire – The Places We Lived
Backyard Tire Fire can be called “tasteful,” “workmanlike” (in the best sense of the word), and “tough.” Many of the songs are about uneasy situations. “Everybody’s Down” and “Welcome to the Factory” are…
Violinjazz
Dorian Sono Luminus
African-American jazzman Eddie South was known as the Dark Angel of the Violin. His moody compositions and hot solos were influenced strongly by Eastern European Gypsies, with whom he studied. And it was…
Johnny Winter – Deluxe Edition
When you think about it, Johnny Winter has had quite a career. And here, from Alligator Records, just to let you know it continues strong, is a set of cuts from his stint…
Muddy Waters and The Rolling Stones
Reissues and new arrivals
The cup runneth over with Rolling Stones live discs, a heady mix of reissues and new arrivals. Ladies & Gentlemen… is the soundtrack to the concert film shot over four nights in the…
Steve Khan – Got My Mental
Khan’s been around for awhile. He’s made some great albums as a solo artist, dating back to the ’70s. He also served in Billy Joel’s band in the late ’70s, and has done…
Foghat
Foghat Records
Foghat guitarists “Lonesome” Dave Peverett and Rod Price have both passed on, but the band’s blues-boogie legacy is being carried forward by drummer (and co-founder) Roger Earl and singer/ guitarist Charlie Huhn, who…
Ric Lee’s Natural Born Swingers
This band doesn’t just hearken back to the late ’60s British blues movement; it includes two seminal figures from that period, in Ten Years After drummer Ric Lee and pianist Bob Hall, an…
Bearfoot
The teenagers who began the Bearfoot Bluegrass Band in 2006 have matured into young adults. As they’ve matured, so has their music. Even their name has changed slightly; it’s been shortened to Bearfoot.…
Selwyn Birchwood
Living In a Burning House
Selwyn Birchwood’s third album for Chicago-based Alligator Records represents new creative frontiers for the 36-year-old Florida native. The robust use of keyboards and baritone sax makes it his most sonically expansive effort to…
Elvin Bishop – Gettin’ My Groove Back
Elvin Bishop has suffered tragedy in recent years and it understandably shows on a couple of cuts here. “What the Hell is Going On” is a boogie that roars about everything going on…
Mudhoney
Plastic Eternity
When it comes to writing music reviews, nothing’s more Lamesville than a critic swiping text from a label’s press release. But in the case of Mudhoney’s new full-length, one would be hard-pressed to…
Marcin
Dragon In Harmony
Acoustic/electric sensation Marcin effortlessly traverses the fretboard with a guitar style that embraces the companionable influences of classical, flamenco, and pop music. Lightning-fast intervallic runs dovetail into high-level rhythmic slapping, tapping, and fierce…
Black Country Communion
Afterglow is the third album by Black Country Communion, which features bassist Glenn Hughes, drummer Jason Bonham, keyboard player Derek Sherinian, and Joe Bonamassa on guitar. Their sound continues to fill the void…
Joe Bonamassa
From the opening notes of “Slow Train” to the echo of the last note of “Prisoner,” modern blues guitarslinger Joe Bonamassa’s Dust Bowl is a masterpiece. Bonamassa has released 11 previous solo albums…
John Jackson
Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
Piedmont (or East Coast) blues guitarists like Brownie McGhee, Rev. Gary Davis, Blind Blake, and Mississippi John Hurt had a tremendous influence on the likes of Jorma Kaukonen, Mark Knopfler, Leo Kottke and…
The George Benson Quartet – It’s Uptown and The George Benson Cookbook
It's Uptown and The George Benson Cookbook