Always on the watch for good-looking, good-sounding, durable pedals, we were recently drawn to three of the latest gizmos from Visual Sound, the Florida-based company that started out building a signal-chain noise reducer called Pure Tone, and later moved into the effects arena. The Test Subjects Housed in a steel case shaped kinda like a [...]
Monthly Archives: November 2003
Peter Frampton
Frampton Comes Around
Peter Frampton is in an upbeat mood, mainly because his decades-long career as a guitarist, singer, and songwriter was also headed back in an upward direction. Since Vintage Guitar‘s first conversation with Frampton (VG, February ’98) , he’s been involved with all sorts of new and innovative projects, and was eager to talk about the [...]
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The Twangbangers – 26 Days on the Road
Pretty hard to screw up this one. You’ve got Bill Kirchen and Redd Volkaert on guitar, Joe Goldmark on pedal steel, and Dallas Wayne on vocals, along with the killer rhythm section of Johnny Castle (bass) and Jack O’Dell (drums). There’s three studio recordings, and nine live tracks. Between Kirchen and Volkaert you’ve got a [...]
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Pierre Bensusan – Intuite
There are guitarists, and then there are guitarists’ guitarists. Pierre Benusan is the sort of musician who inspires awe among even other musical luminaries. Leo Kotke admits that, “Pierre’s music gives me the shakes. No other guitarist shares his strange gifts of sophistication, accessibility, and downright joy.” Since his first album, Pres de Paris in [...]
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Martin Electric Guitars
Exotic Pilgrams From Nazareth
Mention the subject of American acoustic guitars and one of the first names that will undoubtedly pop into your head will be C.F. Martin. Not that there aren’t many other estimable names, but Martin, by virtue of its longevity — since 1833 — and incredible quality remains the standard by which almost all steel-stringed acoustics [...]
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Paul Burlison
Train Keeps Rollin'
Paul Burlison does not know how to make a long story short, but that’s just fine because his stories are such great ones. Like a slow-movin’ freight, a milk train, or the U.S. Mail, nothing stops him until he reaches his destination. His train keeps a-rollin’. He’s a Rockabilly pioneer, lead guitarist with brothers Johnny [...]
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Leslie West – Big Fat Assed Guitar
Leslie West has been sort of a one-trick pony in his 30-plus years as a rocker. But when that trick is one of the smoothest, most fluid and violin-like vibratos around, when its amped up to eleven 11 through a Marshall stack, and when the personality attached is so completely in your face, it becomes [...]
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Sonny Black – Hart And Soul
Sonny Black is an English guitarist who has absorbed several styles of American music and made them his own. It’s a hard sound to describe, but suffice it to say it contains jazz, blues, and some roots rock feel. The opener, “Through Heaven’s Eyes” starts with some very sinewy lines reminiscent of Mark Knopler’s early [...]
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Erik Halbig – Balancing Act
Wow! Here’s one of those records that comes out of nowhere and really grabs ya’. I’m not familiar with Erik, but from the liner notes and some of the guests, he’s obviously associated with Nashville; there are great turns by Jerry Douglas on dobro and Paul Franklin on steel. That said, don’t let me fool [...]
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Gibson Reissue ’58 Flying V
The Phantom V
A number of years ago I purchased a reissue/limited edition Gibson Flying V constructed in the 1958/59 configuration (strings through the body type). Upon inspection, I took note of the serial number and the fact that the guitar was constructed of Honduras mahogany. It had a brown pink-lined case with the Gibson logo inscribed in [...]
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