To a certain degree, the Vintage Vacuum Tube Amplifiers Rick Derringer Hyperdrive model was born of intimidation. When VVT proprietors Tony Albany and Jim Hill began discussing a signature amp head with a guitarist Rick Derringer, whose style can shift from hard rock to blues to jazz, they figured they’d have their hands full. Derringer […]
Monthly Archives: May 2010
Cheap Trick – Budokan 30th Anniversary
Okay, Rick Nielsen was no Jimi Hendrix. But who cares – he hit the road with an army of vintage guitars and now-valuable early Hamer solidbodies, which is cool enough! You can enjoy more of Rick’s licks and awesome axes in this massive three-CD and 5.1-mixed DVD set of Cheap Trick’s famous 1978 concerts in […]
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Joe Satriani
Satch's Surfin' Turns 20
Photo: Lisa Sharken. It’s been 20 years since the release of Joe Satriani’s landmark album, Surfin’ with the Alien , the instrumental platter that put “shred guitar” on the map and launched a school of heavy guitar gods (and just reissued on Sony Legacy as a deluxe CD/concert DVD). Today, Satriani is an established recording […]
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Zemaitis GZA500-H&D
Tony's Vibe, Unplugged
The Zemaitis GZA500-H&D acoustic guitar is manufactured by Greco and boasts many features and the attention to detail players have come to expect from instruments carrying the Zemaitis name. Along with the Japanese-made GZA series Zemaitis also offers a custom shop series made in Ireland and features jumbos and small-body acoustics made out of some […]
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Fender ’57 Twin Amp and ’57 Deluxe
Tweed for Two
Fender “tweed” guitar amplifiers – the Twin, Deluxe, Bassman, Champ, etc., from the 1950s – are the most sought after amps in the annals of guitardom. Whether it is Leo’s legendary circuit design, their tweed covering, top-mounted controls, or just killer tone, the “tweed” amp is a true industry standard that has been copied, reissued, […]
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Ike & Tina Turner – Sing the Blues
The late Ike Turner, due to ex-wife Tina’s revelations of his various abuses, has been dismissed as a marginally talented manipulator who rode his wife’s coat-tails to success. Ike has only himself and his demons to blame for his public image, but assessments of the two, professionally, have often been mistakenly weighted in Tina’s favor. […]
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Masco MAP-15
1946 Masco MAP-15 Before Leo Fender’s rise to prominence, which is to say, before anyone knew what the Platonic form of the electric guitar amplifier would ultimately be, a broad free-fire zone existed between general-purpose amplification, PA amps, and guitar amps. Many companies covered all bases, as did Masco, a name that has come to […]
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Victoria Regal II Amplifier
Tube-Swappin' Time
Mark Baier launched the Victoria Amplifier Company in 1993, intent on reproducing the tones and aesthetic style of the great tweed amps of the late 1950s. He began twisting these classic designs into exciting variations that still pay homage to Leo. One example of this new direction is the Regal II, a vintage-Valco-meets-Fender-inspired amp with […]
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Lloyd Green
From the A Team to Americana
Lloyd Green with the the signature model pedal-steel guitar he designed for the Sho-Bud company in 1973. Prior to this, a single on a double-neck cabinet with pad didn’t exist. This steel has been used on more than 5,000 recording sessions and it continues to be his primary steel. The seat is a Sho-Bud Pac-a-seat […]
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Brad Paisley – Play
Brad Paisley’s albums have been admirably consistent, emphasizing vocals, of course, but usually spiced by a couple great Telecaster workouts. In the case of Play, five of the 16 tracks are vocals, the remainder instrumental. Such albums aren’t easy to get past most Music Row producers, who favor radio airplay over quality, unless a major-label […]
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