Harvey Mandel and Dennis Coffey
If it’s possible to be both unsung and an icon, then guitarists Dennis Coffey and Harvey Mandel would fit the description. Mandel is one of those rare examples of a guitarist who’s not only immediately identifiable but whose style was almost fully formed from the moment he arrived, like Chuck Berry or Lonnie Mack. From […]
Henriksen Amplifiers’ The Blu
One old cliché among gigging musicians is, “They pay me for the aggravation, the music is free.” A good deal of that aggravation comes from lugging gear. If you play acoustic guitar, Henriksen’s new The Blu can reduce that stress plenty. Measuring just 9″ x 9″x 9″ and weighing a mere 12 pounds, it’s nonetheless […]
The Real Story of Martin’s 14-Fret Orchestra Models
Martin Orchestra Model (OM) guitars made prior to World War II are some of the finest ever made for fingerpicking. That’s rather ironic, considering they were created specifically for flatpickers. • Much has been written about the OM-28, but some of that info, including how it was designed for Perry Bechtel, is a bit misleading. […]
Selwyn Birchwood
If you think the days of ferocious blues guitar are behind us, cue up Selwyn Birchwood’s latest, Exorcist. Within its grooves are blistering licks galore and the Florida guitarist’s powerful voice – perhaps one of the best blues singers around today. The capper is Birchwood’s “FLorida Man,” which uses real, hard-to-believe news headlines to tell […]
Pop ’N Hiss: Be Bop Deluxe’s Live! In the Air Age
For a shining moment, the eclectic British quartet Be Bop Deluxe rose above an upheaval in rock and pop in the late ’70s, as fresh hard rock and Southern bands flooded the airwaves along with disco divas and a subversive new sound labeled “punk.” Within the maelstrom, Be Bop Deluxe mixed art concepts, thinking-man’s lyrics, […]
Nils Lofgren
Nils Lofgren’s resumé stretches 47 years and counting. He joined Neil Young’s band at age 19 and was a member of Crazy Horse before his own band, Grin, landed a record deal in 1971. After Grin, he forged a solo career and in ’84 joined Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. His tenure with […]
Star Board: Bruce Kulick
Bruce Kulick played lead guitar in Kiss for more than a decade, and today stays busy as a solo performer and tours as a member of Grand Funk Railroad. Speaking of, here’s his primary pedalboard setup for that gig. “It’s simple and old-school,” he said. “I put them together with short cables, batteries only, and […]
The Mavericks
Since reforming five years ago, the Mavericks have released two studio albums and 2016’s All Night Live, Vol. 1. And again here, the core quartet of vocalist-guitarist Raul Malo, guitarist Eddie Perez, keyboard player Jerry Dale McFadden, and drummer Paul Deakin are augmented by added musicians. Malo’s original tunes remain powerful and eclectic, beginning with […]
Mu-FX Boostron 3
Leave it to Mike Beigel to create a masterpiece of a stompbox… again. The Mu-FX Boostron 3 is three pedals in one. But it’s also so much more. Sure, you can buy: all-in-one multi-effects pedals or digital microprocessor “magic boxes” with hundreds of modeled voices. Be prepared, though. Their complexity often causes your head to […]
Susanna Hoffs
The Bangles vocalist/rhythm guitarist’s fifth solo album is a folk-enriched blend of covers by classic and contemporary artists, enlivened by Hoffs’ angelic voice. The Deep End, like 2021’s Bright Lights, features legendary session aces and sidemen, including guitarists Waddy Wachtel and Danny Kortchmar, bassist Leland Sklar, and drummer Russ Kunkel. Multi-instrumentalist John Jorgenson and guitar […]
Vox AC100
The history of Vox amplifiers’ evolution through the early/mid-’60s directly tracks with The Beatles’ increasing needs to be heard over the screams of fanatical audiences. Simultaneously, the arrival of the AC100 foretells a trend that would make the 100-Watter a must-have on large stages the world over. Even as the Vox AC30 was proving to […]
Tim Lerch
If you watch any of Tim Lerch’s videos online, his virtuosity is immediately apparent. What may throw you is his use of a Telecaster, an axe more closely associated with blues, country, and rock. But in Lerch’s hand, it becomes a killer jazz-blues machine, perfect for his tasty single-note runs and jaw-dropping chord improvisations. Lerch’s […]
Traynor YGM-4 Studio Mate
Vintage-amp bargain hunters often compare the quality and features of smaller Traynor combos to Fenders and those of the larger heads to Marshall. The truth is these robust Canadian amps have their own thing going on. For players of the late ’60s and ’70s, Traynor amps were so semi-ubiquitous as to be of little inherent […]
A.J.’s 1950 Fender Broadcaster
In 1950, A.J. Custer traded his triple-neck steel for a white-guard Broadcaster. Total cost was around $300, which he paid in $10 installments over three years. Fifty years later, we tell the story.
KJ Audio Hanwell 50
KJ Audio Hanwell 50 Price: Head $1,900; cabinet $1,600 Contact: www.kjaudio.com No apologies: Minneapolis-based amp designer Kristopher Johnson’s Hanwell 50 boutique amp is built to rock. The amp was inspired by the four-input, 50-watt Marshall JMP MKII Master Volume amps of the mid ’70s, but Johnson hot-rodded this, modded that, and made his own monster […]
Johnny Nicholas
Considering the varied musicality of Austin, Texas, it’s no wonder singer/songwriter Johnny Nicholas makes his home in the Texas capitol. A native of Rhode Island, he listened to R&B in the late ’50s and later gravitated to more-traditional blues and folk. His first guitar was a Stella acoustic acquired in 1961 for “$15, with the […]
Fender‘s 50th Anniversary Strat
In celebration of the 50th “birthday” of its famous Stratocaster model, Fender has taken the reissue concept to new heights. And why not? Arguably the most popular guitar – electric, acoustic, you name it – ever built, the Stratocaster is the epitome of a pop music legend, and a huge part of Fender’s history and […]