June 2007

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FEATURES

RICH ROBINSON
Back on the Wing
As the co-founder of the Black Crowes preps a new album, we speak with him about the band, its classic sound and style, and the vintage electric and acoustic instruments he has used to record its many hits. By Ward Meeker

AMP-O-RAMA
The Fender Deluxe Reverb
If guitarists were to vote for the one “best amp for all occasions,” this one would very likely earn a majority decision, especially if you’re talking the original 1960s blackface version. By Dave Hunter

THE GIBSON LES PAUL SPECIAL
The “somewhere between Custom and Junior” member of the original Les Paul “family” of guitars was the first to lose the Les Paul name. But that small distinction has not diminished its appeal to players and collectors. By George Gruhn and Walter Carter

CHOCOLATE GODZILLA
Circa 1952, Ted McCarty asked Seth Lover to design a few amps. So he threw a few wires together with some Astrons, put them in pine cabinets, and for this one added the name of the most famous player of the era. Meet the Gibson Les Paul GA-40. By Nathaniel Riverhorse Nakadate

KEVIN GRANTT
Pentecostal to P-Basses
He was bitten by the music bug while watching his grandpa play guitar in church. But it was “Don Kirschner’s Rock Concert” that influenced him to pick up his instrument of choice. By Zac Childs

KAWAI MOONSAULT
By the early 1970s, some of the top guitar people in Japan wanted to create uniquely Japanese guitar designs. They included the Iceman, the “Lucky Cat,” , and this Kawai, which became one of the country’s most popular models. By Michael Wright

BASS SPACE
The Gibson EB-6
It wasn’t the first and may not be the best, but there’s little doubt that when it began shipping in 1960, the oddest production model in Gibsons’s thinline semi-solid series was intended to stand out. By Willie G. Moseley

DEPARTMENTS

Vintage Guitar Price Guide

Builder Profile
Valvetrain Amplifiers

Upcoming Events

Vintage Guitar Classified Ads

Dealer Directory

The Great VG Giveaway ’07
Win a Koch Studiotone worth $2,600!

Readers Gallery

FIRST FRET

Reader Mail

News and Notes
Clapton Crossroads ’07, new McCarty bio, Steve Morse on DVD, Dallas Guitar Show, In Memoriam, more!

Michael Monarch
Corporate Rock, Diverse Tones
By Willie G. Moseley

Al Viola
1919-2007
By Jim Carlton

Jon Rauhouse
Steelin’ Old Sounds
By John Heidt

Ask Zac
By Zac Childs

Mitch Easter Activates
The Let’s Active Leader’s Solo Debut
By Dan Forte

Dave Stryker
Jazz Via Omaha
By John Heidt

Bill Carson
Last of the “Old Guys”
By Willie G. Moseley

CITES Gets An Update
NAMM Issues Warning to Guitar Builders, Players
By George Gruhn

COLUMNS

The (Way) Back Beat
Cool Cats in Big Hats
By Peter S. Kohman

Q&A With George Gruhn

Acousticville
Midwinter Festival Time, Again
By Steven Stone

“401K” Guitars
Shipping Solace
By Gil Hembree

Fretprints
Johnny Smith
By Wolf Marshall

TECH

Guitar Shop
Bridge Repair
By Tony Nobles

Dan’s Guitar Rx
Gold All Over
By Dan Erlewine

Talkin’ Amps With…
Bill Yates: Vintage Amps Under $1,000, Part Four: Silvertone
By David Jung

REVIEWS

The VG Hit List
Zombies, Al DiMeola, Asleep At the Wheel, John5, Flatt & Scruggs, Strange Brew: Eric Clapton and the British Blues Boom, 1965-1970, more!

Check This Action
Surf Steel A’GoGo
By Dan Forte

Vintage Guitar Gear Reviews
Danelectro Pro, Eastwood Airline H44 DLX, Dan Armstrong Sound Modifiers, D’Addario/Planet Waves accessories!

Gearin’ Up!
The latest cool new stuff!

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