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Super PickupGiveaway 2025
Win Big! 11 Sets! 11 Winners! Win a set of pickups from one of these sponsors: Deadline is March 15, 2026. Complete the survey below to enter giveaway. One entry…

Greg Martin honors Dickey Betts
Tribute licks Kentucky Headhunters co-founder Greg Martin was a senior in high school when he first heard the Allman Brothers…

Calexico
El Mirador
Calexico has long crisscrossed the border between American (blues, country, rock and roll) and Latin-American sounds, but the band’s latest…

The Peavey ValveKing II Micro-head 20-Watt Amplifier
Royal Rock
The Peavey ValveKing II Micro-head 20-Watt Amplifier Price: $429.99 Contact: www.peavey.com Famous for their sturdy build and quality overdriven sounds,…

Martin SC-13E Special Burst
Blueprint Blow-up
For nearly two centuries, Martin has been building acoustic instruments befitting the company’s august reputation. The slew of budget-friendly models…

Festive Frets
Suggested Listening for Your “Guitholidays”
Listen to VG’s “Festive Frets Holiday Play List” on Spotify! From the two-string refrain that kicks off Bobby Helms’ “Jingle…
Gibson Super Jumbo 100
The Super Jumbo 200 is Gibson’s most celebrated flat-top model, and deservedly so, thanks to its use by cowboy movie…
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Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings
Double-bound for Glory
George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacher founded Electro String in 1931 to manufacture what everyone would soon call “Rickenbacker” guitars. Success came early and their lap steels set standards of quality,…
ARTISTS

Fretprints: Stevie Ray Vaughan
Texas Flood
Stevie Ray Vaughan was unknown when he premiered at the 1982 Montreux Jazz Festival. Born and bred in Dallas, he’d…

Lonnie Brooks
1933-2017
Blues guitarist/singer Lonnie Brooks died April 1 in Chicago. He was 83. Born Lee Baker, Jr., he was one of…

Rocky Athas’ Texas ’Tude!
Genuine Lone Star Jams Dallas guy Rocky Athas built a career playing blues in the vain of T-Bone and SRV,…

Kristian Borring
Up From Down Under
Born in Denmark, Kristian Borring now lives in one of the most-remote major cities on earth – Perth, on the…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Tony Nagy
Season 03 Episode 05 In Episode 3.5 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by Tony Nagy, manager…

Paul Benjaman: Tulsa twanger
Funky solo from “Undercover of Night” On his new album, “My Bad Side Wants a Good Time,” Paul Benjaman serves…

VG Q&A: ’71 Mahogany Precision?
Plus, a ’60s Conrad 12-String and Converting a ’65 ES-345TD-SV to Mono
I have a Fender Precision Bass with a 1971 neck date and serial number 296XXX, and I’ve always suspected the…
Ibanez Tube Screamer
From the first notes of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “Texas Flood,” you can hear it loud and clear; that snarly tone…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Live Wire
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Narrow(field) Win
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Take Flight

The Reverend Thundergun Bass
Three In One
Players who love a hotrod Lincoln, a good drive-in, or a rocking retro guitar are familiar with Reverend Guitars, a…

Carr Bloke
No Regular Fella
From early models such as the Carr Slant 6V and the Rambler to more recent offerings such as the Artemus…

Crazy Tube Circuit White Whale V2
Twin Tones
Introduced in 2017, Christos Ntaifotis’ original White Whale tremolo/reverb became one of his company’s best sellers. Its success, however, didn’t…

Sitori Sonics pedals
New Highs with Sitori Sonics’ Doob Dreamer, Tidal Phase, and Reel Repeat
Sitori Sonics pedals Price: $188 list (Doob Dreamer, Reel Repeat); $168 (Tidal Phase) Info: sitorisonics.com. Despite the vast possibilities of…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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More Personal
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Rare Pioneer

The Martin OM-28
Although popular music of the 1920s featured the tenor banjo as the preferred rhythm instrument, the guitar’s popularity rose steadily…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Larry Wexer
“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Larry Wexer Season 01 Episode 07 In Episode 7 of “Buy That Guitar,”…

Fender Telecaster Thinline
Weight-Loss Trial
Born in turbulent times on the downslope of the “guitar boom,” Fender’s Telecaster Thinline has always existed in the shadow…

Webster-Chicago RMA 375 Model 166-1
Grammy Winner
Modified or repurposed amps generally don’t fit into our monthly discussion here, but some are representative enough of a certain…











































