• Vintage Guitar

    65Amps London

    18 Watts of Bliss

    For nearly 20 years, Dan Boul and Peter Stroud have been close friends. In a bond secured by music, particularly guitars and amps, the two have gone through the phases of life in very similar fashion, working as professional guitarists and being hardcore gearheads with a penchant for tinkering. A couple years ago, they decided…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    Benedetto Bravo

    Earns a Standing O

    With a list of regular users that includes Johnny Smith, Joe Diorio, Martin Taylor, Bucky Pizzarelli, Howard Alden, Ron Escheté, Frank Vignola, Andy Summers, Earl Klugh, and Kenny Burrell, Benedetto guitars have attained near-legendary status in jazz box circles. Benedetto guitars are made in Fender’s Corona, California, factory by a small group of luthiers trained…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    August 2007

    FEATURES 44 JOE BONAMASSA Young Gun, Old Guitars At just 30, he is already a veteran who for years has been sharing stages and jamming with the likes of Buddy Guy, Stephen Stills, Robert Cray, Danny Gatton, B.B. King and many others. By Willie G. Moseley BRYAN SUTTON Solo or Session A talented multi-instrumentalist, Bryan…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    Speedster 25 Watt Deluxe and Class A 40 amps

    Flat-Out in Two Gears

    It’s one of the great comeback stories in the history of boutique amps – short as that history may be. In 2003, manufacturing engineer/entrepreneur/guitar buff Joe Valosay contacted the founders of the then-defunked Speedster Amplifiers. After hearing of the company’s demise, Valosay wanted to help resurrect the brand. So, in late ’03, Speedster Amplifiers, LLC…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    July 2007

    FEATURES TELE OF TWO LEGENDS The Amazing Story of One Unique Fender One day in the mid 1950s, up-and-coming thoroughbred jockey Bill Shoemaker was playing host to his friend, bandleader Hank Penny, who had come calling with a special gift in a brown case. By Ward Meeker DAVID BROMBERG Bandleader Turned Shopkeeper Tries One More…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    June 2007

    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…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    Höfner Verythin Classic

    Box For Any Occasion Höfner Verythin Classic

    When most vintage instrument players and enthusiasts think of Höfner, visions spring to mind of the legendary Beatle bass, or maybe some stuffy jazz box. And indeed, Höfner today is something of a throwback – the kind of company you might expect to build a stuffy jazz box. Though housed in a modern, state-of-the-art factory…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    Tony Nobles 006 Acoustic and Exhibition Resonator

    The Luthier's Art, Defined

    Austin-area guitar builder/repairman Tony Nobles was, like everyone else in in high school wood shop class, needing an idea for something to build. Unimpressed with classmates’ ideas to construct various napkin holders, gun racks, and pipes, he ordered an acoustic guitar kit. And in the Martin D-18 copy he built that semester, Nobles found his…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    1912-’16 Manuel Ramírez Model 26

    Manuel Ramírez was one of the most important makers of the Madrid school at the turn of the 20th century. His well-organized shop was staffed by talented makers such as Santos Hernandez, Domingo Esteso, Antonio Emilio Pascual Viudes, and Modesto Borreguero (Enrique Garcia having previously left for Barcelona, and Julian Gómez Ramírez having left for…

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  • Vintage Guitar

    May 2007

    FEATURES BUCK OWENS AND HIS BUCKAROOS A Bunch of Twangy Guitars Buck Owens’ track to stardom had an unorthodox start – one that didn’t depend on his unique voice. Rather, it was launched when another singer needed a lead guitarist on short notice. By Rich Kienzle THE MURPH 12-STRING Tugging at Your Heart Strings Whether…

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