• Classics: Norman Harris

    Artists

    Classics: Norman Harris

    Rare Pioneer

    As a teenager who just wanted to play music, Norm Harris lived with the reality that he and his band weren’t going to be millionaires anytime soon. So he did what musicians do – side-hustled. But when most were manning the counter at a music shop or serving tables, Harris was up at the crack

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Joel Shapira

Solo Flight

Guitarist Joel Shapira has released a string of fine recordings, but his latest, In Essence, is his first stab at solo guitar. While the concept has been percolating in his…

Tracy G

Dio Disciple

Ronnie James Dio had a knack for collaborating with talented guitarists – Ritchie Blackmore in Rainbow, Tony Iommi in Black Sabbath/Heaven and Hell, and several in his solo band, Dio.…

Warren Haynes

Better Music Through Chemistry

Warren Haynes’ first solo record in nearly a decade brings themes of optimism, uplift, and hope with Haynes at the top of his artistic game, performing with a stellar ensemble.…

In Memoriam: Guitar Shorty

David Kearney, a.k.a. Guitar Shorty, passed away April 20. The award-winning blues guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist who brought joy to the world with his showmanship, humor, and emotional artistry was…

Bryan Beller

Bass Aristocracy

If you love daredevil musicians, you’ll dig The Aristocrats. A contemporary-fusion trio, the band includes guitar monster Guthrie Govan (VG, September ’21), drummer Marco Minnemann, and Bryan Beller, a wizard…

David Grissom and David Holt

Two-Guitar Story

When Austinites entertain music-loving friends from out of town the typical question is, “Who should we go see while we’re here?” And in a city loaded with good bands, the…

Joe Negri

Royal Handyman, Jazz Legend

Long before becoming Handyman Negri on “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” he had already been a teen guitar prodigy, first-generation bopper, and a peer of the giants of jazz guitar. Though New…

Snowy White

Snowy White

One Man, One Guitar

Snowy White, one of the finest blues and rock musicians to come out of the U.K., built a career on near-anonymity. Deliberately. “It is my nature,” he explains. “If the…

Steve Turner

The March To Fuzz

Thirty-five years after Steve Turner and Mudhoney became forever linked with two legendary pedals by coining their debut EP Superfuzz Big Muff, Turner has authored an autobiography, Mud Ride, and…

Don’t Call it Fusion: Julien Kasper’s “Upon a Green Hill”

Beck (et al) Connection! The music made by Julien Kasper is connected to Miles, Beck, Hendrix, Mahavishnu, and Scofield, but brings its own sound. Need proof? Check this exclusive take…

Jay Geils

Blues and Archtops

If you grew up listening to music in the ’70s, you probably associate the name J. Geils with a five-piece band that played raucous rock and roll to hip-shaking partiers.…

Luis Carlos Maldonado

Have SG, Will Travel

Train guitarist Luis Carlos Maldonado’s musical upbringing and skill on the fretboard has earned him cherry gigs with artists like John Waite, UFO, and Glenn Hughes. He hails from the…

Steve Kimock flashes back to Zero

Amazing improv on “End of World Blues” We review the reissued 1992 album “Naught Again” by Zero, a band that featured Steve Kimock playing Grateful Dead-style jams with a virtuoso…

“Monster” Mike Welch

 “Monster” Mike Welch digs deep on “Walking to You Baby” “I was thinking about my late friend, Luther ‘Guitar Junior’ Johnson, and how his records were always direct, full-throttle,…

Fretprints: Ted Greene

Solo Guitarist Extraordinaire

Few guitarists enjoy the adulation bestowed on Ted Greene. A legend who coaxed unimaginable sounds from a humble Telecaster and famously avoided the spotlight, he left an indelible mark on…

Bobby Womack

Playin' with Soul

If James Brown is the Godfather of Soul, then Bobby Womack is the Emperor. Gifted with the most enviable voice a male singer could ever want, Womack has the down-home…

The Return of Slash and The Conspirators

4 From the Floor

In the weeks before they gathered to record a new album in the spring of 2021, guitar legend Slash, frontman/songwriter Myles Kennedy, and their cohorts in The Conspirators had to…

Jimmy Johnson

Chicago bluesman Jimmy Johnson passed away January 3 in Harvey, Illinois. He was 93. Born November 25, 1928, in Holly Springs, Mississippi, Johnson (VG, September ’20) grew up picking cotton,…

Have Guitar Will Travel – 039 Featuring Lyle Workman

In Episode 39 of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan speaks with guitarist/composer Lyle Workman, whose new solo album was recorded at Abbey Road. After growing up in…

Carlos Santana

Musical Outreach

Carlos Santana’s creative drive is obsessive, restless – and relentless. For his latest album, Blessings and Miracles, he pooled the cosmic energy of his wife (renowned drummer Cindy Blackman Santana),…

Steven Wilson

Guitar Harmony

Porcupine Tree’s Steven Wilson isn’t a guitar hero, but his playing fits his compositions perfectly – as exemplified by his latest solo offering, The Harmony Codex. Showing once again that…

Tommy Emmanuel Straight Blazin’!

Fingerpicking mastery on “Son of a Gun Whoa…. Check out Tommy Emmanuel backstage at the Grand Ole Opry with his Pre-War Guitars Co. 000-28, (blazin’) on “Son of A Gun.”…

Jeff Plankenhorn’s “Alone At Sea”

Tasty slide on a square-neck Oahu Singer/songwriter Jeff Plankenhorn’s music is a rootsy mix that embraces blues and pop while dodging categorization. Here, he and his vintage square-neck Oahu offer…

Pasquale Grasso

One-Man Duo

In the 1940s, jazz pianist Art Tatum wowed audiences with a virtuoso technique that sounded like two players. Today, Pasquale Grasso is similarly approaching the archtop six-string, harmonizing runs and…

John Pizzarelli Swings On A Vintage D’angelico

Jazz Ace on an Heirloom Guitar For this exclusive rendition of “Just In Time,” swing ace John Pizzarelli grabbed the D’Angelico Model B that was played by his late (and…

Pop ’N Hiss: Wishbone Ash’s Argus

Twin-Lead Loadstone

Founded in 1969, Wishbone Ash attained fast fame in the U.K. with its meshing of intricate twin-lead-guitar passages and harmony vocals. With their third album, Argus, Andy Powell and Ted…

Lyle Workman

Orchestral Maneuvers

You might not recognize his name, but in the last 30 years, Lyle Workman and his guitars have backed Sting, Todd Rundgren, and Frank Black. He was also a member…

Charlie Baty

Through the course of almost 20 years on Alligator Records, Charlie Baty of Little Charlie and the Nightcats has proven himself to be a one of his generation’s best blues…

Buddy Merrill

1936-2021

Buddy Merrill, guitarist, steel-guitarist, composer, arranger, recording artist, and occasional vocalist, died December 5. He was 85. A seasoned musician by age 18, Merrill became a member of Lawrence Welk’s…

Jules Leyhe

Bottleneck Breakout

Forget everything you know about slide guitar. Jules Leyhe just upended the genre on Your First Rodeo, an instrumental set that gleefully mixes styles with riveting results. On top of…