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Artists
Joey Molland
The word “underrated” is belabored in music journalism, but Joey Molland was just that. As co-guitarist in Badfinger, he was part of a quartet signed to the Beatles’ Apple Records, yielding glorious AM hits like “Come and Get It,” “Day After Day,” and “No Matter What.” The foursome fell into obscurity and tragedy a few
Adam Hawley’s Joyous Jazz
Adam lays it down on “Escape” Jazz hitmaker Adam Hawley, who has backed Jennifer Lopez, Natalie Cole, and played in the “American Idol” house band, used his fetching PRS Hollowbody…
Rose Sinclair Swings on a Stringmaster D-8!
Steel Guitar Beyond Country on “Secret Love” Rose Sinclair used her ’61 Fender Stringmaster D-8 to play this exclusive piece of “Secret Love,” from her new album, “Wave.” She calls…
Leslie West
Hangin' With Unusual Suspects
In deciding who to hit up to play on his new album, Unusual Suspects, Leslie West put a lot of thought into his musical and personal connections. And he’s justifiably…
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Duke Robillard – Lowdown
Vintage Guitar is happy to offer the premier of the new music video by Grammy nominee Duke Robillard. “Lowdown” is the first single from his upcoming album, Blast Off!, set for release February 20 on Nola Blue Records. “When thinking about a powerful song to launch the album, I chose a hard-rocking Tom Waits tune
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David Bowie’s Young Americans
David Bowie was always creatively restless. The English musician decided to step away from the glam rock he’d recorded for a few albums concluding with 1974’s Diamond Dogs, which included a few songs with tinges of soul, R&B, and funk. On tour promoting the album, he played a handful of soul covers. Bowie had long
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Fretprints: Cream’s Disraeli Gears
Supergroup Alpha
Jack Bruce claimed Cream was two bands – live trio and studio group. Live, bassist Bruce, guitarist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker were renowned for their highly improvisatory, powerful performance that was unprecedented in rock. Moreover, they were actually a jazz group (“…we just didn’t tell Eric,” Bruce said), as exemplified by their excursions
Jeff Beck
Blow By Blow
What is jazz? What is rock? These questions perpetually confound and divide music experts and listeners. Similar spirited debates have raged over “jazz-rock fusion.” While there is no definition, Jeff…
Greg Martin’s ’65 Fender Stratocaster
Vintage Guitar magazine Presents Greg Martin's Head Shop
This is a regular series of exclusive Vintage Guitar online features where The Kentucky Headhunters’ Greg Martin looks back on influential albums and other musical moments. The latest installment of…
Jim Kweskin
Where Jazz Meets Folk
Jim Kweskin grew up in Stamford, Connecticut, and in 1958 entered Boston University, placing him near coffee houses at the height of the Folk Boom. Mixing early jazz with folk,…
Rick Derringer
Different Directions
For all of his decades of experience as a guitarist, producer, and singer, Rick Derringer recently took his avocation in yet other musical directions. Among the classic instruments Derringer played…
In Memoriam: Jeff Cook
Jeff Cook, co-founder, lead guitarist, and fiddler in the ’80s-country megahit band Alabama, died November 7 at his home in Destin, Florida. He was 73 and had long battled Parkinson’s…
Joe Satriani
The hardest-working guitarist in show business, Joe Satriani recently wrapped up a successful Van Halen tour, a G3 Reunion tour, a live album, a residency in Las Vegas with Sammy…
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Check This Action: Up Jumped Elmore
When someone recently asked me to recommend the most essential Elmore James album, I answered, “Any and all.” I’ve never heard a bad Elmore cut, and I’ve heard nearly everything he recorded. Everybody knows that he set the standard for slide guitar in electric blues, but he was also a fantastic singer and wrote some
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Javier Batiz
Mexican guitarist Javier Batiz, a teacher and inspiration to Carlos Santana and other musicians, passed away December 14 at his home in Tijuana, Baja California. He was 80. Known as the “Godfather of Mexican Rock,” “La Layenda” (The Legend) and other sobriquets, Batiz came to appreciate American blues guitarists such as B.B. King and John
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Josh Meader
Jazz Evolution
Josh Meader is a jazz and fusion player who breaks ground with virtuosity that’s never flashy for its own sake. On his new album, Tide of Times, the young Aussie ace blends styles on a dime, hybridizing music before our eyes; videos online include an especially stunning non-album rendition of “Misty.” It’s fascinating, seeing Meader
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Chris Walz
Debut, Long Time Coming
Chris Walz has done his share of performing. He played young Woody in the stage production of Woody Guthrie’s American Song. From the late ’90s to 2001, Walz toured and recorded with banjo player Greg Cahill’s Special Consensus bluegrass band. And for 10 years he took the role of guitarist Fred Hellerman in Weavermania, a
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Greg Koch
Way Of The Gristle
On Blues, Greg Koch reaches the outskirts of infinity with an album that showcases his wicked guitar skills and love for Muddy Waters. Flying V blues master Larry McCray drops by with the Memphis Horns, and the result is a passionate pentatonic party with soul and fireworks. How did this album come about?Devon Allman had
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Rik Emmett
Canadian Custom
Rik Emmett is a master of many guitar styles and other artistic endeavors. As co-lead vocalist/guitarist in the hard-rock trio Triumph from 1975 to ’88, he experienced life as a rock star, then released a string of solo albums, a book of poetry, and an autobiography. His latest project, Ten Telecaster Tales, is a book
Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 1
Beginnings – The Early 1960s
In early 2009, VG columnist Peter Stuart Kohman turned his focus on Burns, the pioneering British guitar builder. We’ve compiled the first three installments for a special edition of VG…
Buddy Emmons
1937-2015
Buddy Emmons, who revolutionized the pedal-steel guitar both musically and technically, died July 21 in Nashville after suffering a heart attack. He was 78. Emmons did extensive session work in…
Joe Osborn
A Few (Hundred) Hits
Ed. Note: Joe passed away December 14th, 2018, he was 81. Joe Osborn. His face has never been on a record jacket or album cover. Odds are most have heard…
Pat Martino
Legend, Treasure, Inspiration
He is a living legend, a national treasure, and an inspiration to musicians and music lovers of all stripes. Pat Martino’s exemplary career spans four decades, and his personal tale…
Brent Rowan
Nashville Trail Blazer
Photo: Rusty Russell Brent Rowan is a 29-year veteran of the recording industry who has worked with legendary country artists including George Jones, Glen Campbell, Chet Atkins, and George Strait,…
Damon Fowler
Steamrolled
Damon Fowler’s records have traditionally been eclectic conjugations of American music – rock, country, a little sacred steel, and lots of R&B. On his latest, Sounds of Home, Fowler covers…
Larry Campbell
All-Americana Multi-Instrumentalist
You’ve probably seen his face, and maybe even watched his hair and beard go from black to gray. Whether it’s fiddling with Bob Dylan, supplying steel at the Americana Music…
Kid Ramos’ Revelation!
West Coast legend melds blues with gospel Check out Kid Ramos using a ’56 Harmony H62 running through a vintage Fender reverb tank and a Pro Junior to play an…
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.”…
Frank DiBussolo
Jazz Master
Frank DiBussolo is an eight-time Grammy nominee who has been a featured soloist in the bands of Buddy Rich, Dizzy Gillespie, and Art Blakey. He has also accompanied Frank Sinatra,…
Chris Hillman
Bluegrass, Bass, and Back Agian
American music legend Chris Hillman is an accomplished guitarist. He has wielded a variety of stringed instruments in a number of notable bands, as exemplified by his tenure as a…
Replacing Rotted Tuning Keys on a ’62 ES-335
Buttons for a Buzzcock
Steve Garvey played bass in the seminal punk band Buzzcocks during its classic era – 1977 to ’81 – with guitarist Steve Diggle, drummer John Maher, and front man/guitarist Pete…
Ronnie Lane
His Life & Music on DVD
Lane playing a Zemaitis bass. Photographer unknown; courtesy John Hellier Collection. The quote that opens
Russell Malone
Jazz lost one of its six-string luminaries when Russell Malone died on August 23, after suffering a heart attack in Japan while touring with bass legend Ron Carter. According to…
Bruce Kulick
Wielding Power On BK3
With his new album, BK3, Bruce Kulick brings out the big guns on what he calls his “…strongest solo disc ever.” Collaborating with friends old and new, he infused their…
Vinnie Moore’s Pandemic Musical Inspiration
Instrumental Whiz Adds Vocalists Neoclassical/metal guitarist Vinnie Moore’s latest music features vocals for the first time. Here, though, he sticks to hard-rock instrumental funkiness mingled with melodicism in a passage…
Jonny Lang
Signs of the Blues
Since bursting on the scene in the ’90s while still a teenager, Jonny Lang has stayed true to his vision, merging blues and rock, often leaning to the bluesy part…
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…
Leo Lyons
Fifty Years After
More than a half-century ago, Ten Years After sat at the vanguard of British FM rock, blending blues boogies with the solos of guitar star Alvin Lee. An essential part…
Dave Edmunds
Full Solo Circle
The career of Welsh guitarist Dave Edmunds has included hits and collaborations with other notable musicians, including Rockpile, with bassist Nick Lowe. First, though, he drew notice in his home…
Musical tag-team – Anika Chambers and Paul DesLauriers
Award-Winning Blues, and Beyond! Individually, the husband-wife team of Anika Chambers and Paul DesLauriers have won blues awards, but together they expand the repertoire. Here, Paul uses his ’60 Gibson…
