• Thomas Custom Guitars

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    Thomas Custom Guitars

    Rarities from the Pacific Northwest

    Certain makes and models of electric guitars are rightfully prized for their elegant physical designs and superior craftsmanship. Even better are those also revered for their playability and particularly rich tonal qualities. Thomas guitars, on the other hand, are usually noted for their odd (sometimes controversial) shapes and zany features. Built by the late guitarist/machinist/luthier/and

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Oz Noy

Coming to America

When Oz Noy mov-ed to New York City at age 24 in 1996, he was an established guitarist in his homeland of Israel, having played jazz and studio work from…

Steve Gunn

Steve Gunn

Folk Rock’s New Visionary

Steve Gunn’s Way Out Weather is a textured effort that takes cues from a diverse palette including John Fahey, Chicago blues, ’60s/’70s Americana, Philip Glass, world music, and improvisation. The…

Classics: September 2021

Fenton Robinson’s Gibson ES-225

Kevin Ludwig first became aware of Fenton Robinson in 1975, when he heard Boz Scaggs’ version of “Somebody Loan Me a Dime,” which spurred him to buy Robinson’s 1974 Alligator…

Buddy Guy

Legend Steeped in the Blues

Buddy Guy, Bayfront Blues Festival, 1997. Photo by Ward Meeker. When referring to the all-time great legends of the blues and the guitar, the formidable Buddy Guy comes to mind…

Dave Specter

Dave Specter

Chicago Style

Dave Specter’s Message In Blue is chock full of imaginative instrumentals, great guest vocals, and blistering guitar work from Specter. But that’s not what he likes most about it. As…

Alex Masi

Alex Masi

Danger Zone

Grammy-nominated guitarist Alex Masi has been maneuvering his way through the shark-infested waters of the music industry since the 1980s. With an impressive catalog that includes everything from high-intensity instrumental…

Rodney Crowell

Ditchin' the "Country" Connotation

In this modern world, most of us will have at least two major careers by the time we’re 40. Rodney Crowell is already starting on his third. He has been…

Joe Osborn photo: Ed Hirsch.

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…

Brad Gillis

Playin’ On

A member of the cutting-edge vanguard that made the Floyd Rose locking vibrato a huge part of ’80s rock guitar, Brad Gillis famously gashed two classics – a ’62 Strat…

Ron Jackson: Standards and Originals

Warm, Inviting Jazz a la Montgomery and Benson Jazz guitarist Ron Jackson is a specialist on the seven-string. Here, he uses his Eastman AR810CE-7 with a Benedetto S7 pickup (made…

Carlos Santana

Holding That Tone

Carlos Santana is illustrating a point. “Most people play like this – around the note,” he says, making a fist with his left hand and rolling his right hand around…

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…

Pop ’N Hiss: Alice Cooper’s Billion Dollar Babies

On The Money

Alice Cooper was on a steady upward trajectory when Billion Dollar Babies topped the Billboard chart for one week in 1973. Propelled by the title track along with “Hello Hooray,”…

Myles Goodwyn

1948-2023

Myles Goodwyn, co-founder, creative force, and guitarist/frontman in April Wine, died December 3. He was 75 and while no cause of death has been reported, for years he lived with…

Laur Joamets

Metamodern Sounds In Country Picking

The time-worn, well-trodden path to Nashville traditionally starts from a Tennessee holler, Arkansas cabin, or Texas jook. For Laur Joamets – the Teleslinger behind Sturgill Simpson – it all began…

Al Stewart

Cat’s Meow

Year of the Cat, singer/songwriter/guitarist Al Stewart’s 1976 smash, is being celebrated with a 45th anniversary three-CD/DVD box set. The album has been remastered by producer Alan Parsons, and the…

Jonathan Pearce

Kiwi Krunch

Hailing from New Zealand, the Beths play crackling power pop fronted by singer/guitarist Liz Stokes with Jonathan Pearce on lead guitar. On its new album, Expert in a Dying Field,…

Jon Butcher

Back to Barefootin'

Photos courtesy Jon Butcher. A little more than a decade ago, guitarist/vocalist Jon Butcher described his affiliation with the then-new quartet Barefoot Servants as, “The best thing I ever did.”…

Shane Theriot

Out of the House

Shane Theriot’s new album, Still Motion, is more stripped-down funky “jazz trio” than the lush soul he helps create as musical director for Hall and Oates. And that’s exactly what…

Robin Trower

Trancendental Blues

A bonafide British rock guitar great, Robin Trower needs little introduction. His career began in the '60s, and he's one of a handful of artists from his generation who has…

Tuck Andress

Fretboard wizard of Tuck and Patti

Since 1978, guitar virtuoso Tuck Andress, recognized as a premier player of jazz and contemporary standard music, has enjoyed one of the most enduring and creative musical partnerships accompanying wife…

Monster Magnet

Dave Wyndorf, Ed Mundell, and Phil

Just when you were losing faith in hard rock; just when the charts are choking on post-grunge whiners, along comes a band not afraid to rock. Enter Monster Magnet –…

Ray Bonneville

Ray Bonneville

Easy Groove

Ray Bonneville’s latest album, Easy Gone, glides on a steady groove. “I really like the way it sounds with these guys,” he said of drummer Geoff Arsenault and bassist Gurf…

Unsung: The Story of Marlo Henderson

The creation of great music is almost always a collaborative effort. From session players to engineers, producers, arrangers, and marketing teams, many talents meld in the fulfillment of a performer’s…

Pop ’N Hiss: Grand Funk’s We’re An American Band

Rockin’ Patriots

Thundering out of Michigan in 1969, Grand Funk Railroad quickly became one of the most popular bands in the world. In just three years, vocalist/guitarist Mark Farner, bassist Mel Schacher,…

Thin Lizzy’s Scott Gorham and Vivian Campbell

Live and Still Dangerous!

Thin Lizzy has cemented its place in history as one of the most influential rock bands of all time. Recognizable by its harmonized twin-guitar leads and a hard-edged sound, Lizzy…

Farewell to a Venture

Nokie Edwards 1935-2018

Nole Floyd “Nokie” Edwards, former lead guitarist and bassist with The Ventures, passed away March 12 from complications related to ongoing medical problems. He was 82. Edwards was born May…

Will Lee

Letter Winner

Musicians being artists and artists needing to express themselves, it says something that Will Lee’s new album, Love, Gratitude & Other Distractions, is only his second in 20 years (his…

Jimmy Crespo

Rock Journeyman

The career of Jimmy Crespo has spanned three decades, from his stellar five-year stint with Aerosmith to his recent work on Rod Stewart’s recent world tour. He has also gigged…

Pete Anderson

Despite prevailing trends and “industry wisdom” – an oxymoron Pete Anderson has disproved several times over – the 20-year association of this guitarist/producer/label-head and country star Dwight Yoakam has been…