Chris Spedding

Convergence of Legends and Friends

The career of guitarist Chris Spedding has spanned more than four decades and included a commendable solo career, a stint in bassist Andy Fraser’s first post-Free venture (Sharks), and later,…

 Fretprints: Larry Carlton

Revisiting Room 335

In 1978, Larry Carlton was atop the unforgiving environs of L.A.’s music studios, where technical prowess, precision, creativity, tone, and groove are minimum requirements and mere competence promises a short…

VG Q&A: Jimi Flip

Plus, Precision Bass rests and an odd Galliano

I’ve never read why Jimi Hendrix played and set up a right-hand Strat to play left-handed. Surely, he could’ve found a lefty model. Does anybody know? – Garry Curry The…

Sebastian Nagel’s Satisfying Funk

Winston Brothers groove it up on “Drift” Sebastian Nagel and his band, The Winston Brothers, balance groove, melody, and space in their super-satisfying instrumental funk. Here, Sebastian runs his ’56…

Phil Chen

1946-2021

His business card read “Phil Chen De Bassman,” and his picks had “OD” after his name, standing for the Order of Distinction award he received in 2014 for his contributions…

Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams: Funky Syncopation

Fine pickin’ on “The Way You Make Me Feel” Husband-and-wife team Martin D-18, while Teresa comps on an Emmylou Harris L-200 that was a gift from

Jesse Ed Davis

Guitar Hero's Guitar Hero

Photo: Neil Zlozower. The term “musician’s musician” gets bandied about a lot, but in the case of the late Jesse Ed Davis, “guitar hero’s guitar hero” might be more accurate.…

Pop ’N Hiss: Albert King’s Born Under a Bad Sign and Live Wire/Blues Power

Power, Indeed

In February of 1968, Albert King stepped onto the stage of San Francisco’s Fillmore Auditorium for the first time. With the Jimi Hendrix Experience headlining, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers featuring 19-year-old…

Greg Lake

Welcome Back, My Friends Part 1 and 2

Bassist/vocalist Greg Lake, a force in the advent of progressive rock in the early 1970s with Emerson, Lake and Palmer (ELP), died December 7 following a battle with cancer. He was…

Pop ’N Hiss: The Rolling Stones’ Black and Blue

Groove-Heavy

By the mid ’70s, rock and roll had matured into a big business, with top acts including Led Zeppelin, The Who, and Rolling Stones earning millions of dollars on record…

Fretprints: Jeff Beck

The JBG: Birth of Heavy Metal?

The proverbial chicken-or-egg conundrum has an equivalent in the spirited debate over the Jeff Beck Group versus Led Zeppelin as progenitors of heavy metal. There’s a bit of truth in…

Classics: Tommy Castro’s ’66 Fender Stratocaster

Tommy Castro has never been much for sitting with a guitar teacher, preferring instead to rely on good ol’ time in the saddle to hone his craft. But this 1966…

Jerry Miller

Back to Basics

Jerry Miller is back. For many he never left – especially admirers of his innovative playing with the legendary Moby Grape. Clapton, Page, and Stills are on that list, as…

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 12 children and left school after the seventh grade to…

John Hart

Mainline Florida

Inspiration can come from a lot of places. For jazz guitarist John Hart, a visit to a familiar place provided the impetus for his latest record, Exit From Brooklyn. After…

James Elkington

Windy City Diversity

James Elkington tweaked the paradigm when he began working at a luthier shop before hitting his stride as a guitarist. Born and raised in a small English village northwest of…

Yates McKendree

Blues Emotion

Yates McKendree hasn’t yet turned 22, but he has already digested a lifetime’s worth of American roots music. The proof is in his debut album, Buchanan Lane, which is named…

Robert Cray

Looking Forward (in a Loose Sort of Way)

Vintage Guitar first interviewed guitarist Robert Cray in 1997, and since then he has maintained a consistent pace in recording and performing. His albums in the interim include Take Your…

Dario Lorina

Black Label Soloist

Best known as Zakk Wylde’s right-hand man in Black Label Society, Dario Lorina is an accomplished shredder in his own right, as evidenced by his second solo/instrumental album, Death Grip…

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…

Ceil Thompson and her self-made guitar

“Dan’s Guitar Rx”: VG’s Rock-and-Roll High School(er)! In 2022, Dan Erlewine’s “Guitar Rx” column walked readers through a class-project guitar build by Ceil Thompson. It’s the epitome of custom-made cool,…

John Bullard

Banjo Baroque

Almost every instrument used in pop music has classical roots – with the exception of the banjo. Even the dobro or resonator guitar began as a device to make a…

Frank Marino

Thunder Out of Quebec

Photo courtesy of Frank Marino. Canadian fretmeister Frank Marino first came to prominence in the early 1970s, fronting Mahogany Rush. Often compared to Jimi Hendrix, Marino’s songwriting, playing, and singing…

Carl Verheyen

On <em>Mustang Run</em> and Making a CD that Lasts

Fresh off a 42-show/13-country European tour with his own band, Supertramp guitarist and L.A. studio ace Carl Verheyen has just released his 12th studio CD, Mustang Run. Following 2010’s live…

Pop ’N Hiss: Be Bop Deluxe’s Live! In the Air Age

Atmospheric Axes

For a shining moment, the eclectic British quartet Be Bop Deluxe rose above an upheaval in rock and pop in the late ’70s, as fresh hard rock and Southern bands…

Pop ’N Hiss: Grand Funk Railroad’s Live Album

Pulverizing Performance

Brutish power chords and shrieking guitar lines abetted by pounding percussion, overdriven bass riffs, and wailing vocals – at the advent of the ’70s, the “Detroit Sound” was a precursor…

Scott Sharrard’s fiery slide!

Little Feat ace plays outro from “You’ll Be Mine” In case you’re wondering how Scott Sharrard got the gig wearing the Little Feat slide shoes once filled by Lowell George…

Marshall Crenshaw

Rock & Roll Renaissance Man

Marshall Crenshaw is nothing if not an enigma – which is ironic, since his music (whether played and sung by him or covered by other artists) is so infectious and…

David Catching

Desert Eagle

Producer and owner of the enigmatic Rancho de la Luna studio in the California desert, guitarist David Catching has been touring with Eagles of Death Metal since 2004. In November…

Freddie Roulette

Freddie Roulette, noted blues lap-steel guitarist and singer, died at his home in Vallejo, California, on December 24. He was 83. Roulette was born and raised in suburban Chicago and…