• Outlaws

    Artists

    Outlaws

    Rising Tides

    By the mid ’70s, Southern rock emerged as one of the most-exciting and successful genres in pop music, thanks to the Allman Brothers Band and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Another important early Southern-rock band making its mark with country influences was Outlaws – the Tampa group nicknamed “Florida Guitar Army.” Rhythm guitarist Henry Paul, lead guitarists Hughie…

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Fretprints: Metallica’s Master of Puppets

Genre Giant

In 1984, Kerrang magazine coined the buzzword “thrash,” signaling the arrival of an unprecedented heaviness in rock music – not only in volume and aggression, but precision, velocity, complexity, and…

Adrian Legg

A Moment with the Fingerstyle Wizard

Adrian Legg isn’t your typical gearhead. Oh, he’s a gearhead, alright – he even authored a book entitled Customizing Your Electric Guitar. But for a self-described “guitar nerd,” he can…

Mike Keneally

Mike Keneally

Gainfully Employed

Mike Keneally has made a career of inconspicuously assisting Frank Zappa, Andy Partridge, Steve Vai, Dethklok, and Joe Satriani fulfill their musical vision. But, there is another side to this…

Les Paul

Birth of a Guitar Icon

Fifty years ago, Gibson’s new Les Paul Model was quickly becoming one of the company’s most popular guitars, and (though there was no way of knowing it at the time)…

Tommy Castro

'Guilty' of Paying His dues

Tommy Castro is a charismatic singing gunslinger who has developed a sound featuring stinging blues leads floating atop hard-charging, old-school R&B. And he is one of a handful of artists…

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Joe Walsh

Life’s Still Good

Whether coughing up the #2 talk-box lick of the ’70s, kicking the Eagles into overdrive, or wryly expressing his views on subjects ranging from rock-and-roll excess to lawn mowers to…

Brian Kahanek

Studio Savvy

Brian Kahanek is a guitar-slinging southerner whose style sits firmly within blues and southern rock. With a perfectionist’s ear for detail, his albums communicate soulful melodies over rich American soundscapes.…

Fretprints: Kim Thayil

The Grungy Flowering of Soundgarden

In 1991, a movement emerged from Seattle that shook the musical world to its core. Seemingly overnight, a cadre of unlikely “grunge” bands from the Northwest rose quickly to attain…

Alan Parsons

New World Record

With his latest album, From The New World, legendary musician/producer Alan Parsons continues a string of lushly orchestrated progressive rock, this time featuring guests such as Joe Bonamassa and Styx’s…

Larry Coryell

1943-2017

Guitarist Larry Coryell died February 19 in New York City after performing the previous night at the Iridium. He was 73 and passed away in his sleep, from heart failure.…

Ken Fischer

1945-2006

Although by most estimates he produced fewer than 100 Trainwreck amps, Ken Fischer – tech, designer, and amp-maker – will be remembered as one of the most authoritative and intuitive…

Jim Schwall

Jim Schwall, guitarist, vocalist, and co-founder of Chicago’s Siegel-Schwall Band, died June 19. He was 79 and passed away at his home in Tucson. Schwall learned guitar as a high-school…

Classics: December 2023

Cliff Antone’s 1952 Fender Precision

Texas is known for music, especially Austin, which in the mid ’70s became a hotbed thanks to clubs like Armadillo World Headquarters, Castle Creek, and Soap Creek Saloon, which mostly…

Dick Taylor

From R&B Psychedelia With the Pretty Things

When the Pretty Things’ 50th anniversary was marked with Bouquets From A Cloudy Sky – a huge boxed set containing 11 CDs and other goodies – the cover of the…

Leon Rhodes

Country-Jazz Genius, Terrific Texas Troubadour

Leon Rhodes 1932-2017 We are saddened to hear of the passing of guitar legend Leon Rhodes, one of the most-beloved players from the golden age of country music. Leon emerged…

Don Leady, Austin Legend

One of Texas’ “Big Guitars” on “Rattler Run” Co-founder of the LeRoi Brothers, leader of the Tail Gators, and one of the Big Guitars From Texas, Don Leady is an…

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…

Have Guitar Will Travel 096 – Chad Kinchla (Blues Traveler) and Todd Park Mohr (Big Head Todd and the Monsters)

In episode 96 of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan speaks with Chan Kinchla from Blues Traveler and Todd Park Mohr from Big Head Todd & The Monsters,…

Buddy Whittington

Guitar-Lover’s Smorgasbord

Though his status as a member of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers has changed since VG last talked to him, guitarist Buddy Whittington has forged ahead with a solo career. In ’07,…

Larry Coryell

1943-2017

Guitarist Larry Coryell died February 19 in New York City after performing the previous night at the Iridium. He was 73 and passed away in his sleep, from heart failure.…

Otis Rush

Widest Sweep in the Blues

All Your Love, I Miss The Lovin’.” The year was 1956, the label was Cobra, and all of Chicago was rocking to the deft little tune, along with blues hipsters…

Neal Schon

Neal Schon

“The Guitar Is My Voice”

Long before Neal Schon helped Journey sell more than 80 million albums, he was a rock-fusion gunslinger who turned down Eric Clapton’s request to join Derek and the Dominos so…

The Collins Kids

Mostly-Moseley Memories

Siblings Lorrie and Larry Collins sprang into the public eye in the mid 1950s – dawn of the television era – on a program called “Town Hall Party.” The big-sister/little-brother…

Hughie Thomasson

The Outlaws Ride Again

The Outlaws. Photo: John Gellman. (Ed. Note: This article originally appeared in VG‘s October ’06 issue. Hughie Thomasson passed away in September, 2007.) Hughie Thomasson was a founding member of…

Hilary Gardner returns with a fresh take on a holiday classic!

Hilary Gardner returns! Ready to set the tone for your holidays, Hilary Gardner and her band return for a fantastic take on the classic Elvis hit “Blue Christmas” (written by Billy…

Jim Marshall

Father of the Mighty Marshall Stack

When it comes to guitar amplifiers, two names stand tall beyond the others: Leo Fender and Jim Marshall. Even “civilians” recognize these names. Two names, from two different countries, with…

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…

Harp Legend Charlie Musselwhite

Stringin’ on “Blue Lounge” Harp legend Charlie Musselwhite has recorded and performed with a stunning array of guitarists in his band – Harvey Mandel, Luther Tucker, Robben Ford, Junior Watson,…

Albert Cummings

Genre-Free

Albert Cummings’ new album, Ten, carries a simple title while serving as an easy way to count discography entries, but it doesn’t capture all that’s on the line for the…

Henry James Schneekluth

Psychedelic

Henry James Schneekluth handles the groovy guitar parts in Robert Jon & The Wreck. While impassioned Southern rock might be an easy category to pigeonhole this killer band, there’s more to…