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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
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…
Dweezil Zappa
Solo Sounds
To properly perform the music composed by his father, Frank, Dweezil Zappa had to revamp his playing style. The fruits of his labors can be heard on his new solo…
Gustavo Assis-Brasil
Chromatic Dialogues
While guitarists have more platforms than ever when it’s time to showcase their music, rising above a sea of marketing-savvy musicians makes it difficult to gain recognition. Gustavo Assis-Brasil is…
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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
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…
Steve Earle
Guitar Talk
Photos by John Peden. Though bandied about haphazardly and almost always inappropriate, when applied to the life and times of Steve Earle, the adjective “extreme” is not hyperbole. The acclaimed…
Scott T. Jones’ battle, axes
Rippin’ Midwestern Jazz-Rock St. Louis’ own jazz-fusion mainstay Scott T. Jones runs through a few tunes – on a few different guitars – from his new album, “Fictional Characters.” Scott…
Moeller, Moore, and Dayton serve up a Texas jam
Texas Headhunters gonna getcha! Johnny Moeller and his buds in the Texas Headhunters gathered to jam a bit on “The Headhunters Theme,” from their self-titled album. Johnny is playing a…
Glen Burtnik
Styx Southpaw (and much more)
The assimilation of New Jersey guitarist/bassist/songwriter Glen Burtnik into the bass player slot of the current incarnation of Styx is only the tip of the iceberg concerning the left-handed musician’s…
Larry Collins 1944-2024
Larry Collins, a guitar prodigy mentored by renowned flatpicker Joe Maphis, and half of the ’50s brother/sister act The Collins Kids, died January 5 in Santa Clarita, California. He was…
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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
Brian May
Thinking Man's Guitarist
Brian May is indubitably one of the most talented and influential musicians of his generation. His songs and guitar riffs carved an important place in rock and roll history. Long…
Joe Bonamassa
Young Gun, Old Guitars
Joe Bonamassa. Asked whether he gets philosophical at the thought of turning 30 (his birthday was May 8), Joe Bonamassa is reluctant. Maybe because since before his 14th birthday, he…
Jake Andrews’ video encore: “Eyes On The Prize”
Austin Great Goes Full Steam for “Eyes On The Prize” Jake Andrews’ video encore: “Eyes On The Prize” Jake Andrews makes a VG-social-media curtain call by playing “Eyes On The…
Keith Richards’ 1963 Gibson SG Custom
Ready to Ramble
In 1961, Gibson introduced the double-cutaway Les Paul to replace the original version, which had been endorsed by guitarist Les Paul since being developed in 1952. Redesigned in response to…
Midge Ure
Many Facets and Musical Stylings
Humanitarian, activist, guitarist, singer, and songwriter, Midge Ure has been a vital performer since the ’70s. Former guitarist/vocalist for Ultravox, he’s cited for charity work (he co-wrote “Do They Know…
Steve Rosen
Chasing EVH Memories
From 1977 through 2003, music journalist Steve Rosen formed and fostered a personal and professional relationship with guitar legend Edward Van Halen. In the mid ’80s, Van Halen signed a…
Phil Collen
A Rock Cat Plays the Blues
In the eyes of many, there’s quite a difference between arena rock and blues rock. But not to Phil Collen, guitarist for one of the biggest acts in the former…
Chris Jack
The Routes: Psychedelic Faithful
The Routes embody all the best elements of the ’60s psychedelic-rock scene. Based in Japan and fronted by British-born guitarist and songwriter Chris Jack, the band’s sixth release, Dirty Needles…
A Tribute To Chuck Berry
That Brown-Eyed Handsome Guitar-Playing Man
When those first notes of Chuck Berry’s first Chess single came blasting out of the radio in July of 1955, many a youngster – as well as those young at…
Steve Miller
Some People Call Him Rock Icon, Part 2
Though obviously a familiar name given his hits from the 1970s and ’80s were FM staples and today are virtually ubiquitous on classic-rock radio, last month we talked with Steve…
Mark Knoll
It's about Time
Despite spending three-quarters of his life as a professional musician, singing and playing blistering lead guitar in various groups, until very recently Mark Knoll hadn’t done a record full of…
J.R. Cobb
Classic Bands, Classic Songs
When he joined Atlanta Rhythm Section in early 1972, J.R. Cobb and Barry Bailey had more in common than simply being the band’s co-guitarists. Like Bailey (VG, December ’16), Cobb…
Remembering Vic Flick
From Bond to the Beatles
The music world lost session legend Vic Flick on November 17, at age 87. While not a household name, Flick’s soundtrack riff in James Bond movies became one of the…
Damon Fowler Brings the Blues
Slow and Tasty on “Taxman” Damon Fowler has shared stages with Dickey Betts and Butch Trucks, so it makes sense that his music is loaded with guitar jams and sweet…
Tony Iommi
Heaven and Hell: This Mob Still Rules!
Toni Iommi photo: Rick Gould. There is an undeniable power generated when certain musicians join forces. That is most definitely the case with Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, Vinny Appice, and…
Kiko Loureiro
Metal-Fusion From Brazil
“When I would play with musicians from the neighborhood, I noticed that my passion for Brazilian music was making me different from other guys,” explains guitarist Kiko Loureiro, a player…
Alan Lancaster
Alan Lancaster, co-founder and longtime bassist in Status Quo, died September 26. He was 72 and had been living with multiple sclerosis. At age 13, Lancaster formed The Scorpions with…
Steve Lukather
Sun Shine
Steve Lukather has been a busy professional guitarist for 45 of his 63 years, as a founding member of Toto, revered session musician who played on countless hits, and solo…
Larry McCray’s R&B-Blues Meld
Rust Belt Veteran does “Arkansas” Larry McCray and his bodacious Custom Shop Flying V show us the hard-drivin’ guitar parts from “Arkansas,” one of the songs from his new album,…
Fred Newell
Steelin’ Away
Guitarist Fred Newell’s best-known gig – as a member of the house band on “Nashville Now” – ended more than two decades ago. In the time since, though, he has…
Jimi Hendrix
Into the New Rising Sun – Speculating on Jimi's Later Career Move's
It has been 40 years since the passing of Jimi Hendrix. In his honor, this month we will look at two unexplored aspects of his life and work, including the…
