Jim Campilongo

Sounds Abound

I’ve always loved sounds. Even before I became a ‘Tele guy,’ I had a Les Paul and loved making car horn sounds. I … go away from the fretboard, or…

Andrew Watt

On Being With Hughes & Bonham

Andrew Watt’s star was rising on the New York club scene when bassist Glenn Hughes took his career up a notch. Hughes and drummer Jason Bonham needed to augment their…

Neal Schon

Spacesaver Sale

Eyebrows raise with news that a superstar guitar collector is preparing to sell iconic instruments. Alarms might trigger, even. But don’t dial 9-1-1 for Neal Schon. Holder of 800 instruments…

Brennen Leigh’s Heart-Tugging Honky-Tonk

Shades of Norman Blake and Dolly Parton A student of the “Carter Scratch” guitar technique – melody on the low strings, rhythm on the high – Brennen Leigh plays and…

Scott Gorham

Heavy Fire

It’s hard out there for a ’70s guitar hero. With the struggles of keeping older fans happy verses the challenge of presenting new material, it can be an arduous battle…

Jerry and Gordon Kennedy

"It's a Two-Man Collection"

Guitarist/producer Jerry Kennedy, recipient of four Grammy awards, is proud of his three sons, all of whom are accomplished musicians and songwriters. The Nashville veteran’s oldest, Gordon, is a Grammy-winning…

Randy Meisner

Randy Meisner, bassist and co-founder of the Eagles, died July 26. He was 77 and suffered complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Born in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, on March 8,…

Cheetah Chrome

The Dead Boys Live Again

As the punk rebellion exploded in 1977, the New York scene became dominated by the Ramones, Television, Patti Smith, Richard Hell & the Voidoids, and (newly transplanted from Cleveland) a…

Joey Santiago

Pixies Repurpose

When Charles Thompson adopted the stage name Black Francis to play the Pixies’ first gig – at a bar in the suburbs on a Wednesday night in 1986 – guitarist…

Popa Chubby’s Dangerous Attitude

NYC blues beast rips on “I Don’t Want Nobody A fixture in New York City blues joints and familiar face in others worldwide, Popa Chubby melds blues-rock with punk-rock immediacy.…

Naia Izumi

Intuitive Artistry

It’s difficult to pigeonhole the music of Naia Izumi, a singer/songwriter who’s also one of the most uncanny guitarists around. “I make music I’m not hearing,” says Naia, who was…

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…

Roman Bulakhov’s Radical Stew

Ukrainian guitarist fuses…. everything Inspired by Pat Metheny, Greg Howe, Guthrie Govan and others, guitarist Roman Bulakhov fuses rock, funk, jazz, hip-hop – and everything else into a radical, acrobatic…

Scott Sharrard

Destined for the Gig

Anyone who has seen the Gregg Allman Band in person or caught its new CD/DVD, Back to Macon, Ga, knows guitarist/musical director Scott Sharrard covers a lot of musical ground.…

Fretprints: Roy Lanham

Hillbilly Jazz Takes Hollywood

Woefully under-recognized guitarist Roy Lanham was a favorite of leading country and jazz pickers and rock innovators; Merle Travis extolled his musicianship, and when Barney Kessel sought him out for…

Check This Action: Walking In Memphis

I first visited Memphis in 1990, and it struck me that radio stations played loads of music from the area. Soul, rockabilly, blues, gospel, country, and jazz – if there…

The (Way) Back Beat: A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody

Fretted cheesecake advertising through the years, Part Two

Last month, we began looking at some of the more entertaining fretted instrument advertising of the 20th century, in what could be loosely called the “cheesecake” style! This term generally…

Richie Kotzen

Solo and Salty

Richie Kotzen was one of those kids – always entertaining the family with song and dance, usually in a crazy costume. “I wanted long hair like a rocker, so I…

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…

Buck Dharma

Regarding the Reaper and Other Recollections

During the hard rock decade of the ’70s, Long Island’s Blue Oyster Cult proffered a decidedly different approach to loud, guitar-based music. The combo’s dark ruminations garnered it a controversial…

Bill Carson

My LIfe and Times with Fender

Reveals good times and bad, the infamous CBS years, Fender’s remarkable resurgence to regain command of the industry, and much more! Price was: $14.95 plus Shipping. Now for a Limited…

Adam Levy’s Wistful Elegance

Vintage ES-335 on “And They All Sang” Famous for supplying charismatic guitar parts while backing Nora Jones and Tracy Chapman, Adam Levy’s latest solo album, “Spry,” is music laden with…

Classics: November 2023

Al Caiola’s Gretsch Prototype

Robby Zolezzi has been a touring pro guitarist since he was 18 years old, having taken up the instrument at 11, spurred by TV and movie themes played by Al Caiola emanating from…

Bernie Marsden

1951-2023

Bernie Marsden, one of the founding guitarists of Whitesnake, co-writer of the band’s massive hit “Here I Go Again,” and noted guitar collector, died August 24. He was 72, and…

Carlos Barbosa-Lima

Classical guitarist Carlos Barbosa-Lima passed away February 23 in Paraty, Brazil. He was 77 and succumbed to a heart attack. Barbosa-Lima began studying guitar at the age of nine, with…

Vinnie Moore

Perpetually Exceptional

Shred architect Vinnie Moore’s latest solo record, Double Exposure, holds the distinction of being both an instrumental solo album and a vocal-rock record. The glue that holds it together is…

Kenny Neal

Back in the Game

Photo courtesy Kenny Neal. Recent times have been tough for veteran bluesman Kenny Neal. After recently contracting Hepatitis C and undergoing treatment, for the first time in 30 years he…

Fanny’s June Millington

Grrrl Power’s First Flash in Rock

Before The Runaways, before the Go-Go’s and Bangles, and before there were Riot grrrls, there was Fanny. One of the first all-female rock groups signed to a major label, the…

Michael Sweet

Frontman, Shredder

The yellow-and-black attack of the Christian-metal band Stryper has returned. The band’s new album, Second Coming, helps mark 30 years of preaching their metal gospel and selling more than 10…

Gus G’s rippin’ “Demon Stomp”

Rock God on his signature Jackson Star Rock god Gus G – Ozzy vet and Firewind shredder – rips through “Demon Stomp” in this exclusive video for VG. That’s his…