Season 03 Episode 06 In Episode 3.6 of Buy That Guitar, presented by Vintage Guitar magazine, host Ram Tuli is joined by J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. Known for his “monolithic” riffs, extensive use of fuzz, feedback, and distortion, Mascis ranks #74 on Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Guitarists”. His guitar of choice has always been…

… And the Holy Trinity of Euro-Metal Guitar
Metal virtuoso Joe Stump believes Ritchie Blackmore, Uli Jon Roth, and Michael Schenker form the holy trinity of European metal guitar. And he should know. Not only has he built…

Time Zone
Kristian Borring is a jazz guitarist who lives in Perth, Australia, but sends his fearless playing echoing around the planet via his trio, Number Junky, which just released its second…

There’s no two waysabout it – thanks to MTV dunces Beavis and Butthead, Winger gets no respect. But the band knows how write killer pop-rock tunes, has one of the…
Recently, I stumbled onto one of those “reaction” videos by a New Zealander named Courtney, who wasn’t sure if she’d ever seen footage of the Beatles or even heard their songs. This shouldn’t be surprising. The video she watches of the Fab Four, playing “All My Loving” on Ed Sullivan in 1964, was created probably…
Most music fans who learn that the eclectic trio 3Below is all bass players will react with, “You gotta be kiddin’!” However, musicians who appreciate the unusual will stay for a listen, especially given the lineup – Michael Manring, Trey Gunn, and Alonso Arreola. Spearheaded by Alonso on his six-string or a hybrid ascoustic, their…
Whoever said, “Those who can’t do, teach” has never heard David Hamburger. Among his two dozen instructional books and videos, Beginning Blues Guitar, awarded Best New Educational Book or Video at NAMM in 1994, boasts more than 100,000 in sales. In addition to supplying music for advertising and TV, the 60-year-old has recorded with Freedy…

Akron’s Finest
On Things Eternal, jazz-guitar wizard Dan Wilson fuses post-bop, spirituality, and the songs of Stevie Wonder into a satisfying musical journey. The album is a celebration of those who have…
Recalling the Music
Bassist/vocalist/songwriter Greg Lake came to notice in 1969 as member of King Crimson and his membership in Emerson, Lake and Palmer cemented his place in the pantheon of progressive-rock icons.…

H.R. Was a Dirty Guitar Player!
In his prime, Howard Roberts played more than 900 studio dates annually and recorded the hippest guitar records of the era. His legion of fans still revere his incalculable influence…

Forgotten Hero of Bebop Guitar
American music history is fraught with tales of forgotten heroes. In the ’40s, jazz guitarists like Tiny Grimes, George Barnes, Chuck Wayne, and Arv Garrison occupied the space between Charlie…
Passion + Discipline = Success
At the end of his clinic at the National Guitar Workshop in July, after two information-packed hours of tips on equipment, technique, session work, and more, David Grissom was asked,…

Bruce Iglauer Recalls 50 Years of Blues Guitar
Anyone wondering why a young Bruce Iglauer was so impassioned about recording the raw, high-energy blues of Theodore Roosevelt “Hound Dog” Taylor can find context in the artists that captivated…
While guitarist Midge Ure was a member of Visage and was briefly in an early version of Thin Lizzy, he’s best known as the front man of the British power-prog band Ultravox. Ure has enjoyed an active solo career since Ultravox split three decades ago, and the recent three-CD/three-LP Royal Albert Hall 04-10-23 is a…
On The Good Fight, guitarist Allen Hinds finds the sweet spot between melodic fusion and good, earthy music for the soul. Joined by a stellar rhythm section, Hinds is a black-belt legato master and slide stylist with an ear for excitement. Strong songs prevail, but his influences go much deeper than your run-of-the-mill jazz guitarist.…
Steve Hackett is one of the busiest guitarists around, regularly issuing new studio and live albums. His latest, Live Magic at Trading Boundaries, focuses on his classical/acoustic compositions. Included are solo guitar pieces and group performances featuring music from his time in Genesis during its beloved ’70s “progressive” era. Trading Boundaries is an intimate venue…
Epitome of the restless designer/tinkerer, Mark Sampson has co-founded four guitar-amplifier companies, two of which – Matchless and Bad Cat – are indelible figures in the trade whose original builds draw perpetual interest from collectors, especially the Matchless DC-30 and SC-30, which are prime examples of “boutique.” Sampson started Bad Cat in 2000 with Rick…
After finishing a sold-out tour with Joe Satriani and Eric Johnson for the G3 Reunion concerts, Steve Vai joined Adrian Belew and Tony Levin to perform interpretations of the ’80s King Crimson albums Discipline, Beat, and Three Of A Perfect Pair. The band is called Beat, and the result is mind-altering. All this, and there’s…
“Hillbilly Speedball” sample Since the mid ’80s, Webb Wilder has cranked out consistently fine roots-rock. His latest is “Hillbilly Speedball,” and here he grabs his ’61 Gibson ES-330TD plugged into a narrow-panel Fender Vibrolux to play a cover of Chuck Berry’s “Beautiful Delilah.” He’s joined by George Bradfute (on a ’50s Epiphone upright) and Bob…
Psyche Soundtracks and SG necks
Veteran rock guitarist Robby Krieger is as busy as ever these days. The legendary fret-meister first garnered international acclaim in the turbulent ’60s decade as the guitarist for the Doors,…

Renaissance Man
Wayne Kramer has earned his stripes as an American music icon. Whether abusing his signature Strat, scoring a film, or using music to help turn around troubled lives, Kramer is…

Check This Action
Few living blues artists could merit a package of 35 CDs. But what makes John Mayall: The First Generation most remarkable is that it only documents the British blues legend’s…

Exclusive spin on “Six to Seven” Calvin Keys has worked with Jimmy Smith, Ahmad Jamal, and Ray Charles. Here, he and his ’72 Gibson Johnny Smith play “Six to Seven,”…

Blues ace gets rowdy on his 345 through a tweed Champ The fiery Tinsley Ellis and his ’67 Gibson ES-345 show us the lead break from “One Less Reason” from…

Best Of Both Worlds
Greg Howe enjoyed a somewhat overwhelming reception when he appeared in the Carvin booth at the January NAMM show. One of rock-fusion’s most forward-thinking guitarists, he was there to launch…

4 From the Floor
In the weeks before they gathered to record a new album in the spring of 2021, guitar legend Slash, frontman/songwriter Myles Kennedy, and their cohorts in The Conspirators had to…

Rich voice, intriguing compositions Folk singer/guitarist Julian Taylor draws you in with his rich voice and intriguing compositions. His new album, “Pathways,” was co-produced with fellow Canadian Colin Linden, who…

Truth of Youth
The word “prodigy” is overused in the music biz, but Grace Bowers is a real-deal young funkster. Just 18 years old, she melds R&B, feisty blues-rock, and gospel flavors on…
Back to Hands-On at Hamer
Jol Dantzig with a Hamer Monaco III. Photos courtesy Jol Dantzig. When the Hamer Standard first appeared in an unassuming black-and-white ad in a guitar magazine in the mid 1970s,…

Loud and Proud
Nashville Pussy is fronted by the husband-and-wife team of Blaine Cartwright and Ruyter Suys. Its new album, Up The Dosage, is the band’s first in five years, and it’s jammed…

Rock legend’s thunderous return Forty years after “Fantasy,” Canadian rock legend Aldo Nova has returned with two new projects. One is a semi-autobiographical rock opera called “The Life and Times…
Picker's Pinnacle
These days, it’s pretty much the best of all worlds for singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Vince Gill. The Norman, Oklahoma, native has seen his career develop to the point where he can taper…
Musical Renaissance Man
Since his breakthrough debut in 1988 with the release of his platinum-selling See The Light, Jeff Healey has garnered acclaim as one of Canada’s most renowned six-string exports. Known…

Fusion/Progressive/World Music from Indonesia
Back home in Bali, Indonesia, guitarist Dewa Budjana is noted for his work with the pop band Gigi, but recently, he has also been collaborating with noted Western drummers and…

Special Addition
It’s routine for Vince Gill, as one of Nashville’s true connoisseurs of electric and acoustic gear, to receive tips about rare guitars for sale. In 2012, one such call shined…

Rare Bird
Given his busy career as a player and in-demand producer, it’s not surprising that singer/songwriter Jonathan Wilson needed more than three years to complete his new album, Rare Birds. When…
Joe Messina, guitarist with the famed Funk Brothers studio band at Motown Records, died April 4 at his home in Northville, Michigan. He was 93 and suffered kidney disease the…

Defying the Odds
Taking advantage of the time off in the early days of the pandemic, Ian Hunter hunkered down in his Connecticut home studio to craft a few dozen new tunes. Initially…

Bridge of Skies
At age 78, Robin Trower remains at the top of his game, musically – still offering smoldering solos from his Strat on his latest offering, Joyful Sky. Featuring vocalist Sari…
Tony Gilkyson photo: Markus Cuff. You’d expect a guy who spent time in bands like Lone Justice and X to be boisterous and outgoing, but Tony Gilkyson’s personality is better…