• Tommy Castro

    Artists

    Tommy Castro

    Circling Back

    In a career spanning four decades, Tommy Castro has crafted a commendable catalog and built a devout following with his soul-infused music, informed by the blues, R&B, pop, and rock and delivered with conviction. Beloved for his guitar work and vocal style, he has carved his own niche. Born and raised in San Jose, California,…

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Peter Frampton

Frampton Comes Around

Peter Frampton is in an upbeat mood, mainly because his decades-long career as a guitarist, singer, and songwriter was also headed back in an upward direction. Since Vintage Guitar‘s first…

Larry Carlton

The buzz about Fire Wire, the new record by guitar legend Larry Carlton, was that he was going to rock more than he had in years. Yes, the guy who…

Fretprints: Foghat

Slow Ride to Boogie Wonderland

If the ’70s were the era of good times and excess following the tumultuous ’60s, the boogie band would be its champion. Boogie was a leveler – a style, feeling,…

Vivian Campbell

Back In Line

When singer Ronnie James Dio chose Belfast native Vivian Campbell to form Dio in 1982, the young guitarist was filling big shoes in the eyes of his new boss, who’d…

Dom Martin

More Than a Feeling

From the first fingerpicked notes of “Hello in There,” a gentle, inviting 98-second acoustic instrumental that opens Dom Martin’s Buried in The Hail, it’s clear the Belfast bluesman’s musical vision…

Leo Nocentelli

A Meter Keeps Running

The Meters are universally accepted as one of the great funk bands. Their rhythm section work is legendary for its ability to jump on a groove and stay put. One…

Mark Bosch

New York State of Mind

As the longtime lead guitarist for Garland Jeffreys and Ian Hunter, Mark Bosch’s resumé reads like a who’s who of the rock and roll world. Over the past four decades,…

Randy Bachman

Even More Business (to take care of)

Of the legendary rock guitarists who also have admirable guitar collections, it’s hard to imagine anyone who’s been more busy gathering than Randy Bachman. In the decade since his first…

Larry McCray

All In the Family

“A lot of people…think [blues is] all the same. So I try to take that element out. I don’t want to restrict myself in terms of genre or influence.” It’s…

Richard Tozzoli: Underscore Overlord

Shark Week” Les Pauls, Flying V, et al Richard Tozzoli walks us through a guitar overdub session for Discovery Channel’s “Shark Week ’24,”  featuring drummer Omar Hakim and the Budapest Orchest*ra. Recorded…

Kenny Brown

Mississippi Slide

The Black Keys’ latest album, Delta Kream, is a collection of blues standards from the Mississippi Hill Country. Drummer Patrick Carney and guitarist Dan Auerbach expanded their duo with a…

Ryan Carraher

Night Music

Jazz guitarist Ryan Carraher defines “vocturnal” as “a portmanteau of the words ‘nocturnal’ and ‘voyage.’ It’s a fitting title for his first album given that most of its songs were…

Jake E. Lee

The Legend Returns

Jake E. Lee found fame replacing Randy Rhoads to co-write two of Ozzy Osborne’s most popular albums – Bark At The Moon and Ultimate Sin. It cemented his place in…

Monster Mike Welch

From Phenom To Blues Veteran

Twenty-seven years after his debut album at age 17, Monster Mike Welch delivers perhaps his best disc yet with Nothing But Time. Co-produced with multi-instrumentalist Kid Andersen, it features bass…

Uwe Kruger

Swiss Precision for Americana

Uwe Kruger’s professional musical career began at age 15, when he and his brother, Jens, left their small town home in Switzerland to busk in the cities of Europe. Quickly,…

Robby Krieger

New Musical Directions

For all of his decades of noteworthy guitar work, Robby Krieger isn’t resting on his laurels. In 2002, Krieger and Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek formed Doors of the 21st Century…

Trevor Rabin

Return with Rio

It’s hard to believe that 34 years have passed since Trevor Rabin issued a solo album featuring his vocals. But it’s true – Can’t Look Away was released in 1989.…

Julien Kasper

Non-Traditional Jazz

 Berklee School of Music guitar professor Julien Kasper isn’t fond of having his music called “fusion,” especially given the connotation it carries. “I’ve never liked hearing it used when describing…

Mike Vernon

Surf-Guitar Ace Mike Vernon Chills on “Lucky Boy” Surf-instro revivalist Mike Vernon grabbed his (semi-hollow) Gretsch Tennessee Rose (with flatwounds) plugged into his Roland 77 to play “Lucky Boy.” Named…

Steve Stevens

Return of the Ray-Gun Ace

Best known as Billy Idol’s guitar ace for the past 25 years, Steve Stevens won early fame for Idol’s 1983 smash “Rebel Yell,” featuring his scorching licks and signature “ray…

Kid Ramos’ Revelation!

West Coast legend melds blues with gospel Check out Kid Ramos using a ’56 Harmony H62 running through a vintage Fender reverb tank and a Pro Junior to play an…

Rick Derringer

Six-String Knight

Photos courtesy Rick Derringer. Rick Derringer’s latest record, Knighted by the Blues, is an amazingly varied album from a guitarist who has been in the music industry for more than…

Lemmy Kilmister

Lemmy Kilmister

Lessons in Longetivity (and Loud Music)

Motörhead bassist/vocalist and heavy metal icon Lemmy Kilmister will, in a few years, be 70. But the enthusiasm for his craft – and the decibel level at which his music…

Ray Cummins – I’ll See You In My Dreams

Ray Cummins Plays the 1956 Gretsch Chet Atkins 6120 prototype “Dark Eyes” VG ace online tutor Ray Cummins uses the famed ’56 Gretsch Chet Atkins 6120 prototype to play “I’ll…

Todd Rundgren

Rock’s True Renaissance Man

For 50 years, Todd Rundgren has been compiling one the most eclectic and impressive resumés in music. From forming the Nazz in 1967 to stints with Utopia, Runt, The New…

Leigh Stephens

Blue Cheer Flashbacks

Blasting out of the San Francisco Bay area with an amped-to-the-heavens heavy blooze/hard rock style, Blue Cheer spewed forth a lo-fi garage sound that found the trio lobbing grenades on…

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Nick Moss

Musical Horizons Beyond Chicago

Since 2007, guitarist/vocalist Nick Moss has released five albums on his Blue Bella label, including two live discs. And while Moss still loves his Chicago-style blues, his most recent effort,…

Danny Gatton

Ten years past, and still dropping jaws

Photo: Ebet Roberts. Ten years have passed since Danny Gatton killed himself at his rural Maryland home. The reasons remain shrouded in mystery, yet his legacy is more visible than…

Kevin Comeau

Crowning Achievement

If you dig Rush, you may have heard of a duo from Canada that virtually channels the iconic trio. Known as Crown Lands, singer/drummer Cody Bowles and guitarist/bassist Kevin Comeau…

Philip Sayce’s Guitar Meditation

Exploring, Expanding Absorbing and exuding great vibes from his living room, Philip Sayce and his PRS Silver Sky (plugged into a ’68 Super Reverb) play “Lady Love Divine,” one of…