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…

Pop ’N Hiss: Hawkwind’s Space Ritual

Primal Cosmic Rock

Among the evolutionary tangents of London’s pop-music scene in the late ’60s were the original stylings of progressive rock, psychedelia, and what came to be known as “space rock.” Bands…

Andy Peake – Roots Without Boundaries

Andy Peake – Roots Without Boundaries Andy Peake is a drummer/percussionist with a long list of accomplished-guitarist friends. For proof, take a listen to his new album, “Pocket Change.” Here,…

Robert John & The Wreck’s Henry James

Cali-Style Southern Rock Southern-fried rock from California? You bet it’s tasty. Check out the guitar work of Henry James Schneekluth riffing on the title track from the band’s latest EP,…

Mike Zito

Reemerging with Resurrection

It’s obvious why guitarist Mike Zito’s 2020 album was titled Quarantine Blues, but he’s compelled to clarify the reasoning behind his new release being dubbed Resurrection. “‘Resurrection’ was a song…

Jim Campilongo

“I’m a Guitar Player”

It’s been two years since Jim Campilongo put out a solo record, but on the new Dream Dictionary, his patented Telecaster tones take on greater dimension as he conjures a…

Jesse Aycock

Oklahoma’s Finest

Super-sideman Jesse Aycock (Hard Working Americans, Elizabeth Cook) has a new self-titled album highlighting his understated (but mindblowing) guitar, slide, and lap steel. Jesse’s singing voice is also surprising –…

John Fogerty

The Life and Times of John Fogerty

It would seem that, for decades, John Fogerty has had his finger on the pulse of the record-buying public. After all, Creedence Clearwater Revival, the band he formed as the…

Mike Campbell

Got Lucky

Mike Campbell is one of the most-heard guitarists on earth thanks to his work in the legendary Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and their catalog of hit singles (“American Girl,”…

Pop ’N Hiss: Bruford’s Allan Holdsworth

Landmark Fusion of One of a Kind

Jazz-rock fusion was vastly popular in the mid 1970s, but began to run out of steam as the “smooth jazz” of Spyro Gyra and Chuck Mangione simply became more lucrative.…

Jack Casady

Hot Tuna, Part II

Jazz bass great Anthony Jackson once told Bass Player magazine he was drawn to Jack Casady’s “big, rich, metallic sound with a full bottom and a curious, guitaristic way of…

Have Guitar Will Travel 070 – JJ Wilde and J.D. Smigelski

The latest episode of “Have Guitar Will Travel” finds host James Patrick Regan speaking with indie rocker JJ Wilde and her guitarist, J.D. Smigelski. JJ grew up listening to her…

Ram Tuli Crunches Numbers for The Guide

Strats and Data

Combine a knack for numbers with a love of old guitars and you get… well, you might get any of a thousand babyboomer accountants/collectors. But one is a supercharged version…

Mitch Easter

The Let's Active Leader's Solo Debut

Photo courtesy Mitch Easter. When “Southern rock” became synonymous with jangly power-pop instead of Skynyrd and the Allman Brothers, Mitch Easter was a pivotal figure. The Winston-Salem native formed the…

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…

Joe Satriani

More Than Meets the Ear

When he emerged in the late ’80s, rock guitarist Joe Satriani stood apart from the hair-band crowd for several reasons. Like most of his contemporaries, his style was a mix…

Dusty Hill

1949-2021

It didn’t take long for testimonials to pour in to VG following the death of ZZ Top bassist Dusty Hill. “Dusty Hill has the patent on the blues-rock groove!” said…

Alex Hall

Pandemic Re-Think

Six Strings, the debut EP by 26-year-old Alex Hall, establishes the Georgia native as one of the new generation of guitar-slinging country vocalists. The work is different from the album…

Frank Gambale

Soulmine

Frank Gambale has had an amazing career playing the music he loves. From being the go-to guy for sweep-picking, and later replacing Al DiMeola in Return To Forever, Gambale drops…

Great sounds, good times: Igor Prado

Brazilian guitarist plays American funk Igor Prado, organist Raphael Wressnig, and their band bring all-American funk on the new album, “Groove & Good Times.” Here’s a jam from the track…

David Catching

Desert Eagle

Producer and owner of the enigmatic Rancho de la Luna studio in the California desert, guitarist David Catching has been touring with Eagles of Death Metal since 2004. In November…

Lee Ritenour

Lee's Six-String Theory

Lee Ritenour’s career accomplishments are the stuff of greatness. With thousands of classic recording sessions and more than 40 albums bearing his own name, Ritenour continues to work his magic…

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…

RnR Hall of Famer Richie Furay and his gorgeous ’53 Gibson J-200!

Buffalo Springfield/Poco Founder Covers a Country Favorite Richie Furay and his ’53 SJ-200 share a glimpse of their bucolic space and a solo acoustic rendition of “I Hope You Dance,”…

Pop ’N Hiss: Grand Funk’s We’re An American Band

Rockin’ Patriots

Thundering out of Michigan in 1969, Grand Funk Railroad quickly became one of the most popular bands in the world. In just three years, vocalist/guitarist Mark Farner, bassist Mel Schacher,…

Charlie Musselwhite

Charlie plays The Blues… On Guitar

In a career spanning 45 years, Charlie Musselwhite has taken the blues to places it’s never been – literally (playing every corner of the globe) and artistically (on his two…

Sunny War

Art & War

Sunny War’s latest album, Simple Syrup, digs deep into the complexities of the human experience. As an acoustic fingerstylist who draws inspiration from the world, being quarantined has been a…

Eric Gales

Stand Up

In a recording career that spans 30 years and includes 18 albums of his own and 28 more tributes and compilations, Eric Gales has earned a reputation for blindingly fast…

Jared James Nichols

P-90 Proponent

Ladies and gentlemen, Jared James Nichols is bringing savagery back to rock and roll. His weapon of choice – vintage Les Pauls. His latest self-titled album bristles with ferocity where…

Zakk Wylde

All photos Neil Zlozower. With Zakk Wylde, what you see is very much what you get. An unassuming, tell-it-like-it-is guy, he makes no apologies for being the beer-swilling, English-language-brutalizing, boot-and-leather-wearing,…