•  Joey Molland

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     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

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Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater

Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

The Chicago resident has been exciting blues audiences worldwide for decades. But he built his reputation working the local club circuit, playing for African-American audiences and Chuck Berry-inspired rock for…

Dennis Budimir

Renowned studio guitarist Dennis Budimir died in Los Angeles on January 10. He was 84. Early in his career, Budimir’s path to jazz stardom began when he started working with…

Christone “Kingfish” Ingram

Evolution

Christone “Kingfish” Ingram’s latest album shows the 22-year-old blues prodigy flourishing with maturity and tone for days. Titled 662, the digits reflect the area code of his North Mississippi home.…

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…

Paul Nelson

Sideman Steps Out

Manhattan native Paul Nelson has been influenced by many great guitarists – some of whom gave him lessons, gigs, and/or recording opportunities. But that hasn’t kept him from recording two…

David Hamburger

Top-Tier Tutorial

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…

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…

Susanna Hoffs

Yesterdays… And Today

The Bangles are back! After a 10-year separation, the band that rose to prominence in the 1980s with such hits as “Manic Monday” and “Walk Like an Egyptian” reunited in…

Jeff Golub

Unfinished Business

The route taken by Jeff Golub in making Train Keeps A Rolling is unlike that followed by any other artist. Just as his previous record, Three Kings, was released, Golub…

Jon Butcher

Back to Barefootin'

Photos courtesy Jon Butcher. A little more than a decade ago, guitarist/vocalist Jon Butcher described his affiliation with the then-new quartet Barefoot Servants as, “The best thing I ever did.”…

The Uncanny Approach of Walter Strauss

Fingerstylist melds melodies, polyrhythms, and visceral picking on “Fabara” Walter Strauss shows his extraordinary technique with help from his Sexauer JB-16 while playing “Fabara,” a song from latest album, “For…

Steve Lukather

Solid-Gold Guitar Slinger

Photo: Rick Gould. He’s a chops monster – the epitome of taste and understatement. An international pop star and a hard-rocking muso. A gifted songwriter and arranger, in a career…

Kim Simmonds

Half a Century with Savoy Brown

Now in its 46th year, the Savoy Brown band, fronted by founder/lead guitarist Kim Simmonds, has returned to its blues-and-boogie roots following a foray as a power trio in which…

Tinsley Ellis’ new dimension

Unplugged, and Worth the Wait! A prominent blues artist since the late ’80s, Tinsley Ellis grabbed the ’37 National Style O heard on several tracks from his new album, “Naked…

Thomm Jutz plays “Come All You Fair And Tender Ladies”

Flatpicked English folk with an Appalachian touch Sparse and haunting, Thomm Jutz and his ’48 Martin D-18 share a solo take on “Come All You Fair And Tender Ladies,” from…

Jeff Waters

Canadian Thrash-Metal Veteran

Trends come and go, but Canadian rockers Annihilator always deliver crushing speed metal. Their newest release, Triple Threat, is aimed at the serious fan. We recently spoke with guitarist/vocalist Jeff…

Tracy G

Dio Disciple

Ronnie James Dio had a knack for collaborating with talented guitarists – Ritchie Blackmore in Rainbow, Tony Iommi in Black Sabbath/Heaven and Hell, and several in his solo band, Dio.…

Name that Twang

The Guild-Duane Eddy Connection

The fledgling Guild company scored a coup when it signed Johnny Smith to an endorsement deal in 1956. Perched atop the jazz-guitar scene at the time, Smith helped Guild join…

Christopher Thorn

Alt-Rocker/Studio Guru

Best known as half of the guitar tandem in the ’90s alternative-rock band Blind Melon (that’s his rhythm on “No Rain,” using his Gibson J-30), Christopher Thorn has since recorded…

John Leventhal

Ready to Rumble

“I’ve been lucky enough to make a career co-writing and producing records with great singers and lyricists, John Leventhal explains. “But I’ve always had all this other music in me.…

Fretprints: Randy Rhoads

Transcendent Tribute

September 20, 1980, marked the release of Ozzy Osbourne’s debut solo album Blizzard of Ozz, a hard-rock recording that introduced Randy Rhoads to the world. In the 43 years since,…

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…

Ty Tabor

On A Roll

King’s X guitarist Ty Tabor is on a roll. Despite the band being on hiatus due to bassist Dug Pinnick’s health issues, Tabor stays busy with side projects like Jelly…

Eric Clapton & J.J. Cale

Blowin Down the Road

It’s fitting that The Road To Escondido, the long-awaited collaboration between Eric Clapton and J.J. Cale – a concept that seems, on the surface, to be so obvious, at least…

Nili Brosh

Bright Horizons

The saying goes, “If you want to get something done, ask a busy person to do it.” But don’t ask Nili Brosh. She’s too busy. With projects like playing Eddie…

George Benson

Breezin’ With The Boss of Jazz Guitar

Grammy winner and music legend George Benson has lived a guitarist’s dream. Bridging the gap between pop and jazz helped him sell millions of albums and made him a figurehead…

Louie Shelton

Gold Coast Gigmeister

On August 16, 1966, the Beatle-esque guitar riff that opens “Last Train To Clarksville” crackled out of radios across America for the first time. The debut single of the made-for-TV…

Bobby Black

Steel Before and After Commander Cody

When he got the invitation, Bobby Black wasn’t sure. The pedal-steel virtuoso, a 20-plus-year veteran of San Francisco’s music scene, had just been asked to join the long-hairs in Commander…

Nick Moss

Backbone Shiver

On Get Your Back Into It!, guitarist Nick Moss and harmonica savant Dennis Gruenling combine blues, swing, and rock and roll into an infectious blend of foot-stomping groove, sweat, and…

Steve Turner

The March To Fuzz

Thirty-five years after Steve Turner and Mudhoney became forever linked with two legendary pedals by coining their debut EP Superfuzz Big Muff, Turner has authored an autobiography, Mud Ride, and…