Marty Stuart

Current Traditions

The latest record from Marty Stuart, Ghost Train: The Studio B Sessions, is a tour de force of country music styles that celebrates the past while pushing firmly into the…

Graham Clise

Bay Area Blaster

Graham Clise is one of the most-heralded underground rock guitarists of the past 15 years. A mashup of Chuck Berry, BOC’s Buck Dharma, and Black Flag’s Greg Ginn, his style…

The Pixies

Alternative Godfathers

In the late 1980s, the Pixies’ unique brand of punk, pop, and guitar rock almost singlehandedly created the alternative music movement that flourished in the early ’90s. Its sound served…

Larry Coryell

1943-2017

Guitarist Larry Coryell died February 19 in New York City after performing the previous night at the Iridium. He was 73 and passed away in his sleep, from heart failure.…

Lance Lopez

Supersonic Blues Machine

Lance Lopez is a guitar-slinging blues machine that burns like Texas hot sauce in August. He has scorched the festival circuit for years with an enviable body of work and…

Ted Greene Remembered

You know what happened: discretionary income for the first time and the rise of the indies with things that the majors laughed at. Just like Gibson laughing at Leo at…

Classics: December 2023

Cliff Antone’s 1952 Fender Precision

Texas is known for music, especially Austin, which in the mid ’70s became a hotbed thanks to clubs like Armadillo World Headquarters, Castle Creek, and Soap Creek Saloon, which mostly…

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…

Mick Abrahams

This Was (And Still Is…)

British guitarist Mick Abrahams is best remembered for his work on Jethro Tull’s first album, This Was, followed by a stint as the founder/leader of Blodwyn Pig. Abrahams has stayed…

Billy F Gibbons

Return of the Revvvv

Every time Vintage Guitar sets up an interview with the redoubtable Billy F Gibbons, lead guitarist/vocalist of the legendary Texas trio ZZ Top, it’s always a matter of “expect the…

Gary Moore

Remembering Phil Lynott

Moore with his signature model Gibson Les Paul. Photo: Rob Verhorst/Redferns Music Picture Library. Irish guitarist Gary Moore is a man in perpetual motion, onstage and in the studio. A…

Frank Marino

Thunder Out of Quebec

Photo courtesy of Frank Marino. Canadian fretmeister Frank Marino first came to prominence in the early 1970s, fronting Mahogany Rush. Often compared to Jimi Hendrix, Marino’s songwriting, playing, and singing…

Bruce Bouillet

From The Shadow Of Racer X

Former Racer X guitarist Bruce Bouillet overcame carpal tunnel syndrome to return to his first love – shredding. Now, he’s back with a third solo album The Order Of Control,…

Elvin Bishop

Havin' the Cake…

Ventura Fairgrounds, Ventura, California – is Elvin Bishop the infamous Pigboy Crabshaw? Well, many agree he is the guitar and the soul behind the birth of country rock – and…

Hints of Benson and Martino – Eric Zolan plays “D.D.L.O.D.”

NYC Jazzer Brings Tasty Jazz/Blues/R&B Confection Guitarist Eric Zolan knows jazz guitar has been cool, and his new album, “Calder’s Universe” proves it. Here, he and drummer Mike Camacho lay…

Matteo Mancuso

Journey Into the Future

Emerging as a social-media sensation several years ago, Matteo Mancuso is changing the way we see and hear guitar. Using a radical fingerstyle attack, the Italian ace handles his electric…

Samantha Fish

Blues Belle Stretches Out

In 2012, Samantha Fish’s Runaway was named Best Artist Debut at the Blues Music Awards. Known for her energetic blues-rock concerts, she released two departures in 2017 – the R&B-tinged…

Lyle Workman

Orchestral Maneuvers

You might not recognize his name, but in the last 30 years, Lyle Workman and his guitars have backed Sting, Todd Rundgren, and Frank Black. He was also a member…

Arv Garrison

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…

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…

Dave Davies

Personal Songs and Power Chords

For more than a half-century, the world has known of guitarist Dave Davies and his raucous electric sound, thanks to the earliest hits of the Kinks. The band’s third single,…

Andy Powell

Setting the Record Straight

Wishbone Ash founder/guitarist Andy Powell has a new term for his resumé – “author.” Abetted by Colin Harper, he recently created Eyes Wide Open: True Tales of a Wishbone Ash…

Steve Hackett

No pigeonholes, please!

Photo coutesy Steve Hackett. It’s been said that musicians often “follow their muse” at certain points in their careers, but Steve Hackett, who is entering his fourth decade as a…

 Fretprints: Larry Carlton

Revisiting Room 335

In 1978, Larry Carlton was atop the unforgiving environs of L.A.’s music studios, where technical prowess, precision, creativity, tone, and groove are minimum requirements and mere competence promises a short…

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…

Sugar Hill Set Marks 25 Years

In an industry where success is measured in weeks or months rather than years, marking a 25th anniversary is no small feat. But Barry Poss, founder and head of Sugar…

Instro-Meister Eric Penna

Blues Switch-Up in Trabants Eric Penna’s main gig is playing bass for the garage/surf band Insect Surfers, but he side-hustles playing guitar in the blues-instrumental band Trabants. After corralling bassist…

Carl Verheyen

Riverboat Music

On his new album, Riverboat Sky, Carl Verheyen combines passionate musicality, spellbinding virtuosity, and ebullient rock and roll. It’s also a tone fest, as Verheyen morphs chicken-fried banjo rolls with…

Scott Holt

Mojo Risin’ in Foghat

It’s been more than 50 years since Foghat unleashed its freewheeling rock and roll, steeped in its blues beginnings. Sonic Mojo is its first studio album in seven years, and…

Steve Morse

Return of the Dixie Dregs

Steve Morse has been revisiting the past. A member of Deep Purple since 1994, this year he reunited with the original lineup of Dixie Dregs, a band that was key…