Jock Bartley

The Return of Firefall

If you listened to pop radio in the late ’70s, it was hard to miss Firefall, whose soft-rock hits were plastered all over AM airwaves, notably “You Are the Woman,”…

Pop ’N Hiss: Lynyrd Skynyrd’s (Pronounced ‘Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd’)

Down-South Guitar Assault

By early 1973, “Southern Rock” had come into its own, spearheaded by Capricorn Records and its keystone act, the Allman Brothers Band, whose music was melodic, popular, and brought plenty…

Richie Kotzen

Fight For Familiarity

So he’s not burning up the Top 40, but Richie Kotzen has been a soul-crooning monster guitarist for a very long time. With almost 20 solo albums and group projects…

Grant Geissman

Still Feeling Good

Admired for the iconic phase-shifter solo on Chuck Mangione’s 1978 smash “Feels So Good,” Grant Geissman can today look back on a successful career as a solo artist and sideman.…

Have Guitar Will Travel – 034 Featuring Nalle Colt

Episode 34 of James Patrick Regan’s “Have Guitar Will Travel” podcast features Vintage Trouble guitarist Nalle Colt. They delve into growing up in Sweden, the band’s history, Nalle’s work with…

Richie Kotzen

Better Days Coming

Richie Kotzen is one of today’s busiest rock guitarists. In addition to being a long-time solo artist (and possessing an awesome singing voice), he manages his time between the Winery…

Jim Schwall

Jim Schwall, guitarist, vocalist, and co-founder of Chicago’s Siegel-Schwall Band, died June 19. He was 79 and passed away at his home in Tucson. Schwall learned guitar as a high-school…

In Memoriam: Dave Wintz

Texas luthier and entrepreneur Dave Wintz died June 25 after battling an extended illness. He was 69. Born and raised in Houston, Wintz was co-founder of the retail store Rockin’…

Fretprints: Pee Wee Crayton

Tiny Titan of Blues Guitar

Though he is today largely forgotten, blues aficionados recognize Pee Wee Crayton as a legend. “The little man with a big sound” dominated the charts briefly in the years between…

Pop ’N Hiss: Santana’s Caravanserai

Pageant of Enlightenment

By the summer of 1971, 24-year-old Carlos Santana and his band – Neal Schon on guitar, drummer Michael Shrieve, Gregg Rolie on keys, bassist David Brown, and percussionists Mike Carabello…

Nick Perri

Constant Creator

The elements of life that mold a person are constant and ever-evolving. Influence is all about perspective. Philadelphia-born Nick Perri grew up in a strict Catholic household where pop music…

Lonnie Brooks

1933-2017

Blues guitarist/singer Lonnie Brooks died April 1 in Chicago. He was 83. Born Lee Baker, Jr., he was one of 12 children and left school after the seventh grade to…

Steven Wilson

Guitar Harmony

Porcupine Tree’s Steven Wilson isn’t a guitar hero, but his playing fits his compositions perfectly – as exemplified by his latest solo offering, The Harmony Codex. Showing once again that…

Martin Turner

Low-End Unorthodoxy

When he transitioned from playing guitar, former Wishbone Ash bassist Martin Turner kept a pick in his right hand and developed a style that combined fluid, melodic lines with an…

Ruyter Suys

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…

Fretprints: Stevie Ray Vaughan

Texas Flood

Stevie Ray Vaughan was unknown when he premiered at the 1982 Montreux Jazz Festival. Born and bred in Dallas, he’d played the Texas bar circuit as sideman in Blackbird, the…

Fretprints: Gary Moore’s Still Got the Blues

Defining Document

Throughout his career, Gary Moore was haunted by a prevailing assumption (in rock circles) that he was simply too good to gain mass popularity. An accomplished, soulful vocalist and genuine…

Rory Block

Keeping The Blues Alive

From her first album appearance, at age 12, with her father’s string band, to guesting on Stefan Grossman’s 1971 album, How To Play Blues Guitar, and her 1975 solo debut,…

Russell Malone

Jazz lost one of its six-string luminaries when Russell Malone died on August 23, after suffering a heart attack in Japan while touring with bass legend Ron Carter. According to…

Mike Campbell

Still Thrilled

Boiled down, the music of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers is defined by a handful of essential elements: their leader’s character-filled voice, songs about life and its toils, swirling B-3…

Louis Stewart

Irish Jazz Giant

Next to Jameson whiskey, Louis Stewart remains Ireland’s leading export – and his playing can be just as intoxicating. The consummate creative jazz artist, his soft-toned archtop sound reflected the…

Rod Abernethy

Fuzz: Carolina Acoustic Connections

A fixture on the North Carolina music scene, guitarist/songwriter Rod Abernethy has accumulated many memories, including the purchase of his mainstay instrument, a 1954 Gibson J-200. “When I graduated from…

Jim Peterik

The Ides of a Century

Most dictionaries define “ides” as the middle of a month, based on the Roman calendar. The most famous are the Ides of March, which is also the name of a…

John McFee

Standing in the Shadows

John McFee John McFee isn’t a household name in music, but he has been a major player for more than 35 years. But his attitude (“I never really wanted to…

Bob Seger and the Borneo Band

Lakeview High School, St. Clair Shores, Michigan, April ’73

If you were a Detroit kid in the 1960s, it was impossible to cruise Woodward Avenue and not hear a Bob Seger song rattling someone’s dashboard speakers. Perhaps more than…

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,…

Have Guitar Will Travel 090 – Happy Fits and Greensky Bluegrass

In Ep 90 of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan speaks with band members from Happy Fits and Greensky Bluegrass. Happy Fits discusses forming their indie rock band…

Replacing Rotted Tuning Keys on a ’62 ES-335

Buttons for a Buzzcock

Steve Garvey played bass in the seminal punk band Buzzcocks during its classic era – 1977 to ’81 – with guitarist Steve Diggle, drummer John Maher, and front man/guitarist Pete…

Carl Verheyen

On <em>Mustang Run</em> and Making a CD that Lasts

Fresh off a 42-show/13-country European tour with his own band, Supertramp guitarist and L.A. studio ace Carl Verheyen has just released his 12th studio CD, Mustang Run. Following 2010’s live…

Dale Watson

Keep On Truckin’

The seeds of the latest album from Dale Watson were sown in 1998, when he released The Truckin’ Sessions . The Truckin’ Sessions 2 followed in 2009, and now he…