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Classic Instruments
Thomas Custom Guitars
Rarities from the Pacific Northwest
Certain makes and models of electric guitars are rightfully prized for their elegant physical designs and superior craftsmanship. Even better are those also revered for their playability and particularly rich tonal qualities. Thomas guitars, on the other hand, are usually noted for their odd (sometimes controversial) shapes and zany features. Built by the late guitarist/machinist/luthier/and
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Dan’s Guitar RX: A ’57 Strat Goes Under the Knife
Battle-Scarred
B.K. Vaught recently walked into my shop with a vintage Strat that had been modified and refinished. While its changes represented a bit of American history, the guitar deserved to be restored. B.K. got it in the spring of 2022, while helping sort the estate of an uncle who had passed away. Among his belongings…
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The Martin OM-28
Although popular music of the 1920s featured the tenor banjo as the preferred rhythm instrument, the guitar’s popularity rose steadily through the decade, and by the ’30s, it had overtaken the banjo. As had been the case with tenor banjos, mandolins, and classical/minstrel banjos in earlier eras, the best-selling fretted instrument attracted the most attention…
Epiphone Coronet
This Epiphone Coronet from 1959 was probably a shocking sight to a guitar buyer of the late ’50s. Not only…
In Detail: Gibson’s 1954-’58 Les Paul Junior
In 1952, Gibson’s Les Paul model guitar was brand spanking new. But it wasn’t cutting-edge. True, it was the company’s…
The Micro-Frets Saga
Genius in MD
Had fate been just a notch kinder, Ralph Jones might today be a ’60s counterculture icon alongside Bob Dylan, Muhammad…
Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams: Funky Syncopation
Fine pickin’ on “The Way You Make Me Feel” Husband-and-wife team Martin D-18, while Teresa comps on an Emmylou Harris…
GA-20’s Matt Stubbs and Pat Faherty
FlashBack Sounds, Forward Steps
Musical gateways opened by Jimi Hendrix and the Doors led Matt Stubbs to become a disciple of Johnny “Guitar” Watson, Earl Hooker, and the guitar Kings – Albert, Freddie, and…
Classics – May 2021
This 1940 ES-250 with serial number 96385 left the Gibson factory bound for retailer New York Band on October 25, 1940 – the same day as the first ES-300, which…
Classics: July 2022
Jack Jones Doubleneck
In November of 1954, 16-year-old Jack Jones walked into a Seattle pawn shop and noticed a strange doubleneck guitar. “It was like a magnet – I knew it was meant…
Gibson Basses in The ’70s
Plucky Trio from the “Downer Decade”
Guitar enthusiasts have long heard that the 1970s were the “downer decade” for Fender and Gibson, both of which introduced a few duds and struggled with quality control. Their travails…
Fender’s Mid-’50s Precision Bass
The "In-Between" Version
In the world of electric basses, the 1952 Fender Precision is the one that started it all. While it’s true that Gibson, Rickenbacker, and Audiovox all built electric basses some…
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Classics: February 2024
Sean Slade’s 1964 SG Junior
They might not seem to have a ton in common aside from first names. J Mascis, Dinosaur Jr.’s co-founder and guitarist developed a style equal parts guitar heroics and left-side-of-the-dial insouciance. In Uncle Tupelo, Jay Farrar helped popularize the alt-country movement by merging influences from Doug Sahm to The Stooges. But that might be where…
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’72 Marshall “NARB” Tremolo 100
Mirror Image
When is a Marshall not a Marshall? When it’s a Narb, of course. Long a fascinating footnote to the company’s history, this alternative brand arose as something of a bet between colleagues. For all the undeniable classics produced by Jim Marshall and his right-hand men Ken Bran and Dudley Craven, it seems the company’s marketing…
The Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+
Early Mesa/Boogie Mark Series amps were something of a sensation, but even with the line now having stretched all the…
Wolf Marshall
Jazz-Lore Generator
Wolf Marshall was absorbing music before he could walk or talk. Born to a mother who was a concert pianist,…
Martin 00-42 Special
It has all the appoint-ments of a Martin 00-45, particularly the abalone pearl trim around all the borders of the…
Zakk Wylde
Doomsayer
Best-known as Ozzy Osbourne’s longest-tenured guitarist, Zakk Wylde has also been the leader of Black Label Society since the late…
John Sebastian’s ’59 Gibson Les Paul Standard
Vintage Guitar magazine Presents Greg Martin's Head Shop
This is a regular series of exclusive Vintage Guitar online features where The Kentucky Headhunters’ Greg Martin looks back on influential albums and other musical moments. On November 30, 1966,…
United They Stood, Part 2
Ghosts of Jersey City
In the history of guitars, the tale of United Guitar Corporation is a ghost story – little documented and lost in partially self-imposed obscurity. Operating from 1939 into the late…
Two Tickets to the Top
Keeley Electronics’ Katana and Flexi 4×2
Any gearhead who’s been paying attention the last seven years knows the name Robert Keeley. Since 2001, he and his staff at Keeley Electronics have produced a variety of boutique…
KayKraft Style A
Almost any guitar can be viewed in terms of a confluence of influences that produced it, from the company history to the history of guitar evolution to the kind of…
The Marshall Major
Force Commander
Any player who shows up these days with a 200-watt guitar amp will elicit a hearty, “Are you out of your mind?” But when the Marshall Major came along 50…
The Audiovox 736 Electric Bass and 936 Amp
Rare Pair
Eight decades ago, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer revealed the story of Paul H. Tutmarc debuting his latest invention – a solidbody electric bass. The 1935 article includes a photograph showing the…
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VG Q&A: Parlor Mystery
Plus, a Pro’s List of Repair Glues
My neighbor has an old parlor guitar that he asked me to clean up after years in storage. Inside the sound hole it reads “The American No. 5” and there is no other identifying script. The bridge is a pyramid-type. We’re curious about its age and manufacturer; I’m guessing Lyon and Healy from the 1920s.
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The story of the Martin F-50
Our friend Nate Westgor from Willie’s American Guitars shares the story of Martin’s first step into the booming 1960s electric guitar market. Enjoy, and have a wonderful holiday season from all of us at Vintage Guitar!
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Veillette-Citron Shark
It’s not often a guitar can be said to have been inspired by a TV show, but that is the case with this 1982 Veillette-Citron Shark, which came about as a result of the success of the program “Welcome Back Kotter.” Well, in a pretty roundabout way, that is! Veillette-Citron guitars were the product of
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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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Classics: Tommy Castro’s ’66 Fender Stratocaster
Tommy Castro has never been much for sitting with a guitar teacher, preferring instead to rely on good ol’ time in the saddle to hone his craft. But this 1966 Stratocaster has taught him a couple lessons. The guitar entered Castro’s universe in the hands of San Francisco music legend John Newton – known on
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Classics: Arena-Rock Alternative Amps
Mad Maxed
As rock started hitting the big time in the mid ’60s, it became clear to guitar-amplifier manufacturers that 100 watts or more was the way to go. The best approach to big power, however, would follow several paths. The stories of the high-powered amps introduced by Fender, Marshall, and Vox through the ’60s have been
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“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Howie Statland
“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Howie Statland Season 01 Episode 10 In Episode 10 of VG’s “Buy That Guitar” podcast, host Ram Tuli is joined by Howie Statland of Rivington Guitars, New York City. They discuss famous players and the effect they have on the value of collectible instruments. Guitarists are often influenced…
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Hangin’ with Kid and Lisa “Little Baby” Andersen
Smooth, Funky Blues With Soul Kid Andersen worked with Charlie Musselwhite and Elvin Bishop before scoring his current gig with Rick Estrin & the Nightcats. One of the best blues guitarists around, here, he’s joined by his wife, Lisa, and bandmate Endre Tarczy to play “Nobody’s Fault But Mine,” from his latest album, “Spirits.” Kid…
National-Dobro 6107A
Preamp tubes: 56, 57 Output tubes: two 2A3 Rectifier: 5Z3 Controls: Volume Output: 6 watts RMS +/- Speaker: one 10″…
The Dallas Rangemaster
Eric Clapton christened it “woman tone.” On the famed 1966 “Beano” album, John Mayall’s Blues Breakers With Eric Clapton, the…
Furry Lewis’ 1968 Gibson B-25N
Heart In Hand
Born in the heart of Mississippi’s fabled Delta region – from where Robert Johnson emerged and a blues-music form was…
Simon Adahl’s 1958 Höfner 162
Missing Link
He may not be part of anthropological history like Dutch paleontologist Eugene Dubois, but Simon Adahl did have to dig…
