• The story of the Martin F-50

    Classic Instruments

    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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Lloyd Loar

An Alternative View

The Master Model instruments created at Gibson in the early 1920s are famous for their sound and build. Credit for their design is often laid at the feet of “acoustic…

Ken Fischer

1945-2006

Although by most estimates he produced fewer than 100 Trainwreck amps, Ken Fischer – tech, designer, and amp-maker – will be remembered as one of the most authoritative and intuitive…

The Story of Albanus Guitars

Windy-City Wonders

“Art for art’s sake.” The expression is common. But how often is it practiced? In a basement studio on Chicago’s North Side, Carl Johnson epitomized the maxim while building archtop guitars…

Dave Murphy: Acoustic Country!

 Classic Ballad Style Country/folk/rock singer/guitarist Dave Murphy wrangled guitarist Chris Tarrow for this take on “Josephine,’ from Dave’s new album, “A Heart So Rare.” Dave is using a U.K.-made…

Rickenbacker’s Bakelite Spanish Vs. Fender’s Esquire

Fender Myth Debunked! (Part II)

Even if Rickenbacher’s 1935 Bakelite Spanish model wasn’t the first solidbody electric, it would still be important in the evolution of modern guitars as the inspiration for Fender’s 1949 entry…

Martin OM-18 and 000-28

What makes these two Martins remarkable is not necessarily their rarity or historical importance, though both would be welcome additions to any serious collection. Martin has offered sunburst finishes as…

 The Guitars of Gary Rossington 

A Legend’s Legacy

When the time came for Gary Rossington’s family to decide what to do with his guitars and amps after his passing in March of 2023, daughters Mary and Annie along…

Peavey’s Razer, Mystic, and Foundation

Peavey’s Razer, Mystic, and Foundation

Contrasting Chronologies

Just a handful of years after Peavey turned the world of electric guitar upside-down with its T-60 guitar and T-40 bass, the company was feeling its oats. While the T…

Stromberg Electro

Mid-’30s Stromberg/Kay Del Oro, with “resonator” containing the Stromberg electro unit. Without specifically mentioning it, an intriguing headline in The Mustic Trades, dated October 20, 1928, heralded the launch of…

Carvin Factory Tour

Carvin Does It Different

Imagine a company that builds 600 high-quality guitars and basses per month, with a normal backorder count of 700. “Well, that’s okay…” some guitar enthusiasts might observe, “but some guitar…

Gibson 1938 Electric Bass

Likely The First!

Gibson 1938 Electric Bass This interesting piece of fretted Americana can be appreciated by any vintage instrument aficionado – particularly bassists – as it was probably the first instrument of…

'62 Les Paul Rarity

’62 Les Paul Rarity

In its early years, the Gibson Les Paul Custom evolved through several body-style and spec changes and was the earliest Gibson solidbody to have a Tune-O-Matic bridge and stop tailpiece;…

Seth Lover

Seth Lover

The history of the musical instrument business is full of stories, from the drab to the miraculous. Some bean-counters will busily push their way to the forefront, grabbing for a…

Gibson’s First Cherry Red 335

It came from the Books

Gibson introduced the ES-335T in the spring of 1958 as the progenitor to its double-cutaway,semi-hollow body “thinline” series of guitars. Characterized by the maple block running down their centers, most…

Gibson J-185

The Gibson J-185

The J-185 is regarded by many players and collectors as the finest-sounding Gibson flat-top made after World War II. The only flat-top of its size and shape made by Gibson…

Beyond the Parlor Part Three: Women

Beyond the Parlor

Part Three: Women

Ed. Note: In the final installment in his series on the guitar in 19-century America, Tim Brookes offers a study of several women who played the guitar, and what the instrument meant…

Zemaitis Acoustic Bass

1972 Zemaitis fretless acoustic. To say Tony Zemaitis made eye-catching instruments would mean uttering one of the great understatements in modern luthiery. A cabinetmaker of Lithuanian heritage, Antonio “Tony” Zemaitis…

Gibson Humbucker

Crunchy, Clean Dirt

Gibson and Fender may be the longstanding heavyweight rivals of the electric guitar game, but they have one very important thing in common: they revolutionized the guitar industry. Fender took…

Martin 0-42

The Martin 0-42

Through the years, Martin’s dreadnought, OM, and 000 guitars may have gained the most notoriety. But for the sweetest and best-quality sound, Martin itself recommends the size 0, exemplified by…

The Beatles’ Casinos

Of all the guitars made famous by the Beatles, the only one that John, Paul, and George had in common was the Epiphone Casino. Each owned one and used it…

Bill Gruggett

Still Buildin' em in Bakersfield

The agrarian area of California that includes such cities as Bakersfield and Tulare has a special significance to country music lovers and guitar lovers alike. The musical mystique, of course,…

The Koch Studiotone

No-Sweat Double-Duty

Koch Amplifier’s 20-watt Studiotone uses an all-tube circuit powered by a matched pair of Ruby EL84 tubes producing 20 watts and three 12AX7A preamp tubes. The Studiotone’s lightweight, compact (19…

The Coulter Company

The Coulter Company

More Rarities from the Pacific Northwest

The eye-catching and technologically innovative stringed instruments created by Frank Evans Coulter in the early 20th century are so exceedingly scarce that few guitar enthusiasts have laid eyes on one.…

Jersey Boys

Horray For Hollywood

The Guitars and Amps of Jersey Boys

Movies made in the 1950s and ’60s that included rock-and-roll music acts typically showed them performing in segments using their own equipment (Little Richard and others in 1956’s The Girl…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Steve “Frog” Forgey

Season 03 Episode 04 In Episode 3.4 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by Steve “Frog” Forgey of Elderly Instruments. Forgey has been at Elderly Instruments since…

Supro Guitars and Amplifiers Part I

Supro Part 1

Some of the earliest electric guitars, amps-in-cases, pickups under the bridge, fiberglass guitars, built-in electronic vibratos. Sound curious enough for you? The subject of Supro guitars and amplifiers represents a…

Ovation Solidbody Guitars

No matter how hard they tried…

Acurious phenomenon that ac-companies certain guitar compa-nies is an inability to translate success from one medium to another. For instance, Martin has never been able to transfer its reputation for…

Bay State Parlor Guitar

Play It In Any Room!

The parlor guitar. Designed by Mr. Parlor? No. First manufactured by the Parlor, Inc? No. Endorsed by the well-known recording artist, Parlor? Now don’t be silly, of course not! Then…

The Gibson Starfire TR 1000 RVT

Trans-Galactic Toneway

Relatively unsung among early entrants to the field of solid-state guitar amplifiers, Gibson was the first high-output, high-quality manufacturer to bring one to market. And while it quickly proved the…

Revisiting The Jazzmaster

While volumes have been written about its more-famous sibling, the Stratocaster, surprisingly little attention is paid to the Jazzmaster – Fender’s top-of-the-line guitar when it was introduced in 1958. Then,…