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Music
2025 December Issue on Spotify
This month, we feature Rick Derringer, Kid Ramos, Booker T and The M.G.’s, Steve Stevens, Phil Manzanera, Doug Aldrich, Kenny Burrell, Eric Johanson, Gary Moore, and more! Spotify is free or available without ads via a paid subscription. Go to www.spotify.com and search “Vintage Guitar magazine,” or if you already have an account Listen to
Various Artists
Bill Frisell and Thomas Morgan and Dominic Miller
Bill Frisell is a living jazz icon, famed for his ethereal tone and snaking post-bop lines. Here, he partners with Thomas Morgan for a live set – just guitar and standup bass –…
Dwight Yoakam
Brighter Days
Nearly 40 years ago, as audiences wearied of frothy ’80s country-pop, Dwight Yoakam was in the vanguard of country’s New Traditional movement. His stripped-down spin on the twang-driven Bakersfield sound of the ’60s…
Ron Dziubla
Wabi-Sabi
Lately, Dziubla (pronounced JOObluh) has become the saxophonist of choice for everyone from Ricky Martin to Duane Eddy – with sessions with Deke Dickerson, Elmore James, Jr. and the soundtrack to Burlesque along…
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Paul Johnson
The Hepcats Live at the Ajax Novelty Company
This isn’t live, there may not be an Ajax Novelty Company, and the three felines known as the Hepcats are actually the brainchild of Paul Johnson, whose Belairs were early-’60s pioneers of surf music. Suspend reality and dig how the “trio” expertly articulates layers of acoustic guitar. Across decades, Johnson has embraced folk-rock, psychedelia, and
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Yes
Close to the Edge: Super Deluxe Edition
Are you a high-fidelity audio geek? If the answer is, well, yes, this Rhino release brings together an HD experience of Close to the Edge in no fewer than four versions, plus rarities and a ’72 concert. For starters, the 2025 remaster sounds as close to the analog 1972 mix as you’re going to get
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Pink Floyd
Have You Got It Yet? – The Story of Syd Barrett and Pink Floyd
It’s understandable that fans warily approach the flood of pseudo-documentaries and biopics. Add the fact that the late Syd Barrett, Floyd’s original guitarist/leader, suffered from mental illness, and exploitation alarms are sure to go off. But this documentary handles the subject with dignity instead of sensationalism. Interviews by longtime Floyd cover artist Storm Thorgerson with
John Pizzarelli – With A Song In My Heart
Not every artist could get away with releasing a series of tribute albums. John Pizzarelli can. This one features 12 tunes by Richard Rodgers and all seem very heartfelt; for example, the title/opening…
The Allman Brothers Band
Live at the Atlanta International Pop Festival
The Allman Brothers Band is one of those groups guitarists identify after just a handful of notes. First released in 2003, this reissue was recorded during ABB’s two performances at the 1970 festival,…
Dave Hill
New World finds West Coast guitarist Dave Hill at the top of his game as a player and composer. Produced by bassist Jimmy Haslip, the music veers where you’d expect, and Hill’s playing…
Black River Delta
Swedish disciples of pre-World War II blues Erik Jacobs, Erik Nilsson, and Pontus Ohlsson, hauled a bunch of gear up to a remote cabin and got down to business. The result is an…
The Gladiators – Studio One Singles
In the years before Bob Marley became the star of reggae and eclipsed most others, a galaxy of lesser luminaries shone bright. The Gladiators were one such band, and a luminescent one at…
Gary Burton and Friends – Departure
Departure
Geez, I’m not really sure what to say about this CD. It’s a wonderful batch of music played by the likes of Peter Erskine on drums, Fred Hersch on piano, John Patitucci on…
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The Wildhearts
In the raging ’90s, The Wildhearts blasted out of Newcastle upon Tyne like some unholy melding of Guns ’N Roses, Cheap Trick, and The Replacements. Hard rock, power pop, and punk still make up their secret sauce, heard on this latest effort with original singer/guitarist Ginger Wildheart. Ben Marsden plays lead, while Kavus Torabi adds
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Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band
Honeysuckle
Resonator-slide specialist Reverend Peyton returns to his primary influences – early 20th-century African-American music – compelling him to shout from the hollers and the hills. Rootsy, acoustic, inter-war blues is the specific genre, and Peyton doesn’t hold back. With top-tier tutelage from the likes of David “Honeyboy” Edwards, T-Model Ford, and Robert Belfour, he masterfully
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Mike Campbell with Ari Surdoval
Heartbreaker: A Memoir
In his autobiography, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers guitarist Campbell admits he’s quiet and shy. Self-doubt plagued him his entire life, and when problems arose in the Heartbreakers, a lack of confidence had him blaming himself first, even when he wasn’t responsible. Perhaps his attitude was psychologically rooted in his impoverished childhood and coming from
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Alan Gogoll
Lioness Lullabies
Venture online and watch a few videos by Tasmanian guitarist Alan Gogoll and you’ll see he’s nothing short of a phenomenon. On acoustic, he conjures artificial harmonics in a manner that almost defies gravity. Better still, he never shows off these chops – everything on Lioness Lullabies is in the service of the song and
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Jimmy Vivino
Gonna Be 2 of Those Days
A veteran vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist and purveyor of blues, R&B, and rock’, Jimmy Vivino has an incredible résumé. A longtime fixture in Conan O’Brien’s house band, he has played on movie, radio, and Broadway projects and worked with Levon Helm, Hubert Sumlin, Al Kooper, Jimmie Vaughan, Donald Fagen, Warren Haynes, Laura Nyro, along with innumerable others. He’s
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Thin Lizzy
The Acoustic Sessions
Thin Lizzy’s first studio release in decades, this album reimagines tracks recorded 50+ years ago by the trio of vocalist/bassist Phil Lynott, guitarist Eric Bell, and drummer Brian Downey. The songs are from Lizzy’s first three albums – 1971’s Thin Lizzy, ’72’s Shades of a Blue Orphanage, and ’73’s Vagabonds of the Western World. Recently,
John Mayall – Best: 64-69, Drivin’ On: ABC 75-82, Silver Tones: Deram, MCA, Silvertone
The flurry of greatest hits collections showcasing John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers is exciting – and confusing. Here’s a quick primer. The first Best of covers 1964-’69 and features many of the songs…
Tom Wheeler
No, this is not quite an entrée into the Vatican’s secret library, the hush-hush files of the KGB, or the locked vaults of the Pentagon. But for vintage guitar and amp fans, it’s…
The Meters – Trick Bag
Sundazed has done it again. This particular release is only one in a large series of CDs released by this fine band. And they did a great job with them all. Original liner…
Steve Vai
Inviolate
After decades of technical shred-dom, Vai returns to his musical mindset prior to David Lee Roth, composing soundtrack-scaled material that is powerful and dramatic. “Teeth of the Hydra” is a showpiece for a…
American Folk Blues Festival – Various Artists
This is the British TV counterpart to the German broadcasts that were unearthed on three stunning volumes of The American Folk Blues Festival, in 2003. If you saw those, you’ve probably already stopped…
Richie Kotzen
Soul Survivor
Richie Kotzen may not be a household name, but with nearly 20 albums and countless group projects on his resumé, he’s on the verge. Coming to prominence in ’89 after being signed to…
The Anderson Ponty Band
It took 30 years but Jon Anderson of Yes and violinist Jean-Luc Ponty have finally cleared their schedules long enough to work on an album together. This collection fuses Anderson’s vocal style with…
Judas Priest
50 Heavy Metal Years of Music
With 42 CDs containing every studio and live album by the British colossus – including 13 discs of unreleased material – this is the metal motherlode. The opener, 1974’s “One for the Road,”…
John Mayall and Friends – Along For the Ride
John Mayall (VG, July ’98) has been doing it for so long it seems he has always been there. And he has. In a career that has lasted nearly 40 years and produced…
Biréli Lagr
Biréli Lagr
Ana Popovic
Power
Blues-rock barnstormer Ana Popovic’s latest is about love, perseverance, strength, and survival. After rising victoriously from 14 cancer treatments in 2020, Popovic continues to push the envelope of her artistry by dropping her…
Don Rich and the Buckeroos – Country Pickin’: The Don Rich Anthology
The Don Rich collection is a 24-song retrospective featuring songs recorded when the late guitarist/fiddler was the instrumental hero of Buck Owens’ band. There’s lots of stuff here you’d expect. Killer instrumentals like…
Led Zeppelin: The Biography
Bob Spitz
Birthright: A Black Roots Music Compendium
Various artists
This double-CD’s 40 tracks represent a wide swath of black roots music, from zydeco to gospel, from a Mississippi fife-and-drum crew to one-man band Jesse Fuller. If some of the cuts are familiar,…
Pokey LaFarge
Hamfats-Styled Hot Stuff
Pokey LaFarge’s Rounder Records debut continues his rich, well-established sound. Primarily acoustic, he offers another amalgam of jazz, blues, jug band, and Western swing. At different times, LaFarge and his expanded band conjure…
Toulouse Engelhardt
Lost Grove Records
Acoustic-guitar pioneer John Fahey influenced a generation of fingerpickers, and none sound more like a genuine musical heir than Toulouse Engelhardt This is a solo guitar album, and its tunes, with titles such…
Lincoln Durham
Minimalist begins to describe Durham’s music and approach, but it doesn’t capture everything that is involved. All 11 of the songs here feature pretty much some form of guitar and percussion and not…
Willie Nelson – Naked Willie
The forced, intrusive background vocals on the “definitive” versions of “Funny How Time Slips Away” or “Crazy” (from The Essential Willie Nelson) are argument enough in favor of this project. The songs on…
Various Artists – Anchored in Love: A Tribute to June Carter Cash
Tribute records are a mixed bag by nature, but Anchored in Love is a wonderful collection of songs dedicated to June Carter Cash, several of them written by the country icon as well.…
Andreas öberg – Solo
Swedish guitarslinger Andreas öberg is a firebrand, playing mainstream jazz and Gypsy jazz with a fury. His style is ultra-modern – fast and driving, with a rock and roll-inspired intensity. Fronting the Hot…
Bryan Sutton – Not Too Far From The Tree
Imagine creating an album where you play duets with all of your guitar heroes. On Not Too Far From The Tree, Bryan Sutton does exactly that. Now, if you or I tried this…
Greg Howe – Sound Proof
Tone Center Records
Greg Howe’s incredible chops often override the musical aspect of songs. At least that’s the common wisdom. But that doesn’t happen on this collection of songs that show off his rock, jazz, and…
Kim Wilson – Lookin’ For Trouble
Lookin' For Trouble
