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Super PickupGiveaway 2025
Win Big! 11 Sets! 11 Winners! Win a set of pickups from one of these sponsors: Deadline is March 15, 2026. Complete the survey below to enter giveaway. One entry…
Milbert Amplifiers GAGA D-60
Shape Shifter
The Milbert Amplifiers GAGA D-60 Price: $2,950 list Info: www.milbert.com/gaga Gear reviews, whether describing guitars or amps, often speak to…

Rory Gallagher’s Photo-Finish
Legend’s Best
The year 1977 saw upheaval in rock and roll, from the death of Elvis Presley and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s plane crash…

Check This Action: Real Gone for a Change
“Hold it, fellas.” After languidly singing the first line of “Milk Cow Blues,” Elvis Presley halted the proceedings. “That don’t…

Classics: January 2024
Bill Woodward's 1953 Gibson Les Paul
Gravitational heavyweights in our culture, beyond baseball, hot dogs, and apple pie, few things say “American” more than music and…

The Marcus King Band
It’s easy to see why Warren Haynes has so much respect for young Marcus King. The 20-year-old guitarist, vocalist, and…

Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams
Live at Levon’s!
The term “versatile” is laughable when it comes to Larry Campbell. A handful of the artists he has recorded, produced,…
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Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings
Double-bound for Glory
George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacher founded Electro String in 1931 to manufacture what everyone would soon call “Rickenbacker” guitars. Success came early and their lap steels set standards of quality,…
ARTISTS

Grace Bowers
Truth of Youth
The word “prodigy” is overused in the music biz, but Grace Bowers is a real-deal young funkster. Just 18 years…

Robbie Robertson, 1943-2023
Lasting Legacy
It’s ironic that Robbie Robertson was famous mostly for his songwriting, because beneath the minimal, compositional style that marked his…

Good Times In Bad
The Origin of Fender’s Vintage Series
The years leading up to CBS Musical Instruments’ 1985 sale of the Fender brand were fluid times at the instrument…

Mick Ralphs
Good Company
In 1972, one of Britain’s best bands, Mott The Hoople, still hadn’t made any impact on the charts. Its record…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

National Style 3 Hawaiian
Metal-bodied guitars built by the National String Instrument Company before World War II represent a giant leap in guitar design…

Dan’s Guitar RX: Restoring a Vintage Jazz Bass
Mashed Fender
The owner of a ’62 Jazz Bass recently sent it to my shop for repair and renovation. He’d bought it…

Raul Malo’s Instrumental Side
Mavericks frontman with a vintage Jazzmaster Though he is renowned and beloved for his vocals in the Mavericks, Raul…

Wes Beech
Life in The Plasmatics
From the moment he met Rod Swenson and Wendy O. Williams, things for Wes Beech were never really “normal.” Walking…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Live Wire
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Narrow(field) Win
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Take Flight

Elite Acoustics EAE D6-8 Pro
Power-Packed
A knee-jerk first impression of the Elite Acoustics D6-8 Pro might be, “Dang, that is small.” But its one-foot cube…

Real McCoy Custom Wah Pedals
Crying Out Loud!
RMC3FL Prices: $255 RMC4 Picture Prices: $235 RMC8 Guitar Eqwahlyzer Prices: $269 RMC10 Prices: $235 Info: www.realmccoycustom.com. Geoffrey Teese began…

Guild Starfire I-12
Budget Jangle
Twelve-string electrics were ubiquitous in the swinging ’60s, popularized by bands like The Byrds, Beatles, Searchers, Turtles, Beau Brummels, and…
EHX Spruce Goose OD
Blues-breakers Bump
Known and loved for its smooth breakup and sensitivity, Marshall’s Bluesbreaker circuit is a legend unto itself. The Spruce Goose…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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More Personal
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Rare Pioneer

Preston Thompson 00-45
New Old Vintage
Given their scarcity, few mortal pickers will ever own a pre-war Martin 00 or 000 with 45-level appointments. But a…

Faces
At the BBC: Complete BBC Concert & Session Recordings, 1970-1973
Rod Stewart & Faces were sloppy and raucous enough to make the Rolling Stones look like Air Supply. Okay, not…

National’s Pioneer RP1
Steel Soul
What do you get when you cross a National Duolian with a solidbody electric? Answer: a guitar that Elmore James…

Fishman’s Fluence Greg Koch Gristle-Tone P90
A Quiet Place
With the miracle of micro-electronics, you can pack a massive amount of tone into a tight space. Case in point:…










































