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Season 03 Episode 01 In Episode 3.2 of “Buy That Guitar,” presented by Vintage Guitar magazine, host Ram Tuli engages with Binky Philips, a notable New York-based rock musician, guitarist, songwriter, and journalist. Known for his enduring presence in the city’s music scene since the early 1970s, Binky shares his experiences during a transformative era […]
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Knaggs Guitars’ Chesapeake Severn Tier 2 Trembuck Price: $ 5,600 (list)/$4,300 (street) Info: www.knaggsguitars.com. Maryland-based Knaggs Guitars was founded five years ago by former PRS luthier Joe Knaggs and business marketer Peter Wolf. The pair build high-quality set-neck guitars using handpicked tonewoods and state-of-the-art processes. Available in a variety of color and finishes, Knaggs guitars […]
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Music
Selwyn Birchwood
Living In a Burning House
Selwyn Birchwood’s third album for Chicago-based Alligator Records represents new creative frontiers for the 36-year-old Florida native. The robust use of keyboards and baritone sax makes it his most sonically expansive effort to date, and that sound isn’t just expansive – it’s thick. The instrumental wall, fortunately, doesn’t detract from Birchwood’s omnipresent guitar work and […]
Classic Instruments
Fender’s 1951-’54 Telecaster
In Detail
Fender’s first Spanish-style guitar was a lesson in functional simplicity with its solid body, single pickup, and bolt-on neck. And it didn’t receive a welcome fit for the legend it would become.
Music
Robin Trower featuring Sari Schorr
Joyful Sky
Trower, a legendary guitarist who has occasionally sung lead on his own albums, has more-often worked with stellar vocalists to bring extra power to his combustible blues-rock. Collaborators have included the late, great James Dewar, Davey Pattison, and Richard Watts. Now, add Sari Schorr to that list. Trower exhibits palpable excitement at having the husky-voiced […]
Artists
Billy Sheehan
Talas Time Travel
Billy Sheehan earned notoriety and commercial success in the ’80s and ’90s as a member of David Lee Roth’s post-Van Halen band and then with the supergroup Mr. Big. He’s kept busy through the years with sessions, solo albums, and work with other bands including the Winery Dogs, Sons of Apollo, and Niacin. It all […]
Classic Instruments
Eko’s “Celluloid” ’60s Basses
Cool or Gaudy?
By the early 1960s, Europe’s industrial bases had mostly recovered from World War II. Many musical-instrument manufacturers stuck to products popular in their respective countries, but some were innovating, especially those building solidbody electric guitars. Oliviero Pigini founded Eko in 1959 to make accordions before an abrupt decline in interest pushed the company into guitar […]
Music
Rick Vito
Cadillac Man
Best known for his “Like A Rock” slide work behind Bob Seger and 1987-’91 stint with Fleetwood Mac, Vito’s lengthy resume also includes John Mayall, Bonnie Raitt, Roger McGuinn, John Prine, and Dolly Parton. Along the way, he has released a dozen solo albums across 30 years. His expressive singing and hip songwriting impress on […]
Artists
Jabo, Vince, and Broadcaster 0048
Special Addition
It’s routine for Vince Gill, as one of Nashville’s true connoisseurs of electric and acoustic gear, to receive tips about rare guitars for sale. In 2012, one such call shined light on a near-forgotten great – Robert M. “Jabo” Arrington. One of a handful of early Nashville guitar greats actually born and raised in the […]
Artists
Punk-Rock Pioneer Ivan Julian
NYC Luminary Goes Avant-Garde! Ivan Julian does an experimental take on “Misty” before going into the solo from “Love Is Good,” followed by some of the title track from his new album “Swing Your Lanterns.” His Strat is straight-punk DIY – a ’62 body with a ’72 neck. “I glued it together because the body […]
VG Approved Gear
Rock N Roll Relics Revenge Jr
Good Wood
Rock guitarist Billy Rowe turned his love of instruments into a company that makes hand-built electrics that capture the vibe, tone, and feel of prized vintage models. His latest is the Revenge Jr. With its offset Firebird-meets-Telecaster body shape and lightweight cedar body, the Revenge Jr is a stripped-down version of Rowe’s dual-humbucker Revenge, with […]
Classic Instruments
Traynor YBA-2 Bass Mate
Canadian amp maker Traynor gets a lot of respect in some circles for turning out solid, good-sounding tube amps that are built with quality components and, in many cases, can easily be modified toward a sonic condition more substantial than when they left the factory. It’s also frequently noted that they “blend British and American […]
Readers' Choice
Hall of Fame – Innovators
From 1991 to the present — read about each Readers’ Choice Awards Innovators.
VG Approved Gear
Squier Paranormal Custom Nashville Stratocaster
No Choice Required
Can’t decide between a Tele and a Strat? The new Squier Paranormal Custom Nashville Stratocaster may ease your worried mind. With a double-bound/double-cut poplar body and maple neck, the guitar has the neck and bridge pickups of a standard Tele with a middle pickup borrowed from a Strat. All have Alnico polepieces and the trio […]
Artists
Shuggie Otis
Return Of The Prodigy
The son of bluesman Johnny Otis, Shuggie Otis was born into a world of blues, R&B, nightclubs, and stages. As a guitar prodigy, he played in his father’s band, and as a teen was signed to Epic Records. The albums Here Comes Shuggie Otis, Freedom Flight, and Inspiration Information made him the most talked about […]
Artists
Jesse Valenzuela
Revisits the Gin Blossoms
(Calling All) Angels Tonight: Gin Blossoms guitarist Jesse Valenzuela and his reunited colleagues learned some intriguing lessons on tour in 2003. “Move it or lose it” is one of rock and roll’s most ruthless truisms; bands ignore it at their peril. But bassist Bill Leen, guitarist Scott Johnson and lead singer/guitarist Robin Wilson also realize […]
Artists
Orianthi Lights It Up
New Music, Signature J-200 With her still-newish signature Gibson J-200, Orianthi strums and sings a chill version of the hard-rocking “Light It Up,” from the just-released “Rock Candy” album. Catch our review of her other new album, “Live In Hollywood,” in the October issue. Read Now!
VG Approved Gear
MXR Custom Shop Sub Machine Octave Fuzz
Lowdown And Nasty
Rising from the smoke and flames of the MXR Custom Shop is the pedal of which every fuzz freak dreams. You never know when you’ll need that extra octave, so MXR has taken it upon themselves to enable gear-addicted guitarists yearning for belligerent tones. The result is the Sub Machine Octave Fuzz, which adds not […]
Music
Slash featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators
4
Slash is among the last of the old-school guitar heroes; there’s a line from ’60s and ’70s gods straight to him. Though permanently in the giant shadow of Guns N‘ Roses, Slash’s work with vocalist/songwriter Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators (Frank Sidoris, guitar, Todd Kerns, bass, and Brent Fitz, drums) adds to his legacy. The […]