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Harp Legend Charlie Musselwhite

Harp legend Charlie Musselwhite has recorded and performed with a stunning array of guitarists in his band – Harvey Mandel, Luther Tucker, Robben Ford, Junior Watson, Charlie Sexton, Kid Anderson, and steeler Freddie Roulette to name but a few. Here, he takes the reins (strings?) himself, using his Gibson Nighthawk plugged into a Magnatone Varsity Deluxe to play a bit. In the May issue, we review his latest album, “Lookout Highway.” Here’s our review. Read Now!

Rick Derringer 1947-2025

We’re saddened to hear of the passing of Rick Derringer, legendary rock guitarist and songwriter known for playing classic collectibles. Watch for our memorial in the August issue, and here’s our in-depth interview with Derringer from 1998.

Harp Legend Charlie Musselwhite

Harp legend Charlie Musselwhite has recorded and performed with a stunning array of guitarists in his band – Harvey Mandel, Luther Tucker, Robben Ford, Junior Watson, Charlie Sexton, Kid Anderson, and steeler Freddie Roulette to name but a few. Here, he takes the reins (strings?) himself, using his Gibson Nighthawk plugged into a Magnatone Varsity Deluxe to play a bit. In the May issue, we review his latest album, “Lookout Highway.” Here’s our review. Read Now!

Rick Derringer 1947-2025

We’re saddened to hear of the passing of Rick Derringer, legendary rock guitarist and songwriter known for playing classic collectibles. Watch for our memorial in the August issue, and here’s our in-depth interview with Derringer from 1998.

Classic Instruments

Yamaha SA-15

Our perception of Japanese guitars has evolved slowly. At one point, they were cheap toys, at other times imperfect copies, then startling innovations. Perspective encircles the truth. So, how should we perceive the Yamaha SA-15? Japan became interested in guitars in the early 1920s, as some musicians there began to perform what we’d today call […]

by Michael Wright
Artists

Bryan Beller: Aristocratic Riffs

Time-Signature Shifts on “Aristoclub Bryan Beller and his Lull Custom BBMF5 demonstrate what it takes to keep up with Guthrie Govan and Marco Minneman in their scary-good fusion trio, The Aristocrats. Bryan and his four- and five-string basses help the band tackle challenging instrumentals without losing sight of the song; think modern-day Dixie Dregs or […]

by Vintage Guitar
VG Approved Gear

Tx-Watt Flagship

Tone Big as Texas

For more than three decades on the Texas roadhouse circuit, guitarist Jack Kay’s love of vintage Fender and Marshall tones often had him using both amplifier brands at the same gig. Envisioning one capable of producing American and British sounds, the founder of Tx-Watt embarked on a quest to build the ultimate amp. After 10 […]

Artists

Jeff “Skunk” Baxter

License To Thrill

To a generation of music fans, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter was one of the most recognizable guitarists of the early ’70s. On TV shows like “Midnight Special” and “American Bandstand,” he was the Telecaster-wielding rocker who played on Steely Dan’s first three albums; his solos on “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number,” “Night By Night,” “Bodhisattva,” and […]

Classic Instruments

Gibson Style J Mando-bass

Decades before Audiovox or Leo Fender dreamed of making a fretted electric bass, Gibson started manufacturing fretted acoustic mando-basses that were tuned the same as an upright bass. Joe Spann, author of Spann’s Guide to Gibson 1902-1941 has assembled serial and work-order number information documenting Gibson’s production prior to World War II, which indicates mando-bass […]

Artists

Buddy Merrill

1936-2021

Buddy Merrill, guitarist, steel-guitarist, composer, arranger, recording artist, and occasional vocalist, died December 5. He was 85. A seasoned musician by age 18, Merrill became a member of Lawrence Welk’s orchestra, featured on Welk’s weekly ABC-TV program from 1955 until ’74. Welk’s program targeted older adults, yet Merrill’s playing inspired countless babyboomers to take up […]

Classic Instruments

Dan’s Guitar RX: Finding An Old Friend

What Goes Around...

I grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where I learned to play guitar during the folk boom that, for me, started with the Kingston Trio in 1959; their music led me to all the great folk and blues musicians that came before them. In ’63, I started playing electric guitar in bands and for the […]

Classic Instruments

Vox AC100

Scream Machine

The history of Vox amplifiers’ evolution through the early/mid-’60s directly tracks with The Beatles’ increasing needs to be heard over the screams of fanatical audiences. Simultaneously, the arrival of the AC100 foretells a trend that would make the 100-Watter a must-have on large stages the world over. Even as the Vox AC30 was proving to […]

Artists

Max Cavalera

Roots Revisited

To the casual fan, heavy metal can get a bit “same sounding” after a while. But then there are those rare albums that are undeniably unique. Case in point is Sepultura’s 1996 classic, Roots, which combined de-tuned riffing with Brazilian percussion, exotic instrumentation, and chanting. Two decades since its release, Max Cavalera looks back on […]

VG Approved Gear

Fender Mustang II Amp

Practiced Past

When you check out an amp like the Fender Mustang II, you may wonder if the term “practice amp” still applies anymore. Once upon a time, a practice amp was a small solid-stater with few EQ controls and perhaps basic reverb and overdrive effects. The Mustang II, however, comes with a full array of amp […]

Artists

Daniele Gottardo plays “Spirals”

American rock guitar meets European classical Guitar virtuoso Daniele Gottardo used his Charvel Custom Shop guitar (with scalloped fretboard) to play this VG-exclusive take on “Spirals,” from latest album, “Inkblot.” Daniele’s approach to guitar is a meld of early-20th-century classical and stellar modern-rock technique. Our interview with him appears in the January issue. Read Now!

VG Approved Gear

Gibson L-5S Ron Wood Signature

Serious Lumber

In 1972, Gibson introduced the L-5S as a smaller, thinner solidbody version of its L-5 hollowbody. Most mistook it for a Les Paul with a wider body. Though not Gibson’s most popular model, it did catch the attention of a number of high-profile guitarists, including Rolling Stone Ron Wood. Like the L-5, the L-5S was […]

Dave Davies
Artists

Dave Davies

Personal Songs and Power Chords

For more than a half-century, the world has known of guitarist Dave Davies and his raucous electric sound, thanks to the earliest hits of the Kinks. The band’s third single, “You Really Got Me” (released in August, 1964) and “All Day and All of the Night” (debuting that October) were sonic primers for budding guitarists. […]

Artists

Naia Izumi

Intuitive Artistry

It’s difficult to pigeonhole the music of Naia Izumi, a singer/songwriter who’s also one of the most uncanny guitarists around. “I make music I’m not hearing,” says Naia, who was diagnosed with autism at the age of 16. On his new album, A Residency in the Los Angeles Area, he uses two-handed tapping, chiming chords, whammy-bar […]

VG Approved Gear

Tone King Royalist MKIII

Firebreather U.K. Three-Speed

British tube amps from the mid ’60s and early ’70s have inspired countless designs emulating their beloved tones. In 2014, Tone King Amplifier Company launched the Royalist, its take on the famed Marshall JTM45/JMP50 “Bluesbreaker.” In ’16, the Royalist MKII brought a change from EL84 to EL34/6L6GC/KT66 power tubes and a unique 6V6GT screen regulator. […]

Artists

Mary Osborne

Charlie’s Angel

Jazz guitar pioneer Mary Osborne was the only female guitarist to realize a significant impact on jazz in the 1940s and ’50s – and many aficionados agree that her swinging style earned her confirmation as one of the early architects of R&B and rock and roll. Born July 17, 1921, in Minot, North Dakota, Osborne […]

VG Approved Gear

EHX Walking on the Moon Flanger/Filter Matrix

Andy Flange

With its mouthful of a name – The Andy Summers Walking On the Moon Flanger/Filter Matrix – the latest Electro-Harmonix stompbox is modeled after Summers’ legendary tone, with nuance that separates it from the jet-plane swoosh of early Van Halen. While technically a flanger that offers classic swooshy/wobbly tones, the fun is in how the […]

Artists

Ron Bosse

Unison Groove

While Boston-based guitarist Ron Bosse was inspired to begin his six-string journey while listening to classic rock, he became a jazz player and has been active for decades. “The first instrument I learned was saxophone, in fourth grade,” he recently recalled to VG. “When I got to high school, I joined the jazz band as […]

Music

Doyle Bramhall II

Rich Man

In the 15 years since his debut album, Welcome, Doyle Bramhall, II has been in great demand. Along with a decade working with Eric Clapton in the studio and onstage, he’s has collaborated with a lengthy list of artists including Elton John, Roger Waters, Sheryl Crow, and on the Tedeschi-Trucks Band’s last three albums. This […]

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