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Trending Now
Country-music fans familiar with the history of Bakersfield, California, know of Trout’s nightclub. The last of the venues that gave birth to the “Bakersfield sound” epitomized by the twang of a Telecaster in the hands of Merle Haggard or Red Simpson, many stars strode its stage. Other legendary nightspots included the Blackboard, Lucky Spot, the […]
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Artists
Toy Caldwell
Marine and Marshall Tucker Guitarist Toy Caldwell
One of the earliest VG interviews Willie G. Moseley did with a veteran “Southern rock” musician was a conversation with erstwhile Marshall Tucker guitarist Toy Caldwell in 1992. Toy was just embarking on a solo career, on his own terms. Willie had no idea at the time that he and his brother Tommy were both […]
Music
John Lee Hooker
The Modern, Chess & Veejay Singles Collection 1949-62
Mr. Boogie
John Lee Hooker was the bridge between country blues and electric blues, something elegantly captured during a 53-year career. The son of sharecroppers, he melded field hollers, Delta blues, talking blues, and what became called Mississippi “hill country” blues into the electric postwar era with records like “Boogie Chillun” and “Sally Mae” from 1949. Those […]
Classic Instruments
Carvin 8-15-B
Mail-Order Prize
In the days when the printed catalog was king, Carvin guitars and amplifiers often boasted a stature that outweighed their in-the-wild availability, while robust quality and appealing feature sets kept them in the minds of players. Many fans of vintage amps today, especially players “of a certain age,” were introduced to Carvin products through glossy […]
VG Approved Gear
Taylor 814ce
New Life at 40
Taylor 814ce Price: $4,378 (list); $3,399 (street) Info: www.taylorguitars.com Of all the guitars in Taylor’s product line, the 814ce is one of the most popular. Most manufacturers are loath to fix something that isn’t broken, but Taylor went back to the drawing board and for their fortieth anniversary designed an all-new Taylor 814ce. While longtime […]
Artists
Jake Shimabukuro
Ukulele Hero
It’s one of the most unlikely success stories in music. Armed with a four-string tenor ukulele, a young Hawaiian videos himself playing solo in Central Park. His dynamic instrumental arrangement of George Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” goes viral, viewed more than 17 million times. His command of the instrument and interpretations of material […]
Artists
Bernie Marsden
1951-2023
Bernie Marsden, one of the founding guitarists of Whitesnake, co-writer of the band’s massive hit “Here I Go Again,” and noted guitar collector, died August 24. He was 72, and while no cause of death was given in the weeks after, a statement from the family said he died peacefully with his wife and daughters […]
VG Approved Gear
Gibson’s 1941 SJ-100
Second Coming
Gibson 1941 SJ-100 Price: $3,868 (list)/$2,999 (street) Info: www.gibson.com Sporting a unique “stair step” headstock, the first Gibson SJ-100s began trickling out of the Kalamazoo factory in 1939. This original design lasted only two model years before it was replaced in 1941 with a second version that was itself soon discontinued, this time due to […]
VG Approved Gear
D’Angelico Excel Style B Archtop
Vaunted Vibe
Reintroduced in January ’24, D’Angelico’s Style B replicates design details from several of the archtops John D’Angelico first built in the 1930s. The elegant aesthetics and Art Deco touches of his initial Excel line are well-preserved here, alongside a few smart updates for trad jazz players of this century. While the original line was conceived […]
Have Guitar Will Travel
Have Guitar Will Travel – 014 Featuring Robert Berry
The new episode of “Have Guitar Will Travel” features Robert Berry, renowned bassist in The Greg Kihn Band. A passionate progressive-rock guy, he worked with Steve Howe in GTR, with Carl Palmer and Keith Emerson in the ELP offshoot 3, and has performed with Ambrosia and The Tubes. His band, December People, which includes Sammy Hagar and […]
VG Approved Gear
The String Sling
Trapper Keeper
Almost all of us have a guitar – maybe even two – we like a bit more than “the other ones.” Maybe it’s a favorite color, is from our “birth year” (yeah, that’s a thing), or it arrived by way of family, friend, or special occasion. Whatever the reason, it gets better treatment than the […]
Artists
Rodrigo Sanchez
Philosophical Resonance
The latest from Rodrigo y Gabriela, In Between Thoughts…A New World, shows the acoustic duo in top form with passion, grace, and consciousness-raising. Electric guitars, nylon-string acoustics, and electronica flourishes uplift philosophical themes regarding reality and existence – but it’s a particular Fender electric guitar that occupies Rodrigo Sanchez’ waking moments. In Between Thoughts… is […]
Artists
Scott T. Jones’ battle, axes
Rippin’ Midwestern Jazz-Rock St. Louis’ own jazz-fusion mainstay Scott T. Jones runs through a few tunes – on a few different guitars – from his new album, “Fictional Characters.” Scott is interviewed in the March issue, and watch for our review in April! Read Now!
VG Approved Gear
Soldano Astro-20 combo
Rock Machine
Mike Soldano is the man behind amp tones that influenced a generation of guitarists, his hot-rodded ideas having been used on countless albums by artists from Warren Haynes and George Lynch to Steve Lukather, Mark Knopfler, and Edward Van Halen. Soldano’s latest, the Astro-20, is a three-channel amp that combines classic tones with 21st-century features […]
Have Guitar Will Travel
Have Guitar Will Travel – 013 Featuring Josh Zee
In this episode of the Have Guitar Will Travel podcast, I speak with Josh Zee, who has recorded two major label albums on the Sony/Work label as the singer/guitarist and songwriter for the rock group Protein which played the Warped Tour and toured Europe and Japan as part of MTV Asia Summer Fest. Josh also played alt-country in The Mother […]
Classic Instruments
Steve Wariner’s ’62 Fender Jazz Bass
An eye-popping collectible in its own right, this Olympic White ’62 Fender Jazz Bass scores a few points higher on the scale not only because it has been in the same family for decades, but mostly because it’s owned by star country picker/singer Steve Wariner. Wariner grew up in Fishers, Indiana, then a semi-rural small […]
VG Approved Gear
Loar LH-309 VS Archtop
One Cool Cat
Loar LH-309 VS Archtop Price: $569.99 (street) Contact: theloar.com As the retro craze delves deeper into six-string history, a spate of non-cutaway archtops have hit the market, celebrating an era when giants like Eddie Lang, Lonnie Johnson, Charlie Christian, George Barnes, Eddie Durham, Carl Kress, and Oscar Moore laid down cool chords, sultry bends, and […]
Artists
Have Guitar Will Travel 074 – Molly Moore with her guitarist Ariel Bellvalaire and MUNA’s Josette Maskin
Episode 74 of “Have Guitar Will Travel” opens with host James Patrick Regan speaking with Molly Moore and her guitarist, Ariel Bellvalaire. Ariel grew up in the Connecticut and moved to L.A. when she was 15. Starting on guitar at 12 and influenced by Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhodes, and Steve Vai, she studied at […]