Find what’s in this issue, enter the latest exclusive VG giveaways and contests, or learn the 3 ways to get your Vintage Guitar fix! Don’t forget to check out VG Classifieds and the playlist for this issue of VG on Youtube.

Table of Contents

With help from our friends at the Hard Rock, we unearth Mick Taylor’s ’58 Les Paul Standard – the ’Burst heard on some of the grittiest Rolling Stones songs. We offer a great talk with Mundell Lowe, who looks back at his highly impressive career. We also speak with Ernie Isley about that time he didn’t take guitar lessons from Hendrix, and highlight his work with the Isley Brothers. Our comprehensive instrument profiles reveal the nuts and bolts on violin-shaped ’60s basses, the Migma Laute-Guitarre, Roy Smeck’s Gibson L-5, and Eko’s “celluloid” basses from the ’60s.Steven Stone talks about adding to one’s pallete with a tenor guitar, Dave Hunter explains how a bunch of very lucky teenagers ended up with the biggest amp in the world – the Magnatone Monster. Wolf Marshall shows you the best licks and tells the story of Johnny Moore, and we talk new music with Marty Friedman, Jackie Venson, Brian Tarquin, Greg Howe, Eugene Edwards, Cheetah Chrome, and Dave Wyndorf. Be sure to check out our Gear for Groovin’ guide to new basses, a bass-centric expansion of our “VG Approved Gear” reviews, “Hit List” music reviews, and much more in the February issue, available now!

FEATURES

30 Collective Curiosity
The Migma Laute-Guitarre
History may not repeat, but it often rhymes. Certainly, that’s true with lute-guitars like this, produced shortly after World War II by the East German collective Musikinstrumenten-Genossenschaft, a.k.a. Migma. | By Michael Wright

34 Monster Mash
One Unforgettable ’60s-Oddity Magnatone
As mere teens, The Sequins played Gibson SGs through endorsement-deal amp stacks – and the Magnatone Monster. World’s largest guitar amp, it was also louder than a high-school marching band. | By Dave Hunter

38 One For The “Wizard”
Roy Smeck’s Gibson L-5
Celebrity/player endorsements have always been important to guitar builders, and Roy Smeck pimped more than his share. This one, though, was arguably his crowning piece. | By George Gruhn and Staff

42 Cool or Gaudy?
Eko’s “Celluloid” ’60s Basses
Eko was founded in 1959 to make accordions, but soon jumped into the guitar market with streamlined bodies and fancy glitter finishes taken straight from… accordions. | By Willie G. Moseley

74 Ernie Isley
Burning Desire
He did not take lessons from Jimi, but his surroundings growing up led to a career as a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter – and guitar hero in his own right. | By Oscar Jordan

78 Mundell Lowe
Jazz All Around
Most kids from the Delta didn’t follow the jazz path, but his led to playing with Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughn, and many others as well as a life composing scores and soundtracks, a staff gig at NBC, and the music director’s chair at Monterey Jazz. | By Jim Carlton

84 The Ya Ya’s Out!
Mick Taylor’s ’58 Les Paul Standard
The Rolling Stones introduced the world to the trappings and accessories of rock-and-roll superstardom. The lore is rich, and in numerous examples extends to gear like this ’58 Les Paul Standard now in the Vault at Hard Rock International. | By Ward Meeker and Jim Carlton

first fret

14 Reader Mail

18 News and Notes
Conan Signs LP for GuitarTown Kids Project; Musicians HoF Honors Kennedy; In Memoriam

18 Greg Howe
A New Wheelhouse

22 Ask Zac

22 Brian Tarquin
Music, Books, and Bookings

24 Marty Friedman
Wall of Shred

26 Eugene Edwards
Outlaw Twang, Rockabilly Swagger

27 Cheetah Chrome
The Dead Boys Live Again

28 Dave Wyndorf
Tab of God

29 Jackie Venson
Emotional Intelligence

departments

46 Vintage Guitar Price Guide

72 Gear For Groovin’: New Instruments, Amps, and Effects for Bassists

88 Upcoming Events

104 Vintage Guitar Classified Ads

120 Showcase

128 Readers Gallery

columns

50 The (Way) Back Beat
Something Borrowed, Something Beatles: Violin-Shaped Basses in the ’60s | By Peter S. Kohman

56 Fretprints
Johnny Moore | By Wolf Marshall

62 Acousticville
A New Sound: Tenor Guitars Expand the Tonal Palette | By Steven Stone

64 Dan’s Guitar Rx
Doctor Pepper’s Pick-Me-Up | By Dan Erlewine

68 Shop of Hard Knocks
String-Change Checkup | By Will Kelly

reviews

94 The VG Hit List
Montrose, Queen, Deep Purple, Bootsy Collins, Jerry Byrd, Rolling Stones, more!

95 Check This Action
Hooker: The Man | By Dan Forte

108 VG Approved Gear
BONUS: Basses by Alembic, Kiesel, Reverend, Supro, and Xotic. PLUS! Andy Green Pedals Seaverb, JHS Pink Panther, Rivet 63-64 Pickups, Strymon Zuma, EHX Good Vibes/Tone Corset, Yamaha THR100HD, Collings Julian Lage OM1, Radial Tonebone Hot British V9/North-Star, Republic 207 Tricone, Tsakalis Experience, Emma ON-1 Okto-Nøjs, Mad Professor Twimble

113 Gearin’ Up!
The latest cool new stuff!

FROM READERS

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GIVEAWAYS

Phantom® 25th Anniversary Limited Edition model TDbj6. A $1,249 value! ›› Enter Giveaway #162 ‹‹	Holeyboard Evolution Standard Series from Chemistry Design Werks. A $169 value! ›› Enter Giveaway #161 ‹‹
Must enter each giveaway individually (total of 2 current giveaways).

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