•  Joey Molland

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     Joey Molland

    The word “underrated” is belabored in music journalism, but Joey Molland was just that. As co-guitarist in Badfinger, he was part of a quartet signed to the Beatles’ Apple Records, yielding glorious AM hits like “Come and Get It,” “Day After Day,” and “No Matter What.” The foursome fell into obscurity and tragedy a few

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Jared James Nichols’ glorious goldtop

Mods and pedals need not apply! Watch Jared James Nichols tear it up on “Dorothy,” his ’52 Gibson Les Paul, running straight into his Blackstar JJN20 signature amp. The guitar…

Uwe Kruger

Swiss Precision for Americana

Uwe Kruger’s professional musical career began at age 15, when he and his brother, Jens, left their small town home in Switzerland to busk in the cities of Europe. Quickly,…

Steve Cropper

Fired Up

When you think of guitar heroes, Steve Cropper may not be on top of the list. Not one for spangled capes or rhinestoned suits, he’s rarely played a screaming one-note…

Earl Slick

Zig Zag Back to the Top

Earl Slick landed his dream gig back in 1974, when a friend referred him for a gig with David Bowie, replacing Mick Ronson.  During this period, Slick recorded three monumental…

Vivian Campbell

Back In Line

When singer Ronnie James Dio chose Belfast native Vivian Campbell to form Dio in 1982, the young guitarist was filling big shoes in the eyes of his new boss, who’d…

Del Casher

“Papa of the Wah-Wah” Marks Its 50 Years

The wah pedal is one of the most widely used effects in popular music, employed by artists playing rock, blues, funk, disco, and other genres. One of the most expressive…

Steve Lukather

Solid-Gold Guitar Slinger

Photo: Rick Gould. He’s a chops monster – the epitome of taste and understatement. An international pop star and a hard-rocking muso. A gifted songwriter and arranger, in a career…

The Pixies

Alternative Godfathers

In the late 1980s, the Pixies’ unique brand of punk, pop, and guitar rock almost singlehandedly created the alternative music movement that flourished in the early ’90s. Its sound served…

Rick Vito’s Tale Of Two Grails

Find of a Lifetime

Whether it was by watching “Bandstand” on TV or learning the licks of Duane Eddy, Chuck Berry, or the Ventures, Philadelphia native Rick Vito’s inspirations are all legendary. And as…

Tom Feldmann

Delta Blues DeLuxe

Tom Feldmann burst out of Minneapolis with an authentic take on acoustic blues unlike anything heard in years. Gifted with fine slide and fingerstyle chops, he also possesses a strong,…

Grant Geissman

Grant Geissman

Jazz-Rock Renaissance

’70s culture may have provided a target-rich environment for parodied depictions of giant Afros, bell-bottom jeans, and Saturday Night Fever, but anyone who was alive then remembers Chuck Mangione’s Feels…

Samantha Fish: Slide-Blues Fury!

“I’m Done Runnin’” on a D-18 VG readers know Samantha Fish is the real deal. Here, she uses a Martin D-18 Modern Deluxe on an unplugged arrangement of “I’m Done…

Honkytonk Homage

Guitars Venerate Bakersfield Landmark

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…

Jeff Kollman

Validating Versatiltiy

A perusal of guitarist Jeff Kollman’s resumé forces a double take. Alongside decades of studio work and live gigs with artists like Chris Isaak, Lou Gramm, and Glenn Hughes are…

Richie Furay

Back in the Country

Richie Furay’s new album, In the Country, began with an invitation from a friend, Val Garay. Revered for his work producing Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt, Kim Carnes, James Taylor, and…

Pop ’N Hiss: Thin Lizzy’s Jailbreak

Fight Or Fall

At the dawn of 1976, Thin Lizzy was in trouble. Neither of the quartet’s previous two studio albums, Nightlife and Fighting, had sold well. With pressure mounting from Vertigo Records,…

Steve Winwood

Voice of a Guitar Great

It would seem contradictory to describe someone as both underrated and a virtuoso, but such is the case with Steve Winwood, particularly regarding his guitar playing. • The reaction of…

Fretprints: Hiram Bullock

Dangerously Funky Fusioneer

In the sonic constellation orbiting jazz-rock, Hiram Bullock traveled a separate trajectory. His work on “Angela,” the theme for “Taxi,” was heard weekly by the masses. A member of the…

Phil Collen

A Rock Cat Plays the Blues

In the eyes of many, there’s quite a difference between arena rock and blues rock. But not to Phil Collen, guitarist for one of the biggest acts in the former…

Marshall JMP50 “Plexi”

Kids wanna rock? Plug into your plexi and bow to the mighty crunch. Marshall amps of the company’s first 10 years are interesting for having thrown up classics of different…

Rich Fifield

Rich Fifield, guitarist in the ‘60s surf band The Astronauts, died November 16. He was 78. Formed in 1956 as The Stormtroupers by four high school friends in Boulder, Colorado,…

Craig Ross

Rock and Roll, Alive and Well

Craig Ross is an integral part of the Lenny Kravitz sound. As lead guitarist and songwriting collaborator since the early ’90s, Ross has forged an impressive body of work alongside…

Jon Butcher’s psychedelia mastery

Jon Butcher tales his Olympic White ’63 Strat for a rip on “Jam,” a track from his new album, “Nuthin’ but Soul.” The disc is an homage to sounds of…

B.J. Baartmans shares his “Cabin Fever”

The Space Age Travellers: Eclectic Instro B.J. Baartmans’ trio, The Space Age Travellers, defies genre labelling. Here, he uses his ’73 Fender Strat (tuned down a full step) with a…

Ray Cummins – I’ll See You In My Dreams

Ray Cummins Plays the 1956 Gretsch Chet Atkins 6120 prototype “Dark Eyes” VG ace online tutor Ray Cummins uses the famed ’56 Gretsch Chet Atkins 6120 prototype to play “I’ll…

Gibson’s “SG” Les Paul

Classic Shape That Filled Big Shoes

In 1961, Gibson replaced the single-cutaway Les Paul with a new line of lighter, thinner, mahogany double-cut solidbodies. Developed under the aegis of Ted McCarty and introduced as the “new…

Scott Henderson

Scott Henderson

Vibe Station

On his new album, Vibe Station, Scott Henderson once again redefines fusion within a groove-heavy power trio format. As always, the blues informs his jazz-rock workouts with virtuosic jabs of…

Andy Powell

Setting the Record Straight

Wishbone Ash founder/guitarist Andy Powell has a new term for his resumé – “author.” Abetted by Colin Harper, he recently created Eyes Wide Open: True Tales of a Wishbone Ash…

Pop ’N Hiss: Wishbone Ash’s Argus

Twin-Lead Loadstone

Founded in 1969, Wishbone Ash attained fast fame in the U.K. with its meshing of intricate twin-lead-guitar passages and harmony vocals. With their third album, Argus, Andy Powell and Ted…

Fretprints: Dave Grohl

Beyond Grunge

“Alternative rock” – more descriptor than genre – was a reaction to hair bands, technical excess, and pop-metal formulae. It was the sound of the pendulum swinging the other way.…