• Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    Win Big! 11 Sets! 11 Winners! Win a set of pickups from one of these sponsors: Deadline is March 15, 2026. Complete the survey below to enter giveaway. One entry…

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Fender Joe Strummer Campfire

Punk Burner

April 1, 2022 · Dennis Pernu

Punk legend Joe Strummer might not be the first name that comes to mind when the subject turns to “acoustic…

Musicvox Spaceranger Guitar and Bass HT

Shagadelic

July 21, 2014 · Pete Prown

Musicvox Spaceranger Guitar and Bass HT Price: $799 (guitar); $899 (bass) Info: www.musicvox.com. Popularized in film and television, Musicvox Spacerangers…

Pat Martino

Redefined Jazzman

March 2, 2022 · Wolf Marshall

Pat Martino is a legend. He has been delighting the globe’s collective ear for more than 50 years, making an…

Check This Action: The Sound Of The Surf

September 12, 2023 · Dan Forte

Before acts like the Beach Boys and Jan & Dean sang about surfing, guitar bands in Southern California started playing…

Slim Harpo and Martin Hawkins

January 27, 2017 · Michael Dregni

Mick Jagger admonished the world back in 1968, “What’s the point in listening to us doing ‘I’m A King Bee’…

JMI Vox AC15 “Two-Tone” 1×12″

TV Star

May 19, 2025 · Dave Hunter

The permutations of early Vox models remain endlessly fascinating to vintage-amp enthusiasts, and few get us as worked up as…

  • Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings

    Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings

    Double-bound for Glory

    George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacher founded Electro String in 1931 to manufacture what everyone would soon call “Rickenbacker” guitars. Success came early and their lap steels set standards of quality,…

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ARTISTS

Joe Osborn photo: Ed Hirsch.

Joe Osborn

A Few (Hundred) Hits

July 8, 2004 · Vintage Guitar

Ed. Note: Joe passed away December 14th, 2018, he was 81. Joe Osborn. His face has never been on a…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Rick Hogue

September 3, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Rick Hogue Season 01 Episode 09 In Episode 9 of VG’s “Buy That…

Debashish Bhattacharya

Subcontinental Slide

January 4, 2024 · Pete Prown

Not many musicians can claim to have invented an entire style of music, but Indian guitarist Debashish Bhattacharya is one.…

Michael Schenker

Golden Guitar Jubilee

January 25, 2022 · Greg Prato

Incredibly, it’s been 50 years since Michael Schenker recorded his first guitar bit on a studio album – the Scorpions’…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

GIBSON FIREBIRDS

Gibson Firebirds

May 4, 2015 · R.K. Watkins

Say the words “custom color” to a collector or enthusiast and most will think of “Fender.” But Gibson had its…

First-Rate Second Fiddles

Jimi’s Gibsons at the Hard Rock Cafe

April 3, 2019 · Jim Carlton

No two ways about it, as his career hit stride, Jimi Hendrix was a Strat guy. Not famously loyal to…

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 2

The Black Bison Leads the Herd

January 31, 2018 · Peter Stuart Kohman

In early 2009, VG columnist Peter Stuart Kohman turned his focus on Burns, the pioneering British guitar builder. We’ve compiled…

Gibson’s 1958-’62 ES-335TD

May 26, 2021 · Ward Meeker

The Redoubtable “Dot-Neck” Early every guitar conceived or designed by Ted McCarty during his tenure as president of Gibson (1948-’66)…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

PRS SE Silver Sky

Aiming Higher

February 7, 2023 · Bob Dragich

In a world filled with Strat-type guitars, it takes a lot to set one apart, let alone stand above. The…

Harden Engineering BluesBird

Bird Can Sing

January 27, 2022 · Michael Dregni

If you’re wondering about builder Bill Harden’s inspiration in creating the BluesBird, think Coodercaster – a customized Frankenstein’s monster of…

Crazy Tube Circuits Stardust, Splash MKII, and Pin Up Fuzz

Pure Sanity

August 13, 2014 · Phil Feser

Crazy Tube Circuits Stardust, Splash MKII, and Pin Up Fuzz Price: $290 (splash MKll); $260 (Pin Up Fuzz); $235 (Stardust)…

Heritage Guitars’ H-155M

Best-Kept Secret

July 24, 2019 · Oscar Jordan

Heritage Guitars still builds instruments by hand… in Kalamazoo. Like its veteran brethren in the industry, it focuses on craftsmanship,…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Festive Frets

Suggested Listening for Your “Guitholidays”

December 17, 2021 · Vintage Guitar

Listen to VG’s “Festive Frets Holiday Play List” on Spotify! From the two-string refrain that kicks off Bobby Helms’ “Jingle…

Becos FX TS8-JZ Ziffer Overdrive

Dirty Deeds

December 8, 2022 · Pete Prown

Based on the highly revered Maxon/Ibanez 808 circuit and co-designed with guitarist Jordan Ziff (Ratt, Marty Friedman, Hot Crazy), the…

Gibson Custom Colors in the 1960s

Burning Embers, Chilled Whites

January 11, 2017 · Andre R. Duchossoir

Unlike its rival from the West Coast, Gibson did not readily embrace the concept of offering custom-color finishes. It wasn’t…

Pop ’N Hiss: Wishbone Ash’s Argus

Twin-Lead Loadstone

July 6, 2022 · Willie G. Moseley

Founded in 1969, Wishbone Ash attained fast fame in the U.K. with its meshing of intricate twin-lead-guitar passages and harmony…

Beckley and Bunnell

America History Lesson

October 11, 2021 · Bret Adams

Few bands warrant a career-retrospective box set, let alone two. Then again, most don’t keep going after 50 years. America…

So-Cal Steel

Asher Guitars & Lap Steels Ben Harper Signature Model

December 27, 2017 · Chip Wilson

If Nashville is the pedal-steel capital, surely Southern California is a lap steel hotspot. David Lindley and Ben Harper, along…

Cliff Gallup

Crazy Fingers

April 22, 2019 · Michael Dregni

There was a custom at Owen Bradley Film & Recording Studios in Nashville; artists cut vocal tracks with backing from…

Fender Mustang

Truly Transitional

April 28, 2020 · Willie G. Moseley

Despite its short scale, the Mustang has a potent sound, and as a result it was used by many notable…

First Guitar of Rock and Roll

Scotty Moore’s Gibson ES-295

June 10, 2022 · Michael Dregni

Like a hound dog hit by lightning, the first notes of rock and roll blasted out of radios across the…

Paul McCartney & Wings

Band on the Run 50th Anniversary

January 9, 2025 · Pete Prown

McCartney’s 1973 classic is a post-Beatles favorite for its title cut (a #1 U.S. single) and rockin’ singles “Jet” and…

The Les Paul Becomes The SG

Double Time

April 24, 2019 · George Gruhn

It may be difficult to imagine now, but Gibson’s original Les Paul was only a modest success. Introduced in 1952,…

Reverend Descent H90 Baritone

Deep Twang

July 13, 2016 · Pete Prown

Electric baritones have increased in popularity for the last 20 years. Filling the gap between standard-tuned electric guitar and bass,…

Dean Zelinsky Tagliare Z-Glide Custom

Dean Zelinsky Tagliare Z-Glide Custom

Future Tense

April 5, 2016 · Pete Prown

Every so often, a builder gives the art of guitar design a firm shove into the future. The Dean Zelinsky…

Hilary Gardner

On The Trail with The Lonesome Pines

May 2, 2025 · Dan Forte

Vocalist Gardner explores the association between jazz and country, the Great American Songbook, and cowboy movie stars. Similar territory was…

Tom Feldmann And Noah Levy

Brothers in the Mud

March 3, 2022 · Michael Dregni

Spoiler alert: While it’s early in the year, this album is already a shoe-in as one of the best blues…

Peavey Delta Blues 115 Tweed

Livin’ Large

April 24, 2019 · Pete Prown

Most of us have been so conditioned to accept 12″ guitar speakers that we forget there are good options. While…

J.R. Cobb

Classic Bands, Classic Songs

March 4, 2019 · Willie G. Moseley

When he joined Atlanta Rhythm Section in early 1972, J.R. Cobb and Barry Bailey had more in common than simply…

Sue Foley

Live in Austin Vol. 1

October 29, 2024 · Bret Adams

 Foley is an award-winning blues veteran, yet this is her first electric live album. It includes 11 songs primarily from…

Six-String Kicks

Six-String Kicks

Wood from Famed Bowling Alley Set to Sing

March 31, 2016 · Ward Meeker

Few things scratch America’s cumulative itch for nostalgia like Route 66 – the famed wagon-trail-cum-highway that offered passage to those…

The Peoples’ Guitar

Gibson’s Depression-Era Exports

July 10, 2017 · L.B. Fred

Many aren’t aware that some of the archtop guitars Gibson produced during the Depression were marketed under different brand names,…

Thurston Moore

Rock N Roll Consciousness

June 27, 2017 · Dennis Pernu

There’s always been a push/pull relationship between the worlds of hippie-inspired jam bands and punk-inspired indie rock. While the latter…

Have Guitar Will Travel – 029 Featuring Greg Koch

June 23, 2020 · James Patrick Regan

Episode 29 of James Patrick Regan’s “Have Guitar Will Travel” podcast features “The Gristlemaster,” Greg Koch, who talks about his…

STEVEHOWE_HOME-MAIN-BIG

Steve Howe

Yes: In The Present

August 27, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Progressive-rock icons Yes are still going strong after more than 40 years of recording and performing. Throughout their reign as…

Doug MacDonald and the Three T’s

January 24, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

Jazz Veteran Brings the Swing! West-Coast jazz legend Doug MacDonald used his Benedetto Bravo to show us a bit of…

Marty Walsh

Marty Walsh

With a Little Help From Friends

January 27, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

Marty Walsh has plied his trade for decades, though relatively few may be familiar with his efforts. A Los Angeles…

Last ’Burst?

Single-Cut Saga From the End of an Era

April 24, 2019 · Ward Meeker

Certain instruments are nearly as famous as the heroes who play them – we know them as Blackie, Lucille, Greeny,…

Adrian Quesada

Boleros Psicodélicos

May 2, 2023 · Michael Dregni

Grammy-winning guitarist/producer Adrian Quesada and his band, Black Pumas, opened for the Stones on their last tour, providing a scintillating…

Walrus Audio Deep Six and Mayflower; Celestial Effects’ Cancer Wah the Fuzz?

Walrus Audio Deep Six and Mayflower; Celestial Effects’ Cancer Wah the Fuzz?

Trio of Tappers

October 14, 2015 · Pete Prown

Stompboxes range from organic, transparent circuits that let a guitar’s natural tone shine through, to effects that intentionally color the…

Jim Lauderdale

My Favorite Place

May 2, 2025 · Rich Kienzle

Since his 1991 debut, Planet of Love, Jim Lauderdale has produced a body of award-winning work few modern country or…