-
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…
Fender Player Jazz Bass Fretless
No Frets, No Sweat
The fretless has long been mysterious territory for bassists dazzled by the sonic achievements of Jaco Pastorius, Pino Palladino, and…
Don Leady’s Stylish Instro!
Roots-rock doyen does “Blue Cumbia 3” LeRoi Brothers co-founder (and Tail Gators head honcho) Don Leady used his real-deal vintage…
Republic 207 Tricone
Brass Ring
Resonator guitars appear to inspire a particular kind of affliction among players. And it’s a difficult addiction to maintain, given…
Seymour Duncan ’78 Model
Upscale Touch
In the late ’70s, rock guitarists fell down the rabbit hole trying to achieve more sustain, harmonics, and extra crunch…
The MXR Eric Gales EG74 Raw Dawg
Bark And Bite
During a recording career that spans three decades and includes 19 albums, blues guitarist Eric Gales has achieved a reputation…
Brad Paisley
Pop music, modern country – what’s the difference anymore? For both, everything is bigger and splashier. Yet, nimbly as Brad…
-
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,…
NOW AVAILABLE!
CURRENT ISSUE
Join 25,700+ subscribers & be notified when new articles & more becomes available!
ARTISTS
Joe Satriani
Shockwave Supernova
Joe Satriani’s latest record is a concept album that bridges the gap between traditional blues guitar techniques, and the fiery…
Paul Mehling
Fab Four Gypsy of Tone
One of the world’s foremost Djangophiles, Paul Mehling has for many years been at the forefront of Gypsy jazz in…
Mike Vernon
Surf-Guitar Ace Mike Vernon Chills on “Lucky Boy” Surf-instro revivalist Mike Vernon grabbed his (semi-hollow) Gretsch Tennessee Rose (with flatwounds)…
Good Times In Bad
The Origin of Fender’s Vintage Series
The years leading up to CBS Musical Instruments’ 1985 sale of the Fender brand were fluid times at the instrument…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS
Weymann Model 848
Mail-Order Rara Avis
From 1864 through the 1940s, H.A. Weymann and Son, Inc. made, imported, and sold marching band, orchestral, percussion, and other…
Martin 5-18
The Martin style 5-18 is the smallest guitar in Martin catalogs; at the lower bout, it measures 11.25″, while at…
The Clark Gainster
Trick Your Tweed
Before he got into the effects pedal biz, Michael Clark had a reputation for building killer tweed-inspired amps. In 2001…
Gibson ES-300 Prototype
Les Paul and the First Gibson ES-300
When a guitar junkie hears the words “soapbar” and “P-90,” the mental image is usually that of a cream-colored rectangle…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
-
Live Wire
-
Narrow(field) Win
-
Take Flight
ZT Extortion Expressive Distortion
Mutant Distortion
ZT Amplifiers put their name on the map four years ago with the compact Lunchbox solid-state amp. Now they continue…
Peekamoose Model 3
Modern Retro
There’s no shortage of cool, retro-looking solidbodies on the market today, from the big guys as well as the increasing…
Supercool “800,” The Thneed, and ’77 Fuzz Blender
Hip Sounds
Supercool Pedals is a Canadian company that makes stompboxes that sound hip and look seriously groovy. Among its offerings is…
The Xaviere XV-JT90 and XV-585
Planks for Pennies
Xaviere is a company that imports its guitars from China, sets them up in its Massachusetts shop, then sells direct.…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
-
More Personal
-
Rare Pioneer
Dwight Twilley’s ’57 Fender Super
Cowboy Fringe
Plenty of vintage amps have made it into these pages on their own merits. But when a hallowed creation also…
Status Quo’s Francis Rossi
On Guitars, Music, and Elusive Success
“I’m only as good now as I should have been when I was 25,” laughs Francis Rossi, the 64-year-old lead…
Classics: September 2021
Fenton Robinson’s Gibson ES-225
Kevin Ludwig first became aware of Fenton Robinson in 1975, when he heard Boz Scaggs’ version of “Somebody Loan Me…
Have Guitar Will Travel 091 – Kenny Vaughan
In Episode 91 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, host James Patrick Regan circles back with Kenny Vaughan, guitarist in Marty…
