Singleton Guitars Capella

Shining Bright

March 2, 2017 · Oscar Jordan

Mark Singleton holds the distinction of being a smokin’ guitarist as well as, for the past 24 years, a builder…

The ViVi-Tone Aggrandizer

The ViVi-Tone Aggrandizer

March 28, 2016 · Dave Hunter

• Preamp tubes: 6C5, 6F5 • Output tubes: two 6B5 • Rectifier: 80 • Controls: Volume, on/off switch • Speaker:…

Rising Rockers

Five Alternative Club Classic Amps of the ’50s

January 28, 2026 · Dave Hunter

In an era when the sub-20-watt combo is arguably the most popular guitar-amp format, it’s worth remembering that several classics…

Weissenborn Style #4

Weissenborn Style#4

April 13, 2010 · George Gruhn

The acoustic Hawaiian guitar of Hermann Weissenborn is one of the most specialized instrument designs of the 20th century. Weissenborns…

Steve Khan

Backlog

May 26, 2017 · John Heidt

Steve Khan has spent the last few albums mixing Latin music and jazz. The project has worked beautifully, culminating in…

Check This Action: Box of Cacti

October 30, 2023 · Dan Forte

The 1970 debut album by Cactus blasted off with a gnarly guitar riff for the ages, as the band’s rendition…

  • Rik Emmett

    Rik Emmett

    Ten Telecaster Tales

    At the risk of starting a brawl, Rik Emmett’s guitar work was arguably too good for Triumph. As evidence, his latest project centers on a custom-built Loucin that inspired both…

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ARTISTS

Adrian Vandenberg

Return Of The Flying Dutchman

June 9, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

On Adrian Vandenberg’s latest album, Sin, the Flying Dutchman joins forces with former Yngwie Malmsteen vocalist Mats Levén for the…

Pop ’N Hiss: Joe Satriani’s Surfing With The Alien

Spacey Hang Ten

December 6, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

The ’80s were teeming with music ranging from pop-metal to new wave, thrash metal, blues revivals, and the New Romantic…

Jack Bruce

Jack Bruce

Surging Septuagenarian

December 6, 2014 · Willie G. Moseley

Bassist/vocalist Jack Bruce, who turned 71 in May, recently released Silver Rails, his first solo album in a decade, with…

Pop ’N Hiss: Hot Tuna

Sonic Contrast

July 31, 2025 · Willie G. Moseley

As lead guitarist and bassist for Jefferson Airplane, Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady were frontline in pop-music history, propelling the…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

The Micro-Frets Saga

Genius in MD

March 18, 2019 · Ward Meeker

Had fate been just a notch kinder, Ralph Jones might today be a ’60s counterculture icon alongside Bob Dylan, Muhammad…

Tinsley Ellis’ new dimension

April 30, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

Unplugged, and Worth the Wait! A prominent blues artist since the late ’80s, Tinsley Ellis grabbed the ’37 National Style…

Epiphone Empero1965 Main

1965 Epiphone Emperor

November 1, 2022 · George Gruhn

The Epiphone Emperor has a long, convoluted history. It first appeared in Epiphone’s catalog in late 1935 as a response…

Fender Precision Bass

The “Final” Configuration

June 5, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

The Fender Precision Bass was the first commercially successful solidbody electric bass. Played somewhat like a guitar and sporting a…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Magnets and Magic The PAF – Yesterday, Today

Magnets and Magic

The PAF – Yesterday, Today

June 21, 2016 · Ward Meeker

When it came to launching a solidbody electric guitar, Fender beat Gibson to the punch with its Broadcaster model in…

Alday B-Blender

Alday B-Blender

One For The Masses

September 13, 2015 · Michael Dregni

Taylor 814ce Price: $129.95 (list) Info: www.b-blender.com Why aren’t we guitarists ever happy to have our guitars sound like guitars?…

Xotic Effects’ Wah XW-1

Xotic Effects’ Wah XW-1

State-Of-The-Art MousEtrap

April 13, 2016 · Michael Dregni

Xotic Effects’ Wah XW-1 Price: $295 (list); $249 (street) Contact: xotic.us/ The chase for tone sometimes seems like never-ending “Tom…

Furch Blue Deluxe SW

Czech Mate

January 18, 2023 · Pete Prown

You might not recogonize the Furch brand, but the Czech Republic builder has spent that last 40-plus years gaining a…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

The Pedulla Buzz Bass

Fast and Fretless

September 23, 2019 · Willie G. Moseley

Introduced in 1980, the M.V. Pedulla Buzz Bass is one of the most-enduring examples of an upscale model offered fretless.…

Lonnie Brooks

1933-2017

April 15, 2019 · Ward Meeker

Blues guitarist/singer Lonnie Brooks died April 1 in Chicago. He was 83. Born Lee Baker, Jr., he was one of…

D’Angelico Excel SS

Classic Versatility

December 23, 2024 · Bob Cianci

The modern D’Angelico company specializes in hip semi-hollow guitars with a nod toward their namesake, legendary luthier John D’Angelico. Case…

Del McCoury

Absolute Pride

January 4, 2023 · Rich Kienzle

Del McCoury remembers the seeds of his new album, Almost Proud. “I played the Grand Ole Opry on Tuesday night,…

Home Feature Image

Top 50 Guitar Songs of the ’60s

May 25, 2015 · Vintage Guitar

Data and info compiled by Alan Greenwood and Ward Meeker Vintage Guitar marked 25 years of publication with a year…

Eric Ambel

Proficient Professional

December 26, 2017 · Dennis Pernu

Ace sideman (Joan Jett, Steve Earle), producer of note (Bottle Rockets, Nils Lofgren, Marshall Crenshaw), and proprietor of Brooklyn’s 24-track…

Wes Montgomery/Wynton Kelly Trio

Maximum Swing: The Unissued 1965 Half Note Recordings

October 8, 2024 · Dan Forte

Historically, there’ve been two camps of jazz guitar: acoustic Gypsy Django Reinhardt and electric pioneer Charlie Christian. But the swing…

Fender’s Duel Pugilist Distortion & Dual Marine Layer Reverb

Double Trouble

December 8, 2022 · Michael Dregni

Fender launched its Pugilist Distortion and Marine Layer Reverb in 2018, after VP of Innovation Stan Cotey – who’d previously…

Blues Hall of Famer Joe Louis Walker

June 29, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

“Blue Mirror” jam from “The Weight of the World” Blues Hall of Famer Joe Louis Walker grabbed his pearl-front Zemaitis…

To The Limit

The Effectrode LA-1A Leveling Amplifier

April 15, 2020 · Pete Prown

In the world of guitar effects, there are consumer-grade pedals and pro-grade pedals. The former are affordable and fun, the…

Pop ’N Hiss: Uriah Heep’s Demons and Wizards

Under Its Spell

May 6, 2022 · Bret Adams

Hard rock/heavy metal and progressive rock were burgeoning genres in the early ’70s, and music fans by the millions eagerly…

Lollygagger FX Canaglia Overdrive

Rude ’Tude

July 9, 2018 · Oscar Jordan

Sean Wright’s love for guitars and electronics has resulted in a family business that realizes his vision of stompbox perfection.…

Ethan Brosh

Ethan Brosh

Living The Dream

August 6, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

In case you were wondering, shred is not dead, and Ethan Brosh is determined to keep it that way. The…

The Providence Velvet Comp, Red Rock OD, and Phase Force

The Providence Velvet Comp, Red Rock OD, and Phase Force

Tones of Destiny

April 6, 2015 · Zac Childs

The Providence Velvet Comp, Red Rock OD, and Phase Force Price: $199 (per piece, list) Contact: www.providence.jp Providence is a…

Dom Martin

More Than a Feeling

August 6, 2024 · Sean McDevitt

From the first fingerpicked notes of “Hello in There,” a gentle, inviting 98-second acoustic instrumental that opens Dom Martin’s Buried…

Robert Lockwood, Jr.

1915-2006

June 23, 2020 · Dan Forte

With the death of Robert Lockwood, Jr., the blues world lost one of the few direct links to Robert Johnson…

Bassics BPA-1

Defined Tone

July 24, 2019 · Pete Prown

Low-end tone is a critical component of a live mix or studio recording – if the bass doesn’t sound good,…

Check This Action: The Salad Days of British Blues

October 29, 2024 · Dan Forte

What springs to mind when you hear the term “British blues movement”? Is it covers of Slim Harpo, Muddy Waters,…

Andy Powell

Setting the Record Straight

March 2, 2017 · Willie G. Moseley

Wishbone Ash founder/guitarist Andy Powell has a new term for his resumé – “author.” Abetted by Colin Harper, he recently…

Patterson Hood

Drive-By Truckers Change Gears

June 26, 2020 · John Heidt

It’s a brave new world for Drive-By Truckers and their latest album, Brighter Than Creation’s Dark. Guitarist/songwriter Patterson Hood says…

Gregg Wright

King of the Rockin’ Blues

November 18, 2014 · Oscar Jordan

Gregg Wright is a force to be reckoned with. He took the top spot in the Southern California Blues Society’s…

Thomm Jutz plays “Come All You Fair And Tender Ladies”

November 27, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Flatpicked English folk with an Appalachian touch Sparse and haunting, Thomm Jutz and his ’48 Martin D-18 share a solo…

Prodigal Sunburst

Joe Walsh Reunites with a ’59 Les Paul Standard

March 9, 2023 · Ward Meeker

A master of delivering crystal-clear musical messages with an off-kilter wit, whether talking, singing, picking, or sliding on guitar, everything…

Jack Bruce 1943-2014

Jack Bruce 1943-2014

December 4, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

Jack Bruce, an icon of electric bass, died October 25 in Suffolk, England. Best known for his work with Cream…

Mike Stern

Mixed Sources

September 5, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Mike Stern made his name playing with Blood, Sweat & Tears, Jaco Pastorius, Miles Davis, and others, carving a notable…

Chris Cain

Tales to Tell

June 10, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

Armed with a new deal with Alligator Records and producer Kid Andersen (of Rick Estrin & The Night Cats), Chris…

Grez Mendocino Short Scale Bass

Time-Machine Tone

April 3, 2023 · Michael Shirek

In the beginning, there was the Precision Bass. Following Leo Fender’s revelation, things branched out in all directions as builders…

Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda

Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda

The Un-Twisted Tale of <em>Stay Hungry</em>

May 12, 2016 · Ward Meeker

Step back with us, please, to 1984; Paul McCartney gets dinged for possession of cannibis in Barbados, Carl Lewis collects…

Guild Basses in the Early 1980s

Traditional, Temporary

Guild Basses in the Early 1980s

June 21, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

The early ’80s were a unique time in the history of American electric guitars. Fender and Gibson were both owned…