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In episode 140 of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine, host James Patrick Regan speaks with singer-songwriter Iain Matthews. During their conversation, Iain shares insights about his home in the Netherlands and discusses his new solo album, adding to his impressive catalog of over 40 solo albums. Iain talks about his guitars, […]
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Having looked at the most expensive electric guitars offered in 1960s – over 50 years ago. Traditional makers – Gibson, Guild, and Gretsch – concentrated on flashy amplified archtops that retailed up into the $700 to $800 range – beautiful instruments, but not representative of where the electric guitar was going. More forward-looking makers offered […]
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In episode 139 of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine, host James Patrick Regan speaks with guitarist Buck Dharma from Blue Öyster Cult. In their conversation, Buck covers: Blue Oyster Cult has released a new live album and DVD, featuring the gear used during the recorded shows. Buck also discusses his equipment […]
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National. The name is patriotic! And what else but American inventiveness could have brought about a metal-bodied guitar? The answer lies in the state of the guitar as a musical instrument circa 1925. The mandolin was popular and the guitar was beginning to evolve, particularly in Gibson’s new L-5, which revolutionized its sound and adaptability […]
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Daredevil Pedals’ Atomic Cock Price: $150 (list) Info: www.daredevilpedals.com. Despite the many clever take-aways one could derive from its name, the Atomic Cock is “just” an effects box offered by Daredevil Pedals. A variable fixed wah with adjustable gain, it offers more tonal options than a traditional wah while circumventing the tedious search for the […]
After giving the upstart Fender a run for its money in the amplifier department throughout the 1950s, Gibson segued into something that looked like surrender; by the early ’60s, its amps appeared to be afterthoughts or scattershot offerings to a rapidly evolving market. And while amps carrying the Epiphone badge were even more like outcasts, […]
Musicvox Space Cadet 12 Price: $899 (direct) Contact: musicvox.com As you may have read in Michael Wright’s profile of the Spaceranger guitar (September ’11), Musicvox started producing kooky, retro-styled solidbody guitars in the ’90s and was prominently featured in the comedy film Austin Powers. The company was on hiatus for a decade and recently returned […]
For a guitarist with fans and admirers around the world, Dave Gonzalez is one humble man. “I’m still trying to figure it out,” he says of his playing. It’s a hard statement to connect with the San Diego guitarist whose career spans over 30 years, thousands of shows, and more than a dozen albums. Gonzalez […]
Located in south-central Connecticut, Black Cat blends an ear for vintage tones with an eye toward modern function and bulletproof construction. On the fuzz front, they have captured two distinct period flavors with a pair of versatile stompboxes. The D&S is a modern replica of a 1974 Maxon D&S (distortion and sustain), which itself was […]
Billy Duffy has long been a different sort of bloke. As his peers in rock bands of the mid ’80s mostly fell in line to play modified “superstrats,” Duffy stuck with his trusty Gretsch White Falcon as The Cult scored its first international hit, “She Sells Sanctuary.” Growing up, Duffy was like any of a […]
Durham Electronics’ ReddVerb Price: $180 each (list) Info: www.gizmoaudio.com Most guitar players’ first pedal was a distortion/OD, often acquired after enduring the taunts from friends and/or bandmates who whisper about how their tone was “thin” and “weak.” The experience takes them down the road to experimentation; the weeks and years that follow becoming a haze […]
Carl Verheyen says it all came to him when he heard the Eagles’ album called The Long Run. At that point, he was heavily into jazz, and practicing eight hours a day to master it. “I was about 27 when I heard that amazing Joe Walsh solo on ‘Those Shoes,’ and it just blew me […]
Shades of Norman Blake and Dolly Parton A student of the “Carter Scratch” guitar technique – melody on the low strings, rhythm on the high – Brennen Leigh plays and writes songs that bring honky-tonk sounds of the ’60s. Here, she and her ’78 Martin D-35 do a bit of the title track to her […]
Park 75 Preamp tubes: three ECC83 (12AX7 equivalents) Output tubes: two KT88 Rectifier: solidstate Controls: Volume II, Volume I, Treble, Middle, Bass, Brightness Output: approximately 75 watts RMS We might not expect anyone to give much of a hoot for an amplifier with “Park” on its badge – a brand that has also graced budget-grade […]
In the opinion of most American mandolinists, Gibson brought mandolin design to a level of perfection in 1922, with the introduction of the Master Model F-5. It wasn’t much earlier – 25 years or so – that Orville Gibson created the F model as one of two mandolin body styles (the other being the symmetrical […]
Winston Brothers groove it up on “Drift” Sebastian Nagel and his band, The Winston Brothers, balance groove, melody, and space in their super-satisfying instrumental funk. Here, Sebastian runs his ’56 Gibson ES-125 (converted to lefty and souped up with ’60s DeArmond pickups) through a ’70s Fender reverb tank and a ’63 Super to play “One […]
Comparisons between Blackberry Smoke and earlier Southern-rock bands may be inevitable, but the Atlanta-based quintet takes such observations in stride. “That’s way better than being compared to the Bay City Rollers,” wisecracked vocalist/guitarist Charlie Starr, who recently went on the record with VG along with bassist Richard Turner. “The musical freedom those bands enjoyed is […]
When guitarists talk tremolo or vibrato, you can bet the magnificent Magnatone amps will find their way into the conversation. The watery, warbling “true vibrato” that the larger Magnatones are capable of producing is never forgotten by players fortunate enough to have experienced it. In searching to expand the Magnatone legend, the subject is likely […]
John Dopyera left National in 1929 to begin work on a secret project – a single-cone resonator guitar he believed superior to the Triolian. His instrument became synonymous with resonator guitars.
Howard Roberts and Tommy Tedesco were his mentors; both recognized his extraordinary talent and relentless work ethic. When L.A. session guitarist Mike Anthony elected to leave the studio life after many years, Tommy Tedesco threw him an unforgettable gala retirement party that was populated by so many guitar greats it was chronicled by a feature […]
Win an accessory bundle with an Oxford Guitar Supply gift card, Music Nomad KEEP IT SIMPLE, SETUP (KISS)™ kit, Rocky Mountain Slides Co. Bear Claw Tri-picks, Firecracker Aluminum Slides and graphite picks, plus a Reverend back pack to put it all in valued at more than $450. Deadline is November 25, 2024. Complete the survey […]
