• 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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Them Vibes

Electric Fever

June 27, 2017 · John Heidt

Nashville band Them Vibes latest recalls rock’s past without sounding dated or cliché. Much of the reason for that is…

Thin Lizzy

The Acoustic Sessions

November 7, 2025 · Bret Adams

Thin Lizzy’s first studio release in decades, this album reimagines tracks recorded 50+ years ago by the trio of vocalist/bassist…

Effectrode’s Fire Bottle Magnetic Pickup Booster

Effectrode Fire Bottle Magnetic Pickup Booster

The Box That Went to Harvard

January 21, 2016 · Pete Prown

The Effectrode Fire Bottle is a pedal that deviates from the norm and offers something fresh. Unlike a chorus, distortion,…

WIDMAN_HOME-MAIN-BIG

Widman Set Neck

An Eye For Detail

December 30, 2013 · Zac Childs

Widman Set Neck Price: $3,900 Info: widmancustomelectrics.com. John Widman is a custom guitar builder whose artistic leanings began while he…

Zeppelin Design Labs Cortado MkIII

May 10, 2022 · Julian Burtell

Zeppelin Design Labs Cortado MkIII contact microphone can record everything from acoustic guitars to a train bridge with a frequency…

Full Dozen, Semi-Hollow

12 Variations on a Classic Design

December 2, 2016 · Vintage Guitar

To complement our February 2016 issue survey of the semi-hollow electric guitar, we tested 12 examples of the form 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

Malcolm Brickhouse

Malcolm Brickhouse

Free As You Wanna Be

February 11, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Malcolm Brickhouse was excited but confident after his band, Unlocking The Truth, recently performed its first headlining gig, at The…

Tomer Cohen

From Israel to NYC

December 14, 2023 · Pete Prown

Twenty-five-year-old Tomer Cohen plays jazz with the earthy feel heard in improvisations by Bill Frisell, Julian Lage, and early Pat…

BILLY F GIBBONS-HOME-MAIN-BIG

Billy F Gibbons

Return of the Revvvv

April 22, 2020 · Willie G. Moseley

Every time Vintage Guitar sets up an interview with the redoubtable Billy F Gibbons, lead guitarist/vocalist of the legendary Texas…

Howard Roberts

H.R. Was a Dirty Guitar Player!

October 7, 2014 · Jim Carlton

In his prime, Howard Roberts played more than 900 studio dates annually and recorded the hippest guitar records of the…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Joe Long’s “stack-knob” Fender Jazz Bass

June 22, 2025 · Willie G. Moseley

If you’re a fan or aficionado of vintage instruments, odds are that any early-’60s Fender Jazz Bass catches your eye.…

Phil Manzanera’s “Magdalena”

August 25, 2025 · Vintage Guitar

Roxy Music legend solo instrumental Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera used his beloved ’64 Gibson Firebird VII to create this…

The Audiovox 736 Electric Bass and 936 Amp

Rare Pair

August 12, 2022 · Peter Blecha

Eight decades ago, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer revealed the story of Paul H. Tutmarc debuting his latest invention – a solidbody…

1978 Dean Z

May 25, 2005 · Michael Wright

The mid 1970s were a turbulent time in guitar history. The American guitar establishment – at least Gibson and Fender…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

API Audio TranZformer GT and LX

Stripped Down

July 10, 2019 · Phil Feser

Automated Processing Inc. (API) is best-known for its high-end mixing consoles for broadcast and recording, along with the mic preamps,…

Relic Guitars The Hague T-Style

Relic Guitars The Hague T-Style

Aged to Perfection

November 29, 2016 · Pete Prown

Relic Guitars The Hague is a Dutch builder that produces, obviously, relic’d guitars. Mostly using the archetypal Strat and Tele…

Cordoba 15CFM

Hawai’i Not?

January 21, 2022 · Pete Prown

The ukulele phenomenon shows no signs of slowing, with models ranging from well under $100 on up to thousands. The…

The MXR Eric Gales EG74 Raw Dawg

Bark And Bite

May 10, 2022 · Bob Dragich

During a recording career that spans three decades and includes 19 albums, blues guitarist Eric Gales has achieved a reputation…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Dr. Z Z Wreck Combo

Dr. Z Z Wreck Combo

Tone On The Go

January 14, 2016 · Brett Jochim

Dr. Z Z Wreck Combo Price: $2,999 Info: www.drzamps.com. Originally designed as a head with a matching 2×12 cabinet, the…

Rivera Shaman Series Pedals

Holy Tones

May 25, 2016 · Max Prown

Rivera Shaman Series Pedals Price: $299 each (street) Info: www.rivera.com. With roots stretching to the late ’70s, SoCal-based Rivera Amplification…

Bob Cowsill Plays a Topical Tune

February 16, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

New Cowsills album is an impressive self-contained work Before the Jackson 5 and the Osmonds, The Cowsills scored four Top…

Newman Guitars 5 String

Less Is More

August 13, 2025 · Rich Maloof

Getting one’s hands on a five-string electric like the one Ted Newman Jones built for Keith Richards in the ’70s…

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…

Martin 0-42

The Martin 0-42

December 4, 2015 · George Gruhn

Through the years, Martin’s dreadnought, OM, and 000 guitars may have gained the most notoriety. But for the sweetest and…

“Buy That Guitar” podcast with special guest Freeman Arthur

December 10, 2025 · Ram W. Tuli

Season 03 Episode 08 In Episode 3.8 of “Buy That Guitar,” host Ram Tuli is joined by Freeman Arthur, who…

Bryan Bassett

Foghat’s Slide Secret

July 22, 2022 · Pete Prown

A half-century after its inception, Foghat has just one original member – drummer Roger Earl – yet the quartet is…

Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives

May 2, 2017 · Dan Forte

For decades, Stuart has been one of country music’s biggest champions, and may yet be its savior. His Fabulous Superlatives…

Steve Miller

Some People Call Him Rock Icon

January 7, 2011 · Ward Meeker

Not until after he turned 40 did it occur to Steve Miller that he never really needed to fear whether…

Jim Lauderdale

Harder Country

June 25, 2025 · Rich Kienzle

Jim Lauderdale has had three busy years. 2021’s Hope, which he calls “a very uplifting album,” emerged from the pandemic.…

Fender’s 1960 Bandmaster

Power of Three

March 20, 2019 · Dave Hunter

The earliest renditions of our gear icons are often the most valuable, but on many occasions it’s the transition models…

1968 Fender Vibrolux Reverb

Silver Serenade

May 21, 2019 · Dave Hunter

Amplifier collectors swarm to models with descriptors like “first year” and “golden age,” but other types can be far more…

D’Aquisto New Yorker Classic

March 27, 2024 · George Gruhn and Walter Carter

During his 30-plus years as an independent guitarmaker, James L. D’Aquisto was acclaimed as the premier maker of archtop guitars.…

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 1

Beginnings – The Early 1960s

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…

Nancy Wilson

Fire in the Heart

December 8, 2014 · Will Kelly

In the early ’70s, women didn’t play rock guitar. Nor did they front bands. Nancy Wilson was an exception. Few…

Holbrook TS50 Tommy Skeoch Head

More Than Modded

July 24, 2019 · Phil Feser

After Kevin Holbrook and rock guitarist Tommy Skeoch began working on a custom amp, the former took several trips to…

Fanny’s June Millington

Grrrl Power’s First Flash in Rock

May 30, 2017 · Kathleen Johnson

Before The Runaways, before the Go-Go’s and Bangles, and before there were Riot grrrls, there was Fanny. One of the…

Tom Guerra

Tom Guerra

Rock and Roll Swagger

January 24, 2015 · Pete Prown

After 15 years and four albums with Connecticut trio Mambo Sons, Tom Guerra just released his first solo album, All…

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…

Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ Reissue

Dual-Mode Delivery

November 14, 2025 · Dave Hunter

The evolution of Randall Smith’s legendary high-gain Mesa/Boogie design into the revered Mark IIC+ of the mid ’80s established a…

Have Guitar Will Travel 092 – Chris Shiflett (Foo Fighters)

February 26, 2024 · James Patrick Regan

In this episode, host James Patrick Regan catches up with Chris Shiflett to discuss his latest solo album, working with…

Home Feature Image

25 Most Valuable Basses

May 24, 2015 · Peter Stuart Kohman

Vintage Guitar is marking 25 years of publication with a year full of features. This month, using data compiled for…

Steve Vai

Inviolate

December 9, 2022 · Pete Prown

After decades of technical shred-dom, Vai returns to his musical mindset prior to David Lee Roth, composing soundtrack-scaled material that…

Hilton Valentine

1943-2021

January 24, 2022 · Dan Forte

“The first song I learned on guitar was ‘House of the Rising Sun’ by the Animals.” The statement could have…

Mighty Poplar

Ace: Mighty Poplar

January 25, 2024 · Rich Kienzle

The term “supergroup” is overused in every musical genre, but Mighty Poplar is one; mandolinist Andrew Marlin is part of…

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Gibson 1958-’60 Les Paul Standard

A ’Burst by Any Other Name…

June 9, 2016 · Ward Meeker

One Thousand, Seven Hundred and Twelve. That’s the number of Les Paul Standards Gibson produced between 1958 and 1960. Amongst guitar…

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…

T-Rex Replicator

Daily Echo

May 30, 2019 · Michael Dregni

Among the arcana of tone, few things inspire as much devotion – even obsession – as echo. The Holy Grail…