Hank’s Protos

How Hank Garland Helped Gibson Develop Two Models Not Called Byrdland

May 28, 2013 · Wolf Marshall

There are guitars, there are great guitars, there are great historic guitars and there are great historic guitars bearing deep…

Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+

The Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+

September 25, 2015 · Dave Hunter

Early Mesa/Boogie Mark Series amps were something of a sensation, but even with the line now having stretched all the…

Pop ’N Hiss: Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble’s Texas Flood

The Blues, Reborn

January 11, 2023 · Bret Adams

Music in the early ’80s was dominated by the shiny blips and bloops of keyboard-driven new wave and the first…

Soldano SLO Plus Super Lead Overdive

Icon In Reach

November 14, 2025 · Charlie Wilkins

If the iconic Soldano SLO-100 is perpetually on your wish list but its price tag keeps you from pulling the…

Fuchs Clean Machine II

Spotless Tone

April 18, 2024 · Pete Prown

The folks at Fuchs Audio Technology know that most guitarists use pedalboards loaded with effects they’ve loved, swapped, upgraded, and…

Brian Setzer

The Devil Always Collects

August 11, 2024 · Bret Adams

We can always rely on Brian Setzer records to bring the swagger, no matter the project – solo, Brian Setzer…

  • Carr Skylark Special 1×12

    Carr Skylark Special 1×12

    Take Flight

    Arriving a little more than 10 years after the original Skylark, Carr Amplifiers’ new Skylark Special adds versatility and enhanced tonal depths to squeeze a lot more into this diminutive…

    Read more >>

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ARTISTS

Fretprints: Walter Becker

Steely Dan’s Unsung Guitar Great

May 6, 2022 · Wolf Marshall

Steely Dan to this day occupies a unique place in music history. Laying claim to an unexplored intersection of jazz,…

Eric Clapton

A Return To The Crossroads: Slowhand Meets Mr. Johnson

January 30, 2020 · Lisa Sharken

In many ways, 2004 marks a return to the crossroads for Eric Clapton. With his latest disc, Me And Mr.…

2021 Readers’ Choice Awards

May 24, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

Each year, Vintage Guitar asks fans to select Readers’ Choice winners for Player of the Year in four categories, along…

Eliza Gilkyson

Not Your Typical Folkie

June 22, 2015 · Dan Forte

“My dad was my biggest influence, especially melodically. He loved dark melodies,” says Eliza Gilkyson of her father, the late…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Replacing Rotted Tuning Keys on a ’62 ES-335

Buttons for a Buzzcock

February 8, 2022 · Dan Erlewine

Steve Garvey played bass in the seminal punk band Buzzcocks during its classic era – 1977 to ’81 – with…

Instro-Meister Eric Penna

September 7, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Blues Switch-Up in Trabants Eric Penna’s main gig is playing bass for the garage/surf band Insect Surfers, but he side-hustles…

How Ron Wood’s New Barbarians Saved the Stones

Ear-to-Ear Violence

January 5, 2018 · Michael Dregni

Today, the Rolling Stones continue to perform live, more than 50 years since their first gig. But few realize how…

Magnatone X-5 Zephyr

Last Gasp

June 14, 2023 · Michael Wright

Ever since Lonnie Mack unleashed The Wham of That Memphis Man and Buddy Holly sang “Peggy Sue,” Magnatone amplifiers have…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

Ibanez AF95

Jazzed UP

October 13, 2022 · Pete Prown

In 2021, Ibanez re-tooled its hollowbody line to devise big surprises like the Japanese-made AF95, a full-bodied archtop with a…

EHX Walking on the Moon Flanger/Filter Matrix

Andy Flange

June 26, 2024 · Pete Prown

With its mouthful of a name – The Andy Summers Walking On the Moon Flanger/Filter Matrix – the latest Electro-Harmonix…

Mooer’s Slow Engine Volume Swell

Bring It Up

March 15, 2019 · Pete Prown

Long out of production, the Boss Slow Gear was one of the coolest pedals of the ’80s, duplicating the sound…

Meris LVX Delay

Next-Gen Echo

September 17, 2024 · Pete Prown

Designed for guitarists drawn to effects with a simple, straightforward interface, Meris LVX Modular Delay System is an attention-getter. Perfect…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

2024 January Issue on Spotify

January 10, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

This month we feature Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Eric Clapton, Leo Lyons, Tony Gilkyson, Chris Stapleton, Wes Montgomery,…

Saint Blues

St. Blues Bluesmaster, Blindsider, and Delta Blues Box

Straight from the Delta

August 6, 2013 · Rich Maloof

Saint Blues Bluesmaster/Blindsider Price: $2,399 (Bluesmaster); $2,550 (Blindsider) Info: saintblues.com St. Blues’ history stretches back to the days when its…

Phantom Guitarworks’ Teardrop

Droppin’ In On The ’60s

January 25, 2017 · Rich Maloof

Phantom Guitarworks is dedicated to producing odd-shaped guitars based on designs introduced in the early 1960s like the Vox Mark…

Xotic Guitar XSS-1 Super S Style

Tribute To The King

October 9, 2025 · Oscar Jordan

Xotic’s S-style guitar line pays homage to the man who revolutionized rock guitar in the ’80s. Hint: He was hot…

Standel 400S

June 12, 2023 · Willie G. Moseley

In the early days of the American electric guitar/amplifier industry, Standel was known for building high-quality amplifiers used by the…

Maestro Fuzz-Tone

December 8, 2015 · Michael Dregni

Fuzz. It’s the sound of fury, aggravation, indignation, and – considering the history of the most famous fuzzbox of all…

Raul Malo

Say Less

June 19, 2024 · Rich Kienzle

Raul Malo’s passionate, searing vocals helped define the Mavericks from the early ’90s on. Malo blended his Cuban-American roots into…

The Vox Saturn IV

June 30, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

In the mid 1960s, England’s Vox company was in the right place at the right time. Buoyed by frontline British…

Wally Stocker

A Baby Grows Up

September 11, 2014 · Ken Sharp

After decades away from the music scene, guitarist Wally Stocker is back on his feet again and back where he…

Tommy Emmanuel

May 2, 2017 · John Heidt

As the title suggests, this is a collection of performances pulled from several Public Television concerts Tommy Emmanuel has done,…

Kramer Aluminum-Neck Basses

March 29, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

When it entered the music-instrument market in 1976, Kramer Guitars made a big splash with an aggressive marketing campaign, big-name…

Honkytonk Homage

Guitars Venerate Bakersfield Landmark

April 29, 2024 · Willie G. Moseley

Country-music fans familiar with the history of Bakersfield, California, know of Trout’s nightclub. The last of the venues that gave…

Ca. 1960 Custom Mosrite/Gretsch

A Bakersfield/Brooklyn Cowboy

October 2, 2024 · Peter Stuart Kohman

In the history of vintage guitars, Gretsch and Mosrite are sometimes linked, and often associated with ’50s hot-country pickers and…

Phantom Reissue 1964 PH12

Ghost of Vintage Past

September 25, 2014 · Chip Wilson

From the Hollies to the Mahavishnu Orchestra, from Robert Junior Lockwood to the Stones, the electric 12-string has a prominent…

Return Of The Prodigy

Michael Schenker

September 8, 2025 · Oscar Jordan

Michael Schenker is back with an album covering the music of his early days. My Years With UFO is a…

Universal Audio Ruby, Woodrow & Dream

Model Of Perfection

August 10, 2023 · Pete Prown

With digital recording more popular than ever, audio designers are working to capture guitar tone directly, without miking an amp.…

Gibson Les Paul Juniors

Beauties in Black: Two Rare Gibson Les Paul Juniors

February 6, 2022 · Ward Meeker

Guitar dealers tell guitar stories much like anglers tell fish stories. There are those they “got” and those that got…

Bob Spalding

Latest Ventures

June 9, 2024 · Pete Prown

More than 60 years since their inception, The Ventures are still a rockin’ band, featuring longtime guitarist/bassist Bob Spalding and…

The Quaker City Night Hawks

April 24, 2016 · Oscar Jordan

Advertised as “The spirit of ZZ Top meets Texas boogie rock,” the Night Hawks play up the image of unpretentious…

Good Times In Bad

The Origin of Fender’s Vintage Series

December 4, 2023 · Ward Meeker

The years leading up to CBS Musical Instruments’ 1985 sale of the Fender brand were fluid times at the instrument…

Sam Williams

Sinister Surf

January 4, 2023 · Pete Prown

Sam Williams is known as the guitarist for the roots-punk band Down by Law, but now he’s shaking it up…

Zac Schulze gets straight to it!

December 8, 2025 · Vintage Guitar

If you’re a fan of Cream, Zeppelin, and Rory Gallagher (who isn’t?), you’ll dig Zac Schulze Gang, a British power…

Black Sabbath

Vol. 4 Super Deluxe

October 14, 2021 · Pete Prown

Sabbaholic Must-Have In May of 1972, Black Sabbath retreated to Los Angeles to record its fourth album, along with a…

Breedlove FF and KO Mandolins

Breedlove FF and KO Mandolins

New Traditionalists

January 13, 2016 · Steven Stone

Breedlove FF and KO Mandolins1 Price: FF $2,265 (list), $1,699 (street); KO $1,999 (list), $1,499 (street) Info: www.breedlovemusic.com. Unlike luthiers…

Danny Kortchmar

Family Reunion

September 7, 2022 · Pete Prown

Fifty years ago, singer/songwriters like James Taylor, Carole King, and Jackson Browne were busy conquering the rock charts; behind them,…

Tinsley Ellis

Screaming On The Inside

May 9, 2017 · Oscar Jordan

“Red clay is what you see here in Georgia,” says Tinsley Ellis of the inspiration behind his new album, Red…

Return of the Trashmen

Return of the Trashmen

Bird Is Still The Word

February 10, 2016 · Michael Dregni

Surf’s up – again! Thanks to the prodding of guitarist/impresario Deke Dickerson, The Trashmen recently recorded their first album in…

Jim Lauderdale’s honkey-tonk toe-dip

January 31, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Singer/Songwriter’s Stylistic Twist Jim Lauderdale paid a visit to one of his favorite Nashville hangs and grabbed a gorgeous 1940…

The (Way) Back Beat: A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody

Fretted cheesecake advertising through the years, Part Two

April 5, 2024 · Peter Stuart Kohman

Last month, we began looking at some of the more entertaining fretted instrument advertising of the 20th century, in what…