• Seymour Duncan Announces the Slash 3.0 Pickup Set

    Seymour Duncan Announces the Slash 3.0 Pickup Set

    SANTA BARBARA, January 13th, 2026 – Seymour Duncan, a leading manufacturer of guitar and bass pickups, effects pedals, and pedal amps, is proud to announce that the Slash 3.0 Pickup…

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  • Thomas Custom Guitars

    Thomas Custom Guitars

    Rarities from the Pacific Northwest

    Certain makes and models of electric guitars are rightfully prized for their elegant physical designs and superior craftsmanship. Even better are those also revered for their playability and particularly rich…

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  • 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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John Scofield and his Trio!

December 29, 2023 · Vintage Guitar

Fusion Legend Offers Sample From Latest Album, “Uncle John’s Band” John Scofield and his trio, bassist Vicente Archer and drummer…

Epiphone’s Professional Guitar and Amp

Epiphone’s Professional Guitar and Amp

February 23, 2016 · George Gruhn

Since the instrument was introduced, those who play the electric guitar have modified it to create new sounds and interesting…

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…

Classics: September 2022

Danny Gatton’s ES-295

May 9, 2023 · Ward Meeker

Glenn Holley was just five years old when he became infatuated with the sound of rockabilly music thanks to Elvis…

Ruppert Acouswitch and Basswitch IQ DIs

Switching Up

March 27, 2016 · Phil Feser

Ruppert Acouswitch and Basswitch IQ DIs Price: $600 each with gigbag Info: www.rmi.lu. Part DI, part preamp, and part A/B…

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…

  • 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…

    Read more >>

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ARTISTS

Pop ’N Hiss: Albert King’s Born Under a Bad Sign and Live Wire/Blues Power

Power, Indeed

October 29, 2025 · Dan Forte

In February of 1968, Albert King stepped onto the stage of San Francisco’s Fillmore Auditorium for the first time. With…

Tinsley Ellis’ “Devil May Care” attitude

April 15, 2022 · Doug Yellow Bird

Blues ace gets rowdy on his 345 through a tweed Champ The fiery Tinsley Ellis and his ’67 Gibson ES-345…

Jimmy James’ Psychedelic R&B

September 4, 2024 · Vintage Guitar

“Parlor Strut” on a vintage Harmony! Proving that ’60s import guitars can make cool sounds, Parlor Greens guitarist Jimmy James…

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Rodrigo Sanchez

Cuban Orchestra Helps Create Area 52

June 16, 2014 · Oscar Jordan

Rodrigo Sanchez is one half of the fiery acoustic duo known as Rodrigo Y Gabriela. They have evolved from a…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Dan’s Guitar RX: Building a From-Scratch Class Project

Rock-And-Roll High School(er)

April 6, 2023 · Dan Erlewine

Students at Federal Hocking High School here in Athens County, Ohio, are given the opportunity to propose internships in work that…

Carvin 8-15-B

Mail-Order Prize

January 11, 2024 · Dave Hunter

In the days when the printed catalog was king, Carvin guitars and amplifiers often boasted a stature that outweighed their…

Two Tickets to the Top

Keeley Electronics’ Katana and Flexi 4×2

March 1, 2021 · Art Department

Any gearhead who’s been paying attention the last seven years knows the name Robert Keeley. Since 2001, he and his…

Univox Uni–Fuzz & Super–Fuzz

Univox Uni–Fuzz & Super–Fuzz

Full, Fat Fuzzzy

March 15, 2016 · Michael Dregni

Pete Townshend sent many a guitar and amp to an early grave. But there’s no known evidence of him doing…


NEWSWIRE

APPROVED GEAR

The Preston Thompson 12-Fret 000

Old Soul

July 9, 2018 · Steven Stone

Until 1928 the largest and loudest guitar in C. F. Martin’s catalog was their 12-fret 000-sized guitar. Until the OM…

Maestro Agena, Orbit, and Mariner

Wavy Gravy

December 23, 2023 · Pete Prown

Everyone loves modulation and filter pedals – those swishy, soupy sound makers that doll up a guitar’s signal. Maestro is…

Railhammer Hyper Vintage Humbucker

Poles Apart

October 3, 2014 · Lisa Sharken

Railhammer Hyper Vintage Humbucker Price: $139 list / $89 direct Contact: railhammer.com Developed by Joe Naylor of Reverend Guitars, Railhammers…

Eastwood EEB-1 and EUB-1 Basses

Horizontal Vibe

July 1, 2020 · Phil Feser

Eastwood’s EEB-1 and the EUB-1 take their design inspiration from Ampeg’s quirky mid-’60s Horizontal Bass series, the brainchild of Dennis…

WHAT ELSE IS NEW

Paco de Lucía

The Montreux Years

January 24, 2024 · Pete Prown

“He didn’t read music – but I have never met a musician with such an impeccable ear,” says John McLaughlin…

Peavey Vypyr VIP2

Backline in a Box

May 7, 2014 · Oscar Jordan

Peavey Vypyr VIP2 Price: $199.99 Contact: www.peavey.com For more than 40 years Peavey’s ongoing evolution while building guitars, amps, and…

Oddfellow Napoleon Boost

Oddfellow Napoleon Boost

Little Dictator

March 10, 2016 · Pete Prown

Oddfellow Napoleon Boost Price: $119.99 (list) Contact: www.oddfellowfx.com Overdrive is one of the guitarist’s great joys. Unlike flat-out distortion, overdrive…

Harvey Valdes does Bach – Electrified!

July 12, 2022 · Vintage Guitar

Artist Plugs in to Tackle Work of a Master Harvey Valdes shows us how he does J.S. Bach’s “BMV 999…

Guy Pratt

Rickenbackers and a Resistance

January 3, 2024 · Willie G. Moseley

Guy Pratt has been the bass player for Pink Floyd since signing on for the tour to support 1987’s A…

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Lyon and Healy

April 8, 2016 · R.J. Klimpert

So what is it? Its original black-finished spruce top is simply ladder-braced from within, but its back and sides feature…

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Ten Years After

Woodstock Music & Arts Festival, August, 1969

January 3, 2013 · Glen Anderson

Click Here to read the Alvin Lee obituary. In the summer of 1968, America was starting to hear about a…

Keeley Electronics Dark Side

Floyd Fare

July 28, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

In the multi-verse of effects pedals, Robert Keeley’s compressors, dirt boxes, and workstation gizmos are a thing of beauty –…

Tony Rombola

Gothic Blues

January 26, 2022 · Oscar Jordan

Godsmack guitarist Tony Rombola is moonlighting once again, on the third album by Apocalypse Blues Revival with fellow Godsmack member/drummer…

Cicognani Pompeii PP603

Dimensional Echoes

December 6, 2021 · Oscar Jordan

Cicognani Engineering has been making noise with a terrific lineup of amps and effects, earning raves from notable artists like…

Friedman Amplification JEL-20

Firebreather

August 4, 2024 · Charlie Wilkins

For 25 years, Dave Friedman has been creating amplifiers that helped him (eh-hem) gain amp-guru status. His limited-run Jake E.…

FOMOfx Virtual Jeff Pro

Whammy For All

December 8, 2022 · Bob Dragich

On most guitars, installing a traditional vibrato is a task ranging from difficult to impossible. And even done right, mechanical…

Fender Palomino

July 3, 2022 · Michael Wright

Whether all collectors are as attached to nicknames as guitar enthusiasts is unclear. Do salt-and-pepper shaker collectors have fond shortcuts…

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…

Kenny Wayne Shepherd

Kenny Wayne Shepherd

Labor of Love

April 19, 2016 · John Heidt

Kenny Wayne Shepherd called his latest record, Goin’ Home because, he says, “It was another opportunity for me to share…

Pop ’N Hiss: Lou Reed

Definitive Riffs- Lou Reed’s Rock ’N Roll Animal and Live

December 2, 2021 · Willie G. Moseley

Eccentric and enigmatic, composer/singer Lou Reed gained notoriety in the mid-’60s while fronting the NYC band Velvet Underground. Not particularly…

Electro-Harmonix Epitome, Tone Tattoo

Tone to the Third Squared

December 16, 2014 · Pete Prown

The Electro-Harmonix Epitome, Tone Tattoo Price: $491.84 list (Epitome) and $292.35 list (Tone Tattoo) Info: www.ehx.com The concept is smart…

Benson Model 300H

Wrecking Ball

January 6, 2023 · Dave Hunter

Even with all the excellent guitar amps available by the late ’60s, nothing was quite good enough for jazz and…

Calexico

El Mirador

February 7, 2023 · Michael Dregni

Calexico has long crisscrossed the border between American (blues, country, rock and roll) and Latin-American sounds, but the band’s latest…

In Memoriam: Lasse Wellander

February 9, 2024 · Ward Meeker

Lasse Wellander, longtime guitarist in ABBA and a renowned studio and solo musician, died April 7. He was 70 and…

Tommy Smith

Leogun’s Led Zep Connection

March 3, 2016 · Willie G. Moseley

Some of the loudest buzz – literally and figuratively – in music surrounds the London-base power trio Leogun, fronted by…

K775V Kay Jazz II and K5970V Jazz Special Bass

A-Ohh-Kay

February 4, 2016 · Sean OBryan Smith

K775V Kay Jazz II and K5970V Jazz Special Price: $1,495 (K775V Jazz II electric guitar); $1,150 (K5970V Jazz Special electric…

Marshall JMP50 “Plexi”

April 28, 2020 · Dave Hunter

Kids wanna rock? Plug into your plexi and bow to the mighty crunch. Marshall amps of the company’s first 10…

Vic Flick

007 Guitar Man

April 12, 2021 · Pete Prown

You may not know the name Vic Flick, but you know his signature motif–that reverby lick from the James Bond…

Oz Noy

Oz Noy

Dishing Out More Twisted Blues

May 15, 2015 · Oscar Jordan

Oz Noy is talented enough to pay the bills not only as a first-call New York session cat, but also…

Fretprints: Gary Moore’s Still Got the Blues

Defining Document

August 26, 2025 · Wolf Marshall

Throughout his career, Gary Moore was haunted by a prevailing assumption (in rock circles) that he was simply too good…

Martin 00-42 Special

June 30, 2020 · George Gruhn

It has all the appoint-ments of a Martin 00-45, particularly the abalone pearl trim around all the borders of the…

Motörhead Bassist Ian “Lemmy” Kilmister Passes

1945-2015

December 29, 2015 · Willie G. Moseley

Ian “Lemmy” Kilmister, founding bassist for the iconic heavy metal band Motörhead, died December 28, two days after reportedly being…

Dan’s Guitar RX: Reviving a ’56 Duo-Jet, Part Two

Ugly, But An Oldy

March 16, 2024 · Dan Erlewine

In the March issue, I introduced you to my apprentice, Blake Burkholder, and the restoration he was doing to a…