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Trending Now
Unabashedly British and irresistibly swaggering, Bad Company personified ’70s arena rock. Detractors denounced them as machismo, but fans have bought more than 40 million albums, 20 million in America alone. Guitarist/founder Mick Ralphs was a prime role model for numerous players. Michael (Mick) Geoffrey Ralphs was born in Herefordshire, West England, on March 31, 1944. […]
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Artists
Dave Gant’s Amp Collection
Key Collection: Nashville pro Dave Gant fosters an impressive gathering of amps
Dave Gant grew up in Ada, Oklahoma, and while the city of 17,000 will never be confused with Memphis or Nashville in terms of musical impact, it is the birthplace of a handful of noteworthy personalities including country singer Blake Shelton, NFL tight end Jeremy Shockey, and Gant, who when he’s not serving as musical […]
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The John Pizzarelli Trio is back on the road supporting its latest album, Stage and Screen. Joined by Isaiah J. Thompson on piano and Michael Karn on double bass, Pizzarelli is flying through tunes mostly associated with Broadway and the movies. We had the chance to dig in a bit with the jazz master. What […]
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Carvin’s AE185-12 Price: $1,239 (base retail) Info: www.carvinguitars.com. Most guitarists love the sound of a 12-string, but the thought of owning one often raises several questions. Should you get an acoustic or an electric? What about controlling feedback onstage? And aren’t they hard to tune? Carvin attempts to answer all of these questions with the […]
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Artists
Tom Feldmann
Delta Blues DeLuxe
Tom Feldmann burst out of Minneapolis with an authentic take on acoustic blues unlike anything heard in years. Gifted with fine slide and fingerstyle chops, he also possesses a strong, gritty voice. His new album, Dyed in the Wool, showcases his heartfelt and powerful compositions. Dyed in the Wool is eclectic – a compelling mix […]
VG Approved Gear
Ernie Ball’s Music Man Cutlass/Stingray
Talkin’ Tonewoods
For many builders of solidbody guitars, the challenge is to improve on a handful of pioneering designs from the 1950s and ’60s. No one knows this better than Ernie Ball Music Man – in fact, the brand was co-founded by Leo Fender in 1974. Its latest Cutlass and StingRay solidbodies are attempts to improve classic […]
Artists
Kenny Brown
Mississippi Slide
The Black Keys’ latest album, Delta Kream, is a collection of blues standards from the Mississippi Hill Country. Drummer Patrick Carney and guitarist Dan Auerbach expanded their duo with a team of Hill Country specialists including virtuoso slide guitarist Kenny Brown. As the guitarist for R.L. Burnside and many other Northern Mississippi blues artists, Brown […]
Artists
Bumblefoot
Prog Shred Ain’t Dead
After bursting onto the scene in 1995 with the screwball shred classic The Adventures of Bumblefoot, Ron Thal (a.k.a. Bumblefoot) has shape-shifted his playing, adapting to the hard rock of Guns N’ Roses for Chinese Democracy, the alt rock of Art of Anarchy, and he recently joined Jeff Scott Soto, Billy Sheehan, Derek Sherinian, and […]
Classic Instruments
First-Rate Second Fiddles
Jimi’s Gibsons at the Hard Rock Cafe
No two ways about it, as his career hit stride, Jimi Hendrix was a Strat guy. Not famously loyal to any particular guitar going back to his days hustling chitlin-circuit gigs with Slim Harpo and Tommy Tucker, from the moment he could upgrade from the Supro Ozark and Danelectro of his youth to the Epiphone […]
Music
Check This Action: Jimmie’s Blues Box
Don’t think music can be life-changing? Try moving 1,700 miles. In 1987, I moved from Northern California to Austin, Texas, and music was the reason. Bands like the LeRoi Brothers, Tail Gators, and Teddy & the Tall-Tops played a part, but the biggest reason was the Fabulous Thunderbirds. On a trip to Austin in ’76, […]
Artists
Tracii Guns
Peaces Old and New
The hair/glam metal movement of the ’80s spawned its share of guitar shredders. One often overlooked is Tracii Guns, whose fleet-fingered work was a highlight of the first three albums by the band he founded, L.A. Guns. He recently added to his resumé with the release of The Missing Peace, the first L.A. Guns album […]
Artists
Ty Tabor
On A Roll
King’s X guitarist Ty Tabor is on a roll. Despite the band being on hiatus due to bassist Dug Pinnick’s health issues, Tabor stays busy with side projects like Jelly Jam, with Rod Morgenstein and John Myung. He operates an audio-mastering facility and his new solo album, Nobody Wins When Nobody Plays, showcases idiosyncratic melodies, […]
Artists
Status Quo’s Francis Rossi
On Guitars, Music, and Elusive Success
“I’m only as good now as I should have been when I was 25,” laughs Francis Rossi, the 64-year-old lead guitarist, singer, and co-composer in Status Quo. “That’s why I practice at least two hours every night. I’ll watch some guitarist in a band opening for us and think, ‘I can’t bloody watch this,’ because […]
VG Approved Gear
Magnatone Twilighter
King of Vibrato
Magnatone Twilighter Price: $2,249 (12″ combo, list) Info: www.magnatoneusa.com. Magnatone is dead, long live Magnatone! The original Magnatone amp company died in 1969 after several decades of making storied “Golden Voice” amps noted for their “real” vibrato effect. Buddy Holly played his Strat through one, Scotty Moore swore by his, and Neil Young remains a […]
VG Approved Gear
Gibson ES-335 Joe Bonamassa Signature Model
A Semi-Hollow For Joe
Gibson ES-335 Joe Bonamassa Signature Model Price: $3,335 (street) Contact: gibson.com. The collaboration of Gibson and blues-rocker Joe Bonamassa began with a limited run of goldtop Les Paul’s in 2009, followed by a more-affordable Studio version and another Custom Shop version, the latter sporting a beautiful flamed-maple top. Gibson and Bonamassa have teamed up again […]
Music
Joe Goldmark
Blue Steel
Along with his work with Jim Campilongo and others, San Francisco-based pedal steel guitarist Joe Goldmark has produced eight solo CDs (and three earlier vinyl albums) covering broad swaths of popular music, among them collections of ’60s rock and Beatles tunes. This latest follows a similar path, as Goldmark navigates a blend of original instrumentals […]
Artists
Marty Stuart
Current Traditions
The latest record from Marty Stuart, Ghost Train: The Studio B Sessions, is a tour de force of country music styles that celebrates the past while pushing firmly into the future. And that’s what renaissance man Stuart was aiming for… “Well, traditional country music is what interests me the most,” he said. “Sometimes, I miss […]
VG Approved Gear
The Carr Artemus
A Blend of Dick, Leo, and Steve
Steve Carr made a name for himself building fine amplifiers such as the Slant 6V and the Rambler. His Artemus model used four EL84 tubes, but was not a subtle variation on a classic design, but rather offered a powerful blend of Dick Denney, Leo Fender, and Steve Carr. Though the term “American meets British” is overused in the amp biz, […]
Artists
Philip Sayce
Scorched-Earth Tones
Philip Sayce’s album Scorched Earth Volume 1 was a live recording from 2016 that displayed the kind of blistering blues-rock ferocity that left many asking, “How does he do that?” As a veteran musician and songwriting professional, Sayce has held tenure with Jeff Healey and Melissa Etheridge. His guitar artistry goes hand-in-hand with choice gear. […]
Artists
Mick Taylor’s ’58 Les Paul Standard
The Ya Ya’s Out!
Hard-edged face of the British Invasion, the Rolling Stones introduced the world to the implements, trappings, and accessories of rock-and-roll superstardom. With help from radio, television, and teen ’zines, the band’s music beget mobs at public appearances before conflict and substance abuse fueled a frenzy that lasted more than two decades. Stones lore is rich, […]
Have Guitar Will Travel
Have Guitar Will Travel – 028 Featuring Mark Agnesi
In the new episode of “Have Guitar Will Travel,” host James Patrick Regan speaks with Mark Agnesi, Gibson’s Director of Brand Experience. They discuss Mark’s history in the industry, his role at Gibson, his guitar collection, new products that have caught his eye, how guiding a popular video series at Norman’s Rare Guitars led to […]