Back Issues

Carving a niche with soul-infused music informed by the blues, R&B, pop, and rock delivered with conviction, Tommy Castro is beloved for his guitar work and vocal style. To help create his new album, his famous ’66 Strat was pulled from under the bed.

Who invented the electric guitar? There is no single answer, but Peter Stuart Kohman tells the fascinating story about how, after leaving Gibson, Lloyd Loar teamed with Lewis A. Williams on one entry to the fray – the Vivi-Tone “Skeleton.”

In the mid ’60s, guitarists learned that 100 watts (or more!) was the way to go. The best approach however, followed several paths. Dave Hunter examines arena-rock alternative amps.

We pay homage to British guitarist Vic Flick, known for playing one especially famous movie-theme lick.

We talk new music with Tab Benoit, Yasmin Williams, Oz Noy and Andrew Synowic, Kristian Borring, and Marcin.

In “Fretprints,” Wolf Marshall examines Wes Montgomery’s transcendent masterpiece Full House.  Dan Erlewine and the VIPs in his shop continue to refurbish a custom-built doubleneck from the ’70s. Mark Farner talks about the making of Grand Funk’s We’re An American Band, in “Pop ’N Hiss.” Dan Forte’s “Check This Action” takes a listen to great folk-blues albums.

Our knowledgeable and informed review staff offers their objective thoughts on the Keeley Zoma, Bad Cat Cub V, EHX POG 3, Reverend Greg Koch Gristle ST, and Xotic XSS.

We have some great ideas for artist to freshen your playlists – and ears! We screen music by SRV & Albert King, Dwight Yoakam, Billy Strings, Yasmin Williams, Allman Brothers Band, Hot Club of San Francisco, and more!

It’s all in the February issue of Vintage Guitar!

Family of the late Gary Rossington wanted to do something meaningful with his guitars, and with the help of Rickey Medlocke they connected with Chicago Music Exchange CEO Andrew Yonke. Together, they devised a plan that will ensure the guitars continue to be heard and seen.

The days when a kid would grab a soldering iron and assemble their own guitar amp are largely behind us. In the ’60s, though, that’s how many an aspiring player acquired his first, like the Heathkit TA-16 Starmaker. Dave Hunter tells the story of one.

Responding to any ad in The Village Voice, Wes Beech ducked low-hanging pipes dripping with condensation on his way to audition for the Plasmatics, not knowing he was about to become part of a stage-storming, car-smashing artistic statement. 

Mike Semrad’s musical roots run deep in his hometown of Fremont, Nebraska, where he was a founding member of its first rock band. Through the decades and a series of bands, he has never stopped playing his prized ’57 Les Paul Custom.

We talk new music with Jerry Douglas, Mark Farner, Larkin Poe, Ronnie Baker Brooks, and Michael Schenker. We also memorialize Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh and stop by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the indutions of Peter Frampton and Foreigner.

By the late ’60s, Albert King was the consummate blues artist, and two albums –  Born Under a Bad Sign and Live Wire/Blues Power – epitomize his work of the era. “Pop ’N Hiss” examines their massive influence on guitarists.

An amalgam of blues-rock, progressive aspirations, heavy-metal antecedents, lingering psychedelic overtones, acoustic colorations, and imaginative orchestration, Led Zeppelin’s IV is the defintion of iconic. In “Fretprints,” Wolf Marshall examines its origins and impact.

Dan Forte’s “Check This Action” pays tribute to luthiuer George Bowen. 

Our quest to find new gear worth your time and money continues with our objective examinations of  the Wampler Catacombs, Fractal VP5, Pinter SB1-R, PRS SE Custom 24 Semi-Hollow Piezo, and Supro Montauk 1x10.

“Hit List” tells you why it’s worth a listen to the latest from Eric Clapton, Roger McGuinn & Chris Hillman with Marty Stuart, Larkin Poe, Mark Farner, CSN&Y, Ten Years After, and more.

It’s all in the January issue of Vintage Guitar!

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The December 2024 Issue of Vintage Guitar magazine features George Benson, The Kramer Pacer Deluxe, Alternative ’60s Club Classic, Richie Kotzen, Warren Haynes, Blu DeTiger, Jesse Ed Davis, Taste, Gary Moore’s Still Got the Blues, and much more!

A century after his birth in the Smoky Mountains of rural eastern Tennessee, and 23 years after his death, Chet Akins’ legacy endures in a multitude of ways.  And while it was rejected by the rising-star endorser, the Gretsch 6120 still became a classic. We examine the complicated Chet Atkins influence on Gretsch guitars.

While other amp builders used contemporary designs to recapture the sound of classic circuits, Mark Bartel’s circuits brought a new concept to golden-age tube sounds. Dave Hunter profiles the Tone King Imperial.

We talk new music with Jim Lauderdale, Andy Wood, Jeff Kollman, LA LA Land’s Zac Sokolow, and Mojo Thunder’s Bryson Willoughby. Dave Mason talks about his new biography, and we memorialize Happy Traum.

Two weeks after Jefferson Airplane played for hundreds of thousands at Woodstock, Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady set up at a small club in Berkeley to record their acoustic country-blues offshoot, Hot Tuna. “Pop ’N Hiss” tells why it wasn’t the contradiction it may seem.

Alongside fellow seminal thrashers Megadeth, Anthrax, and Slayer, Metallica represented the zenith of the form’s evolution, In “Fretprints,” Wolf Marshall details why Master of Puppets pushed them to preeminence.

Dan Forte’s “Check This Action” examines new guitar jazz worth a listen, including albums by Yotam Silberstein, Kiki Valera, and Woody Jackson.

In “Dan’s Guitar Rx,” Dan Erlewine works on a custom doubleneck he built in 1977. In its nearly 50 years, it had be modded and refinished. With blessing from the owner’s family, Dan is returning its original glory.

Informed and honest, our “Approved Gear” reviews are here for you! This month, we take a look at the Gibson Theodore, Knaggs Chena A, Crazy Tube Circuits White Whale V2, Weller El Dorado, and Epiphone’s Inspired by Gibson '63 Firebird V.

Here, as always, to help freshen your playlists – our “Hit List” review staff tell you why you should take a listen to the latest from Nick Lowe, Bill Wyman, J.D. Simo & Luther Dickinson, Frank Zappa, Mike Stern, Canned Heat, and more.

It’s all in the November issue of Vintage Guitar!

Even before he began to record seminal music using an Esquire plugged into a Harvard, Steve Cropper was the epitome of a team player. His new album, Friendlytown, further celebrates the guitar tag team.

Before the U.K. made the jump to alternating current, guitarists used amps like the Selmer/RS Truvoice TV10, which are interesting not only for their low-watt tones, but the risky “fun” of plugging them in. Dave Hunter offers an examination.

Harold “Sonny” Wright and his ’65 Gibson J-45 went to war, creating memories for many  before they returned to home life. After the guitar was stolen, he found another, but thoughts of the original will forever remain.

In a career spanning 50 years, Tony Mottola logged thousands of studio dates and concert appearances. A first call for dozens of artists, he was also revered as a pioneer for his compositions in the early days of live television. We offer a complete retrospective, including a look at his favorite instruments.

We love talking to artist about their new music, and this month we’re joined by Grace Bowers, Mike Campbell, Dave Alvin and Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Jim Weider, and McKinley James. We also memorialize John Mayall.

With their 1983 album, Synchronicity, The Police became a full-fledged cultural phenomenon, reaching #1 on Billboard for 17 weeks and selling more than eight million copies in the U.S. alone. In “Pop ’N Hiss,” we speak with guitarist Andy Summers to recall its creation – and challenges.

In “VG Q&A,” our experts field questions about a ’60s Conrad 12-string, converting a ’65 Gibson ES-345TD-SV to Mono, and a ’71 Precision Bass made from mahogany.  

Recorded on donated time at Jackson Brown’s L.A. studio in November of 1982, Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Texas Flood is the archtypical breakout album. Receiving critical acclaim, it included a Top 20 song, surpassed double-platinum sales, and earned a Grammy nomination. In “Fretprints,” Wolf Marshall recalls the man, his gear, and the magic in that studio.

Dan Forte’s “Check This Action” revisits the careers of Paul Oscher, James Harman, and Doug MacLeod, all of whom helped revive the blues in the ’60s. 

If you want honest opinions on new gear - not a “review” by some uninformed “influencer,” be sure to read our thoughts on the Harden Engineering Rodeo, Boss Katana Gen 3, Danelectro Doubleneck, Epiphone Coronet USA, and Fender’s Player II Telecaster. 

Spruce up your playlists with input from our music reviewers, who this month screen the latest from Tommy Emmanuel, Joe Ely, Freddie King, Fabulous Thunderbirds, Duke Robillard, Mike Campbell, Grace Bowers, and more.

It’s all in the October issue of Vintage Guitar!

Purchased by John and Virginia Dietrich so their daughter could take lessons in 1956, we feature a ’54 Strat that proves super-clean examples still exist in the wild!

Revolutionary when introduced 70 years ago, Fender’s Stratocaster is the most-popular and influential electric guitar in the world. George Gruhn reminds us how it was successful from the start.

Made in Chicago but named for an island paradise, the Oahu 415K is a textbook “jobber” amp – and a reminder of just how cool they could sound. Dave Hunter digs in.

In “Classics,” we tell the story behind a ’63 Hummingbird belonging to singer/songwriter Bex Marshall, whose uncle bought it new back when he was rubbing elbows with Gene Vincent, the Beatles, Roy Orbison, and Rolling Stones.

Influenced by Chris Squire and Dave Hope, bassist Paul Goddard enjoyed fame with Atlanta Rhythm Section. We look back at his career, and peruse his instruments.

A thoroughbred all the way, the Aria Pro II PE’s family lines include an underrated brand, legendary manufacturer, and a legendary designer. Michael Wright reveals it all.

To catch up on their latest music, we speak with George Ducas and Pete Anderson, Molly Miller, Jimmy James, Ross Valory, Scott Sharrard, Paul Benjaman, and Arlen Roth.

Emerging from San Francisco’s psychedelic scene in the late ’60s, Blue Cheer’s decibel-drenched assault steamrolled the “peace and love” stereotype of the hippie movement. For “Pop ’N Hiss,” we revisit the band’s first album, Vincebus Eruptum, which is 32 minutes of aural ferocity that today marks a seminal moment in heavy metal.

In “Check This Action,” Dan Forte tells why Duane Eddy was his hero, and Wolf Marshall uses “Fretprints” to examine Elvis Presley’s Sun Studios sessions and the birth of rock and roll.

We bolster your search for new gear lending our informed, objective thoughts on the Beetronics Wannabee, Danelectro’s Red Hot Longhorn bass, Supro’s Amulet 1x12, and the Taylor 50th Anniversary 217e SB Plus LTD.

We also help you find great new music with our “Hit List” reccommedations. This month, it’s Duane Eddy, Black Crowes, Richard Thompson, Dixie Dregs, Lee Ritenour and Dave Grusin, and many others.

It’s all in the August issue of Vintage Guitar!

The June 2024 Issue of Vintage Guitar magazine features Marty Friedman., Buck Dharma, Charlie Starr, HSAS Through The Fire, Jeff Watson, Rick Vito, ’86 Charvel Model 4, Guitars Of Stay Hungry, ’61 DeArmond R5t Amp and much more!