Latest articles by David Mead
How the pandemic inspired Taylor’s Andy Powers to take a new minimalist path with the American Dream series
Taylor’s chief designer, president and CEO talks us through the choice of body woods for the brand’s stunning new model, the AD12e
Martin Taylor: “There are some guitars I play a few notes on and just put down. The sign of a good guitar is one you really want to play and don’t want to put down”
The jazz maestro recounts the tale of a disappointment with a Gibson ES-175 and his surprise over a freebie vintage Martin
Taylor American Dream AD12e-SB review
Taylor describes its American Dream guitars as “spartan and minimalist” by design, but does this add up to any shortcomings in tone? Let’s find out
Larrivée 0-44R, 000-44R and OMV-44R review
Larrivée’s 44 Legacy Series introduces a range of characterful guitars in a selection of body sizes, each with an upgraded high-gloss finish. Let’s find out exactly how they shine
Aynsley Lister on why he prefers ’70s Strats to ’60s models, and relying on amp drive rather than pedals
With a focus on storytelling and an unexpectedly precious mid-’70s Strat, blues-rocker Aynsley Lister presents album number eight and talks about the tones behind the tracks
Andy Fairweather Low: “I got Fender to make me an Esquire tuned to A... a beast. I tried using that with Eric Clapton and he said, ‘Put that away! Play a proper guitar’”
Defiantly old-school in his approach to music-making, with a delightfully quirky taste in guitars to boot, everybody’s favourite sideman has a new solo album, Flang Dang
Mick Box on his greatest gear hits and misses: “It’s not all about price – it’s about feel”
The Uriah Heep guitarist mourns the loss of a Telecaster and champions his signature Carparelli guitars
Ariel Posen: “I have Telecasters that I like with 12s – I like a fight: I’m not a guy that’s ripping up and down the fretboard. I don’t need a fast action”
The renowned Canadian guitar virtuoso checks in to discuss his string gauge philosophy, love of alternate tunings and why he's so enamored with fretless guitars and rubber bridges
Sting guitarist Dominic Miller: “You gave Jeff Beck a tennis racket and a transistor radio, he’d make it sound perfect”
It's not the gear, it's the player says Miller, but then, those vintage Telecasters and ES-335s sure do come in handy
Gibson J-45 50s Faded, J-35 30s Faded and Hummingbird Faded review
A trio of Gibson dreadnoughts with faded satin nitro finishes, vintage appointments and modern-day electronics. Serious players or mere novelty acts? Let the auditions begin…
Takamine LTD2022 review
One of two limited-edition models that celebrate Takamine’s 60th Anniversary, both of which engage the charms of Hawaiian koa in their construction. Let’s take a closer look
Peter Frampton details his farewell tour guitar rig
It's a stereo rig, it's massive, and Frampton feels a little embarrassed by its size. Here, he takes us through the guitars and amps behind his farewell tour
Barrie Cadogan talks about his great gear hits and misses, and explains why the Squier 40th Anniversary Jazzmaster is a winner for fans of old-school offsets
The Little Barrie main man opens up about a stellar deal on a ’62 Epiphone Crestwood and his fondness for P-90 pickups
Chris Buck: “We were shooting for Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon meets Ray LaMontagne”
The Cardinal Black guitarist details the gear behind the gourmet tones on the band's crowdfunded debut album, January Came Close
Peter Frampton on the highs and lows of his remarkable guitar journey, meeting George Harrison, and how David Bowie made him cool again
From early pop stardom with The Herd to Frampton Comes Alive! and finding salvation in Bowie’s band, Frampton reflects on a rollercoaster career and the darker side of fame…
Breedlove Eco Pursuit EX S Concert Sweetgrass review
An acoustic guitar where sustainability and ecological common sense are a design and build priority. But do all these good intentions add up to a great-sounding instrument?
The Proclaimers’ Charlie Reid talks acoustic guitars, songwriting and working with James Dean Bradfield on the Scottish rock institution's life-affirming new album
The Proclaimers are back with their own signature brand of earworm choruses tempered with that familiar Scottish lilt, and it's a sound that takes many Taylor acoustics to put together
Meet Dom Martin, the Belfast-born guitarist who may just be Rory Gallagher’s musical inheritor
They start guitar players young in Ulster. Dom Martin began playing aged 5, but after support slots with Eric Gales and a thrilling new album, is this the next blues-rock great from the six counties?
Fairport Convention’s Simon Nicol looks back on 55 years of the band that transformed British music
Nicol reflects on a guitar journey that went on to change the country's musical landscape, writing new songs that sounded like they had been recovered from the century before
Hugh Cornwell: “I can’t fathom what the attraction is about a relic guitar. It’s battered and beaten up, and suddenly it’s 10 times the price?”
The ex-Stranglers guitarist confesses to being a bona fide Tele addict and talks about the business of buying and selling gear, including a peach of a deal on a ’64 Silvertone
Nili Brosh: “For me, the playability is big... I don’t think anybody’s wish is to feel like the guitar is fighting them and everything is harder to play”
The shred phenom talks gear philosophy, greatest hits and misses, explains the benefits of the high-performance six-string – and how to get the weird sounds Danny Elfman likes
Julian Lage: “A lot of what you hear on this record is first or second take. I like the tape to be rolling when I'm writing because there's a certain sense of discovery”
The guitarist's new album, View With A Room, is full of his signature virtuoso-level guitar playing with splashes of colour provided by special guest Bill Frisell
Cort Flow-OC and Gold-A6 Bocote review
A pair of contrasting all-solid wood acoustic-electrics from Cort’s Chinese workshop with a host of innovative features to their name
John Petrucci talks buying and selling guitars: “I’m completely illiterate in the world of vintage guitars and Les Pauls and Strats and all that stuff”
Dream Theater’s magus of the fretboard on the Les Paul copy that sparked his love of humbuckers and why he might give Django a run for his money…
