Jamie Dickson
Jamie Dickson is Editor-in-Chief of Guitarist magazine, Britain's best-selling and longest-running monthly for guitar players. He started his career at the Daily Telegraph in London, where his first assignment was interviewing blue-eyed soul legend Robert Palmer, going on to become a full-time author on music, writing for benchmark references such as 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die and Dorling Kindersley's How To Play Guitar Step By Step. He joined Guitarist in 2011 and since then it has been his privilege to interview everyone from B.B. King to St. Vincent for Guitarist's readers, while sharing insights into scores of historic guitars, from Rory Gallagher's '61 Strat to the first Martin D-28 ever made.
Latest articles by Jamie Dickson
Joan Armatrading: "When Mark Knopfler wrote Money For Nothing, he knew it was a hit. As the creator, if you don’t know, you need to do something different"
By Jamie Dickson, Henry Yates published
The legendary singer-songwriter on her approach to her craft, the importance of letting the song choose the instrumentation and why she can't put the guitar down
Teenage Fanclub on the art of constructing solos, emulating Robert Fripp, and the pursuit of tone
By Jamie Dickson, Henry Yates published
On Endless Arcade, Scotland's finest contemplate life, mortality and all in between. “Everything is going to fall apart but it’s not so bad,” says McGinley
The mods and myths of Les Paul's 'number one' Goldtop
By Jamie Dickson published
Tom Doyle was recruited by Les Paul 57 years ago to make the master guitarist ’s ambitious modding projects come to life. Here he walks through the mods of this historic instrument
Jackson Browne: "It took me a long time to understand what guitars I preferred – sometimes it’s the beat-up old one that works and the spectacular thing doesn’t"
By Jamie Dickson published
The laureate of the '70s Laurel Canyon scene talks old guitars and the new directions on Downhill From Everywhere
Mark Lettieri: "It’s funny that I have a guitar with so many options, because I like my amps as simple as possible. If there are switches on amps, I freak out!"
By Jamie Dickson published
Lettieri discusses the creation of his new signature Fiore, which sees PRS debut a new body shape that's designed for all styles
Matt Berry: “I’m more interested in the songwriter-guitarists than the gymnasts. If you're sensitive enough as a guitarist then you'll be into songwriting“
By Jamie Dickson published
The latest LP from the famed comedic TV actor and multi-instrumentalist is a complex Rickenbacker-infused affair in psychedelic color
Two-Rock Amplification: the tonal approach and philosophy behind the company's sought-after sound
By Jamie Dickson published
The California amp builder has built a huge following of tone-conscious pros – co-owner Eli Lester delves into his love of high headroom and designing the Classic Reverb Signature
Ariel Posen: “When it’s my record, I want to play and feel like I do when I’m playing live – that’s really important to me”
By Jamie Dickson published
Slidemeister, tone guru, master songwriter and all-round dude Ariel Posen offers us the lowdown on his newly released album, Headway
Yusuf/Cat Stevens: “Even today, I’m shy of playing in front of someone like Paul Simon because I never learned anything properly“
By Jamie Dickson published
The legendary singer-songwriter looks back on a career that all started with a cheapo Eko and a cover of The Kinks...
Nile Rodgers: “To me, the less information I throw at you at once, the funkier something sounds“
By Jamie Dickson published
The Hitmaker himself talks about his love of jazz, the possibilities of the Acoustasonic and the importance of the notes he doesn't play
Ariel Posen shares his compact, tone-rich rig in this pedalboard playthrough
By Jamie Dickson published
The stellar Canadian guitarist runs through the pedalboard he uses for touring and recording
5 things to check when buying a vintage guitar
By Jamie Dickson published
Matt Gleeson of setup and maintenance wizards Monty’s Guitars on what to look for in an older guitar before buying
Competition: Are You The UK's Best Amateur Guitar Builder?
By Jamie Dickson published
Guitarist magazine and top lutherie parts supplier StewMac join forces to launch competition to find UK's top home guitar maker
25 years of the Z.Vex Fuzz Factory: how the iconic fuzz pedal was conceived during a single, feverish night in the '90s
By Jamie Dickson published
Maverick effects maker Zachary Vex recalls how tragedy led to triumph in the creation of his most famous pedal
What makes a great-sounding acoustic guitar?
By David Mead, Jamie Dickson, Dave Burrluck published
Some of the world's finest acoustic builders discuss what goes into making a guitar sing
Want to squeeze a little more tone from your guitar? Try new wiring
By Jamie Dickson published
Tone expert Matt Gleeson of Monty’s Guitars explains why a new wiring loom can turn a good guitar into a great one
What makes a good pickup?
By Jamie Dickson published
Revered boutique pickup maker Jason Lollar on what to look for when you are upgrading pickups – and what 'low-wind' humbuckers actually do for your tone
Paul Kossoff's 'Stripped Top' 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard up close and personal
By Jamie Dickson published
Steve Clarke walks us through the features of the guitar used to wax All Right Now
Larkin Poe: “Be tenacious. If you really want to learn how to write good songs, you gotta do it and do it again“
By Henry Yates, Jamie Dickson published
Megan and Rebecca Lovell on the roots scene, the importance of writing bad songs and rock ’n’ roll’s post-pandemic fightback
How Barefaced Audio revolutionized the guitar cab
By Jamie Dickson published
A British company is producing huge sounds from small, featherweight guitar cabs – thanks to the appliance of science
The story of Paul Kossoff's 'Stripped Top' 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard
By Jamie Dickson published
The life and times of the guitar used to cut Free's legendary All Right Now
Billy F Gibbons discusses his extensive collection of hot rod-inspired guitars
By Jamie Dickson published
We joined the ZZ Top man for a personal tour of his garage, which naturally includes a few classic cars...
How to set up a Strat: 4 essential tips
By Jamie Dickson published
Setup maestro Matt Gleeson of Monty’s Guitars tells us how he sets up Leo’s masterpiece
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