
Jonathan Horsley
Jonathan Horsley has been writing about guitars since 2005, playing them since 1990, and regularly contributes to publications including Guitar World, MusicRadar and Total Guitar. He uses Jazz III nylon picks, 10s during the week, 9s at the weekend, and shamefully still struggles with rhythm figure one of Van Halen’s Panama.
Latest articles by Jonathan Horsley

Eric Bibb pays tribute to blues pioneer Muddy Waters in new single – taken from upcoming album with John Mayer and Paul McCartney collaborator
By Jonathan Horsley Published
The second single from Bibb's forthcoming album is named after Muddy Waters, and he and guitarist Robbie McIntosh put on a rootsy blues masterclass atop an irresistible groove

The Tube Screamer is one of the most iconic overdrives ever. It’s just been reinvented by the pedal pioneer who first developed it
By Jonathan Horsley Published
The TWA Source Code is a "next-gen" TS-style drive that looks to level up the original design

Martin is making replicas of the finest acoustic guitars it’s ever made – at $150,000 apiece
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Martin has launched Project 91, a series of acoustics based on individual classic pieces from its archive, meticulously recreated and built to the original spec – and it has unveiled the first four models in the run

Marcin fights ‘fake playing’ claims with new music video – but it doesn’t quite go according to plan
By Jonathan Horsley Published
The percussive acoustic virtuoso responded to the naysayers with a video to show he is the real deal

Stevie Salas on being asked to join David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar’s bands – and why he turned them down
By Jonathan Horsley Published
For a “Van Halen nut” like Salas, it was all too weird

Yungblud, Dream Theater, Wet Leg, Turnstile among guitar’s heavy hitters at the 2026 Grammy nominations
By Jonathan Horsley Published
There are no guitar-led artists in the AOTY shortlist but there's no shortage of guitar talent here, including Joe Bonamassa, Billy Strings, Buddy Guy, Larkin Poe, and Deftones

Rick Beato was offered the chance to play guitars from Eric Johnson, Peter Frampton and Larry Carlton – here’s why he turned them down
By Jonathan Horsley Published
What would you do if Frampton handed you his black Les Paul? Beato? He handed it right back

Wolfgang Van Halen on the panic attack he suffered on the way to his Metallica support – and how it inspired his new album
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Flying out to Mexico City, Wolfgang felt his body betray him – a terrifying experience that turned out kinda useful when writing The End

Best bass strings 2025: Optimize tone, feel and lifespan
By Jonathan Horsley Last updated
Our expert pick of strings to bring the low-end thunder from Ernie Ball, D’Addario, Rotosound and more

Scotland’s Kenny’s Music is the latest guitar shop chain to close its doors – despite strong sales figures
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Kenny’s had a physical presence in Glasgow, Aberdeen, and Dunfermline and its closure continues a worrying trend that has seen UK gear heavyweights GAK and PMT go to the wall

Manson Guitar Works' debut fuzz pedal is here, but will Matt Bellamy’s high-end boutique stompbox be worth the wait?
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Co-designed by the Muse frontman, designed to go into your amp or direct to desk, and built in partnership with Thorpy FX, the Supermassive Black Fuzz is a lot of pedal – and it ain't cheap
![Dave Mustaine of Megadeth [left] plays his signature Gibson Flying V live. On the right, an archive pic of Metallica frontman James Hetfield playing his white V copy, in his element circa 1984](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZsDUCbn7ybdedwDKg7VxW6-320-80.jpg)
Dave Mustaine reveals why Megadeth are covering Metallica on their final album
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Megadeth's new album will find Mustaine and co playing a Metallica classic, co-written by Mustaine in the early days, and MegaDave promises us we've never heard Ride the Lightning like this before

Putting the HSS into SRV? Ibanez’s new AZ signature model is like the voodoo child of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s #1 Strat
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Ibanez teams up Chinese guitar virtuoso Gaofunk for a classy MIJ Prestige series S-style that's giving us GAS big-time

How Rudy Sarzo said no to Sharon Osbourne and still got the Ozzy gig – with a little help from Randy Rhoads
By Jonathan Horsley Published
The former Quiet Riot and Ozzy bassist recalls how he turned down the offer of an audition, immediately regretted it, and got the second chance of all second chances

Mark Knopfler looks back on Brothers in Arms – Dire Straits’ “sheer fluke” that made him a reluctant superstar
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Brothers In Arms reinvented Knopfler and gave him more fame than he could handle. 40 years on, in a rare interview, the band look back on the biggest rock album of the '80s

The guitar world pays tribute to the late Ace Frehley – the Spaceman who took Kiss into orbit
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons lead tributes to the Kiss co-founder and larger-than-life former lead guitarist, who has died, aged 74

Gene Simmons rushed to hospital after reportedly losing consciousness and crashing his SUV into a parked vehicle
By Jonathan Horsley Published
The God of Thunder is doing okay now

“Ibanez has broken the rules of conventional guitar design. Pick it up and break the rules of guitar playing”: Ibanez Q54W review
By Jonathan Horsley Published
It's like all the cool kids are saying, if you want to get ahead, get a headless guitar

Buckethead reflects on his time in Guns N’ Roses as Slash pays tribute to the elusive virtuoso
By Jonathan Horsley Published
The man with the bucket on his head and magic in his fingers says an emotional thank you to Slash after the rock icon described his guitar playing as “next level”

Scott Reeder on the time he auditioned for Metallica – after Lars Ulrich cold-called him
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Reeder didn't get the Metallica gig but the stoner-rock bass icon got a helluva story out of it – and the silver medal in the metal Olympics

Dweezil Zappa finally gets his hands on the viral cardboard Strat and cooks up a crazy psych-rock rager for the occasion
By Jonathan Horsley Published
The Cardboard Sessions come to Dweezil’s Hikari Studios and he cooks up a track on the spot with his band on cardboard instruments

All the new guitar gear that has caught my eye this week, featuring Manson, Martin, Ibanez, Positive Grid, and more
By Jonathan Horsley Published
PRS, Boss, a trio of sweet, sweet fuzz boxes, and the guitar plugin that gets AI to do the tone seeking for you? It's just another week in gear

“We’ve had some progression in the case, thanks to all the tips you guys have been sending in”: Gibson has found an ES-345 that Michael J. Fox played in Back to the Future – but it’s not the one they’re really looking for
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Gibson's Mark Agnesi says they have found the ES-345 from the Back to the Future Part Two, but that is helping them eliminate false leads in the hunt for the O.G. McFly guitar

Ibanez and Bernth team up for a classy high-performance signature electric that makes you play “faster” and “cleaner”
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Is this the guitar that makes you a better player? The Austrian virtuoso believes it will, and it’s got multi-voice signature Fishmans that give you more core tones than you have days in the week

Remembering the night tres hombres by the name of John Mayer, Slash and Billy Gibbons gave ZZ Top’s La Grange a triple-guitar glow-up
By Jonathan Horsley Published
Iconic headgear, iconic players, a gnarly Texan blues-rock groove and a legendary all-star guitar jam came to Hollywood’s House of Blues in 2009
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