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Latest Features

Celebrating 40 years of Paul Reed Smith’s first production model, the PRS Custom 24
By Chris Gill published
Birthed amid the Superstrat mania of the 1980s, the Custom 24 bucked the trend with a set-neck build – and hit a spot with players that wanted timeless looks and modern, high performing upgrades

Dirty amps, unplayable tunings and a DIY plugin build – this is the story of Novelists’ remarkable rebirth
By Phil Weller published
After years of identity struggles, the French progressive metalcore band have redefined themselves and, in their fifth album, created one of modern metal’s brightest statements

Mike Campbell explains how a lifelong connection with Tom Petty was forged in a matter of days – and the guitar was central to it all
By Andrew Daly published
As he celebrates the release of his memoir, Heartbreaker, Tom Petty’s right-hand man and dear friend reflects on a career’s worth of enduring hits, and why he “never doubted the music”
![Simple Minds' Charlie Burchill [left] and Jim Kerr perform at Nelson Mandela's 70th Birthday Party concert. Burchill plays a Gibson Les Paul Standard and wears a white jacket.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/8oSbNwUdfh8bDGdLr43qqn.jpg)
Simple Minds guitarist Charlie Burchill on the regrets and rewards of making their ’80s classic, Once Upon A Time
By Mark McStea published
Riding high on The Breakfast Club success of Don't You (Forget About Me), Scottish rockers Simple Minds got into the studio with Jimmy Iovine and made one of the great albums of the '80s

In 1985, J. Mascis was a beginner guitarist stumbling upon a sound – yet Dinosaur Jr.’s debut would shape a generation
By Andrew Daly published
Recorded in a cabin in the woods, Dinosaur Jr.'s debut was the sound of a beginner guitarist stumbling upon on guitar tone that would influence a generation of players

The story of Brad Paisley’s Lost Telecaster – the ‘hippie vomit’ reject that became one of Fender’s rarest finds
By Andrew Daly published
A partly-failed flower-power experiment in the ‘60s comes back to life via its namesake, who’ll make 19 on his own while Fender’s Custom Shop make another 67

"When all the computers fall apart, when the world burns to the ground, there's going to be a guitar left": Courtney Barnett talks the godfather of grunge, fingerstyle, AI and music, and her next move
By Shaun Prescott published
Barnett may still be working on a new LP, but 2025 has proven busy nevertheless

Jimmy Johnson was a contemporary of Buddy Guy – and the ultimate example of a Chicago blues virtuoso who ventured well outside the box
By Joel A. Siegel published
Brother of acclaimed guitarist Syl Johnson, the late Jimmy Johnson was a singular player who was a mainstay of his city's legendary blues scene, and wowed onstage into his 90s

From childhood abandonment to country stardom, here is the incredible story of Rockie Lynne
By Andrew Daly published
The late blooming country star discusses his custom guitar range, what musicians can learn from motorcycling, and how he wound up with a perfect copy of Peter Frampton’s rig

Jerry Harrison on the outtakes and off-brand inspirations behind Talking Heads’ Little Creatures
By Henry Yates published
If 1985's Little Creatures brought an Americana flavor to the Talking Heads, MTV brought commercial success. Harrison reflects on an art-rock classic and explains why the pressure was fun
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