Latest Updates

Slash took his new favorite amp brand on the Guns N’ Roses tour without telling anyone
By Phil Weller Published
Slash pivoted from Marshall to Magnatone in a high profile move back in 2023

Bruce Watson on the story of Big Country frontman Stuart Adamson’s ‘Peace in Our Time’ Les Paul
By Scott Rowley Published
Bruce Watson shares the story of a guitar that encapsulates the time Big Country tried to break America – before they took their Scot rock sound to Moscow

Amps and pedals that sound great with Fender Telecasters
By Jamie Dickson Published
The world's first mass-produced electric inspired overdrive pedals, brought the best out of Fender's black-panel combos and pairs very nicely with a splash of some spring reverb

The mystery of Gibson’s first Patent Applied For humbuckers
By Jamie Dickson Published
Stuart Robson of Sunbear Pickups has spent countless days obsessing over the secrets of the O.G. Gibson humbucker. He says there's something special about the 1957 variant

Meet Spencer Mackenzie, the Canadian blues-rock maestro covering Rory Gallagher and learning when to unleash his “ginormous” lead tone
By Amit Sharma Published
Mackenzie says he’s learning all the time to control the dynamic between sweet and acoustic and "rip-your-face-off" drive sounds – and you can hear it on new album, Empty Chairs

Bruce Watson on the birth of Big Country, Stuart Adamson’s legacy and the secret to bagpipe guitar
By Scott Rowley Published
Bruce Watson shares the guitar story of the Scottish rock stalwarts, the "Itch and Itch" amps so crucial to his tone, and how “Scotland’s answer to Jimi Hendrix” was the heart of Big Country's sound

Joe Bonamassa tells the story of the strangest guitar deal he ever did
By Matt Parker Published
The Bolin ’Burst is famed for its association with Deep Purple guitarist Tommy Bolin – but its route to Bonamassa was considerably less direct

How Rory Gallagher grabbed his iconic 1963 Gretsch Corvette for the princely sum of $150
By Jamie Dickson Published
Can you judge a guitar by its case? Not usually, but when Donal Gallagher was shopping for cases for brother Rory, he found one with a very special guitar inside, and there was a deal to be made

In the court of the Master Builders – Fender’s Custom Shop gurus spill the secrets of their trade
By Jamie Dickson Published
With Fender’s Custom Shop nearing its 40th anniversary, we catch up with two of its most sought-after Master Builders, Austin MacNutt and Andy Hicks, to talk Teles, Jazzmasters, mods and more

14 ways to improve your Telecaster: tried and tested methods to get more out of Fender’s original mod platform
By Huw Price Published
Players were already modifying their Telecasters in the 1950s, and a thriving aftermarket parts industry provides countless ways to enhance playability, reliability and tone

“I don’t know if I got better or worse”: Jazz legend Bill Frisell reflects on his guitar journey at 75
By Henry Yates Published
Veteran jazz man Bill Frisell toasts his 75th birthday with a stellar lineup and questing new album, and the hope that maybe he's getting better...

Richie Kotzen and Adrian Smith on absurd volume, improv and how long a solo should be
By Jamie Dickson Published
We meet Smith and Kotzen pre-show to talk gear, their new album Black Light/White Noise, and find a pair whose chemistry makes this a hard-rock project with legs

75 years of the Telecaster: the evolution of the original solid-body electric guitar that started it all
By Huw Price Published
As the Telecaster turns 75, we chart its history – hardware, parts, and all – from the Nocaster days to the Wide Range era

Glenn Tilbrook is still mourning the stolen ’59 Fender he bought from folk-rock royalty
By Matt Owen Published
The Squeeze frontman used the prized Strat during the band’s early days – and he’s been missing it ever since

Up close and personal with a '63 Strat and '70s Höfner Violin Bass with Oasis and Ocean Colour Scene connections
By Huw Price Published
This 1963 Fender Stratocaster and 70s Höfner 500/1 violin bass guitar recently went under the hammer – and, as it turns out, these were Britrock unicorns for collectors

“Working and being in his presence was magical”: Jerry Jemmott on playing bass with B.B. King
By Andrew Daly Published
When Jemmott was drafted to play on the Live & Well sessions in 1969, he would find himself in awe of the King, and joined a band that would produce three albums’ worth of material

The life and times of Mike Vernon, the British blues legend who got Eric Clapton his Bluesbreakers tone
By Henry Yates Published
The producer of vintage Fleetwood Mac and Bluesbreakers was one of British blues’ towering figures

The life and times of John P. Hammond, the blues genius who inspired Bonnie Raitt and countless others
By Henry Yates Published
The New Yorker will be remembered as a master of acoustic barrelhouse and an interpreter of Delta blues who performed like a man possessed
![Billy Gibbons [left] plays a custom T-style; B.B. King takes a solo on Lucille.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/4yzvvUKZ96pjSWVvfNDAxD-320-80.jpg)
