Features

He recalls making way for Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein, what Glenn Danzig was really like, the songs he wishes he’d recorded, and the problem with his Gibson Explorer

Having already transformed bass design with Stuart Spector, Ned Steinberger turned his attention to eliminating the headstock altogether – only to discover that Les Paul had beaten him to it 

Billie Joe Armstrong’s legendary modded Marshall emerged from a tone lineage that spans Eddie Van Halen, Metallica and Steve Lukather

The hit-making guitarist, who once hoped to share a twin-guitar team with Darius Rucker, still leans on the cherry Les Paul Standard from the Cracked Rear View days, and still pines for his stolen Mesa/Boogie...

From The Archive Atkins was one of the greatest of all time and yet he was never satisfied. We guitar players can be too hard on ourselves

Bowie favorite Carlos Alomar on how to bond with ex-Beatles – and the making of Paul McCartney’s 1986 album, Press to Play

If you’ve hankered for the unvarnished, beautiful acoustic sounds of the ’60s British folk scene, you really need to check out Sam Grassie, one of the most authentic, beguiling folk guitar talents we’ve heard in a long time

Era-specific parts, upgrades and mods can make all the difference

The Meters icon has worked with Motown, McCartney, Peter Gabriel, Otis Redding, Albert King and countless others, learning hard lessons to the point that he’s sick of playing guitar and booking shows

The Wishbone Ash guitarist discusses his greatest guitar buys and biggest regrets – including the Firebird VII that ended up in Stephen Stills’ hands