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April 2026

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116 articles

April 27
- “If you would have told me 15 years ago that Paul Gilbert’s main amp in the future would be a solid state Fender Twin, I’d have said you were off your rocker”: Paul Gilbert is the latest big name to switch to Fender Tone Master digital amps
- “I heard it snap over the screaming crowd! Sounded like a damn 2x4”: Billy Strings forced to reschedule tour after breaking leg in skating accident
April 26
- “I wasn’t a fan. The only thing I knew was Ace Of Spades. I knew it was going to be rough... I couldn’t distinguish one track from another”: Why Thin Lizzy’s Brian Robertson knew his stint in Motörhead was doomed
April 25
- “I didn’t think Pat would be our guitar player. I just sent him a tape. And he was like, ‘Oh my god, it’s so poppy’”: How Pat Smear surprised Dave Grohl and joined the Foo Fighters
- Who's the most exciting up-and-coming guitar player?
- “I read the other day that I hated him. I can’t believe they said that”: Ritchie Blackmore sets the record straight about his relationship with Jimmy Page
- “It might be the cleanest SG I’ve seen in quite some time. It’s dream guitar material”: All the guitar gear that caught my eye this week – including a new accessory that could change the game for guitar swaps
April 24
- $96,000 for an Epiphone acoustic? Noel Gallagher’s signed Wonderwall EJ-200 smashes pre-auction estimate
- “Love at first sight”: Fender Japan drops its MIJ Hybrid II 2026 Collection – and we can’t get enough of those new finishes
- “COVID happened. I’m like, ‘I’m not going out there’”: Former Korn bassist Fieldy finally opens up on why he left the band
- “It’s extremely bizarre. It’s made by this very strange guy, who disappeared. No one knows where he is”: The mystery pedal that became a Sean Lennon favorite
- “Jimi got it into his head that he wanted to do All Along the Watchtower. He said to me, ‘That’s the coolest song! …You want to come and do it with me?’” When Dave Mason met Jimi Hendrix and played on the greatest cover of all time
- “Something I’ve always needed, but has never existed”: The Flipjack is a cable that can go from straight to angled in an instant – and it could solve your guitar-swapping woes
April 23
- “I wanted a bicycle for Christmas, and they gave me a guitar. It pissed me off”: Jeff “Skunk” Baxter has played with everyone from Steely Dan to Dolly Parton – but he didn’t even want to be a guitar player
- “I’m deeply uncomfortable with the amount of old men here. I’m no longer interested in playing blues or whatever the hell keeps attracting y’all”: Grace Bowers has quit YouTube over the number of “old ass creeps”
- “I haven’t heard anything this cool in a generation”: Nuno Bettencourt names the up-and-coming guitarist who has blown his mind
April 22
- “For those who stand at the crossroads of Hell and rock ‘n’ roll”: Jackson’s Diablo crossover Kelly is inspired by the Lord of Hatred – but you’re still going to love it
- “I talked my folks into buying me a plane ticket to London. I took my guitar and some songs, and I ran into some people…” How the Beatles launched the career of one of the all-time great songwriters
- Suspect linked to organized crime ring targeting Guitar Center stores across the US arrested
- “There were two camps. I came out of the Yardbirds camp – the Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck kind of things”: Why Todd Rundgren chose to play Gibsons over Fenders
- “I had a two-neck guitar, then Steve Vai came out with his three-neck guitar. My label wanted me to challenge Steve to a duel”: Michael Angelo Batio on the origin of his four-neck guitar
- “I was very fortunate to have played with so many great artists, even just for a moment”: Dave Mason, Traffic co-founder who played with Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and George Harrison, dies aged 79
April 21
- “When Ozzy approached me, there was an inner warning light that said, ‘Don’t do that’”: Why Michael Schenker turned down Ozzy Osbourne
- “A lot of people say he sounds like Hendrix, but to me, he doesn’t really”: Prince’s long-time bassist on teaching guitar to the Purple Rain hitmaker – and why the Jimi Hendrix comparisons are inaccurate
- “I was so poor. I was pushing 50 years old. I thought, ‘I might have to get a job again’”: Guitar wizard Nels Cline was about to get a day job before Jeff Tweedy changed his life and asked him to join Wilco
- “A unique symbol of punk’s emergence in the UK”: The Damned frontman Brian James’ iconic Gibson SG, the guitar that defined the sound of early UK punk, already set to exceed estimate at auction
- “Every Gretsch from the mid-’90s onwards is a copy of one I had in my collection”: How Randy Bachman saved Gretsch after its factory burned down
- “I didn’t see it for 18 or 19 years. It disappeared, and it broke my heart”: Jerry Cantrell looks back on the guitar gift from Eddie Van Halen that went missing
April 20
- This browser-based amp and effects generator creates guitar tones based on text prompts – and it’s free to use
- “I really wanted to see Ozzy one last time, to give him one last hug”: Gus G opens up on missing out on Back to the Beginning
- “I would get up in the middle of the night, play it in the middle of the night, in the dark, no light”: Billy Corgan trained himself to play in pitch black
- “A growing global movement to ensure his legacy is never forgotten”: Petition launched for Randy Rhoads memorial statue in his hometown of Burbank
- “I couldn’t believe he was a guitar player”: Ritchie Blackmore says most guitarists aren’t nice people – but names one player who bucks the trend
April 19
- “Their first record was very different from the record they made after they met me and the guys in Metallica”: Dave Mustaine on the influence he had on the Big Four of thrash metal
- “I thought I’d got over my Mk.gee-inspired Jaguar hype, but Fender has sent me spiraling down the rabbit hole again”: All the guitar gear that caught my eye this week – including the most futuristic Epiphones ever created
April 18
- “When the session was over, Mickie said, ‘Nope, Peter can’t be in your band. There’s only going to be one star, and that’s you’”: Suzi Quatro reveals Peter Frampton nearly joined her band – but was rejected by her producer
April 17
- “Sometimes you’ve gotta use popsicle sticks and put it on some low-budget scaffolding to get it to work”: Joe Bonamassa on how best to set up P-90s – and what sets them apart from humbuckers
- Built to inspire: Yamaha heralds a new era for the Pacifica with long-awaited SC Standard Plus model
- “I learned that the hard way at rehearsals”: How Jason Falkner got the Foo Fighters gig filling in for Pat Smear – and the biggest mistake he made in prep
- “I got my first guitar for Christmas at the age of 11. I had a book that said, ‘Tune your low string wherever it sounds good…’”: How Stanley Jordan accidentally stumbled upon the tuning that defined his genius two-hand tapping approach
- “A small yet mighty gig bag hero”: Mesa/Boogie launches powerhouse preamp/DI with all the tone-shaping capabilities of its high-end Subway line
- “His dad got him a guitar. The next day he came back playing Black Magic Woman by Santana. He was obsessed with being great at guitar”: Prince was destined to become a guitar legend as soon as he started playing
April 16
- “They said, ‘You have to use Fender parts.’ I said, ‘Alright, I’ll see you guys later’”: Why Steve Morse's ill-fated Fender signature guitar never got off the ground
- “I said, ‘We gotta re-record this. This is terrible. I cannot allow this to happen’”: How Linda Perry saved 4 Non Blondes’ ’90s classic What's Up? from certain doom
- “I was nervous enough, and that spring goes flying. I looked for about 15 minutes, and time was running out”: What it takes to tech and tour with Slash, according to a pro guitar technician
- “George Clinton said, ‘You just can’t play guitar like that until your heart has been shattered to smithereens and you have lost all hope’”: Flea looks back on his life-changing jam with Parliament-Funkadelic guitar hero Eddie Hazel
- “All of a sudden, I heard, ‘Morgan!’ I went outside, and I was like, ‘Oh my god! It’s Kim Deal!’” Morgan Nagler on the time Kim Deal showed up on her driveway – and they wound up writing songs together
April 15
- “Nostalgia for a time when digital was still new”: How Mk.gee is bringing back a ’90s-era modeler favored by Joni Mitchell, David Lynch, and Sting
- “The essential Les Paul concept, refreshed for today’s musicians who want something more personal”: Gibson gives the Les Paul Studio the Double Trouble treatment
- “John 5 was probably the only other dude who was playing a Tele in metal. By nature, it was designed for country and chicken pickin’”: Why Jim Root eschewed traditional metal guitars and made the Telecaster his main Slipknot instrument
- “Bold by design, built for modern guitarists”: Epiphone gives Gibson designs a fierce and affordable modern makeover with all new Futura series
- “50 years since you last played that”: Watch the moment Paul McCartney was first reunited with his long-lost Höfner bass – half a century after it was stolen
April 14
- Yuichiro Yokouchi, founder of one of the world's largest guitar manufacturing companies, dies at age 98
- “Music’s highest honor”: 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees announced – and there’s a long overdue nod to some British heavyweights
- “A level of historical accuracy previously unseen”: The Fender Vintera III line is here – and sets a new benchmark for its vintage-inspired guitars
- “I like to keep things simple, as the saying goes: It’s only rock ’n’ roll”: Never mind the modelers, here’s a Sex Pistols Marshall amp
- “Time is of the essence”: Joe Bonamassa issues public plea to help session player Mason Stoops recover his stolen vintage guitars
April 13
- “It's a struggle every day. The good news is I can still play music. I can still play guitar”: No Doubt's Tom Dumont reveals Parkinson's disease diagnosis
- “The whole idea of the band was to assume a bit of a satirical approach to rock music”: Angine de Poitrine, the viral math rock band, reveal that their microtonal approach started as an “inside joke”
- Watch Alice Cooper deliver a shock rock version of Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit, with some help from new guitarist Anna Cara
- “His work helped shape the sound of generations of musicians”: Lyndon Laney, founder of Laney Amplification, has died aged 77
- “I got a call one evening, and they said, ‘Dumble’s in the Valley. You’ve got to go over’”: Larry Carlton on the first time he met a legendary amp maker – and received a private concert from a guitar great
April 12
- “A piece of rock and roll history”: Guitars gifted, played and modded by Eric Clapton, Eddie Van Halen and Keith Richards are all going to auction – and expected to sell for more than $1,500,000
April 11
- “I’ve literally waited years for this to come out. It’s even nicer than I imagined it would be”: All the guitar gear that has caught my eye this week – including another potentially game-changing AI practice amp
April 10
- “Own a piece of grunge history”: The backline used on Nirvana’s Bleach tour is to be auctioned off today
- “The amount of songs that were coming out of him is almost unprecedented”: Noel Gallagher's workhorse Epiphone – featured in the Wonderwall music video – is expected to exceed expectations at auction
- “This amp exists for one reason – to put my real tone in a box… No watered-down version, no extra junk”: Zakk Wylde’s signature Berzerker amp is here and it is a vicious 50-watter weighing under 5lbs
- “A guitar that sits at the intersection of love, collaboration and some of the most influential songwriting of the late 1960s”: The 1913 Gibson used to write Here Comes the Sun and Let It Rain – owned by Eric Clapton – is now up for auction
- Mooer takes on JBL with its own AI stem separation tech – and it could change the way you practice your favorite songs
- “Bob let him play one overdub, then cut him off. George said to me, ‘Don’t let him do that again’”: The time Bob Dylan and a Beatle were at odds over a guitar solo
- “I thought it was a bit too bizarre, but you all went crazy for it”: The hottest new guitar gear releases of March 2026 – according to Guitar World readers
- “It’s a workhorse guitar. Say a producer in Nashville needs an SG, and they pick that thing up; this will do anything they want”: Sadler Vaden’s new signature SG is a working player’s guitar – and it could be Gibson’s 2026 sleeper hit
- “I feel like I get one lawsuit served every week”: Neal Schon sets the record straight on claims made by Journey singer Arnel Pineda that he was pressured to go on tour against his will
April 9
- Elvis’ 1968 Comeback Special Hagstrom Viking II is heading to auction (again) – and is now expected to sell for more than $1 million
- “It’s an honor to enter this journey”: Mateus Asato confirms he’s joining Fender – and might have given us the first look at his signature guitar
- Guitar Center's massive Guitar-A-Thon sale is officially underway with up to 30% off thousands of items including $700 off a Gibson Les Paul – here's 9 of the best deals from the sale
- “I’ll find an hour-long Swedish massage video and turn off the sound”: Why tapping genius Stanley Jordan practices guitar by soundtracking massages on YouTube
- “It was heartbreaking. I remember the day I saw that album and those erroneous credits for the first time. It was like a punch in the solar plexus”: Bob Daisley on not receiving credit for playing on Ozzy Osbourne’s Diary of a Madman
- “People are gonna be like, ‘What is that?!’” PRS is championing a new tonewood – and it’s already been adopted for an artist signature
- “A friend of mine called me up and said, ‘I’ve got a couple of guitars you might be interested in…’” Joe Bonamassa’s storied Lazarus Les Paul, which was once brought back from the dead, has been bought by a pop-punk guitar hero
April 8
- “They were sending me leftovers that other people hadn’t picked up. After Ultimate Sin, I felt I should have something a bit more personalized”: Charvel pays tribute to Jake E. Lee’s Ozzy Osbourne era with newest signature model
- “I hope this journey inspires more young musicians from our region to pursue their passion”: Ibanez welcomes its first-ever female Indian endorsee – fast-rising guitarist, Imnainla Jamir
- “It felt like the worst moment of my life. I walked up to the truck, saw the padlock on the ground, and my heart sank”: The moment Wings’ former sound engineer had to tell Paul McCartney his priceless Höfner bass guitar had been stolen
- Steve Vai, Joe Satriani and Pete Thorn trade solos over Led Zeppelin classic at recent SatchVai Band show
- Former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham’s alleged attacker charged with stalking and threatening his family for years
- “I didn’t expect this to inspire me so much”: Jackson finally releases Misha Mansoor’s Surfcaster – one of the most anticipated offset guitar releases of the modern era
- “I turned up at my first audition with my Squier Telecaster – that was all I owned”: The 18-year-old who replaced one of Britpop’s most revered guitarists
- Yamaha redefines the concept of the modern acoustic guitar with the TAS3 C TransAcoustic – which puts the entire creative process into one instrument
- “I couldn’t be more excited about what’s ahead”: ESP appoints new US CEO – as outgoing head retires after 39 years
- "What if your best song is the one you haven't written yet?" Songwriting For Guitar's free two-day live event will make you a better songwriter - here's how to sign up
April 7
- “Guitars haven’t changed that much in the last 50 years. We’re about to change that”: Guitar Center is setting up its own in-house guitar brand – and it’s asking players for their help
- “My student tricked me into getting an Instagram”: The off-hand advice from a student that helped kickstart Yvette Young’s career
- “After his funeral, me and my buddy snuck into his house and took the guitar”: Pepper Keenan got his first guitar after a tragic accident
- “It absolutely blew my mind”: Why Dave Grohl is obsessed with viral Canadian microtonal duo Angine de Poitrine
- “The guitar community came through and sent about one million solos to me”: The world’s buzziest guitarists fought to get on this Bilmuri track – now the winning solo has been revealed
April 6
- “Automatically you go into blues when you do that”: Big Country's golden guitar rule that steered them clear of the blues
- “I’d buy a ‘54 Strat, and then I’d sell it, buy one, sell it… I just kept trading them off. I’ve been disappointed in some of those”: Eric Johnson on why a guitar's age, value, and cool factor don't necessarily make it a better instrument
- “The company that handles all our equipment has completely boned us. We have literally nothing to play”: The All-American Rejects cancel show after gear is “mistakenly shipped across the country”
- “I certainly didn’t know how to build a studio. It was all Donn’s magic”: Donn Landee, the engineer who masterminded 5150 Studios, and helped shape Van Halen’s sound, dies at 79
April 5
- “I told myself I’d stop buying JHS Pedals gear. At this rate, my pedalboard is going to look like a shrine to the company”: All the guitar gear that caught my eye this week – including the most outrageous Ibanez I think I’ve ever seen
April 3
- “Something you’ll hear a lot of is, ‘Oh, you didn’t earn that relicing.’ But people who like it aren't thinking of it like that”: The real reason why relicing is so popular, according to a Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilder
- “He rolled up with his guitar on his back and his Fender Deluxe in his right hand”: Mark Lettieri on his jams with John Mayer, and how they ended up working together on one of the biggest PRS shows in history
- “They’re 16 bars, and that’s it. There’s no extended solos”: Adrian Smith on why making music outside of Iron Maiden lets him stretch his soloing wings
- “He will be remembered for his unwavering empathy and compassion, and his magnetic, inimitable presence on and off the stage”: Harm’s Way guitarist Bo Lueders dies at 38
- Who is the most iconic Fender Telecaster player?
April 2
- “When I was asked who was the best up-and-coming guitarist, I had no hesitation”: Alice Cooper announces new 22-year-old guitarist, handpicked by Nita Strauss to be her replacement
- Yes postpone upcoming tour dates due to guitarist Steve Howe requiring “essential surgery”
- Turnstile co-founder and former guitarist Brady Ebert arrested for attempted murder after allegedly hitting former bandmate's father with his car
- “That way, I can bend notes the way I want, and it also saves my hands”: How Joe Perry is changing his guitar setup to battle the early signs of arthritis
- “The two things I remember are the cool guitar stuff… and this never-ending scream”: Billy Corgan on the first time he met Courtney Love and witnessed Hole live
April 1
- One of Slash's Guns N' Roses reunion tour Les Pauls expected to fetch up to $400k at auction
- “What happens when you do more with dramatically more?” Quilter Labs unveils The Vamp, a four-wheeled, 200,000-watt guitar amp
- “Get the data-driven results musicians dream of”: Chibson and Acorn Amps team up for the definitely-not-Google Drive pedal
- “If you talked to me when I was 25 years old, I would have been frightened to take a solo after Joe Satriani…” Why Cory Wong is no longer afraid to trade leads with his heroes
- “Way more rare than a Klon”: JHS Pedals pays tribute to mysterious pedal builder with the Coyote – a new fuzz based on one of the rarest pedals of all time
- “I just remember thinking, ‘I can’t play this thing’”: Why Steve Vai struggled to play Brian May’s iconic Red Special