The Awards Issue 2021: inside the new issue of Total Guitar

(Image credit: Alysse Gafkjen)

Back in November, TG conducted a poll to ask readers of GuitarWorld.com to vote for their favourite guitarist of 2021. The winner and runners up are revealed inside the mag this month. Also as part of this special issue, we pick out 2021’s finest songs, riffs and solos, and give special awards for the best album and TG’s guitar icon of the year. Plus we round up the year’s best gear, revealing 25 of TG’s favourite guitars, amps and pedals which had us GAS-ing to part with our cash.

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Total Guitar is one of Europe's biggest guitar magazines. With lessons to suit players of all levels, TG's world-class tuition is friendly, accessible and jargon-free, whether you want to brush up on your technique or improve your music theory knowledge. We also talk to the biggest names in the world of guitar – from interviews with all-time greats like Brian May and Eddie Van Halen to our behind the scenes Rig Tour features, we get you up close with the guitarists that matter to you.

Latest

John Fisher of the band Fishbone performs at Old Forester's Paristown Hall on August 26, 2023 in Louisville, Kentucky.

“I wrote that bassline when I was 16. I saw this dude slapping the hell out of a bass at a music store – the tumblers clicked in my head. I took a bus home, picked up my bass, and I was doing it!” Fishbone’s Norwood Fisher names his 10 best basslines

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“I didn’t know Corgan, but I knew he wasn’t the easiest person to work with. I thought, ‘This isn’t going to last but it’ll be interesting’”: Jane’s Addiction’s Eric Avery on his brief stint with the Smashing Pumpkins and what he learned from Billy Corgan

“A significant leap forward in both technology and user experience”: Fender’s Mustang Micro Plus looks to fill the void left by the Boss Katana:GO by making the firm’s market-leading headphone amp better than ever before

“I’d be playing the synth, thinking, ‘Peter, do you see this? Sting is playing that part – and you don’t mind when Sting does it!’” Tony Levin explains the origins of his Funk Fingers appendages – and the friendly rivalry they sparked with Peter Gabriel

“We shared a depth of understanding that most people can only hope to achieve in a lifetime”: Hear Eddie Van Halen solo again in an unreleased preview of the last song he worked on with his brother

“A staple for pro players revered for its rich hybrid sound": Boss brings back a legendary delay loved by Eddie Van Halen, Steve Vai and Steve Lukather in its most compact and affordable form yet

“When David Bowie and John Lennon came in, the whole place stopped. I stopped recording – and then it was just us”: Carlos Alomar recalls playing guitar on Fame with two rock icons – and why he turned down dinner with a Beatle

“Imagine the dirtiest Les Paul on the planet, but even worse”: Jared James Nichols is reviving a storm-destroyed Gibson – a 1975 Custom that was being played when its original owner died

“Someone dosed Eric Clapton with LSD, and I had to take over”: George Terry says he had to step up during Clapton's bad nights on the road in the ’70s – but it wasn’t always the guitar hero’s fault

“A celebration of Dimebag’s timeless influence”: Dimebag Darrell’s Warhead amp has been revived as a compact lunchbox head – and it was tested during Pantera rehearsals

“All of a sudden out of the blue I didn’t have any control of this arm”: Brian May recovering after suffering “minor stroke”

“We got together in someone's apartment in the Village and were jamming, trying to see what we could come up with”: Andy Summers on his longstanding relationship with Robert Fripp – and their surprise new collab album

The Awards Issue 2021: inside the new issue of Total Guitar

Interviews

Idles:

Volbeat

Courtney Barnett

Cover Feature: The Total Guitar Awards 2021

Learn To Play

Reviewed

Guitar Lessons