“Hopefully the neck isn’t… warped”: Kauer has made a Star Trek guitar that we actually want to play By Matt Parker published 2 October 23 Kauer’s latest custom build deserves to live long and prosper
“Santana, right? I love your choice of notes”: Carlos Santana recalls the time he met Jimi Hendrix By Matt Owen published 2 October 23 The PRS signature artist was certainly no stranger to praise as an emerging musician, but his meeting with Hendrix proved to be particularly influential
The guitarists who recorded with Pink Floyd (whose names aren't David Gilmour, Syd Barrett or Roger Waters) By Jackson Maxwell published 1 October 23 A number of session kings – and a one-time member of Thin Lizzy – all made six-string contributions to the band's catalog
B.C. Rich adds Five Finger Death Punch's Andy James to its artist roster – and his first signature guitar is one seriously dangerous metal machine By Matt Owen published 29 September 23 Lord have mercy on anyone who crosses the path of Andy James and the Pitchfork headstock of his Assassin signature guitar
“If this doesn't clear the house...” Watch U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken cover Muddy Waters on his Fender Strat – at a state dinner By Jackson Maxwell published 29 September 23 Now that's how you incorporate your artistic passion into your day job...
A Young Guitarist of the Year returns and Toto’s Africa meets extreme metal: This week’s essential guitar tracks By Matt Owen published 29 September 23 Fresh new tunes you need to check out this week, from Juho Ranta-Maunus and Marnie Stern to U2 and Bernie Marsden
Guitar World deals of the week: celebrate 40 years of Musician's Friend with up to 40% off a huge range of guitar gear By Chris Barnes published 29 September 23 We've been scouring the 'net for deals this week and found big savings on gear from Fender, Ibanez, Epiphone, Focusrite, and loads more
“It sounds like Lindsey Buckingham meets The Clash!” That time Duff McKagan played bass for the Manic Street Preachers By Nick Wells published 29 September 23 Nicky Wire on working with Duff and why Guns N’ Roses are the best band ever
“I’m going after the Klon”: Mark Tremonti is starting his own pedal company – and he’s already road-testing prototypes By Matt Owen published 29 September 23 The Alter Bridge guitarist, who plans to launch his own affordable brand with three new pedals, recently demoed his first unit – and it sounds pretty darn good
“Every guitarist should be in search of their toothpaste tone!” Larkin Poe explain how good guitar tone can make your playing better By Amit Sharma published 29 September 23 Roots rock sister duo Megan and Rebecca Lovell on what makes drive pedals essential for shaping your soloing, why even blues players shouldn’t dismiss amp modelers – and what toothpaste tone actually is…
Are your drive pedals sounding the best they could? Here are 19 ways to get more from your overdrives, distortions and fuzzes – and make them work with your rig By Chris Bird published 29 September 23 Whether you’re using overdrive, distortion, boost or fuzz, there are plenty of ways you can tweak your setup for maximum tone
Al Di Meola in stable condition after suffering heart attack on stage By Matt Owen published 29 September 23 The virtuoso has since posted a statement on social media, reassuring fans he's “receiving the best care possible”
An astonishingly rare Blue Silverburst Explorer, dot-neck 1959 ES-335 and short-lived ultra-luxe Casino alternative: Gibson’s latest Certified Vintage drop has our attention By Matt Parker published 28 September 23 The new five-guitar release in the firm’s approved vintage program is full of beautiful obscurities
“Knowing Bernie's eagerness to get the album out there, we want to follow his wishes and release it as planned”: Posthumous Bernie Marsden album set for release in November By Jackson Maxwell published 28 September 23 The late Whitesnake alum was able to finish recording the album, and oversee and approve its sequencing, mastering, and artwork, before his death in late August
“Bob Ezrin has lied through his teeth about it for years”: Roger Waters rejects claims that David Gilmour’s iconic guitar solo in Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb was his first take By Matt Owen published 28 September 23 Waters' comments come after The Wall producer told Total Guitar that “the second solo in Comfortably Numb, which may be the best solo of all time, is actually a first take”
After three years of waiting, Neural DSP reveals Quad Cortex plugin compatibility is finally on the cards By Michael Astley-Brown published 28 September 23 Archetype: Plini will be the first plugin to be compatible with the all-powerful amp modeler, starting next month – well, sort of…
“I think a bass solo can be as exciting as a guitar solo – if not more”: Listen to John Entwistle’s live bass solo on The Who’s 5:15 By Nick Wells published 28 September 23 John Entwistle proves why bass solos aren't always a bad idea
Is Gibson about to bring back its Victory Superstrat-style guitar from the ’80s, or did Cesar Gueikian just tease an entirely new model? By Matt Owen published 28 September 23 The quirky offset double-cut looks poised to make a return – but its comeback might not be so straightforward
Types of guitar pickups explained: learn the difference between single coils, humbuckers, P-90s and active designs By Chris Bird published 28 September 23 If the wood is the soul of the electric guitar, the pickups are the brains of the operation. We walk through the most common pickup styles and what they mean for electric guitar tone
15 icons of electric guitar tone – and how they can inspire your playing By Jon Bishop published 28 September 23 Go behind the players with some of the most legendary guitar sounds in history – and learn how you can steal their style and make it yours