HOT ROD TELE

Editor Jamie Dickson embarks on converting his AVRI ’52 Tele reissue into a unique hot-rod Fender with artwork to match

EDDIE VAN HALEN -1955–2020

The great magician’s departure marks the end of a game-changing career. With exclusive thoughts and memories from the scene’s greatest players, we remember a visionary and virtuoso who rewrote the rules of electric guitar

Blues On The Move

Full-fat blues power from a compact and portable head made in the UK

JOE BONAMASSA

Here’s a guy who knows a thing or two about buying guitars and it turns out he’s sold a few, too…

DREAMS OF GOLD

We’re all quick to dismiss or critique a new guitar but what about if you’re put in the design seat? Not so bloomin’ clever now are you, Mr Burrluck?

Ground Control

Fractal offers Axe-Fx III flavour in an eminently giggable compact floor unit

Coming Of Age

A lot has changed for PJD Guitars in the past year. As well as a new workshop, there are also some new guitars that offer plenty to celebrate

TOM MORELLO

He’s the Harvard alumnus, political activist and eternal square peg whose sonic adventurism with Rage Against The Machine and Audioslave tore up the rules of electric guitar. Now, as Tom Morello releases a new photobook spanning his three-decade career, he shares memories of obsessive practice, bad gigs and nights behind bars…

THE BIG GUITARSKI

Best known as a big-screen actor, Jeff Bridges’ role as a washed-up country music star in Crazy Heart highlighted his other great love: the guitar. We meet the original Dude to talk songwriting and his new Breedlove signature acoustics

Longtermers

A few months’ gigging, recording and everything that goes with it – welcome to Guitarist ’s longterm test report

AFFORDABLE VINTAGE

Not every vintage guitar is a ‘holy grail’ but there are still plenty of gems to be discovered outside the realm of collector-grade classics. Here’s how to find them

A Piezo The Action

With the Fishman company approaching its 40th year, Ryan Fitzsimmons walks us through some of its most popular designs from the Infinity and beyond…

The Wishlist

Dream gear to beg, borrow and steal for...

Longtermers

A few months’ gigging, recording and everything that goes with it – welcome to Guitarist ’s longterm test report

The Players

The latest news, views, and happenings from the world of your favorite guitarists

THE ACOUSTIC ISSUE

To play an acoustic guitar is to experience the instrument in its purest form – and it will make you a better all-round musician, too. Here’s why...

Switching Gears

After five months at home, Adam Goldsmith hits the music studio – as well as the television studio – for some well-earned adrenaline

Boutique To Go

Laney’s new combo blends cool looks and boutique tone at a price you really can afford

LARKIN POE

Southern siblings Rebecca and Megan Lovell have reinvigorated the roots scene as Larkin Poe. They tell us about hitting hard, the importance of writing bad songs, the battle for equality and rock ’n’ roll’s post-pandemic fightback

More Than A Maker

Reflecting on the experience of lockdown, Alex Bishop muses on the difficulties of ‘making it’ as a luthier in 2020

Minim

Palindromic ambience machine puts a reverse spin on your sound

And So It Began…

If the world doesn’t have enough vintage-style Telecasters already, here’s another one. The trouble is, it’s rather good

LOOKING BACK

On 25 July this year the world lost a music icon. Peter Green’s legacy goes far beyond what words can convey – and yet words are all we have. In the following pages, people who knew Peter, worked with him or saw him play during his rise to prominence in the late 60s offer their impressions of a humble master of the blues

WIRE CHOICE

Some like ‘modern-style’, others opt for ‘vintage’. But what do different wiring methods actually bring to your sound, asks a reader

Dynamic Duo

Revv’s high-gain head comes loaded with Two Notes Torpedo making it perfect for stage and studio – a small footprint with a huge sound

BIBI MCGILL

Bibi McGill – the former lead guitarist and musical director for R&B icon Beyoncé – is also a producer, DJ, masterclass mentor and yogi. We check in with the American guitar guru mid-lockdown to talk music making, inspiration and finding inner peace…

Good Ol' 55

Inspired by the Gibson Les Paul Junior – and a great song by Tom Waits – Eastman’s SB55 is a tribute to a 66-year-old guitar that just refuses to retire

DION

Coming up on the Bronx’s mean streets as the poster boy of 50s doo-wop was just the start for Dion DiMucci. Spared from the 1959 plane crash that killed tour-mate Buddy Holly, then seduced by the blues, his six-decade path has led through treacherous Southern juke joints, crippling addiction, rebirth and his late-period status as a rock ’n’ roll founding father. Now, with the release of new solo album, Blues With Friends – its all-star tracklisting featuring guitar luminaries from Jeff Beck to Joe Bonamassa – the 81-year-old New Yorker’s influence and legacy are beyond doubt.

Cort & Spark

An all-solid OM acoustic that comes Fishman-powered and feature-packed. And the price won’t break your heart, either…

Communication Breakdown

Two classic ‘tone-bending’ fuzz flavours side by side