It’s hard to fathom, but Rush are still at it. Still recording, still touring, and still sounding like the word’s greatest eight-piece power trio. They brought their trip to Concord, CA last night, one of the last stops on their Time Machine world tour. In a few days’ time they’ll wrap up this leg and soon enough head back into the studio to finish recording Clockwork Angels, which will be out in 2012. Someone should tell these guys that they’re legends, they’re millionaires, and they’ve been working their butts off for decades—it would be okay if they took a little vacation.

But no, no rest for these hard-working working men. Geddy and Alex were on hand for the meet and greet just before 7:00. It’s really cool to watch a couple dozen Rush die-hards get to meet their heroes. Alex is incredibly gracious and warm, treating each stranger as a long-awaited friend. Geddy comes across slightly grumpier, shaking hands and acknowledging compliments, but not much more. No one seemed to care though, because he’s Geddy Freaking Lee and being in his presence is full-on bucket-list material for all Rush fans.

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It's 3am in the tour bus driving from Atlanta to Memphis, and I was compelled to write this to illustrate not only what has taken place in the recording music business in the last decade for classic rock bands, but to also reach out to the new up-and-coming bands and musicians as a wake-up call for the future. This was taken from a response I sent Bob Lefsetz on his newsletter this week about why classic rock artists even bother to try and make new records these days when there really isn’t much of a retail audience out there to buy the product in the first place. 1. The Steve Miller Band hasn't put out an original song since 1993. We haven't had a hit since "Abracadabra" in 1982. (That's 29 years if you are counting!) 2. Our band has over 30+ albums to pull material from. Doing our set list each year is a major project and doesn't leave much room for new stuff. 3. We are still selling out around North America without an opening act. (We do have support acts in major sheds from time to time....

There are millions of guitarists in the world and yet the majority of them don’t read
notation. Why is that?

I myself am a self-taught guitar player who made a living playing by ear and lightly dabbling in “reading.” I went on to write movie scores (by hand, also self taught) and learned to conduct orchestras so I have some perspective on the subject of “reading” music.

The Enigmatic Phantom By Terry Carleton   Unlike the rather timeless looks of the Strat and Les Paul, the Vox Phantom seems reminiscent of a very narrow time period; namely that of the mid '60s. One can't imagine that '50s players like Chuck Berry, or '70s players like Al Di Meola would have ever played this guitar. It is just so psychedelic '60s. That being said, however, not many of the long-haired, leaping luminaries of the '60s 6-string scene actually played this far-out ax back then. OK, so why is that? Like so many other weird-looking or odd-shaped guitars that we have written about over the years in the “Vintage Vault” and “Pawn Shop Prize” columns, we have learned that sometimes even a great guitar just goes by unnoticed. Maybe, it wasn't prominently featured on an album cover, or rumored to have been used by Hendrix or Page in some secret studio somewhere. But I think the reason is not so much a "fate of the gods" kind of story, but more along the simpler lines of it was an "all dressed up and nowhere...

This eloquent, heart-rending missive was originally posted on craigslist in Vancouver. Photos and the original listing can be seen here. To the people who stole most of my stuff out of my studio on June 5, including my main guitar of 43 years, let me tell you about it. It's a very altered, but very real 1953 Gibson Les Paul Model - Serial # 3 0621 (stamped on the back of the headstock) This is not a gold-top. In the 1950s, it was refitted with an ABR-1 bridge and stop tailpiece, and then refinished, all by Gibson. The green colour in the picture, (especially on the rear half of the body where the light reflection is less), is accurate. It's one of the lightest Gibson Les Pauls, and the only one of its colour, that I've ever seen. I've made many other changes to this guitar in favour of playability: --changed the P-90's to humbuckers --had the neck thinned and it, the back and the sides were refinished --when it was refinished,...

Hearing damage can happen to anyone in a matter of minutes when your ears are unprotected in sound levels of 110 dB at concerts venues, rehearsal rooms and dance clubs, and other noisy environments. Hearing loss can also come on gradually after years of exposure listening to loud music and noise. Unfortunately, hearing loss from loud noise and music is permanent. But, the good news is that it may be totally preventable by using hearing protection and with safe hearing conservation practices. After exposure to high decibel levels, hearing loss at first may only be temporary, with hearing returning to normal after several hours or days. But, if exposure occurs repeatedly the ears will eventually lose their ability to bounce back, resulting in permanent hearing degeneration. Other damage can occur called “tinnitus”, a ringing in the ears that often follows exposure to loud noise. You might have noticed this after performing in, or attending a rock concert or dance club. The show is over, but the ringing...

We receive a lot of great recordings here at GP, including the occasional box set, but this one is truly outstanding, and I've been spending lots of quality time with the music and the accompanying book.

I’m a Fender Princeton fan. I have three of them and they seem to be ON all the time.  Two 1964 blackface Princetons live in my studio, built into the cabinet /counter top / work station where I write, practice, arrange, jam with fellow guitarists and occasionally teach.  The third one, a Silverface  ’67, lives in the garage as a go-to amp for smaller sessions that require an overdub or two. It fits in the trunk and always delivers the goods.  On important record dates (especially on my own records) I’ve mic’d a stereo pair for a truly gorgeous clean tone.  With the volume on 3 or 4, these amps have a tone that blooms in a way that only a pair of 6V6 tubes can do.     But I rely on the Princetons for another important reason: tweaking. I consider this model amp to be “ground zero" for electric guitar. The way electric guitar was intended to sound, as per Leo and possibly God.  I can sit directly in front of one and really hear what the guitar is doing. A Princeton is a reliable window to the rest of my amp collection,...

  Even in The Big Apple, good paying Monday night gigs are about as rare as a blown save by Mariano Rivera. Over the past year though, I've logged a few dozen of them thanks to my role as a guitar sub on Broadway's longest running musical, the ABBA-based Mamma Mia!

  I got the gig thorough a little initiative and a lot of luck back in December of 2009. Looking for a new Broadway gig and lacking any leads, I logged on to the Local 802 Musicians Union website, found the names of the guitarists in all the pit orchestras and began e-mailing. I was fortunate enough to hear back from among others, Rock of Ages' Joel Hoekstra (who offered kind words about the YouTube clips and MP3s I sent but said he didn't need any subs at the moment) and Mamma Mia's Jeff Campbell who said he might be needing a new sub soon and invited me down to the pit to shadow.

   You may not know Jeff Campbell by name but I'll bet some of you saw his incendiary "Little Wing" solo when he performed with Sting on Saturday Night Live...