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April 2024

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34 articles

April 26
- “I was doing what I was supposed to do, while something totally different was coming from Jeff… There were parts where it just did not work”: Jimmy Page reflects on the Yardbirds, and his short-lived two-guitar tandem with Jeff Beck
April 25
- “We all grew up with their music, looking at the album covers, and learning these classic guitar riffs and parts”: Jackson Browne, John Mellencamp, Mavis Staples honored by Bruce Springsteen at second annual American Music Honors show
- “If we were recording at Olympic Studios, we would often hear Led Zeppelin. I’d see Jimmy Page sitting there, overdubbing in darkness”: Peter Frampton reveals the stories behind five of his classic tracks
April 24
- Three guitars that exemplify the PRS SE line in 2024 – reasonably priced, impeccably put-together, and versatile in terms of both tone and playability: PRS SE CE24, SE Custom 24 Quilt and SE Swamp Ash Special review
- “I bought my ’59 sunburst Les Paul from my first wife’s brother... he’d gotten sick – he called me and said, ‘I’m probably not gonna make it. Will you buy my Les Paul?’ Now it gets to live on and still make music”: Vince Gill on his beloved 'Burst
April 23
- “Noel’s process is purely guitar. He’s so in love with the chords, and he was cycling through and through... He wouldn’t stop until he was satisfied”: How Noel Gallagher and Beck helped bring the Black Keys' latest funky full-length, Ohio Players, to life
- Best amp modelers 2024: Get your dream guitar tone with our top picks
- Best overdrive pedals 2024: Strap in, it's time to drive
April 22
- “A lot of times when someone says, ‘They have good technique, but there’s something missing,’ what’s actually missing is part of the technique”: Paul Gilbert on the essentials of great guitar playing
April 19
- “Sometimes things like that just come together, like a piece of magic. I wrote that song in just five minutes”: Dickey Betts on dueling with Duane Allman, composing Allman Brothers' biggest hit, and the oddball Les Paul/SG hybrid he “personally designed”
- “When I heard Lindley play that, I went, ‘That’s the most incredible thing I’ve ever heard in my entire life’”: All-star tribute show in honor of David Lindley, one of the greatest sidemen of all time, announced
- “We all knew it was really good… The guitar playing is just amazing”: How Dickey Betts made “Ramblin’ Man”, triumphed over tragedy and led the Allman Brothers to their greatest success
- “The chord progression in the Highway Star solo – Bm, to a Db, C, and then G – is a Bach progression”: Ritchie Blackmore on Steve Howe, Jimi Hendrix, classical influences and more
April 18
- “Dickey was larger-than-life, and his loss will be felt worldwide”: The Allman Brothers Band’s Dickey Betts has died at 80
- “Joe Walsh insisted that I buy it, and he was right”: Jimmy Page on his “Number 1” 1959 Gibson Les Paul
April 17
- “My three mentors are B.B. King, Albert King and Jimi Hendrix. I don’t think it does Hendrix any service for me to be compared to him, because he was a genius”: How Robin Trower crafted his blistering tonal triumph, Day of the Eagle
April 16
- “I remember seeing my posters everywhere. It was like, ‘Gary Clark Jr. – the new Hendrix.’ I was like, ‘Man, you’re not even giving me a chance to be anything but a blues or rock-star guitar player’”: Gary Clark Jr. never asked to be a guitar savior
- Best Travel Guitars 2024: Top Portable Instruments From Lowden, Furch, Martin and more
April 15
- “I once asked Jeff Beck if he used Vox AC30s, and he said, ‘What? Those old Beatle bashers?’ Then he realized what he'd said”: Paul McCartney talks Vox amps, and his love of dirty tones
April 12
- “I was 17 years old and found it in this local paper. It said, ‘Gretsch guitar, 100 bucks.’ I called the guy up and asked, ‘Is it like Eddie Cochran’s?’ He was like, ‘Who?’”: How Brian Setzer forged his trademark twanging tone
April 11
- “We’re the birthplace of blues, country and rock and roll music, and the guitar is at the core of all of it”: The America at the Crossroads exhibit charts the guitar’s history with instruments owned by Bo Diddley, Muddy Waters, B.B. King, and more
April 10
- “A lot of guitarists don’t consider themselves part of the rhythm section. I could always count on Randy to come up with great rhythm guitar parts”: Rudy Sarzo on the magic of Randy Rhoads' rhythm work, and the tonal quirks that set him apart
- “The Opus might not displace your Helix, Fractal, Kemper or Quad Cortex, but it offers a lot of good-sounding emulation in a compact and usable package at a fraction of the price”: Two Notes Opus Amp Sim and IR Loader Unit review
- Positive Grid's huge guitar month sale continues - buy BIAS FX 2 Elite with $120 off and get a RIFF audio interface completely free
April 9
- “One of the beautiful things about Leo is one of the hardest things to do – forget that you’re playing a guitar and just feel like you’re playing music. He embodies that transcendence”: The lessons Julian Lage learned from acoustic master Leo Kottke
April 8
- May 2024 Guitar Player Lesson Audio
- “The music I might hear, I can’t get on the guitar. It’s a thing of laying around daydreaming... If you pick up your guitar and just try to play, it spoils the whole thing”: Jimi Hendrix on translating his ideas to the guitar, and the joys of club gigs
April 5
- “The best solos have soul, feeling and chops. Players concerned with only playing fast are missing the point...”: With heavy themes and cameos from Alex Skolnick and Vernon Reid, Jane Getter's new album features her most inspired playing to date
April 4
- “Young kids that buy their first really good guitar end up in a love relationship with it – I've never had that”: Why Pete Townshend won't apologize for his '60s-era guitar-smashing antics
- “It’s just one note, but it took my entire life to get to the point to where I could do that one note”: Steve Vai regarded this solo as his “ultimate achievement of phrasing on the guitar”
April 3
- GP Presents John Scofield April 25 - April 28 in San Francisco – win tickets
- “My 1939 Martin was in a garbage bag for 15 years prior to me getting it in pieces. The neck was off and the body was crushed”: How unplugging reshaped Julian Lage's electric approach
April 2
- “The Brown setting is the closest you’ll get to playing one of Eddie Van Halen’s Super Leads – at least in a pedal”: UAFX Lion ’68 Super Lead Amp review
- “I've tried to avoid playing like Eddie. I've never learned the songs on purpose so I didn't steal anything. Then I had to learn the songs – I was like, ‘This is gonna be torture’”: Joe Satriani on his preparations for this summer's Van Halen tribute tour