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July 2025

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104 articles

July 31
- “I figured we’d see him later on — the next day or whatever.” Zakk Wylde reveals his final message from Ozzy as Pantera cancel tour dates to grieve
- “That's my go-to instrument as far as guitars are concerned.” Jeff “Skunk” Baxter on the hidden charms of modern guitars — and how a Squier Tele beat out a bazillion-dollar model from 1958
- “All through our career, every time we would play that song, I would feel that rush of adrenaline, as if it was the first time I heard it.” Mike Campbell on the Tom Petty song that stunned him at every performance
July 30
- “He would play the part with all these nuances and squeals. On its own, it was perfect.” Why didn't Eddie Van Halen double-track his guitars? Recording engineer Ross Hogarth explains how he worked with the virtuoso
- “He’s pushing up the guitar more and more, and I’m going, ‘Freddie, are you not overdoing it?’” Brian May on why one of Queen’s most triumphant tracks didn’t need a guitar solo
July 29
- “Take them all together and they're not exactly a cheery bunch of songs.” How Elvis Costello helped Paul McCartney find his inner darkness in a decade of mediocrity
- “I have none of the high technical skill of a Steve Vai or a Joe Satriani.” Brian May says he can’t compete with the world’s best shredders, but his alternative approach means he doesn’t have to
- “Ozzy gives me this big hug and says, ‘Bradley, I love you. Please pull me through.’” When Randy Rhoads died, Night Ranger guitarist Brad Gillis found himself hired overnight to become Ozzy Osbourne's new guitarist
July 28
- “Should anybody be interested…” Noel Gallagher shares photo of his pedalboard for the Oasis reunion tour. These are the rare ones
- “We think he held out to do that show. After he said goodbye to the fans, that was the end of it.” Tony Iommi says Ozzy knew Back to the Beginning would be the last thing he ever did
July 27
- "Ozzy would say, ‘Bob and I get on like a house on fire. The fire brigade’s just left!’” Ozzy Osbourne’s first two albums created an empire. His former right-hand man reflects on the singer’s greatest decade
July 26
- “Ozzy had also requested a remote switch so that he could turn the pedalboard off from the next hotel room while on the road.” Randy Rhoads’ constant practice drove Ozzy crazy. The solution? A tiny pedalboard designed to please them both
July 25
- “My own son didn’t know who I was until he could turn 21 and get into the blues clubs. He said, ‘Dad, I didn’t know you could play like that!’” Now 89, guitar legend Buddy Guy explains why he “ain’t done with the blues” yet
- “The blues run pretty deep in my playing.” David Gilmour reveals the impact of Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix on his signature Pink Floyd guitar style
- “Page must be mental giving away such a terrific guitar as this!” Jimmy Page gave away a guitar in 1974. Now it may fetch thousands at auction
July 24
- “My hand would stay numb until soundcheck. It was scary.” Playing King Crimson's strenuous guitar parts left Adrian Belew in need of surgery. Steve Vai came to his rescue
- “When I first met Paul McCartney, it was like meeting Jesus Christ.” Ozzy Osbourne had three words to say about John Lennon and Paul McCartney's life-saving impact on him
- “This was a text I got from him as I was sitting in an airport headed back home two weeks ago.” Jake E. Lee shares Ozzy’s final words to him and reflects on his difficult road to recovery after being shot
- “I played 'Mama I'm Coming Home' while he sat about 10 feet away from a very loud amp.” Slash guitarist shares the letter Ozzy Osbourne sent him after his failed guitar audition
- “A solo is to highlight the song, not to show off.” Eddie Van Halen's comments against shredding come to light in a previously unheard interview
July 23
- "We say goodbye to a great musician and composer whose work extended beyond Golden Earring.” George Kooymans, guitarist behind the hit "Radar Love," has died
- Al Nesbitt & The Alchemy - Release Date Set for Live in Seattle EP
- “If you're into heavy metal, that's your father!” Zakk Wylde and Gus G. on Ozzy Osbourne, the fatherly band leader who turned unknown guitar players into world-class shredders
- Win tickets to see Buddy Guy, with Taj Farrant, at Guitar Player Presents in Saratoga, California
July 22
- Ozzy Osbourne RIP: The heavy-metal legend dies weeks after Black Sabbath performs its final show
- “I always felt there was something a little hollow about it.” Keith Richards on Jimmy Page and the one thing the Rolling Stones guitarist said kept Led Zeppelin from taking flight
- “I'm either wishing I had this back in the White Stripes, or I am glad I didn’t.” Jack White introduces his weirdest guitar yet, created by Eddie Van Halen's luthier
- "By the time Eric left we were getting known. The Clapton cult as such had started." John Mayall recalls Eric Clapton, Peter Green and Mick Taylor in Guitar Player's December 1970 issue
July 21
- “When I was making effects for Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix, I was one of their best-kept secrets.” Roger Mayer on the private world of making custom effects for the 1960s’ biggest guitar players
- "Greater attention to vintage-correct details and the use of many of the same parts found on American-made Gibson guitars." We review the Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Custom ES-335, 1964 SG Standard and Firebird V
- “When I’m singing it, that is when I think of John.’” Paul McCartney on how John Lennon saved him in a moment of doubt — and why the former Beatles bassist keeps going
July 20
- “I raided every music store in the country looking for old Gibson SGs.” Pete Townshend on his desperate search for the guitar behind the Who’s status as rock legends
July 19
- “Dear Stephen. Funny how some things that start spontaneously end that way. Eat a peach, Neil.” The time Neil Young bailed on Stephen Stills in the middle of their sold-out tour
- “It was just as good, if not better, than Pete Townshend.” Eddie Van Halen could play this Who album note for note says Michael Anthony
July 18
- “I used to get into terrible trouble with Dave by trying to add too much piano to what he laid down.” Ray Davies on the origins of the Kinks' “You Really Got Me” — and what guitarists get wrong about serving the song
- “I really enjoyed playing ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps.’ But our styles were so different.” Robben Ford on what went wrong with George Harrison's first tour after the Beatles’ breakup
- "I’m carrying the torch for Rage Against the Machine riffs, for the memory of Chris Cornell, and for the idea that music that speaks out against injustice really matters." Tom Morello on why he won't shut up and play his guitar
- “I realized I had something very exciting on my hands. I wasn’t expecting it at all.” Dad unknowingly buys John Lennon’s “White Album” combo for about $4,000
July 17
- "John sounded like Django Reinhardt. It was one of them where you just close your eyes and happen to hit all the right notes.” George Harrison on the John Lennon guitar solo he called his best on the Beatles’ recordings
- “Here was the strategy: Keep Ozzy moving. Do not cancel the tour.” Rudy Sarzo says Ozzy Osbourne would have died if they didn’t carry on after Randy Rhoads' death
- “There was silence. Jack said, ‘How much do you know?’” Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker wanted to keep Cream a secret. A record project nearly blew their cover
July 16
- “Respect was a huge thing. If you disrespected him, he held onto that for a very long time.” Eddie Van Halen was "a pretty complex person" says his longtime friend and biographer
- “Working in a vintage guitar shop, you get disillusioned about the price of these things and what they sound like.” Joe Satriani doesn’t buy the vintage guitar hype. He reveals the moment he knew classic axes aren’t what they're cracked up to be
- “I can't find any reason to be too serious about anything.” Robert Plant covers classic blues and modern indie on his upcoming album with his new band. Hear a preview from ‘Saving Grace’
July 15
- “It’s easy to envision this becoming an heirloom acoustic to be passed down from one generation to the next.” We review the Martin D-28 Billy Strings and DX-2E Billy Strings acoustics
- “I said, ‘I can’t take this, Tony.’ And he said, ‘Hell, take it; I don’t want the damn thing.’” Mark Knopfler on the guitar he is “never without” — and the rock legend who gave it to him
- “A lot of the things on our record that sound like heavy chorusing are actually just detuned instruments.” Robert Smith explains the simple hack that makes the Cure songs so appealing to the ear
- “Keep doing what you’re doing and divide by two.” Joe Bonamassa on the playing advice he got from Leslie West 30 years ago — and how it's elevated his live performances
July 14
- "He caught a ball and some guy gave him a touch right into a curb.” Richie Sambora is recovering from a “gruesome” injury that required surgery to the former Bon Jovi guitarist's hand
- "The price is mind-boggling considering all the performance you’re getting." We review the PRS SE Studio Standard and find a guitar that's one of the best choices around for working players
- “Getting excited about the possibility of a new album is somewhat premature.” Robert Fripp and King Crimson are in the studio, but who knows what they're doing — and if we'll ever hear it
- 21 of this year’s best Prime Day deals for guitar players are still live – including a sweet EHX octave fuzz for under $40
July 13
- “I went, ‘Jack Nicholson? You know who I am?’ He says, ‘Yeah, Georgie, I always follow the rough boys.’” George Thorogood on his Live Aid performances with Bo Diddley and Albert Collins — and the two actors who made his day
July 12
- “When Bob sensed I might refuse to appear, he took the gloves off." For Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page and Bob Dylan, Live Aid was a case of bad vibes for a good cause
- “Josh is very critical of guitar things.” Greta Van Fleet’s Jake Kiszka says some of the riffs his brother rejected are getting a new life with his band Mirador
July 11
- "I was angry. All the work we'd put in and he just stepped out the back door?” Scott Gorham on Gary Moore's third and final run that left Thin Lizzy rudderless in the middle of a tour
- “He is mystified as to how his property found its way into the Met’s collection.” Keith Richards, Mick Taylor, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page played this stolen 1959 Les Paul. Now it’s turned up in the collection of a famous museum
July 10
- “I don't think Jimi Hendrix was a guitarist. Eric Clapton is excessively tedious.” Robert Fripp on his 1960s contemporaries — and the one guitarist he thought was fun
- “I had this reverence for Duane Allman’s playing — but I wanted to make it my own as well.” Warren Haynes on the advice Dickey Betts and Gregg Allman gave him when he joined the Allman Brothers Band
- Pay as little as 83 cents per string with these unreal Prime Day guitar string deals – stock up for less before the sale ends
- Swore you'll never shop guitar gear on Amazon? With hundreds of dollars slashed off Fender, Gretsch, and Epiphone in Guitar Center's anti-Prime Day sale, you don't need to
- “I missed out on being in one of the biggest rock bands in the world!” He played all the guitars on Jon Bon Jovi’s first hit but got passed over for Richie Sambora
July 9
- “We want to be recognized as guitar heroes.” Wet Leg are post-punk's hottest ticket right now. Here's why
- “As we speak, we're doing a King Crimson studio album.” Jakko Jakszyk confirms he's working on a new King Crimson album with Robert Fripp
- You only have until the end of the day to save big on Boss gear at Amazon this Prime Day – plus 4 famous guitarists who would advise you to snap up the Boss DS-1 distortion pedal right away
- “It was possibly the most difficult album I’ve ever done. It came out screaming.” Guitarist Steve Hackett on Peter Gabriel, Brian Eno and the making of a prog-rock classic
- All three of Positive Grid's 5-star rated Spark amps are on sale for Prime Day – but prices are going back up tonight
- “You can play these riffs on one string, that's how iconic they are.” Zakk Wylde on Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Jimmy Page and the five greatest riffs in rock history
- When they're gone, they're gone. These dirt-cheap Prime Day pedal deals end today – build a killer budget pedalboard with stomps starting from just $20.79!
July 8
- Allen Hinds: 8 legato ideas to help you rediscover the fretboard
- The HX Stomp was my gateway to pro-level tone and right now you can get up to $200 off Line 6 gear in this Prime Day-beating sale at Sweetwater – but time is running out to save
- “We were doing ‘War Pigs’ and Ozzy forgot the words. He started singing ‘Old MacDonald Had a Farm.’” Jake E. Lee shares his craziest Ozzy Osbourne story and reflects on the guitar genius of Tony Iommi
- “If you’re the one who wrote the songs, you’re kind of allowed to be crap.” Mark Knopfler says it's “awkward” to be called a guitar god and tells who deserves the title
- “We were forcing acoustic guitars through a cassette player. What came out was electric as hell.” Keith Richards on how acoustic guitars, alternate tunings and a cassette recorder revived the Rolling Stones with a pair of classic hits
- I just spotted the pedal deal of the year with the Electro-Harmonix Lizard Queen octave fuzz slashed to just $39.60 for Prime Day
- One of my favorite sub-$500 guitars just dropped to an even sweeter price with $136 off – here’s why I think it's the ultimate affordable workhorse
- These 8 guitar accessories and tools won't change your life, but they will save you some serious hassle and they're all on sale for the remaining hours of Prime Day
- Quick! Last chance to bag a seriously discounted Fender patch cable kit on the final day of Prime Day – at $3 per cable, there's no reason to have a messy board
- Don't miss out! Amazon has slashed Squier Debut Strats and Teles, starting at only $110 for Prime Day - but the deal is ending tonight
- “I was five years old and I was obsessed with Slash.” 10-year-old shredder Bay Melnick Virgolino blows away America’s Got Talent judges and audience with spot-on cover of Lenny Kravitz's “Are You Gonna Go My Way”
July 7
- "He was full of Glen already. And that’s his normal, everyday dress — glam." The reunited Alice Cooper group needed a guitarist as unique as the late Glen Buxton. They found him in Gyasi
- “I don’t think I’ve heard richer or more evocative reverb and tremolo from even the best vintage amps.” We review the Benson Tallbird + tube-driven reverb and harmonic optical tremolo
July 6
- “You’re very similar to Jimi in that way. I’m just a part-time employee.” Jeff Beck told Stevie Ray Vaughan he reminded him of Jimi Hendrix. Here’s why
July 5
- "He was rock and roll to the roots." Dave Davies names the guitarist who defined rock in the 1970s, and picks the song that proves it
- “I was sleeping on the floor in somebody’s apartment.” Mark Knopfler on the moment he discovered the virtues of fingerpicking — and the pedal that’s essential to his guitar rig
- “Was it worth the 40,000 pounds you paid for the ticket?” Liam and Noel Gallagher bring Oasis back with a blast of their greatest hits — and not a punch thrown between them
July 4
- “Ozzy took a look around and said, ‘You’re joking aren’t you?’ I said, ‘It’s a lot nicer on the inside.’ ” Zakk Wylde cracks us up with tales of Ozzy as he reveals the stories behind his greatest tracks
- "When I can play that, that's when I'll finally admit I'm a good guitarist." Sophie Lloyd names five life-changing solos — and the one she saw as her ultimate challenge
- Who cares about Prime Day when the 4th of July guitar deals are this good? These are the 9 sales you need to shop this weekend
- These Prime Day-beating 4th of July acoustic guitar deals are still available - here's 6 unbeatable savings from just $169.99
- “If it sounds amazing, and the only difference is Ozzy is sitting down, why not?” Zakk Wylde has an idea for how Black Sabbath can carry on after Back to the Beginning
July 3
- “I feel a bit exposed talking about it now. That song brought me to tears.” Pete Townshend on the Oasis song that made him weep
- Thankfully, my go-to Tele for recording and gigging is still available with a $240 discount this Prime - but be quick as this offer won't last forever
- “I sent him a postcard: ‘You gotta get out of Winnipeg.’ So he went to Thunder Bay, met Stephen Stills and started Buffalo Springfield.” Randy Bachman on sharing guitars and amps with Neil Young as rock and roll upstarts
July 2
- “It was under a staircase for 50 years.” The owners didn't know what they had, but this 1960 Les Paul is now one of Joe Bonamassa's favorites
- “You can tell by the way we played songs like ‘Roxanne’” Andy Summers on why Eric Clapton bored him and how his love of jazz fueled the Police
- “Her dress tail hit the G string, and it just stayed there with distortion for about 20 minutes.” Buddy Guy reveals the happy accident that taught him about guitar feedback
- I’ve scored some of my best used guitar gear finds at Reverb, and right now there's up to 66% off in their summer sale
- Liam Gallagher responds to Green Day fan being kicked offstage for playing the Oasis hit "Wonderwall" — and it’s wonderful
July 1
- With TrueFire's massive July 4th sale offering a year's worth of guitar lessons for just 27 cents a day, there's no excuses for poor technique
- “I said, 'If you don’t like what we do, I’ll just destroy it in front of you.'" Eddie Van Halen shot down a film soundtrack near the end of his life, saying he hadn't been playing much
- “I know there's gotta be at least another Aerosmith gig.” Joe Perry says the Boston rockers aren’t finished yet
- Whether you've got $200 or $2,000, the Fender Summer Sale is still going strong with up to $550 off guitars – here are my top 3 picks for any budget
- I've covered every major guitar sale this year, and Sweetwater’s 4th of July event just blew them all out of the water with $800 off a Gibson, $900 off a Martin, and $1,200 off a crazy synth guitar