Latest articles by Gary Graff
Randy Bachman on his “gift from the songwriting gods”: “Takin' Care of Business”
The guitarist reveals that the Bachman-Turner Overdrive hit was actually inspired by the Beatles' "Paperback Writer" and written for the Guess Who
Paul Rodgers on playing with Paul Kossoff, Mick Ralphs, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Brian May, Steve Cropper, Slash and Joe Bonamassa
“I don't really know the secret of how guitarists create their own unique sounds,” Rodgers tells us, “but I know a good guitar sound when I hear it”
Song of the Day: The Journey single that became “The Biggest Song of All Time”
Neal Schon says the classic hit owes a debt to its producers’ unusual request
Keith Richards had a priceless response when he caught his band watching the Fab Four
The Rolling Stones guitarist delivered a one-line reminder of who he was — and where he’d been
“I’m up there like the folk singer I always hoped I would be — before I saw the Beatles.” Lenny Kaye on finally making his first solo album
After more than 60 years of performing, the Patti Smith Group guitarist has finally made an album of his own: ‘Goin’ Local’
The show that ended David Bowie’s touring career — and the song that became his last hit
Earl Slick recalls working with the artist in his final years on tracks highlighted in the new David Bowie box set, 'I Can’t Give Everything Away'
“If I had thought, ‘This is going to be discussed a half century later,’ I would’ve screwed it up. Simple as that.” Lenny Kaye on Nuggets, his 1972 grab bag of lost rock tracks that unintentionally predicted the future of punk
The Patti Smith Group guitarist looks back on the making of the landmark compilation, which brought obscure and overlooked ’60s songs back into the spotlight and became a touchstone for generations of musicians
How Peter Gabriel’s breakthrough solo hit “Solsbury Hill” was recorded with just hours to spare
Gabriel wrote the song about letting go after leaving Genesis, while Steve Hunter faced a daunting challenge: creating its intricate acoustic guitar part in 7/4 time
John Lennon played it on repeat. Frank Sinatra called it the best song of the 1970s. How a simple C9 chord inspired a timeless top-10 hit
“It was a spiritual download that just flowed through me”: guitarist Graeham Goble explains how learning this extended chord unlocked LRB's “pinnacle song” in half an hour
Don Felder on helping out Tom Petty, recording with Joni Mitchell and writing the Eagles’ ‘Hotel California’ solo with Joe Walsh
The former Eagles guitarist shares reminiscences — and explains how Walsh helped develop the iconic dual-guitar lines in “Hotel California”
Nita Strauss on why Smashing Pumpkins’ “1979” made her burst into tears — and how she reinvented it for the group’s upcoming tribute album
The Alice Cooper guitarist — and new mom — discusses her instrumental take on the classic Pumpkins hit, her next solo album and why she'll soon be back on the road with Coop
For Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page and Bob Dylan, Live Aid was a case of bad vibes for a good cause
We look back at a few of the big guitar moments from the global music event, held 41 years ago this weekend
George Thorogood on his Live Aid performances with Bo Diddley and Albert Collins, and the two actors who made his day
Enlisted at the last minute, Thorogood and the Destroyers brought along two special guests and turned in one of the day's best guitar performances
Don Felder on the moment Duane Allman showed him how to play slide guitar
The former Eagles guitarist recalls how encounters with Allman, Stephen Stills and Bernie Leadon reshaped his entire approach to guitar
Ritchie Blackmore says a “brilliant” performance was lost during the making of Rainbow’s epic “Stargazer”
Inspired by an advance listen to Led Zeppelin’s unreleased ‘Presence,’ Rainbow aimed higher than ever on its 1976 masterpiece. Not everyone’s contribution survived the session
Micky Dolenz on the worst tour match-up in rock history: the time Jimi Hendrix opened for the Monkees
The singer says he’s “the one to blame for that little bit of insane rock and roll trivia”
As he approaches 90, guitar legend Buddy Guy prepares to return to the road with the BG90 tour
Three years after retiring from the road, Guy is still out there and has no plans to stop
Mike Campbell on his studio secrets, channeling Jimmy Page, and what “terrifies” him about the Heartbreakers’ catalog
Fresh off his best-selling memoir, Tom Petty’s legendary chief lieutenant and the band he calls “my go-to project” return with ‘Mission of Mercy’
“It was his simplest stuff.” Sammy Hagar says fans are wrong about Eddie Van Halen’s best work
The Red Rocker explains why EVH's most brilliant masterpieces actually came much later — and reveals the one track that still leaves Joe Satriani completely baffled
“Chris said, ‘See, you don’t need me at all.” Kim Thayil recalls Chris Cornell’s final hours
As he releases his new Soundgarden memoir, the guitarist shares painful memories of Cornell’s last show and offers an update on the band’s long-awaited final recordings
Mark Knopfler on why he’s ditched the pick in favor of fingerpicking
The former Dire Straits guitarist told us why he moved away from the plectrum but still regards the pick as “a superior thing”
“I think I want you to play with the Who now.” Peter Frampton on Pete Townshend’s career-saving invitation — and the silence that followed
As his new documentary premieres, Frampton recalls the moment Townshend invited him to replace him in the Who — only to leave him waiting by the phone as his career hit rock bottom.
Todd Rundgren recalls taking over Badfinger’s ‘Straight Up’ after George Harrison abandoned the troubled sessions
Rundgren says Harrison left the album unfinished as Apple Records scrambled to salvage the project behind “Baby Blue” and “Day After Day.”
