Latest articles by Phil Weller
George Harrison said he would have formed a new group with just one Beatle
Although his solo career was going strong, the Quiet Beatle entertained the possibility of forming a new band with one of his former Fabs
When Ron Wood first met Eric Clapton
The time the young Ron Wood found himself in the Yardbirds for one night only
Joe Satriani on the “small realities” every player needs to hear
The guitarist dismisses the belief that speed is the be-all and end-all
Mastodon addresses Brent Hinds’ departure and untimely passing in emotional short film
Mastodon has released a short film about the guitarist who died just six months after leaving the band
The Stones used to labor in the studio, now they take a “bulldozer approach”
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have reflected on the band’s changing creative process as they ready their latest album, “Foreign Tongues”
“Never feel safe. Go a little bit out of your depth”: David Bowie's advice to all his musician friends
Some artists – AC/DC, the Ramones – find their sound and lock in. David Bowie never stood still. Here's why…
Johnny Marr just helped a session ace track down her lost vintage Gretsch
When FedEx ships your guitar to the wrong state, you need Johnny Marr to bring it home
John Mayer's guitar teacher thinks that always looking to level up your guitar skills is a dangerous game
Guitarists, he says, need to stop comparing themselves to others
From Metallica playing in the Antarctic to Van Halen performing in a blizzard — here are the wild stories behind three of rock’s coldest concerts
Playing in subzero temperatures meant frozen fingers, failing tuning and some very unusual rules — including one gig where the audience had to wear headphones
"Maybe I didn't like the strippers enough…" What happened when Desmond Child worked with Van Halen
Hitmaker Desmond Child gives a unique insight into Dave Lee Roth's unique working methods in the 1990s
How Paul Rodgers made Jimmy Page play guitar again after John Bonham’s death
Page hadn’t picked up a guitar for two years. A casual encounter with the Bad Company bandleader changed everything
Wet Leg's Rhian Teasdale: The best songs only have two chords
And one of Van Halen’s most enduring hits seems to back up her argument
Did the Beatles cause guitar quality to nosedive in the 1970s? This session player thinks so
The corporate buyouts of America’s biggest brands have been blamed for a decline in quality – but what if they only exacerbated the issues facing the industry at that time?
How Rush were unexpectedly reunited with their old pedals for their final albums
A forgotten piece of 1970s gear became crucial to their late-career swan song
Paul McCartney dusts off historic Beatles hit for Taylor Swift’s wedding
62 years after he last played it, Paul McCartney dug out a significant song for Taylor Swift's wedding
John Rzeznik says Taylor Swift helped turn Goo Goo Dolls’ ‘Iris’ into a song for a whole new generation
The Goo Goo Dolls frontman says Swift's 2011 Madison Square Garden duet — and viral social media moments since — helped keep one of rock's biggest songs alive
Sammy Hagar on the song Eddie Van Halen loved, Alex Van Halen rejected — and later regretted he passed up
Originally dismissed during early sessions, “Eagles Fly” was later revived by Hagar and Eddie Van Halen for his first Van Halen–era solo album
Matt Bellamy on White’s contributions to rock — and their pinch-me moment backstage at Coachella
The Muse guitarist says he never expected his band, the White Stripes and the Strokes to outlast their early-2000s peers — and he credits White with changing guitar culture along the way
Eddie Van Halen explains how he broke a band rule to play on Michael Jackson’s ”Beat It”
Van Halen revealed his very practical reason for ignoring the rule against performing on other artist’s recordings
How Alex Lifeson’s broken finger once stopped the band at a crucial moment in their rise
With Lee sidelined by laryngitis and bronchitis, it’s a reminder of 1979’s ‘Hemispheres’ tour, when Lifeson’s fretting hand took a hit just as Rush were becoming one of rock’s hottest live acts
Freddie Mercury didn’t want a guitar solo. Brian May fought for it — and created one of Queen’s most celebrated moments on record
May says creative friction was part of the process that made the group so successful
Sean Lennon says his dad deserves more credit for shaping heavy music
The son of John Lennon traces his love of dark, dissonant music to Fantasia and the Beatles' “I Want You (She's So Heavy),” which he calls one of rock's most groundbreaking riffs
Paul McCartney on John Lennon’s accidental acid trip during a nighttime recording session
McCartney says the band was happy to see if Lennon’s altered state created studio magic. On this night, it nearly ended in catastrophe
Joe Satriani says Sammy Hagar has him beat in one aspect of guitar playing
As the Best of All Worlds band heads to Europe for July dates, Satriani says Hagar's greatest strength as a guitarist comes from thinking more like a lead singer than a shredder.
Paul Gilbert reveals the bizarre effect hearing loss has on his live shows
The former Mr. Big guitarist says tinnitus can make entire performances sound painfully out of tune — even when audience recordings prove everything was pitch-perfect. But the condition also led him to become a more melodic player
