Unlike Slash, Dave Navarro, Zakk Wylde, John 5 and other more outwardly recognizable Los Angeles electric-guitar heroes, Joe Bonamassa can often walk through a bustling music store totally unnoticed.

I once watched him emerge from the vintage department at Guitar Center Hollywood while I was in the middle of judging a blues guitar contest in the main room. Even after he strolled straight through the proceedings to say hi to me for a minute, nobody else involved seemed to notice that there was a world-famous bluesman in their midst.

A better example of Bonamassa’s guitar-store stealth occurred in a Reno guitar shop some years back. Tempted by a pristine ’87 Marshall Silver Jubilee head (“I can’t have too many of those”), Bonamassa asked for the price.

“The guy at the counter said, ‘It’s $4,000,’” says Bonamassa. “I asked him why the price was so high, and he said, ‘Well, Slash used Jubilees for the Guns N’ Roses tone, and now this kid Joe Bonamassa is using them, so it’s $4,000.’”

Earlier this year, Bonamassa announced that he was putting the brakes on gear collecting. After amassing an enviable collection of more than 600 guitars — including numerous original Gibson Les Paul ’bursts, rare Fender Strats in original custom colors, Tommy Bolin’s 1960 “Bolin Burst” Les Paul and a mint 1958 Gibson Korina Flying V he purchased for more than $400,000 — Bonamassa says he’s reached “a saturation point.”

“I’d like to get to the stuff that I own and discover the sounds that I can get out of those pieces, before it just starts piling up and piling up and piling up.”

But throughout the years, one thing has been true about everything he’s bought: He plays it.

“I play what I own,” he explains. “There are no glass cases in my house, and I’m not a huge believer in hanging guitars by their necks. I wouldn’t want to be hung by the scruff of my neck on permanent display, and I think a guitar feels the same way—especially if it’s glued together, like an eight-pound Les Paul.”

According to Bonamassa, it doesn’t matter if you’re holding millions of dollars’ worth of guitars or just 800 bucks’ worth. “The trick with guitar collecting,” he says, “is to ask yourself, ‘If these were worth nothing at the end of the day, would I still love them and play them?’ If the answer is yes, you’re doing all right.

“If your dream guitar is a beat-up 1965 Harmony Rocket that’s been through a fire and a flood and looks like somebody took it into the backyard and shot holes into it with an old pistol, then that’s your dream guitar.”

About a decade ago, I took the fingerstyle plunge and got fake nails on the advice of Kaki King. She told me to get acrylics — the hardest and most durable nail — at a professional salon. She even specifically mentioned going to, and I’ll paraphrase, “a Vietnamese salon where all the ladies in your neighborhood with nice nails go.”

That’s exactly what I did. A few years later I encouraged Sonny Landreth to do the same. The electric slide star was complaining about his real nails not holding up on the road, and he was starting to play more acoustic as well.

What’s it like? Would we do it again? Read on.

Primary Pros

The main advantage to fake nails is that you essentially have five picks instead of one. Players that were already hybrid pickers, or perhaps full-on fingerpickers, will rejoice at the transformation.

It’s practically a sanctimonious feeling when you finally free your fingers. Your playing changes overnight. It’s like the difference between pedaling and riding an eBike.

Plectrum players will need time to adjust. You’ll feel like Edward Scissorhands at first.

I had to force myself not to play with a pick for about a year before it felt truly comfortable, but then it was like opening a door to a fantastical kingdom of finger freedom. A million new plucking approaches were literally at my fingertips. And of course, I can still pick up a plectrum and play that way anytime I want.

What’s the Biggest Difference?

Now that I’ve become accommodated to picking with my index fingernail, I don’t want to play with a pick most of the time. That’s the weirdest thing, because it’s a sideways brushing motion rather than a vertical attack like a plectrum.

However, you must get the shape of the nail just right, or it’s like playing with an odd pick. When I do use a pick nowadays, I prefer a small one such as a Dunlop Jazz III because it’s more like the size and thickness of an index fingernail.

I’ll still go with a pick when covering other plectrum players, such as when I’m doing Dickey Betts in my tribute to the Allman Brothers Band. It just sounds more appropriate and authentic, but otherwise going freehand feels fabulous, especially on acoustic.

Primary Cons

Of course, it takes time and money to maintain fake nails. The cost of doing so has doubled over the past decade. You also need to find a salon tech you like. Even though I’ve moved about 45 minutes away, I still go back to my girl Ha “Hannah” Nguyen, because she’s the only one that gets it just right!

Maintenance is a constant. The first week or two after getting the nails is the best, and then you must do some filing. You need a big thick file to bring down the overall length. I like mine medium to short. The longer they are, the more they affect the attack and brighten the tone.

You also need a little file for homing in on the shape, and for reducing the ridge that forms a little way up from the base of the fingertip as the real fingernail underneath grows and starts to show. For those final touches, it’s best to use a very fine file.

Ignore that ledge where the real nail meets the fake one at your own peril. When it becomes dramatic, that ridge acts like a little hook. Strings start to get caught under there and it can practically tear the fake nail off if you’re not careful!

It was a nightmare when COVID shut down the salons. Players like Peppino D’Agostino begin calling me asking what to do. James Taylor literally takes matters into his own hands. He’s got his DIY method down and always carries a box of nail stuff around. I don’t, so if something goes terrible wrong with a key nail at an inconvenient time or place, I’m kind of screwed.

That’s when I must grab a plectrum and play hybrid style, which is a whole different universe because all the plucking-hand attack digits change once the thumb and index finger are occupied with the pick.

Polish or No Polish?

I don’t always get my nails colored, but when I do, I go all in and get sparkling aqua gels! The advantages are mainly that they look cool, or at least lots of people tell me so and the ones who don’t think so keep quiet. And any kind of coating makes the nails last longer without chipping.

The disadvantages are that they cost a bit more and take a bit more time to do at the salon. There’s also a small playability factor. The nails are a little thicker and have a slightly dulled attack. Think of it like coated strings.

And when the colored finish starts chipping off, a tiny little ridge forms up near the top of the nail where the string attack eats away at the coating. It’s never a big deal, but the further that advances, the more you notice. You can file it down a few times but will eventually need a touch up or a new coat of paint.

Would You Do It Again?

Hell yeah. The heaven of having a whole clawed hand is worth the hassle in the end. I play things I never would have dreamed of playing before, without even thinking about it much.

I checked in with Sonny to see if he still has his fake nails as well.“Yes indeed,” he replied. “I got on the path right after asking you about them years ago and never looked back.”

Should You Too?

Only if you’re serious. Otherwise, it’s not worth the trouble. But if you are, then take the plunge. It’s a bona fide improvement and the right tool for the job, especially if you play fingerstyle, and even more so if you play acoustic, because those wound steel strings rip away at real nails relentlessly.

If you gig a lot, or even practice a lot before each gig, fake nails will be there for you when your real nails fail. That’s what made me pull the trigger. I had no nails at all once I got to a very big gig and I missed them so much that I took action. They are a pain in the ass and get in the way of lots of things including typing this column, but when it comes to playing the guitar, especially the acoustic steel-string, fake nails are a godsend.

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“I’m just happy that I got to do it,” says jazz-fusion guitar legend Mike Stern, speaking about his most recent album, Echoes and Other Songs.

As it turns out, he’s not being overdramatic: Back in 2016, after breaking both of his arms following a New York street accident, there was some real question whether Stern would be playing at all, let alone making records.

Fortunately, he quickly regained near total use of his left hand, but he endured lasting nerve damage to his right hand that prevented him from holding onto a pick.

After experimenting with a few workarounds, the guitarist spoke to a drummer friend who managed to keep playing after badly damaging his hands in a fire.

“He said, ‘Try some wig glue,’ Stern says. “So that’s what I did. I got this kind of wig glue that’s very sticky but doesn’t hurt your skin. I glue my pick between my thumb and index finger, and I’m able to pretty much play what I want.”

He pauses.

“There’s certain things I can’t do anymore, but people tell me I sound like I always did, and that means a lot. You make adjustments and do what you have to.”

Stern is also grateful to have worked on the album with longtime friend, producer and colleague Jim Beard, who passed away shortly before the record’s release last year.

“Jim has played with so many brilliant artists, and he’s always been so helpful to me,” the guitarist says. “He had ways of influencing my music in ways that were big and obvious, but sometimes he’d suggest something subtle that made a huge difference. I’m going to miss him.”

A general feeling of sunny optimism runs through Echoes and Other Songs – Stern’s fluid, rollicking lines bristle with irrepressible energy. Even some of the titles – “Could Be,” “Stuff Happens,” “I Hope So” – reflect a playful vibe.

“Anytime you get to work with [drummers] Antonio Sanchez and Dennis Chambers, you gotta feel good,” he says. “The thing is, I’m the happiest when I’m playing music, and I think it’s important to stick a little humor in my songs.”

He takes a deep breath.

“The world can be a dark place, particularly now. But music can pull you out of it every time. It’s one of the best gifts we have. More and more, it carries me along. If I have any kind of advice for people, that would be it.”

It just so happens that Stern has a few more words of wisdom for guitarists. Here his top five tips.

1. Keep Your Time Together

“Nobody has perfect time, but you should try to be aware of it while you’re playing. Whether the music is swinging or rocking, there’s a pocket you need to get inside of. This is especially true when you’re soloing; it’s easy to get out of the groove because you’re kind of doing your own thing. Phrases might go a little faster or slower — you might want to push things or you might want to lay back. That doesn’t change the time of the music, though.

“There’s no specific way to work on your time. One thing that I’ve found helpful is listening to great time-keeping players like Wes Montgomery and B.B. King. No matter where the music was going, they knew where to put the notes.

“If you’re a relatively new player, you might want to try a metronome or a drum machine, but you don’t want to be married to them. At the end of the day, you need to keep your own time. If you’re mindful about it, you’ll get there.”

2. Smile

“Sometimes you might not be vibing with another musician — it happens. Whatever the reason, I find the best and fastest way to get through a gig or a rehearsal is to just smile through it. You don’t have to send up a flare or jump up and down — it doesn’t have to be obvious. But you want to send off a positive vibe to keep the music positive. If somebody is being a drag, try not to concentrate on it. Maybe the drummer’s having a bad day. Let me feel his way through it. If you get in his face, you might wind up making things worse.

“It helps to bring whatever positive energy you can. Sometimes it can be hard to find, especially if you’re playing a gig and you’re like, ‘I gotta get through this show.’ There is some value to exploring that, like, ‘Okay, tonight’s gonna be a kind of dark gig.’ But I usually try to make a joke of it and find some humor in the situation. After all, we’re playing music — you gotta celebrate that!

“This might surprise people, but Miles Davis had a great sense of humor, even when things were pretty hard for him. His chops were down, he had pneumonia. At one point when I was playing with him, he had just had a stroke. He showed up, man, and dealt with whatever he had, and a lot of times he’s get through it with humor. It's very inspiring to see that.”

3. Persevere

“Life can get tough sometimes. I’ve had all sorts of things challenge me, and there have been times when it was hard to keep going. But then I remember, ‘Wait… I’m a musician. I love to play music.’ And that’s what it comes down to: If you love something enough, you’re going to find a way to continue.

“The process of making music can also be hard. Sometimes I’ll be working on something and I’ll get stuck or depressed. I’ll be like, ‘Shit, I don’t know if I can make something out of this.’ It can get maddening.

"There are times when you can push through it and break down the wall, but you also have to know when to take a break from it all. Chill out, walk around the block. Unravel your thoughts and unburden yourself.

“Another thing: Don’t be afraid to reach out to people. Talk it out. Find people who can give you good advice. I’ve played stuff for people and said, ‘How’s this sounding? Is it okay?’ Maybe they’ll say, ‘You’ve done better,’ or they might say, ‘Are you kidding? It’s really great.’ Your perception can be off. The point is, just find a way to keep going.”

4. Think About Your Touch

“The way you touch the guitar when you play is very important, and it’s something you need to work on. Tone doesn’t just come from what kinds of pickups you use or where your controls are set — much of your sound is right there in your fingers.

“When I was a kid just starting to play electric guitar, I learned ‘House of the Rising Sun.’ Every day after school I practiced that song for an hour, and one of my goals was to play it cleanly with a great tone. I experimented with different dynamics until I got it just right. Certain parts were soft, other parts were louder and tougher, but I tried to play each line clearly and cleanly. That’s when I started to understand how your touch affects a song. Drummers understand this, and that’s why they use brushes on some songs.

“Of course, there’s other factors that play into your touch: the strings, the amp and even the guitar itself. All of those elements determine how you’re going to play the instrument. Touch is such a unique thing, and it’s different from person to person. But when you’re in the zone, you’re able to channel your emotions though the strings and into the guitar.”

5. Spend Five Minutes a Day on Songwriting

“If you want to develop your own style on the guitar, spend some time on songwriting. It focuses you in a highly personal way because you’re creating something that’s all your own, and that’s bound to affect how you play. Songwriting kind of works as a gel. Miles Davis used to say that. He didn’t write many songs, but he always used to talk about how it made him a better musician.

“Songwriting feels like this big concept to people, but it doesn’t have to be. Break it down into smaller bites. I used to take lessons from a guy who had gone to Julliard. He would play me some classical stuff and say, ‘Okay, those first few bars, do something with them.’ It was an exercise to spark your writing — you do a few bars, then a few more and then a few more.

“Pat Metheny writes a song a day. He doesn’t use all of it — he doesn’t use most of it — but it keeps his creativity and songwriting muscles in good shape. Somebody once told me, ‘Try to write for five minutes a day,’ and it was the greatest advice in the world. Five minutes — I mean, who can’t manage that? If you work on writing for five minutes a day, you’re doing something. You’re involved and you’re being creative, and one day something is going to happen in those five minutes that will surprise you.”

As a go-to session guitarist, Pete Thorn has spent the better part of his career working in the service of hit-makers like Chris Cornell, Don Henley, Melissa Etheridge and Alicia Keys. And as the rhythm guitarist in Joe Satriani and Steve Vai’s new SatchVai Band, the L.A.-based guitarist will be bringing his talents to stages this summer on the group’s Surfing With the Hydra tour.

There are plenty of reasons why A-listers like Thorn. But beyond his talent — and, in Vai’s estimation, his remarkable ability to play rhythm guitar in tune — the guitarist puts in the time required to do the job right and has the interpersonal skills to make each session a positive experience for all concerned

“I always say, ‘I’m there to be of service,’” Thorn told us when we spoke with him recently about joining the electric guitar gods in SatchVai. But that statement could apply to any of his gigs over the years.

And as these top five tips for guitarists make clear, Thorn's game is all about being at his best not only as a player but also as a person. And take note: These tips are great advice whether you're a session guitarist or play in a band.

1. Prepare

“This sounds basic, but you’d be surprised how many people don’t prepare adequately for an audition or a gig. Having yourself together on all levels is huge. That means knowing the material you’re going to play, but also having your guitars and gear prepped as much as possible. Don’t think that you’re going to walk in the room and make everybody wait while you put your pedalboard together.

“I’ve seen that happen with greater frequency recently with younger players. They’re like, 'I thought the tech was going to make the sounds for me!' You should never assume something like that. It’s really simple: Be that person who isn’t a problem. Know the parts, have your sounds together, know your gear. I can’t stress this enough.”

2. Be a Good Hang

“This is so important. You want to be the kind of person that people want to have dinner with, or ride on the bus with. That’s massive. Knowing your guitar parts and playing well — those are prerequisites.

“But those skills go out the window if you’re not a good person or a good listener — somebody who can read the room. You have to remember, everybody’s got stuff they’re dealing with, and those issues can be magnified on the road.

“People have personal lives and different stresses — it’s important to tune into that. Somebody could be having a really bad day — that goes for bus drivers, guitar techs, monitor engineers and everybody else. Be kind to those people.”

3. Get Out

“Social media is great for getting your name out there and showing off your skills, but it’s no substitute for going out and actually playing. Interacting with musicians is what it’s all about — performing with human beings, networking, being on an actual stage. You won’t know how to conduct yourself in gigging situations unless you put yourself out there.

“Plus, there are aspects to social media that can be suspect. If somebody posts a video online, sure, it might sound amazing, but was that their first take or their 45th take? How do we know it wasn’t corrected in some way? There’s no faking it live — people can see what you can do. Ultimately, that’s what it will come down to when you get in a room with an artist: Can you perform live?”

4. Compose — It’s a Good Thing

“At my first meeting with Joe Satriani, he mentioned that he’d listened to my album, and he could tell from my compositions and my playing that rock and roll is intrinsic to what I do. Joe comes from that mindset — he’s a rock guitar player — so he thought I had the basis of what he was looking for.

“I love writing songs. It’s one thing to play covers and other people’s music — playing licks is always fun. But if you can put a song together and get it out there, it’s like you’re making a statement. And you never know where it’ll lead. Maybe Joe Satriani became aware of me through social media, but then he dug deeper. I'll just use that as an example. Composing is always a good thing.”

5. Take Care of Yourself

“I recommend reading the book Touring and Mental Health: The Music Industry Manual [by Tamsin Embleton]. It’s a great, one-stop shopping reference. If you’re about to hit the road, pick the book up and read it. It talks about conducting yourself with other musicians and all kinds of people skills.

“And, of course, it covers substance abuse and things of that nature. Music is a hard industry in many ways, but it’s also wonderful. I’ve traveled all over the world and have seen it all. Life on the road can be a rollercoaster, so it’s important to take care of yourself. Eat well, good sleep, and don't drink too much.

“Everybody is human, and eventually you’ll get sick on the road. This can be tricky, because one person going down can derail a show or even a tour. I once played through a Don Henley show when I had food poisoning. I’ve played shows with 103-degree fevers. It’s unavoidable, but you have to take care of yourself as best you can.”

By his early 20s, Oz Noy was already an in-demand session and live guitarist. Upon his arrival in New York City in the mid ’90s, he won acclaim on the scene and before long was sitting in on jams and maintaining a busy recording and performing schedule. His success was at least partly due to his impeccable chops and versatility: Rock, jazz, blues, funk and R&B — he does it all. As a result, Noy has worked with an impressive range of artists, including Cyndi Lauper, Harry Belafonte, Sting, Nile Rodgers, Gov’t Mule, Natasha Bedingfield, Don Henley and Mike Stern. And that’s when he’s not releasing his own music, which has filled more than a dozen solo albums to date.

Oz isn’t sure why he’s so popular, but he knows what he brings to every session and gig. “Nobody’s ever told me what they like about my playing or why they hire me,” he says. “I think they know that I can play a lot of different styles of music, and they figure that I’ll do what’s right for them. I try to go to each job with the same attitude: Know what to play and what not to play.”

Elaborating on that point, he says, “I’m not going to bring my jazz stuff into the pop world, and vice versa. You have to be able to draw the line somewhere and give the artist what they want, unless they specifically ask for something a little different, and then you change gears. But I enjoy it all. If somebody wants me, I’m there.”

The iconoclastic guitarist — whose main electric guitar is a Fender Custom Shop 1968 Heavy Relic Stratocaster — has some insightful pieces of wisdom for fellow guitarists, but as he notes, “There are some things that I think can help any guitarist, no matter what they want to play. But on the other hand, playing the guitar is something that’s highly personal and you should always do what’s right for you.”

1. Tune Your Guitar By Ear

“I’ve noticed a lot of younger players, and quite a few players in general, can’t tune a guitar without a guitar tuner. It’s an unfortunate trend, as people should know how to tune by ear. Not only does it help ensure your guitar’s intonation is accurate but it also helps develop your hearing.

“It’s really not hard. You start with an A-440 tone — you can get it on a piano or another guitar, or maybe even Google it to get the tone, because a piano or another guitar might not be in tune. Once you get your tone, you’ll be set. You can look up how exactly to tune one string to the next, but the point is, this is the way to do it — with your own ears.

“And what’s funny is that, while you’re playing, your guitar’s tuning will change a little bit as it adjusts to how you play. But if you start from a proper tuning, you’ll be fine. You’ll know this when you play an E chord and then a C chord. If both chords sound good, you’re okay. If there’s something a little off with the C chord, you need to make adjustments. Again, do it by ear.”

2. Practice Scales

“Here’s the truth about playing the guitar, and music in general: You must, must, must practice scales. Melodies, harmonies, chords, intervals — everything comes from scales, so you must learn them and practice them.

“A lot of people say, ‘I don’t want to get bogged down with that stuff. I just want to play.’ But your playing will improve in every way because of your knowledge of scales. You’ll know your way around the entire neck of the guitar, which will open up all sorts of possibilities.

“Start out with major and pentatonic scales. If you master the major scale all over the neck in all keys and the relative minor pentatonic scale all over the neck in all keys, you’ll already be in good shape. If you play the blues and you practice in a pentatonic scale, you’ll have at your fingertips everything that Clapton and Hendrix played. It doesn’t come from anywhere else.

“Once you’ve gotten those scales down, you can do more advanced stuff, like jumping thirds or different kinds of intervals. And then the next advanced move will be playing triads from each degree of the scale, or seventh arpeggio melodies. That’s when you can get some really cool stuff, because you’ll be playing the harmonies within the scales. All the music is in the scales.

“A lot of people don’t find practicing scales to be fun, but you can make it entertaining. Put on a backing track in the key you’re playing and do your exercise. Before you know it, it will sound like music.”

3. Practice Voice Leading

“Voice leading is when you have the voice moving over a scale to smoothly connect chord tones. The voice is the melodic line that’s part of a harmonic progression, such as when you’re in the C major scale and you move the melody one note at a time. But you don’t have to move it by one note — you can do multiple notes at a time. You can take two notes, which we call double-stops, and voice lead symmetrically to the next notes in the scale. I can do that all over the neck. You can do this with any interval: thirds, whatever you like. You can play sevenths all over the neck in the same scale. If you know how to connect the dots, you’re going to be playing music.

“You can play one note, two, three or four. Mix them all up and get fancy. This is how you get into cool chords and a lot of deep stuff. Some players might not even know they’re voice leading, but I think it’s important to understand the relationship between the notes and why you’re going to each one. If you know where something comes from, you can do more with it, and there won’t be any mystery. Once again, it all comes out of scales. That’s the basis for everything.”

4. Play Horizontally on the Guitar

“When most people start playing, they learn things vertically on the neck in relation to how their eye sees things. Their fingers are locked in these boxes and they only stay within a few frets at a time. It’s very limiting; they’re not opening up all the possibilities on the neck. If you learn to play horizontally, you can easily move from the top of the neck to the bottom, or the other way around.

“One good exercise is to limit yourself to two strings at a time. You can practice this over jazz standards. ‘Autumn Leaves’ is a good one, although you can do it with anything, really. You take the E and the B strings, say, and by limiting yourself to two strings while playing the melody, you’re going to have to play horizontally. You’re going to move from one end of the neck to the other. I guarantee you’ll be surprised how easy it is once you get the hang of it, and it’ll really open things up for you.

“You can mix this up and do two, three or four notes per string. You’ll be all over the neck instead of being locked into this fixed position all the time.”

5. Make Sure Your Body Is Relaxed

“It’s very important that you don’t put any undue stress on your body when you play. Make sure your body is relaxed and that you have good posture, and remember to breathe.

“Keep your hands loose, not tight. You don’t want to put too much tension on your tendons, because your hands and fingers won’t respond well. There shouldn’t be too much pressure in your fingers when they hit the notes. Don’t grind them down. They should move around softly and fluently. Once you feel tension or pain, give yourself a break, whether it’s for five minutes or an hour or a whole day. If you think you can push through the pain, you’re going to mess yourself up and you’ll be in sad shape.

“Next, keep your arms and shoulders relaxed. That’s the whole point to everything here: You don’t want to feel any stiffness when you play. Finally, breathe. A lot of players seem to hold their breath when they play. I think it’s because they’re locked in this overall tension. Breathe. Relax. Let the music flow.”

6. Don’t Obsess Over Your Picking Hand

“Picking technique should happen naturally. There is no proper way to hold a pick. Everybody is different, so do what feels right for you. Your hand knows how it wants to play.

“Also, don’t stress out about playing up- and downstrokes. I’ve seen people try to play down-down, up-up — maybe it works for some people, but it won’t work for everybody. Just try to play music naturally and let it flow. If the music sounds good, and you feel no pain when you play, you’re doing it right.”

Bumblefoot… Returns! might strike some as a strange album title. After all, its creator, Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal, never really went away; in fact, since the release of his first record, 1995’s Bumblefoot, the electric guitar virtuoso been downright omnipresent, issuing nine other solo albums while spreading his guitar and vocal talents across a diverse array of bands, chief among them, Guns N’ Roses, Sons of Apollo and Asia.

“I’ve been around a good while,” Thal says, “long enough to see everything change in the way we make records. Thirty years ago, I was signed to Shrapnel Records. They handled distribution and oversaw the business. I did the writing, playing and mixing, and I designed my album cover on Windows 95. It wasn’t so easy to put music out 30 years ago. There were gatekeepers who controlled what people got to hear. The process could really grind you down.”

These days, Thal is his own boss, recording albums at his New Jersey home that he says “sound just as good as something I could do in a big studio. Creatively, it’s a dream come true — I can record a song and in two days the whole world can hear it. Economically, the situation could be better. This is why artists tour so much — we can’t depend on just one revenue stream.”

The all-instrumental Bumblefoot… Returns! is a sustained blast of musical razzle-dazzle, encompassing everything from molten metal to turbo-charged orchestral pieces to high-velocity cosmic blues.

“A lot of the songs come from random moments of inspiration, Thal says. “I could be driving my car and a melody will come to me. In the case of ‘Moonshine Hootenanny,’ I watched a documentary about blues players, and I saw this clip of Lonnie Johnson. He was playing a zydeco rhythm that reminded me of guys playing washboards in jug bands. It just made me smile, so I grabbed my fretless guitar and playing. I felt like I was in the movie Raising Arizona.”

The aptly named “Monstruoso” is a sci fi metal stunner that features more dazzling guitar goodness than any song has a right to. But Thal doesn’t keep all the fun to himself: Those wicked, harmonized sheets of seven-string sound are courtesy of no less than Steve Vai, who is currently on tour with Beat, the Robert Fripp–approved King Crimson tribute band.

“I’m so happy that Steve is on the record,” Thal says. “I didn’t impose any restrictions on him; I just sent him the track and reveled in what he sent back.” He adds with a laugh. “I’m still trying to figure out what he did.”

Thal followed a similar tactic with another iconic guest, Brian May, who has been recovering from a minor stroke he had last September. May's instantly recognizable guitar work shines on Bumblefoot's lush ballad “Once in Forever.”

“When you ask Brian May to play on your song, you want Brian May to be Brian May,” Thal says. “Which means, he can do whatever he wants. He and I have been emailing each other for the past 15 years. We also played together at a festival called Starmus. It's a combination of astrophysics and music. Playing with Brian is unreal. He’s very humble and gracious, and I was thrilled when he agreed to do my record.”

Bumblefoot… Returns!, which also features collaborations with Guthrie Govan and Derek Sherinian, among others, will be released on January 24. After chatting about his album, Thal was only too happy to share a few sage pieces of advice for fellow guitarists. That’s the kind of guy he is.

1. Play Along to Songs You’re Unfamiliar With

“This is something I started doing as a kid. Over time, it really helped me build pitch recognition and intuition.

"I would take an album I was totally unfamiliar with, put it on the turntable, and I’d play along to it and try to catch on. It was crazy at first: ‘What’s going on in the verse? Oh, is that the chorus?’ But by the time I heard the verse again, I had an idea what to do. Then a bridge would come up, and I’d have to figure that out.

“It was an adventure. I would play along to both sides of a record, and then I’d do my normal practice routine. What I took away from it was that I didn’t have to be afraid to play. Not knowing what to expect was very liberating and confidence building, and that came in handy when I started to play with other people. And because I was strictly going by my ears — I was listening and reacting instantaneously — it sharpened my pitch recognition. You’re on one chord, and then it switches and you have to find your next move fast. Pretty soon, you don’t have to think about the distance between chords. You can predict that C chord and jump to it.”

2. Play Quick Trills With Every Combination of Fingers

“There are different types of muscle fibers in the body. There's slow-twitch and there's fast-twitch fibers. A lot of times for quicker playing, you're engaging the fast twitch reflex muscles. So by doing quick trills at 80 bpm with every finger combination, you’re loosening your digits up and building your endurance. I can’t overemphasize the word ‘loose’ here. You shouldn’t tense your hand or fingers; everything must be relaxed.

“This kind of exercise should feel like a burst of electricity that jumps out of your hand. I liken it to when you look down and you see a spider crawling on your hand. Suddenly, your hand shakes like crazy and you don’t even think about it. Play the trills the same way, and do it a lot.”

3. Be Overly Prepared, Be Extra Early

“If you’re given a song to learn for rehearsal or maybe a recording, go that extra step and learn all the parts — drum fills, bass lines, vocal melodies and harmonies. It’s just a good idea to know the whole song when people are discussing parts and changes, and there will always be changes. But you never know when you might be asked to sing something or play another instrument. Be prepared.

“And whatever you do, be on time — as in when you arrive. If you need to be there at 3 p.m., be there at 2:30. Don’t make people wait for you. It shakes their faith in your reliability, commitment and respect for other people. Being on time is a sign of respect. It tells people in action, not words, that this matters to you. I’ve seen it happen: Somebody doesn’t show up, and everybody’s going, ‘Who is this guy? Is he blowing us off? Does he not care?’ Don’t be that guy.

“I’m never, ever late for anything. In fact, I’m the kind of guy who gets somewhere 15 minutes early and sits in his car. That’s just the way I do things. I’ll call the other people and be like, ‘Hey, I’m here,’ just to let them know they don’t have to worry about when I’m showing up.”

4. Support the Team

“If you’re in a band, you’re part of a team. You’re partners with other people. Let’s say your band is made up of five people; if everybody gets to have a say — which isn’t always the case, but here it is — out of five ideas you should expect to get one of yours through. At the same time, you’re probably going to have four out of five of your ideas shot down. That’s okay – don’t be offended. Every time you get your way, the other four people may have had their ideas shot down.

“Put your ego aside. When somebody gets their way about something they feel passionate about, be selflessly happy for them. They deserve to see their idea through. Don’t be controlling — just go with the flow and see where it goes. In the end, you may find that their ideas were better than yours. That’s okay, too — the whole band looks good.”

5. Play One Note Per Chord

“All too often, guitarists blast out flurries of notes over whatever chord the rest of the band is playing. They go through scales and patterns mindlessly. It all sounds like something they do by habit, and after a while, it all sounds the same. It makes it clear that they’re not really thinking about the music — they’re just engaging in an exercise.

“I have a good tip for connecting to the music: Play one note per chord. Play a whole note, let it ring out, and watch what happens. What that will do is, it will force you to think about what should come next. You’re giving yourself a break and allowing yourself to hear the tones, how they blend, where they go. You can hear the structure of sounds as they connect, and you’ll have a better sense of where to go next. It might take a while to get this down — you’ll want to break into the usual flurry of notes. But trust me, you’ll hear the music in a more interesting way with this one-note-per-chord technique.”

6. Character Means More Than Contracts

“If someone is going to do the right thing, they'll do it on their word and a handshake, whether there's a contract or not. On the other hand, if someone is going to screw you, they're going to whether there's a contract or not. If you sense that someone might be a manipulative, lying sleazebag, don't ignore your gut and gamble on hope. You're passionate and hungry to achieve your goals, which makes you an easy target. The 'industry' is filled with opportunistic frauds. Always trust your gut, and remember that character matters most. Try to minimize exposure to the ticks and leeches; they're hard to get rid of cleanly once they attach themselves to you.”

In a recent interview with Guitar Player, while discussing the 10 albums that changed his life, Joe Bonamassa had kind words for Steve Morse. “I really hold Steve Morse in such high regard,” he said.

“Not only as a player but as a good, humble guy. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get named in the same sentences as a lot of other players of that era, like Eddie Van Halen, Allan Holdsworth and Bill Nelson. He’s the last to be named or not named at all.”

Turns out that Joe B. was right. As Morse himself checked in with GP, his affable personality and endless humility were apparent from the hump. After some 50 years making music, the 70-year-old guitarist remains unpretentious and clear-eyed about the art of playing guitar.

“It’s a never-ending struggle,” Morse admits. “But when you look at anything worth doing, there’s always going to be struggles.”

“It’s like a NASCAR race,” he continues. “There are guys on the pit crew struggling to keep things reliable, but everything is always deteriorating. As a musician, my skills and technique will deteriorate, so I always have to replenish them. It’s a constant struggle; it’s never going to change.”

It’s not all bad, of course, and Morse still loves the game. “The joy of creating music and playing music is a constant,” he beams. “It’s always great. It’s like, ‘Okay, we had a terrible gig,’ but you can have a great gig under the same conditions. It’s about fighting for it and finding balance.

“I started off as an annoying teenager with an electric guitar,” he laughs. “I slowly transformed to the place I’m at now, where I’m humbled and impressed by anybody willing to work hard and play a great solo,”

Starting with your Dixie Dregs days, what were the biggest challenges you faced while on the road, and how did you overcome them?

In the early days, the sound systems weren’t that good. Some places just had a P.A. for a vocalist, and we didn’t have one. So these places wouldn’t have enough inputs and headroom to mic everything. We got this idea to have everybody play through two sound sources — basically, two cabinets. We had two Leslies, two bass cabinets and two guitar cabinets, which, for the most part, allowed us to play shows without monitors.

Did you find that to be reliable?

The only reason that fell apart was that it was similar to the mutually assured destruction of nuclear power that was written about in the ‘60s, where everybody had the ability to destroy the world. And that was supposed to deter things because that meant that if anybody acted up, they’d get blown up.

With our equipment wars, all it took was one person playing a little bit too loud for another band member on the other side of the stage to turn up their equipment. The person that turned up loud to begin with would hear more of that instrument on their side of the stage, so they’d turn up again. That made us revert to a traditional band setup and letting everyone be the loudest thing.

Was there a specific turning point for you regarding your personal equipment on the road?

When I came across the idea of muting the output of the speakers. That was before there were power attenuators that went between the speaker and the amp. I tried running higher impedance on the speakers by putting them in series, and I employed a cover for the speakers — basically, anything thick that I could cover the speakers with. By doing that, I could turn the amp up enough to get the tube saturation I was looking for.

Once you joined Kansas, how did your challenges on the road change?

With Kansas, we had a team, including roadies, so my interaction with my equipment was about finding a place and a volume for me to fit in. At the time, the vocals were loud through the side fills, and that’s when I started using earplugs for every show because I was next to that side.

This is around the time you started using Engl equipment, right?

Yes. I started using Engl front cabinets and putting them on their side so the two 12s would be pointed in one direction. The other two 12s would be pointed in a slightly different direction, rather than being pointed up at my head. That gave me a little bit more headroom, and I could hear myself without the monitors.

A lot of players are fine with sound through the monitors. Why was that an issue for you?

For some reason, to me, when I hear a guitar through monitors, it sounds like it has a little bit too much presence. Unless I hear the whole band through the monitors, it seems like the guitar doesn’t fit in sonically. So I try to limit the monitors as much as possible so that I get more ambient sound.

In those early days, was there ever a time when you felt like you failed onstage?

Yeah. Those times are what I referred to as “normal shows.” [laughs] Music has always been challenging enough that, at some point in the show, you miss something that you know you can play.

How do you overcome that?

You just have to keep going. The good thing about playing music day in and day out is it keeps you very humble. I got to a point where I just accepted the fact that when I play a solo, the best score I can get is 75 precent. Well, that’s the best average performance; I can play a horrible solo, and sometimes I play a great solo. But the average of that is 75 percent.

Has that ever impacted your ability to enjoy yourself onstage?

It’s still fun for me. If you’re enjoying yourself onstage, that sense of excitement, — and in a small way some risk taking — conveys something to the audience. To this day, when I play a show, there’s a point where I screw up, and I just work around it and immediately fix it. I’ll hit a wrong note or mess up a chord change, and I’ll take those wrong notes, bend it in one or two ways, and it’ll fit.

What were some of the biggest challenges you faced shifting from Kansas to Deep Purple?

My first encounter with Deep Purple was a really good jam session, and my first encounter with Kansas was a writing session. Those were different things, but they were the things that I connected on with each band. With Kansas, it was more about writing, but with Purple, it was about the feel of everybody improvising, listening and reading each other’s minds. With Purple, that connection grew very organically.

Did you need a whole new setup to cover Ritchie Blackmore’s parts?

I eventually changed the amplifiers four times before I ended up going with Engl. When I first started with Purple, I was using a 5150 setup. I used that through the [1996] Purpendicular album. That setup worked fine, but the gear needed to be turned up in order for the type of distortion I needed to convey the notes. The search began to find a rounder tone with more impact. That led me to the Marshall Jubilee to the Marshall 2000 series to Engl.

What made Engl Amps perfect for Deep Purple?

At the time, I liked some of the characteristics, but I really wanted to make some changes. Luckily, the designer started bringing prototypes to the shows with breakout boards attached to the amps that let me adjust the tone centers of the tone controls. It was awesome. That begat my signature amp.

What’s the most significant stumbling block for any guitar player trying to survive in a rock band on the road?

Oh, boy. To ensure success within a band, you have to give respect. If the lobby call is at 10 a.m., you need to be there at 10 a.m. the latest, and be prepared. You better learn your parts and really learn the arrangements before soundcheck so you can work on sound changes and figure out what pickups you’ll use and whatever else.

When you’re in a band, you’re on a team, just like a football player. It takes a whole team to do well before you’re going to be a great band. Every minute of your life needs to be spent becoming a better player. It goes back to basics; if you have a road crew, treat them with respect, help them when you can, and realize they’re just like you; they’re just doing a different job.

What challenges do you face today on the road, and how do they differ from your early days?

The equipment is just better and more reliable. And with digital tuners, things are better right off the bat. Usually, you have fewer excuses for screwing up. [laughs] Things are easier, I think, than they’ve ever been on the equipment front.

So what’s not easier?

What’s not easier is getting the gig experience that we got back in the ’60s and ’70s. I always want to support anybody who’s doing live music because we need to keep that alive, to give young people a chance to develop their craft. Nothing can take the place of live performances for honing your art. Nothing can be as exciting as a live performance from a listening standpoint.

Last year, Los Angeles-based guitarist and social-media sensation Kiki Wong famously beat out some 10,000 online applicants and was chosen as the newest member of the Smashing Pumpkins. Three months after being tapped for the gig, Wong hit the road with the superstar alt-rock outfit, playing festival and arena shows for much of 2024. She admits there’s still certain aspects of major band perks she’s getting used to — for instance, backstage riders.

“I’ve always toured broke,” she says. “I mean, I learned how to take a bath at a Starbucks. When I first joined the Pumpkins, they asked me what I wanted to add to the rider, and I just didn’t know. I still haven’t added anything because I’m literally the person who goes, ‘Why don’t we stop at a gas station for some Slim Jims?’”

During the past few years, Wong achieved a significant level of notoriety via her social media posts — everything from a travel blog to irresistible videos of heavy metal electric guitar covers — and has amassed millions of online followers. Though her success might appear to be the result of some grand agenda, she rejects the notion outright.

“The only plan I’ve had is to just keep going,” she says. “Don’t worry if something seems crazy. If you want to do it, do it — even things that sound terrible can catapult you to the next level. Learn to say ‘yes’ more than you say ‘no.’ Most of the time, we say no to protect ourselves from fear and rejection — which you will have, so accept that and move on.”

If all of that sounds like good advice, you’re in luck: Wong has other choice pieces of wisdom for guitarists trying to figure out how to get from point A to point B.

1. Fail Like You’ve Never Failed Before

“I’ve failed more times than I’ve succeeded. I’ve almost become numb to failure. But there’s an upside to it: I’ve learned to look at the benefits of failure. I know that sounds strange, but I started to realize that I gained some type of strength or experience from each opportunity I’ve had — even the ones that didn’t pan out.

“I don’t know anybody who’s had success after success and never experienced any stumbles. Nobody’s that lucky. People might look and think that I’m just this TikTok personality. They don’t know that I’ve been playing since 2010 and have done these crazy bootleg tours with three people sleeping in the back of a trunk. I’ve played gigs to nobody. There was one show I played where half the audience left. They just took off, yelling, ‘You suck!’ Believe me, I’ve been beat down a lot.

“But that’s the thing: A lot of people quit when they experience those failures. They’re like, ‘I’m just gonna put the guitar down and do something else.’ I get it — this stuff can be tough. But I think there’s a turning point where failure can eventually lead to success, and that’s when the magic happens.”

2. Shred What You Can Get

“I’m a gearhead. I love gear, and I have too many guitars. I’ve got almost 40 guitars, and I keep getting more, which is insane. But I strongly believe that you can make the best out of a cheap instrument. I started playing guitar at 13, and for the longest time I played a Hamer Slammer. I played the crap out of it and learned my stuff.

“If you’re just starting out, don’t focus on all the beautiful guitars you see online or in magazines. Shred what you can get. If all you have is a cheap guitar, that’s the guitar you’re meant to play right now. Make that guitar sing. One day you’ll have something nicer, and you’ll sound amazing on it. Remember: Race car drivers don’t start out driving race cars.”

3. 10,000 Hours of Practice, 10,000 More in the Industry

“There’s the whole theory that you need to put in 10,000 to master something, and I’m a big proponent of that idea. If anybody thinks I’ve had it nice my whole life and had all the breaks, think again. In high school, I was a total nerd and spent hours each day practicing and practicing. I was obsessed with guitar and put all of my effort into playing and learning technique.

“Later on, when I joined this all-Asian female pop-rock band called Nylon Pink, I realized that the visual aspect of performing was also important, and that made me realize that there was a lot about the industry that I needed to learn about. If you don’t understand the business, you’re going to limit your opportunities. So make a plan for yourself: As much time you spend learning your instrument, spend as much, if not more, time learning everything you can about the music industry. And like I mentioned before, don’t be afraid to fail. Failure is another way of learning.”

4. Be Humble, But Celebrate Your Wins

“I’m a big believer in humility and respect. You need to appreciate every opportunity that comes to you, and no matter what happens, have respect for it.

“I remember going into the Smashing Pumpkins audition. I had practiced the songs, and as I stood outside the studio door I thought, Even if I don’t get chosen to join, right now in this moment I’m about to play with the Smashing Pumpkins — how cool is that? Even if they hated me, I told myself to enjoy the moment. In my mind, I was already a winner.

“What happened next was, I went in and forgot to perform. I was just smiling and having a good time, and my whole vibe was ‘This is way too cool!’ At that moment, I was grateful for the chance to be there. I remember thinking, Even the bad stuff was worth it, because I got through it and it allowed me this opportunity. And I know there will be struggles in the future, but I also know that I’m going to press on and achieve. It’s important to celebrate your wins, but always be humble. That’s what will keep you going.”

5. You’re Not Selling Out If You’re On Social Media

“I built my fame on social media. I just decided, ‘I’m going to take my love of heavy metal, and I’m going to make all of these fun and crazy videos of me playing metal covers.’ I read a lot of negative stuff: ‘Oh, look at all the stupid faces you make’ or ‘What are you doing on TikTok?’ TikTok’s for kids.’ Some people even called me a sell-out. I didn’t care.

“Sure, I wrote my own music and spent thousands of hours in the studio, but I also know that people related to music they knew. I just kept doing what I wanted, and it got me fans and all this recognition, and it took me to the level of playing with the Pumpkins. I also helped inspire other female guitarists to put their own videos online, and that’s a great thing.

“Social media is here to be used. I find it perplexing that musicians would have a hard time accepting it at this point. You can promote yourself and find other musicians, or build an audience. And you can get good gigs, too. You can get chosen to open for bigger bands. It used to be that you had to book a gig somewhere, and sometimes pay to play that gig, to have somebody notice you. Now you can put a video online and it’ll be seen by thousands of people — eventually, it could be somebody who can do something for you. I don’t call any of that ‘selling out.’”

Sue Foley is renowned for her dynamic electric blues playing. Even so, the Texas blues woman took a stylistic detour on her latest album, One Guitar Woman, by covering a range of styles, including flamenco, classical and Tejano — all on a nylon-string acoustic guitar — while paying tribute to female guitarists like Memphis Minnie, Maybelle Carter and Sister Rosetta Tharpe.

“That’s the great thing about guitar playing,” Foley says. “There’s always a new mountain to climb. I tend to be restless and adventurous in general, and that certainly extends to my guitar playing. I’ve spent a lot of my life playing the blues, and I’ll always return to it, but there’s other kinds of music I still want to learn.”

Such as? “Well, jazz, for sure,” she says. “I can’t play jazz — yet. Harmonically, I’m really challenged. I know if I were to really try to stretch myself, that’s where I would probably try to go.”

Foley recently heard she's received a Grammy nomination for “Best Traditional Blues Album” on behalf of One Guitar Woman. It's her first nomination, and one that is clearly well deserved. She was kind enough to take some time from her busy schedule to offer choice bits of advice for Guitar Player readers.

“There’s a lot of technical tips you can get out there, but to me a big part of guitar playing is mental,” she says. “It’s funny how a lot of players can talk themselves out of trying something new or breaking out of their boxes. Just remember: There’s no rights and no wrongs. Play fearlessly and it’ll all sort itself out.”

1. Ask Yourself Big Questions

“Learning the fundamentals of blues isn’t that difficult, really. Once you familiarize yourself with how the I, IV and V operate in the circle of fifths, you’re in a good place. To me, those are the primary colors you need in order to paint a picture. But what I find fascinating about the blues — and much of it is mysterious, in a way — is just how many ways there are to express yourself using only a few colors.

“Blues music asks you some big questions, like, Who am I? What do the blues mean to me? What do I really want to say? It almost dares you to expand your mind and express yourself through your playing. It wants you to go to a deeper place all the time. I find that fascinating. To me, it’s a challenge every time I play, like, How am I going to play this solo and these licks that have been regurgitated countless times for almost 100 years in a way that sounds fresh and alive? How am I going to make them sound like me?

“Asking yourself these types of questions is as important as any kind of technical practice you undertake. I guarantee you, whenever you listen to the greats, you
can bet they’ve asked themselves these questions. I know this sounds kind of spiritual, but when you get down to it, that’s really the essence of the blues. This is music born from a certain time and place, and whenever we play it, we’re paying homage to those spirits and keeping them alive.”

2. Tone Comes From Your Picking Hand

“Of course, you need decent equipment to get a good sound — a good-quality guitar and amp, decent strings that aren’t too old. But the real secret about tone is that it comes from your picking hand. Your fretting hand is doing one kind of work, but for the most part it’s flowing in the same kind of general moment. But your picking hand is where you control your tone. It’s surprising to me that so few people really talk about it.

“When I was coming up, I spent a lot of time watching people’s picking hands. I used to go see Clarence ‘Gatemouth’ Brown a lot, and he had this amazing right-hand technique. He didn’t use a pick, and he did all these really interesting flourishes using all his fingers. It was like each finger was a paintbrush that he’d run across the strings. He could play fast and wild, but when I’d watch his right hand, it was like he put no effort into it. It was all graceful swing. That’s where his tone came from.

“In a different way, there was Albert Collins. He had another great right hand, and his tone could slice your head off. He used his fingers, too, and he played with very light strings. The way he dug his fingers into his strings and pulled the sound from them, it was like sparks flew.

“These kinds of players made an impression on me, and I decided to do away with a flatpick. I use a Golden Gate thumbpick, which I take on and off. Mostly I just play with my fingers so I can feel the flesh on the strings. What I like about that is how intimate it feels — there’s nothing that separates me from each string. I can pluck each string lightly, or I can dig in and get tough. I can run my fingers softly across the strings, or I can hit ’em hard. Playing this way, my tone comes straight from my picking hand, whether I’m going through an amp or not.”

3. If You Play Electric, Try an Acoustic

“It’s easy to let your pickups and amp do a lot of the work for you, but if you want to expand your playing — and if you want a dose of humility — pick up an acoustic from time to time. I started on an acoustic, so I’ve always felt comfortable playing one. The way I generate sound on it is vastly different than on an electric guitar. The sound basically comes from my stomach, which is pressed right against the instrument.

“It’s an unforgiving instrument, which freaks a lot of people out. This is especially true if you’re playing a nylon-string acoustic, which I’ve been doing a lot of lately. Don’t expect it to have the same behavior and response as your electric. It’s a whole different animal. So right away, adjust your expectations and approach. You’re going on a new adventure.

“I would also recommend people either use a thumbpick or an open hand when playing acoustic. There are so many things you can do using your whole hand, and you can experiment in so many ways. But be patient. You’re going to have to take baby steps. I remember my first flamenco guitar lesson: I had been playing for a couple of decades and I thought I was pretty good. I went for my first flamenco guitar lesson, which was open hand, no picks, on a nylon-string acoustic. Between the time signatures and the techniques, it was like I’d never played guitar before. Believe me, it was a good dose of humility.

“The more I played on a nylon-string acoustic, the more I fell in love with its sound and feel. I surrendered to the sound and didn’t fight it. And what was cool was when I found I could use a lot of the right-hand techniques I learned and apply them to my Telecaster playing. My fingers just flew across the strings.”

4. Embrace Your Suckiness

“We all hit a wall with our playing sometimes. I got in a rut myself with my blues playing. I’d been out on the road, and I could play different styles of electric blues, but then I started to think, What else is there? That’s when I started to get into learning flamenco and classical techniques. It was this mountain I wanted to climb, and the only way to do it was through baby steps.

“Whether you want to learn a different style of playing or not, the important thing is that you can’t give into your fear. If you’re trying something new or difficult, you can’t get freaked out if you suck at first. Keep going. In a way, you have to be honest and sort of embrace your suckiness. Say to yourself, Okay, I really suck at this, but I’m not going to stop. Each day you’ll be a little bit better, and one day you’ll be able to say, Hey, I don’t suck anymore.”

5. Speak Through Your Instrument

“Music is a conversation, and if you’re a guitar player, you’re speaking through your instrument. Think about it: If you’re having a conversation with somebody, are you just going to blather all over them and yell at them? That’s not a very effective way of communicating. Better to sit back and wait until it’s your turn to speak, and when you do, try to add something meaningful to the exchange.

“If you try to adopt this attitude, you’re going to find that you don’t have to say everything all at once to make a point. Jimmie Vaughan once told me, ‘Solos are
like little paragraphs in a story.’ That’s a lesson I took with me, and it’s guided me through the years. I don’t need to blather on in my solos. If I have something to say, I’ll say it. If I don’t, I won’t. If I perform a ballad that just requires me to play a melody, is that really so bad? I think not. That’s what I need to add to the conversation.”

At 64, Warren Haynes has had a rich and fruitful career. Few guitarists can match his tastefulness as a lead guitar player. And while others could play rings around him technically, he’s proven that the magic of blues guitar isn’t always about virtuosity. He drove that point home when he delivered two useful pieces of advice in a new interview with Rick Beato.

The YouTube host has a knack for pulling insightful anecdotes and masterful tips from his interview subjects — David Gilmour explaining how he turned his inability into his greatest asset chief among them — and his chat with Haynes proved no different.

Haynes’ advice forces players to look beyond the six strings of their instruments for inspiration. The guitarist knows something about that — although he's best known for his work in the Allman Brothers Band and Gov't Mule, the guitar wasn't his first instrument.

“I started singing first,” he says. “And so all the guitar players that I became enamored with were either singers, or players like Santana that sounded like they were singing through their instrument.

“I loved B.B. King's voice before I cared about guitar. Freddie King I always say would be one of my favorite singers even if he didn't play guitar.”

That saw him offer his first piece of wisdom.

“Some people take offense to it,” he says, “but every musician should listen to singers and drummers. Every musician should learn how to play drums and to sing at least some. It's only going to help with your musicality.”

There’s an interesting discrepancy, he says, between what guitarists can do with their instruments and what singers can do with their voices. Yet the limitations that singers face force them to make more tasteful decisions for their phrasing.

“The great singers that we grew up hearing are the best phrasers,” Haynes adds. “You can learn how to phrase better by listening to the greatest singers in the world and translating that into how you play guitar.

“The fact that singers have to breathe automatically gave them this sense of punctuation that you [otherwise] have to learn as a musician. We all know players who play great and have chops but don't know when to take a breath. They need to listen to Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, or Otis Redding. You can learn from all of them.

“The great singers have tone,” he adds. “They sing one note and it sounds unbelievable; that's the most valuable lesson. You should be able to play one note and have it sound really good. If not, you don't have the right tone.”

Hayne's other nugget of wisdom came after Beato praised his ability to leave acres of space in his lead playing — meaning he takes plenty of breaths throughout his solos. Haynes says he has Miles Davies to thank for that.

“I used to hear people saying, 'It's what you don't play' and I thought, What the hell does that even mean?” he admits.

"Miles supposedly once said 'Listen to what's in your head and then don't play it — play in the spaces.' I thought, Whether that's true or not it's a cool concept.”

Haynes then demonstrates what he means with his sunburst Les Paul, singing archetypal blues lines and then playing only in the spaces between each phrase. His playing is to provide punctuation rather than deliver full sentences. You can find this demonstration at 6:40 in the video above.

“It opens up a whole other door,” he says. “And they open less frequently when we get older, so it's important to run with it.”

The interview comes just after Haynes opened up about the story behind his stunning reinterpretation of the U2 classic, One, and explained how one of the best-loved songs in the Allman Brothers’ catalog was almost lost.

"This one poured right out of us in the studio,” he had said. “We were on a real roll.”

If you’re an acoustic guitar player who’s unhappy with your live tone, you might not be getting the most out of your setup. If, like many acoustic performers, you have a dedicated two-channel amp — which is very much the standard today — you may be missing out if you’re using only one of the channels. That second input is a golden opportunity to take your tone to the next level by adding a second pickup signal.

STEP 1: PLUG IN A PIEZO (SIGNAL 1)

While more guitars are starting to incorporate multiple pickups, most acoustic-electrics still come with a single onboard piezo pickup located under the bridge saddle. It may be a dual system that includes a second element such as a microphone, but a built-in preamp generally combines them and sends a summed signal into a single 1/4-inch output jack. For our purposes, plugging that into the first channel is just the first step.

STEP 2: USE THE POWER OF MAGNETISM (SIGNAL 2)

Here we’re adding a magnetic sound hole pickup signal to channel 2. This type of acoustic pickup works exactly like an electric guitar pickup: Magnetic pole pieces pick up string vibrations and convert the energy into electricity that we hear in the form of amplified notes.

The Sunrise pickup is one of the most coveted of these. Leo Kottke once told me, “It’s the only thing that gives you the goddamned note.” Actually, any magnetic pickup will focus more on the strings and deliver a faster attack than a piezo pickup, which must wait for that energy to transmit down the string and into the bridge, where piezoelectric crystals or ceramic elements detect vibrations. It stands to reason that the piezo pickup gathers more overall information from the guitar top, while the magnetic pulls the lion’s share of the string sound. So why not use both?

STEP 3: TWO IS BETTER THAN ONE

In my setup, I usually use channel 1 for the onboard piezo signal and boost the bass a bit for a bodacious body-driven tone, while channel 2 delivers the string tone from the sound hole pickup. The piezo provides plenty of high-end detail as well. I sometimes cut the mids a bit to make room for the naturally midrange magnetic tone. Once you’ve got both signals happening, you can find the ultimate balance between them.

But a word of warning: Once you do this, you’ll never again be as happy with the sound of either pickup on its own. And you’ll begin to understand why a player like Mike Dawes, who blends modern percussive techniques with fingerpicking and uses traditional electric guitar effects such as overdrive and octave processing needs multiple signals to gather all that information for amplification.

OPTIONS

There are tons of variations on this theme. If you’ve mainly been using a magnetic pickup, add a piezo. And if you can’t get past the piezo “quack,” try a soundboard-sensor-style pickup, such as the L.R. Baggs HiFi. If the somewhat dull sound of an old-fashioned, inexpensive magnetic pickup doesn’t turn you on, audition a tonally flexible active one like the Seymour Duncan Active Mag. Baggs’ modern magnetics, such as the M-80, are designed to pick up body vibrations along with the strings, which can eliminate the need for additional soundboard sensors or a mic.

Permanent installation may require additional technical expertise and perhaps some modification, such as an extra output jack or a signal-splitting stereo output jack. In addition, pedals such as Fishman’s AFX Pocket Blender can help separate and mix signals before they enter an amplifier. And if you need channel 2 for vocals, an auxiliary input or effects loop return can often accommodate a second guitar signal.

The possibilities are practically endless, but in the end, two pickup signals are better than one, and having two different kinds on two independent channels for blending is the bomb.

To take a flyover of Steve Lukather’s long and storied career is to essentially reminisce about the heights of the past 40 years of pop and rock music. He is both an original member of Toto — who have sold more than 40 million records worldwide, including timeless hits like “Africa” and “Rosanna” — and a prolific solo artist, with an impressive nine albums to his credit, including 2023’s Bridges. These accomplishments alone would have most of us gratefully calling it a day.

But when you look at the 18-page discography on Steve’s website — a comprehensive list of every session he’s ever done, for a veritable who’s who of iconic artists over a broad range of genres — the enormous impact he and his guitar have had on the world of music becomes clear. In this lesson, we’ll look at some of the industrious guitarist’s most celebrated classic works, starting from the very beginning.

In 1977, Luke, as he’s often called, recorded his first sessions for singer/songwriter Boz Scaggs, who hired the then 20-year-old guitarist to lay down two solos on his album Down Two Then Left. Throughout Lukather’s solo in “A Clue,” one can already hear hallmarks of his distinctive playing as he creatively combines searing melodies, modern rock licks (that still sound that way today) and a polished, sublime finger vibrato. What also stands out is the guitarist’s rare ability among rock players to deftly negotiate challenging chord changes, a skill that is more commonly found among jazz musicians. To that end, Luke was inspired by one of his guitar heroes, the session legend Larry Carlton.

Ex. 1 brings to mind Lukather’s stirring solo in “A Clue” and reflects his well-developed melodic savvy. The entire phrase is based on the Bb major scale(Bb, C, D, Eb, F, G, A) and is used over a chord progression so ubiquitous in jazz that it has made its way to pop music: the ii - V - I (“two minor - five - one”), with the numbers corresponding to the degrees of the scale. Here that means Cm7 - F7 - Bbmaj7. Immediately, bar 1 targets a “color” tone, also referred to as an extension, a note of a chord that goes beyond the 7th. This is yet another jazz concept, and, right off the bat, we immediately target Cm7’s 9th, D. Also note bar 3’s use of an F triad (F, A, C) over the Bbmaj7 chord, which touches on the 7th (A) and 9th (C).

Lukather loves to emphasize wide intervals in his single-note lines, and, after the first note, bar 3 sets up a series of 4ths (notes two and one-half steps apart) and 5ths (three and one-half steps apart) between the F, C and G notes. Notice the accent marks above the G and F notes, indicating to pick these notes louder than normal, and how they fall on “16th-note upbeats” (between eighth notes), making us feel rhythmically off balance for a moment.

In the last bar, we encounter a chord that might cause you to wince at first, but it’s not as complex as it looks, and Lukather knows this. Ready for another jazz concept? (Last one!) The E7b5 (E, G#, Bb, D) is the tritone substitution of Bb7 (Bb, D, F, Ab), a tritone, or “augmented 4th,” being three whole steps. Briefly, these chords can be substituted for each other because they share two defining notes, their 3rd and the minor, or “flatted,” 7th. For E7b5, these key notes are G# and D, respectively. Since G# is just another way of saying “Ab,” you can see that Bb7 also shares those same two notes; the E7b5 just has a bit of a funny bass note, and jazzers love that sort of thing.

So what does Luke do? Similar to bar 4, he simply plays over it as if it’s a standard Bb chord, never venturing outside the major scale. He targets a D note, which is the 3rd of our key, Bb, and also the colorful flatted 7th of E7b5. The main takeaway here is that by treating the E7b5 as if it’s a Bb chord, Luke chooses the simplest option, knowing this will most often sound best. This is key to understanding why he has been
a first-call session player for decades.

Let’s take a break from all of these sharps and flats to have some fun with vibrato. Lukather often wields his like a samurai sword, and it’s on full display in Toto’s very first single, 1978’s “Hold the Line” (from Toto). Ex. 2 is not unlike Luke’s solo — brash, aggressive and just plain nasty in the best possible way. To cop this bold attitude, your vibratos will need to be wide and even. Think of them as being like a series of bends and releases occurring in rapid succession, with the motion coming purely from your wrist. Notice in the tablature the prescribed use of the 2nd finger to fret and shake the E note on the B string’s 17th fret, which offers you better control of the vibrato instead of your 1st, giving you more leverage for pushing the string upward (toward the lower strings).

Fast-forward to 1982, when Michael Jackson is at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, working on what would become one of the most seminal albums in music history, Thriller. By request of legendary producer/arranger Quincy Jones, Lukather appears on three of the album’s songs. For “Beat It,” Eddie Van Halen rightfully gets most of the attention, due to the rock guitar icon’s master class of a solo. But Luke’s rhythm part beforehand sets up the legend’s guest appearance perfectly, creating tension that portends something special is about to happen. This sort of thing is what the best session players do every day, and without much fanfare. Ex. 3 is reminiscent of the guitarist’s killer funk-rock riff in this classic track.

During the recording of Jackson’s “Human Nature,” Jones felt the track didn’t have the proper level of funkiness and tasked Lukather with resolving the issue. A tried-and-true move for session guitarists, and one that is often heard in classic Motown and R&B songs, is to add a “popcorn” part, consisting of stealthy, palm- and fret-hand-muted single notes that contribute a percussive, almost conga drum–like backing part that fortifies the groove with notes that “agree” with the key. Not surprisingly, Luke added just the right amount of funkiness. In fact, Jones was so taken with his parts that he gave him an arranging credit on the album, a very rare occurrence for a session player. Ex. 4 is reminiscent of the guitarist’s main part. To achieve the palm muting (“P.M.”), lightly rest your picking hand on the guitar’s bridge, resulting in a subdued attack and quick decay when notes are struck. Keep in mind that the pitchless, fret-hand-muted “dead” notes (indicated with Xs) are just as important, if not more so, to achieving the desired level of funkiness. To deaden notes, simply lift your finger so that it lightly rests on the string.

That very same year, Toto released what would become the group’s most successful album to date, Toto IV. The debut single, “Rosanna,” features Lukather playing two classic solos. He does something particularly nifty in the middle solo, along the lines of Ex. 5. After bending the initial note, continue to hold it while fretting the same string one fret higher with your pinkie. Doing this allowed Lukather to reach a note (C) that would otherwise be quite awkward to play, first having to release the bend, then reaching for it up at the 20th fret. As indicated, notes are played with a swing, or “shuffle,” feel. And be sure to nail the Luke-style wide, sexy vibrato on the last note.

As the story goes, while recording the song, drummer Jeff Porcaro continued playing when the rest of the band expected it to have ended, resulting in a spontaneous “outro jam.” Lukather immediately hits the ground running, delivering a 54-second blistering tour de force. Ex. 6 is inspired by one of its many great moments. Over the G7 vamp, he begins by spitting blues fire then suddenly switches gears, playing a Dm7 arpeggio (D, F, A, C) which notably targets G7’s 9th (A) and 11th (C). Once again, because he’s aware of the available extensions, Luke can creatively introduce new colors to shift to a different gear. The guitarist follows the arpeggio up with a cool chromatically descending lick, which is an especially clever way to move down the fretboard. Ex. 6 brings this crafty section to mind, and, as the song fades, we’re left to wonder what sort of additional magic ended up on the cutting room floor.

Lukather clearly excels at outro solos, and in 1983, he would record another for ex-Commodore Lionel Richie’s “Running with the Night,” from Can’t Slow Down, an album that would go on to sell over 20 million copies worldwide. In the studio, Lukather was playing along while listening to the track for the very first time. When the song ended, Richie declared, to the guitarist’s surprise, that no further takes would be required; they had been recording and the solo was a keeper.

We can sense Lukather is playing quite freely here — possibly even a bit busier than he would have if he had known the red “record” light was on. His opening is a great example of the adage, “you never get a second chance to make a first impression,” as how one begins a solo might just be the most important part. Luke is about to go into beast mode, but it’s notable that he doesn’t start there. Instead, he instinctively creates a motif, which, in a musical sense, refers to melodic and/or rhythmic patterns that can be repeated. Here it involves combinations of just three notes and a robust amount of space, either in the form of rests or a long-held bend. Leaving space builds anticipation, keeping the listener guessing as to what’s coming next, and Ex. 7 is informed by the guitarist’s entrance here.

Ex. 8 brings to mind a later section where Steve again builds tension, this time with more notes, including a nod to the ’80s shred ethos.

A couple of years earlier, in 1981, Lukather co-wrote and played on the Tubes’ classic track “Talk to Ya Later,” from The Completion Backward Principle. It remains a rock radio staple and is packed with great Lukather moments. Ex. 9 brings to mind his dynamic intro, and it’s challenging to keep up its blistering pace. Dyads (two-note chords) on the 2nd and 3rd strings alternate with chugging palm-muted 5th-string bass notes, requiring the 4th string to be repeatedly skipped over. Picked with
all downstrokes, it’s quite a workout.

Lastly, there’s a cool pedal point lick in Lukather’s earlier solo, some-thing he does often. A pedal point is a sustaining or rearticulated note that’s generally played below or sometimes above a melodic figure or accompaniment. Ex. 10 is reminiscent of the guitarist’s ping-ponging phrase at 3:38. Played on the G string’s 16th fret, the pedal tone, B, is left to ring under the higher-pitched, staccato (short) notes with which it alternates. To keep each higher note from ringing, simply loosen your grip on the string so that it breaks contact with the fret.

Perhaps even more than his extraordinary guitar skills, it’s Steve Lukather’s uncanny aesthetic sense of what a song ultimately needs to blossom that has distinguished him for over 40 years. Whether providing subtle background parts or enduringly listenable solos, the guitarist remains an active and highly sought-after top gun in contemporary music.

When asked to describe how his guitar playing has evolved over the years, Zakk Wylde lets out a chortle. “Bro, there’s no way I can answer that,” he insists. “I’m
still evolving!”

Simply put, the rock legend finds joy and purpose in doing the work. Whether he’s on tour or recording (and there’s little time out of the year when he’s not involved with one of the other), he maintains the same sort of rigorous practice routine that he followed as a guitar-obsessed teenager more than 40 years ago.

“It’s like anything. If you want to get good at something, you put the time in,” Wylde says. “I’m always going over my technique and trying to better myself. It’s not going to happen just by wishing it. And I come up with surprises all the time. I’ll be running through Pat Martino stuff, practicing his chromatic licks, and then I’ll say, ‘Hey, what if I incorporate that into “Voodoo Chile”?’ The more you play and practice, the more likely you are to stumble on those kinds of ideas.

“I guess that’s all part of evolution. But like I said, as long as you keep at it, it never ends. It only ends when you stop.”

As Wylde notes in his tips for Guitar Player readers, there’s no substitute for diligence and dedication, but he also stresses individuality. “Don’t let anybody tell you what’s good and what’s not good,” he says. “If it’s what you feel, eventually people will come around. Or maybe they won’t. Who cares? You can’t dwell on that stuff. You do what you do. That’s all that matters.”

1. Play What You Love

“I can’t stress this enough: Play what you love — always. If something moves you, that’s what you should be doing. If something doesn’t move you, don’t worry about it. I know there’s guys that say things like, ‘Get out of your comfort zone.’ That’s fine for some people, but if you just don’t dig something, you can’t force yourself to like it. It’s like trying to eat food that you don’t like. No matter how many times somebody says it’s good for you, all you can think is, I just don’t like it.

“I remember reading an interview with Johnny Winter. He was talking about how amazing classical guitar players were. He could admire their dedication and technical proficiency and all that, but in the end, he said that classical music didn’t move him like the blues. He’d rather listen to Albert King or B.B. or Buddy Guy.

“I can relate to that. I can only do what I love. I’m not going to try to do something just to show how diverse I can be, because it wouldn’t be real. You need to be authentic.”

2. Be Yourself

“Originality is a hard one. I mean, who’s an original? Let’s face it: We’re all taking bits from somebody else. Even the guitar players that we say, ‘Oh, so and so’s an original.’ Well, c’mon! They’re borrowing things from somebody they used to listen to.

“On the other hand, you don’t want to sound like a carbon copy of somebody, so that means you have some decisions to make. When I was a teenager, obviously
I loved Sabbath and Randy Rhoads and Jake E. Lee. And, of course, there was Eddie Van Halen doing his whole thing. I loved them all, but I didn’t want to sound like them.

“I made a conscious decision not to do the things these other guys were known for.
I wrote out a list of things I wasn’t going to do. Everybody started playing with a Floyd Rose, so I wrote, ‘No Floyd Rose.’ People started playing three notes per string, so that was another: ‘No three notes per string.’

“Pretty soon, it was like, ‘All right, I guess I’ll just do pentatonics. Let me see how much I can get away with this.’ But that’s the beauty of it all: If you limit yourself to working with just a few elements, it forces you to be creative. It’s like, you’ve got two crayons and that’s all you’re allowed to color with. What are you gonna do?

“Did that make me an original? That’s up to other people to judge. I just knew that I didn’t want to be compared to anybody else.”

3. Make Vibrato Meaningful

“Vibrato is a weird aspect of guitar playing. I’ve heard a lot of players who have great technique — they’re clean and flawless — but when it comes time for them to end a phrase, their vibrato is a little off. It’s like they’re not confident about how to work that final note, so they just kind of shake it around or something. It doesn’t sound pleasing to the ear. It’s like a bee buzzing around your head.

“Listen to some of the greats: Eddie Van Halen, Paul Kossoff, Angus Young, Neal Schon — all of them have vibrato that’s pleasing to the ear. Jimi, Frank Marino, Robin Trower, David Gilmour — I could go on and on. Jared James Nichols is a new guy who really knows what he’s doing.

“Playing a note means knowing how to work it, and there’s a lot of different ways
to get inside that note. You want to try to convey some emotion through your playing, particularly when you’re bending strings. Try playing around with different speeds of string bending. There are times when it’s cool to go fast, but you don’t want to sound like you’ve had 650 cups of coffee — not all the time, at least. Slow down and explore all the little shades of the bend. Think of your vibrato like you’re singing. That’s a great frame of mind to put yourself in. Instead of using your throat, you’re putting your finger on a string, but the sound is similar.”

4. Scales: They’re Not for Everybody

“I never minded working and training. When I played little league and high-school football, I enjoyed the practice and the workouts. Same thing applied to guitar, even from an early age: I loved practicing my scales. Even now, I have a great time sitting down and running through scales. I’ll put on some Pat Martino or Joe Pass or maybe some Mahavishnu, and I’ll do my scales. But hey, that’s just me. I always saw the benefit of working hard at something and keeping at it till I got it right.

“That doesn’t work for everybody, and I’m not going to tell them, ‘You must learn scales!’ I mean, do you think Kurt Cobain sat around practicing scales? Do you think he was knocking himself out trying to play ‘Eruption’?

“I really don’t think people are missing out on anything if they don’t know scales.
If that kind of thing doesn’t move them, they don’t have to go there. For me, I think it adds to what I do. I like being able to move around and throw different note patterns in solos. My advice to anybody about scales is, if you think you’re going to get something out of it, go for it. Start out slow and work on it till you can play faster. You’ll see the results.”

5. Don’t Be Afraid to Write

“I don’t put much thought into songwriting. If I allowed it to be some daunting task, I’d probably never write another song. I don’t have a process for writing. I’ll just play until something hits me, like a riff or a cool chord pattern.

“Sometimes I’ll land on something right off the bat, and it’s like, Okay, that one’s no problem. Other times you get something that doesn’t want to be a song today, so you come back to it. There’s lots of bits that sit around for years waiting for their turn.

“Again, don’t overthink it. And if you come up with something that’s simple and sounds good, don’t tell yourself you gotta make it more complicated. Look at songs like ‘Heart of Gold’ by Neil Young or Tom Petty’s ‘Free Fallin’’ — they’re just a few chords, but they’re awesome. Anything more in one of those songs would have been all wrong.

“Songwriting is a craft like anything else; the more you do it, the better you get at it. And I think the more you do it, the more likely you are to get inspired. Just try to enjoy the process along the way.”

Rival Sons guitarist Scott Holiday recalls a conversation he had early in his career with an older, more experienced musician. “I said to him, ‘I don’t know if people are going to get the music I’m making,’” he says. “I was sort of questioning everything. ‘Is what I’m doing going to work? Will it ever become popular?’”

The other musician looked Holiday in the eye and gave him a piece of advice that served him well throughout the years. “He said, ‘You simply have to love what you’re doing. If you do that, you’ll never have to worry about finding your audience. They will find you.’”

It was a life-changing moment for Holiday, who has, over the course of nine blistering albums with Rival Sons, established himself as one of the most creative and dynamic guitarists of his generation. “I take our audience very seriously, but I don’t serve them. That’s how the whole band operates: We serve ourselves. We make music that we feel, and that’s the relationship we have with our fans. If we tried to cater to the audience, it would be a quick or slow death. It just wouldn’t work.”

With that in mind, Holiday — who plays a range of electric guitars by Gibson, Fender, Gretsch and Kauer — has some sage advice of his own for fellow guitarists. “I’m not really one for teaching people theory, and there’s lots of other players who are better at that than me,” he says. “But I do have some thoughts on the business and some ideas about making music that might come in handy. A few of them might be a little esoteric, but they’re the kinds of things I like to tell young guitar players who come to our shows.”

Keep Your Assets

“Whenever you can, try to make sure you can keep your assets. By that I mean your publishing, your recordings, your merchandising and the money you make from touring. There are people who want to dip into each and every one of those revenue streams. When you’re just starting out, you’re probably eager to sign any deal that is presented to you. I get it. But don’t be so quick to sign a deal, because you could be giving away the rights to your music for a long, long time, and it might not always be possible to get them back.

“Rock and roll isn’t the moneymaker it once was; it’s probably closer to jazz now that pop and hip-hop and country have taken over. And, of course, recorded music — meaning albums — doesn’t sell like it used to. Given all that, it’s crucial that you safeguard yourself, and ownership of your music and merch is key.

“Traditionally, whenever the big labels used to sign an artist, they’d own the artist’s albums for years and years — sometimes forever. If you’re in a position to sign with a major, or even an independent, it’s better to license your masters for a brief period of time. Let’s say you sign for two albums — at the end of those two records, those masters are yours. Same thing with publishing: You can grant somebody temporary license, but it should eventually come back to you. As far as merch, try to hold on to that, because it could be a huge part of what you make on the road. For the most part, we’ve kept everything, and we own everything. Not every company is going to go for this, because they want as much of the pie as they can get. Just be careful. This is your only career.”

Get Out of a Rut with Alternate Tunings

“If things are sounding the same and you’ve hit a creative wall, try alternate turnings. I’m all about DADGAD, open G, open A, open C — all sorts of different tunings. There’s no rule that says you can only play guitar in standard tuning. I love to tune my guitar a new way and slide my fingers around to see what happens. I can do that for hours. As guitarists, we have a tendency to play the same patterns in these box shapes — we all do it — but when you’re in a different tuning, your fingers can’t stick to the same routine. It’s strange at first, but before long it becomes exciting.

“I got into alternate tunings early on. I think I was 12 when I got into slide playing, and I listened to guys like Muddy Waters. Before then, I already felt as if I had hit a wall; I was like, ‘Something isn’t adding up.’ The minute I figured out some alternate tunings, it was like the sky opened up, and I started to take it further and further.

“It drives my guitar tech a little crazy. On our last tour, I brought 10 guitars out with me, and quite a few of them had alternate tunings. I even had two double necks with capos and alternate tunings. But they sure sounded great.”

Listen to the Melodies in Your Mind

“You don’t always have to be sitting with a guitar to land on a musical idea. I hear music in my head all the time whether I’m in the city or walking around in nature. There are sounds and rhythms all around you — natural melodies. I love to tune in and listen for anything that can sound like it could be a musical idea. Sometimes it’s subconscious and you don’t even know it’s happening; you find sometime stuck in your head, and you have no idea where it came from. The important thing is to capture that moment whenever it comes to you. When that happens, I’ll try to sing it to myself so I can remember it.

“Now that we’ve got phones that we carry around with ourselves, it’s much easier to record ideas that come to you in everyday life. I’ll hum or sing a melody to myself, and then I’ll sit down with my guitar and try to play it.

“When we were making our album Great Western Valkyrie, I dreamed a melody. I woke up humming it — it was just a few notes, but I kept it in my head. I took a shower and kept singing it to myself, working out the cadence and the pitch. When I got to the studio, I said, ‘I’ve been humming this thing, and I know it’s something.’ I picked up the guitar and worked it out, and everybody in the control room went, ‘Wow, that’s incredible!’ Eventually, it became our song ‘Electric Man.’

“Not everything that you hear in your head is going to become a song. There are diamonds that are out of reach. But don’t torture yourself. Be easy on yourself. Just know, there are ideas floating around all the time. Great songs are made from feeling inspired and learning to trust your instincts, and ideas can happen when you least expect.”

Connect With Your Fellow Musicians

“We play notes. We play songs. But more than that, we’re playing with human beings that have their own energy and feelings, and they’re interpreting those feelings into music. I think musicians tend to play together by the book — ‘This is the way it goes. This is the way you should play it.’ We get frustrated when somebody in the group doesn’t play something just the way you hear it.

“On the other hand, maybe what they’re playing is the better idea, or at least it’s something you should consider before discarding it. With Rival Sons, we always make it a point to connect with one another. We want to be together. We want to lift each other up and make everybody feel good. It’s all about listening. Listen to the holes somebody leaves in — connect with that space. Be a good listener.

“Sometimes you get together to rehearse, and somebody isn’t in the right frame of mind. It happens — we’re all people. Instead of just powering through, take some time to talk it out. Lift that person up, find out what’s going on in his head. Maybe you have two hours to rehearse, but the better way to use that time is to talk as a group. If you only play music for 20 minutes, that might be a solid 20 minutes instead of just slogging it out. Don’t beat up on one another. If somebody says, ‘I’m not right to play today,’ let them go home and come back better tomorrow. Making music is a spiritual thing. People are special, and your connection to them is what matters.”

Do You — It Makes a Real Difference

“Be mindful of your intent when you make music. Create with purpose and consider the reason why you’re doing what you do. And don’t underestimate the audience. They can innately hear when something sounds authentic. It all has to start with you.

“Your tone, your riffs, every part you play — it’s all connected to being truthful. It’s like when you hear a singer you love; you probably respond to that singer because you believe every word they sing. They’re feeling it. They’re centered and they’re focused. The same is true for guitar players. You can tell when somebody is having a moment of realization on his instrument. It’s because he believes in what he’s doing, and from that belief, a moment of authenticity is created. It doesn’t have to be complex; most of the time, it can be something ultra-simple. But in there is a moment of truth, and you know it when you hear it.”

In his book Outliers: The Story of Success, author Malcolm Gladwell asserts that at least 10,000 hours of practice are required to excel at any given skill. If that’s indeed the case, Australian acoustic guitar maestro Tommy Emmanuel certainly has a lot more than that under his belt. One of only five guitarists to be bestowed the title “Certified Guitar Player” by the legendary Chet Atkins — a “C.G.P.” inlay marks the 12th fret of his signature TE series Maton guitars — Emmanuel is a master of precision, control, touch and tone, with a signature style honed by decades of writing and interpreting a vast array of songs, while relentlessly refining his technique.

It would be a daunting task to try to cover the totality of Emmanuel’s style in one lesson, as he is both a master fingerpicker and flatpicker. So, here, we’ll be exploring just some of the guitarist’s favorite fingerstyle approaches and techniques. Lucky for us, one of New York City’s finest fingerstylists, Gilber Gilmore (Instagram: @gilber_gilmore, YouTube: 1972f1972,), has graciously joined us once again to create videos to accompany all of this lesson’s examples, which you’ll find at guitarplayer.com.

As you’ll see in these musical examples, fingerstyle guitar music is often notated with opposite stemming, also known as divisi notation, which allows two independent melodic or harmonic “voices” to be clearly shown and visualized for the reader. Up-stemmed notes are generally picked with the fingers, and down-stemmed notes are most often picked with the thumb. In addition, much the same way that fret-hand fingers are indicated with numbers, pick-hand fingers are traditionally assigned a letter, based on the Spanish words for the various digits: p (thumb), i (index), m (middle) and a (ring).

Note that Emmanuel most often uses a thumbpick, but it’s optional here, as is his use of the fret-hand thumb to play certain notes on the 6th string, indicated in the examples by the abbreviation “Th.” Okay, now we’re ready to discover just what makes this guitar genius tick.

One of the foundational techniques of Emmanuel’s style is Travis picking, named for Merle Travis, the iconic country and western singer, songwriter and guitarist. Its hallmark feature is the use of alternating bass notes on different strings, picked with the thumb, with a fairly consistent palm mute applied to the low E, A and D strings to prevent the bass notes from ringing, or “bleeding,” into each other and keep the bass notes sounding tight and punchy while notes on the higher strings are allowed to ring. When Travis picking, you’ll find that lightly palm muting the bass strings will additionally help you feel them more easily and better control your fingerpicking accuracy.

Ex. 1 is inspired by Travis’ classic “Cannonball Rag,” which appears as part of a medley on Emmanuel’s 2006 release The Mystery. To get a feel for Travis picking, start by playing only the thumbpicked notes while holding each of the full chord forms. Once you feel comfortable doing this, add the up-stemmed notes (picked with the fingers). Keep in mind that one of the “secrets” to TE’s success has been repetition, taking the time to work out complex movements slowly, and with a metronome, before bringing them up to tempo. How slow? A good rule of thumb is to start playing something as slow as it takes to work your way through, while playing with good time and no mistakes, at least twice. This gives your brain time to absorb all the nuanced movements involving both hands.

Ex. 2 demonstrates a nifty use of Travis picking to scamper up and down the neck. Notice there’s an open G note between each chord form, allowing for more seamless position shifts, while adding a bit of a country “chicken pickin’” sound. The focus here is mainly on your pick-hand thumb, as your middle finger handles most of the remaining notes, which are generally found on the 3rd string. There are two spots, however, beat 3 of bar 6 and the very last chord, where TE would likely strum with his thumbpick, so as to accentuate these beats. (Notice the accent marks, indicating to play these beats a bit louder for emphasis.) No problem if you don’t have a thumbpick; strumming with the backs of your fingernails will produce a similar bite.

Ex. 3 is reminiscent of “Son of a Gun,” from 2004’s Endless Road. Written for Travis’s son, Thomas Bresch, it has Emmanuel in full freight train mode. You won’t find much new material technique-wise, but it does require working the different phrases up to a breakneck speed. To do this, repeat each two-bar phrase multiple times until you get the hang of it; then work on connecting them. Breaking music down into more digestible chunks is another effective way to learn parts more quickly.

Next up, Ex. 4 is along the lines of classical guitarist and composer Mason Williams’ “Classical Gas,” which Emmanuel often performs. While it has some elements of Travis picking, there’s a different interplay between the melody and accompaniment. Welcome to the art of arranging — creating a unique rendition of a song by melding the melody and accompaniment in a compelling way. This is at the heart of what Tommy has dedicated himself to, as he has forged his signature style by combining his adventurous musical instincts with a vast arsenal of blistering techniques. Notice how, in bars 2 and 4, the whole-note melody leaves space for the accompaniment to take over, allowing for descending bass lines to mingle with higher, droning notes. In similar fashion, Bar 5 introduces hammer/pull double-stops, giving our ears something new and unexpected.

Emmanuel introduces all kinds of ingenious techniques into his arrangements to pique the listener’s interest. One example is his use of banjo rolls, via fingerpicking patterns more commonly associated with banjo players. Ex. 5 is a great example; after getting it under your fingers, try playing it as an intro to Ex. 3 to get a sense of how TE uses different techniques to create musical drama in his arrangements and propel a song forward.

Another way the guitarist keeps things interesting is by employing lightning-quick single-note licks. Ex. 6 uses clever open-string pull-offs to again tap into chicken pickin’s bouncy quality. It’s one of those licks that sounds intimidating, but in actuality is easier to play than it sounds. As indicated, you’ll need only your pick-hand thumb and middle finger to create the repeating pattern, and note how the cagey pull-offs create darting, angular lines that really keep things moving.

Ex. 7 presents us with a different sort of challenge. Inspired by Tommy Emmanuel’s arrangement of the Beatles’ “Day Tripper,” part of his sensational “Beatles Medley,” from 2005’s Live One, it requires us to keep a steady quarter-note rhythm on top of a melodic bass riff. But before exploring this aspect of the figure, let’s take a moment to notice how the first two bars have virtually no down-stemmed (thumb-picked) notes. This is a clever arranging technique to keep in your bag of tricks, as it creates a tangible anticipation, setting the stage for a dramatic entrance by the bass line. Listening to some of Emmanuel’s arrangements, it quickly becomes apparent that they’re chock-full of these musical signposts, keeping us on our toes. Note the staccato dots appearing above each beat, indicating to play these notes short. This is accomplished here by lightly resting your pick-hand fingers on the strings quickly after sounding the notes. Things really get interesting during the last two beats of bars 3 and 4, when your pick-hand finger independence and overall rhythmic equilibrium are both put to the test, as eighth-note bass lines are played over the static quarter-note pulse.

It’s crucial to note that creating a compelling arrangement does not necessarily mean it has to be a complex one. Emmanuel has said that one of his main focal points when arranging is a song’s melody and how best to interpret and convey it on guitar, both from a rhythmic standpoint and in terms of employing the guitar’s articulation nuances, such as bends, finger slides and vibrato. A great way to do this is to actually sing the melody, then try to capture what you’ve sung. Let’s look at the basic melody to the traditional song “Amazing Grace” and see if we can find a creative way to play it so that it sounds more natural and soulful on guitar. Ex. 8a is a bare-bones rendition of a snippet of the tune’s melody, as you might find it in a beginner’s fingerstyle method book.

Ex. 8b brings the same melody new life by using some basic arranging techniques. Looking at the melody, now incorporated are a pull-off, finger slide and hammer-on, which ornament the articulations and phrasing over the first three bars, with grace-note finger slides added to beat 4 of bar 3. Note also how we’ve changed the rhythm on that beat, so that the G note now anticipates the final bar. In the accompaniment, notice how the chords are quickly arpeggiated on beat 1 of bars 1 and 3, and how some rhythmic motion has been added in bar 2. Finally, a gentle hammer-on rounds out the phrase in bar 4. Now you’re playing music, instead of just notes.

Let’s finish things off with one of TE’s most favorite techniques, the harp harmonic (“H.H.”). Invented by Chet Atkins and developed even further by Lenny Breau, a harp harmonic is sounded by fingerpicking a fretted note while touching the string very lightly with the tip of your pick hand’s index finger at a node, typically 12 frets higher, to generate an octave-higher harmonic. While doing this, pluck the string with your thumbnail (or thumb-pick). The result should be a harmonic one octave above the fretted pitch, comparable to a 12th-fret natural harmonic on an open string. Note that, just as other, higher natural harmonics can be sounded on an open string — for example, seven or five frets above the nut or “zero fret” — the same is true with harp harmonics.

Ex. 9 employs these harmonics to an open D chord, adding some extra sparkle. Next to the initial tab number indicating the fretted note or open string, you’ll find another number in parentheses, which indicates the fret above which you are to lightly touch the string as you pick it. Just as you would with a natural harmonic produced with open strings, be sure to touch the string directly over the fret indicated, in order to correctly target the harmonic node.

Like Breau, Emmanuel often mixes harp harmonics with regular fretted pitches, creating a lush, cascading effect. Ex. 10 is inspired by his version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from Endless Road, which begins with a beautiful harp harmonics-fueled intro. The key is to let the notes ring over each other by having each chord form fretted before sounding the first note of each bar. Notice how incorporating harmonics into basic chord shapes produces a smooth, scalar line.

If you are to take just one thing away from having spent this time with Emmanuel’s music, remember that it’s how he plays the notes, by way of his daring arranging choices and masterful use of charismatic techniques, that contributes so much to his being a most exceptional player — a Certified Guitar Player, that is.

Kirk Hammett isn’t just the lead guitarist for the world’s biggest metal band. The long-running Metallica member is also the owner of some extremely rare and coveted Gibson guitars, including a 1957 Korina Flying V prototype and the 1959 Les Paul Standard known as Greeny, once owned by Peter Green and Gary Moore.

In a newly released video from Gibson TV, Hammett talks about 17 of his favorite vintage electric guitars. In addition to the two models mentioned above, he presents a 1952 Les Paul goldtop, 1960 Les Paul TV Special, 1956 Les Paul Custom, 1958 Les Paul Standard, 1958 Les Paul Custom, his “Sunny” 1960 Les Paul Standard, a 1963 Korina Explorer, vintage ES models and more.

To top it off, Hammett discusses his lifetime love of guitars in the roughly 90-minute documentary, from his first discovery of the instrument to his thrill of collecting them.

As he reveals in the film, he first became aware of the guitar’s power through the Beatles’ “Drive My Car,” when he was about five.

“I remember, I was playing with my cousin,” he explains. “At one point he jumped on top of a table and started playing air guitar to ‘Drive My Car.’ And I remember looking at him and laughing, thinking, Wow, you look so cool! And I I jumped up on the table and joined him!”

Kirk also explains his attitude about collecting vintage and rare models and stresses the importance of not getting too precious about a guitar’s condition.

“I’ve come to realize you could be screwing yourself if you pass on something just because the condition's not right,” he says. “If it's rare, it's rare.”

He is especially fond of player guitars and understands they are usually the most beat-up among vintage collectibles. He refers to Greeny as an example.

“Greenie is the ultimate player guitar,” he enthuses. “Two headstock repairs, two knobs are switched out… the pickup selector top is always coming off. There's so many nicks, so many dents. The finish is almost completely worn off. I can sweat, bleed, snot all over that guitar, and the value's never going to diminish.”

Once an ESP player, Hammett joined the Gibson family in 2021. The Gibson Custom Shop honored him in 2023 with the Kirk Hammett 1979 Flying V, a re-creation of the guitarist’s first-ever Gibson axe. Hammett also made news in March 2023 when he purchased an ultra-rare black 1959 Les Paul Standard, which had been custom-ordered by a jazz guitarist to match his tuxedo.

The video is a prelude to the forthcoming book The Collection: Kirk Hammett, a deluxe coffee table book in hardcover featuring the stories behind Kirk’s rare and highly collectible instruments used in the studio and onstage. The Collection: Kirk Hammett will be out November 29. It is the second book release from Gibson Publishing. The first was last year’s The Collection: Slash. Visit Gibson.com for more information and updates.

You can explore the Kirk Hammett Collection at Gibson and Epiphone.

Throughout his wildly eclectic and adventurous career, Adrian Belew has continually pushed the sound of the electric guitar to new heights. And if you think he’s reached his limit for experimentation, think again. “I’m still totally intrigued by the guitar,” he says. “There’s so much left for me to explore on the instrument. I’ve always gravitated toward new sounds, and I don’t think that will change. Each month there’s cool new pedals and devices to check out.”

Funnily enough, these days the man who found fame by making his Strat sound like jungle animals is finding just as much joy from playing an acoustic. “As much as I love gear and gadgets, there’s no substitute for what you can do with your fingers,” he says.

Belew has also been setting the bar higher for himself by learning Chet Atkins songs and classical pieces. “There’s even some challenging songs from my own catalog that I’d like to go back and relearn,” he says. “There are certain songs I play in concert a lot, but there’s others I haven’t touched in a long time. It gets overwhelming sometimes trying to remember them all, especially when they have complications like tunings and what not. Just recently, I went back and tried playing my song ‘Tango Zebra,’ and boy, it’s a tough one.” He laughs, then adds, “My goal is to sit around a campfire and play my songs on an acoustic guitar. Some of them are simple; most of them are not.”

Interested in taking your own playing somewhere different? Belew has some ideas for you (and he’s even provided some visuals).

TRY A NEW TUNING

“One way to push yourself into doing something you otherwise wouldn’t is by using an alternate tuning. And guess what? You can do it right now, and it won’t cost you a thing.

“I like alternate tunings that are simple to work out. For example, on my early solo records of the ‘80s, I sometimes tuned my G string up one step to an A. It's only one string, but being in the middle of the neck it changes everything. From the time I first taught myself how to play, I tried to make my own tunings. I’ve written many songs with one tuning I created way back when.”

TRY TUNING YOUR GUITAR TO D A D E B E

“Tune the low E a whole step down to a D. Then tune the G string down a third to an E. This will sufficiently screw up all your go-to licks and chords and will hopefully break you out of habits while inspiring you to play something new.

“Let's try a few chords with this tuning. If you play an A sus shape like this [see diagram 1], it now sounds like this [diagram 2]. The beauty is in the voicing, which cannot be played in standard tuning. The same is true with this [diagram 3], which is a common Bm shape but now sounds like this [diagram 4] impossible voicing of an E9. Try this one — it’s a beautiful passing chord [diagram 5]. Or just play the harmonics on the 12 fret and listen to the richness.

“You can do all kinds of things with different tunings. For the song ‘Twang Bar King,’ I detuned the top strings to be very loose and floppy, and that's how I played the springy solos in the song. Tunings are only as good as the inspiration they give you.”

LEARN A PIECE OF MUSIC THAT'S OUTSIDE YOUR COMFORT ZONE

“I recently stumbled upon a YouTube clip of Chet Atkins playing his first hit single, ‘Mr. Sandman,’ on a TV show from 1954. It's a completely different way of playing from what I'm used to, but it’s a style I have always admired. I was home on a two-month break between tours, so I decided to challenge myself and try to learn how to play it. I have to admit, it’s been very difficult, but at the time it’s also been fun and engrossing trying to learn the picking style the song requires.

“As though that weren’t enough, I also took on figuring out learning a Beatles piano song, ‘Martha My Dear,’ but I played it on guitar using the same thumb picking technique as the Chet Atkins piece. In addition, I tried to learn a classical guitar piece, which is very a very new area for me.

“Many times throughout the day I practice these pieces, and the rewards are considerable as I feel my execution improving. Right there is proof that there’s always something new to discover on the instrument.”

GOOGLE!

“If you're of a certain age — that is, if you’re very young — you may not appreciate all the gift progress has given us. Believe it or not, there was a time when the only way you could learn how to play something was by listening to records and trying to figure out how to mimic what you were hearing.

“Not anymore. What a gigantic advantage the internet has been. I know that's an obvious statement, but sometimes I'm still amazed at the continual wealth of knowledge and information we have at our fingertips. Who knew how much incredible music the world has created? I jump in the deep end of the internet pool as often as I have time for, perhaps too often, and I nearly always find something of interest.”

TRY A NEW PIECE OF GEAR OR NEW TECHNIQUE

“One of my favorite things search for on Google is new pieces of gear. YouTube makes the experience so much better because, without even leaving your home, you can hear what almost any piece of gear sounds like. Most manufacturers routinely offer demonstrations of their products online, and there are many sites that do so as well.

“Perhaps you’re like me in that the sound of a guitar is just as important as the notes being played. To that end, I search for new sounds or techniques as a source of inspiration.

“Finding a new sound or technique doesn't necessarily have to be expensive. For years I have had a starter guitar for kids called a Loog. It's cheap, very plain and small, and comes unassembled in a few pieces. You’re supposed to put it together with your child. It has three unwound high strings, one lipstick pickup and one wooden knob. The Loog had been languishing in my studio closet for a few years until one day I started messing with it.

“I tuned all three strings in unison to a high D note. Then I plugged it in, picked up a drumstick and started rolling the stick across the strings, kind of like I was bowing it. With a bit of delay added and the type of flourishes I played, it suddenly sounded like some sort of unknown Indian instrument. It was a gorgeous sound and a proper example of what I'm talking about. In fact, you can hear what it sounds like at the end of the song ‘The Power of the Natural World’ on my recent solo record, Elevator, available on Bandcamp.”

WORK ON YOUR MINDSET

“I think it’s important to ask yourself, ‘What does guitar playing mean to me? Am I happy with where I am as a guitarist? What purpose does guitar playing have in my life?’

“If you're someone who plays for your own enjoyment, you probably need to do nothing more than continue to enjoy. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that.

“If you're someone who plays guitar for a living but has yet to achieved the status you desire, I would suggest you continue to practice and learn. Take whatever may be relevant from my comments, and from what you read, and never give up. Stay focused on the music you love as much as possible, even if it's not what you play for your livelihood. Try to stay true to yourself.

“If you're fortunate enough to be employed as a studio player, touring musician, gear demonstrator or recording artist, always appreciate the position you have. Don't abuse it. Don't ever get jaded. Be humble. Clean your instrument and cherish it. And above all, love and respect your fans.”

Few guitarists had Tom Petty’s knack for songwriting, rhythm playing and how to put together not only a hit track but also an ace band, as he did with the Heartbreakers. Petty’s untimely death on October 2, 2017, silenced his talent and cut short the musical output that might have come from one of rock’s true soul-touching guitar-playing singer-songwriters.

Some 20 years before then, Guitar Player’s technical editor Art Thompson was invited to the home of Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell for a pre-release listen to Echo, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers’ 1999 album. It was there that Thompson had a rare opportunity to speak with Petty on a range of topics, from songwriting and rhythm playing to the best uses of Telecasters and Rickenbackers, as represented in these excerpts.

Is spontaneity key to the Heartbreakers' sound?

It's the band's nature, I'm afraid. We tend to play best early on, when we're discovering the song. It's actually a little frustrating that once the band learns a song, it doesn't get any better, just more studied.

Your main Tele is a custom instrument, right?

Yeah, I got it in '81 at Norman's Rare Guitars. Norm said, "Take it home and tell me what you think." I haven't stopped playing it since. A master craftsman named Toru built it [Toru Nittono of L.A. Guitar Works in Reseda, California]. I don't know whether he used old components or what, because this guitar looks like an old Tele-same pickups, same tailpiece.

So you prefer it to a vintage Tele?

I've had people bring 20 vintage Telecasters to rehearsals, and I'd play them all trying to find one that matches this one. The closest I got was an old Esquire, which I bought for a spare. But if I ever lost my main Tele, I'd die — it's so good. Toru even tried to make me another one, but it didn't sound nearly as good. Now it adorns the wall of some Hard Rock Cafe!

How do you decide whether to play your Tele or Rickenbacker on a particular song?

The Telecaster is versatile — I can play lead on it or turn it down and play jangly rhythms. The Rickenbacker is rich and acoustic-sounding. It's great for rhythm, which is mostly what I do. Rhythm playing is a lost art these days-there aren't a lot of people who do it seriously anymore. But it's really important to our band that I play the rhythm, because the music sounds different if I don't.

What's the secret to playing good rhythm guitar?

I've put a lot of time into learning not to speed up or slow down, and being real nimble with the part. We often cut with both the vocal and guitar mics on, so if you screw up either part, you've lost them both. You've got to be confident that you're going to be able to go through a song, and sing in pitch and play in time. If you get good at rhythm, you can really make the band jump.

Which players influenced your rhythm style?

When I was coming up, I tried to emulate great rhythm guitarists like John Lennon, Mike Pender of the Searchers, and Keith Richards. The rhythm guitarists in '50s and '60s country music were amazing. And just listen to Elvis's stuff from the Sun Records period! His guitar was very loud in the mix, because it was bleeding into the vocal mic. Scotty Moore is great, but Elvis really carries those records.

Is songwriting easy for you?

Yeah, but it was hard to get good at it. It took the longest time to understand that just because I wrote a song, that didn't mean it was good. When I first came out to Hollywood in '74, I'd probably written 60 or 70 songs, but our producer [Shelter Records owner] Denny Cordell really brought home to me that only a small percentage of what I had was good enough to record.

Do you ever worry about running out of ideas for songs?

I always find more in the songs when I look back at them than I knew when I was writing them, so it doesn't pay to worry about it much. I have to come up with about 14 to 20 songs a year. It's what I do. Fortunately, there's always something in my head.

What's hardest about writing a song?

Getting what you feel across and then having other people grab that feeling. I've never been one to say, “I'm going to bear my soul on this one,” but I think you eventually do. My rule is to let the music dictate the lyric — don't try to hammer two things together that don't like each other. There have been times when I wrote a lyric in advance, and it took forever to find music that felt right.

Mike Campbell has fond recollections of his time with Petty, as he told Guitar Player in an interview with contributing writer Gary Graff that appeared in the September 2024 issue. Campbell — whose new group, the Dirty Knobs, recently released their third album, Vagabonds, Virgins and Misfits — talked with us about Petty’s influence on him as a songwriter and as a bandleader after years of playing support roles.

Said Campbell, “I always figured before the Heartbreakers came to an end, if they ever did — and I didn’t think it would end the way it did — that I would do my own band, just ’cause I gotta play and I love to play to people and to write songs. And I want to be good at it.
I want to get better at it.

“And with Tom I had one of the best teachers in the world. So I’ve learned a lot about a lot of things: fronting a band, writing… I like the path we’re on. I have a lot of fun. I get to keep playing. And what more can a musician want?”

And as Campbell tells us, finding that new path wasn’t easy.

“You always have to have a dream. My other dream ran its course, and I’m very proud of it and I’ve got to carry on.”

Years before Peter Stroud set his sights on playing the guitar for a living, his father gave him a few non-musical pointers that would prove invaluable.

“He told me, no matter what you do in life, be a good listener,” Stroud says. “That always stayed with me, the idea that you don’t always have to say something just because you can, and you don’t always have to be the first person to talk. Learn to read the room. Try to understand the people you’re dealing with.”

For Stroud, communication skills are as important as musical chops, especially when it comes to his long-running role in Sheryl Crow’s touring band as both guitarist and musical director.

“Sheryl is a dear friend, so we have that kind of relationship,” he explains. “On the other hand, she’s also my boss, and like anybody else who has to run an organization, she has a million things she has to deal with. There are days when she may appear upset about something and it comes across as she’s being grumpy toward me. You start to think, ‘Oh, I must be troubling her.’ But that’s just a self-centered way to look at it, and that’s when I have to take a step back and understand what it is she’s really thinking about.

“Like my father said, you have to be a good listener, and that’s really important in getting along with somebody and a group of people. You’ve got to pull back and allow everybody to be themselves around you.”

In addition to his work with Crow, Stroud has performed with artists such as Don Henley, Stevie Nicks, Sarah McLachlan, Pete Droge, and the Chicks. “Obviously, they’re very different as artists,” he says, “but my approach to working with them is the same: I have to figure out what they need and want from me, which really comes down to helping them sound the way they want. It’s not about me – it’s about them. That’s something that I always have to keep in mind.”

Clearly, Stroud knows a thing or two about a thing or two, and here he imparts more kernels of wisdom that have served him well during his career.

1. Stop focusing on your own playing

“Whether you’re gigging or recording, you need to adjust your perspective accordingly. First and foremost, I would say that you have to listen to what the singer is doing. I’ve seen it time and again: Guitarists are laser-focused on their own playing. I don’t know whether it’s an ego thing or if they haven’t trained themselves to work as part of a team in a band, but unless they listen to the singer, they’re not contributing to the number one goal, which is to make great music.

“Learn what it takes to complement the singer. Make your rhythm fit in and around the vocals. Know when to come in and when to get out of the way. Most of the time, you’ll find that a little is enough – less is more. This flies in the face of guitarists’ impulses, because they feel like they want to make their presence known. Just know, you’ll be valued if you play the right part at the right time. Nine times out of 10, and maybe it’s 10 times out of 10, overplaying isn’t what’s required.

“When I listen back to recordings I’ve been a part of, I always check myself to make sure I’m not noodling. If you need a good reference, check out anything Mike Campbell is on. He’s the perfect example of playing the right thing for the song at all times.”

2. Be prepared

“Whether you’re going to an audition for a big artist or a local band, you need to be prepared. You’d be surprised at the stories I’ve heard about guitarists showing up at auditions who haven’t bothered to learn the material they’re expected to play.

“I got the gig for a Don Henley tour because I was totally prepared. I was told what songs I’d be expected to play, and I learned them top to bottom, back and forth. I learned the parts. I got my sounds down. I had everything memorized to the point where it was all second nature and I could just play. But it took work.

“Maybe you’ll be hired right off the bat for some gigs because of your reputation, but most of the time that’s not going to happen. Respect the artist and the other players, and learn the material.”

3. Move some air

“I’ve been noticing that a lot of younger players are going direct into consoles with amp modelers. Even when performing live, there are people in Nashville who aren’t using amps anymore.

“Don’t get me wrong – there are great amp modelers. But the way I came up, I learned that the amplifier was 50 percent of your sound. I’d advise new guitarists to play with the amplifier. Learn how to interact with it and how to use feedback. Learn how to get a clean sound with an amp.

“When you use an amp modeler, the way you touch your guitar and pick notes is going to be very different than when you go through an amp. To put it simply, you’re not moving air.

“A friend of mine – a really great guitarist – was playing with an artist in Nashville. The people he was working with wanted him to go direct into the console, and he was struggling with it. He came over for a visit and told me, ‘I just can’t do it.’ It didn’t sound or feel right to him. But when I had him plug into my Marshall ‘Plexi,’ he was like, ‘Oh, my god. There it is!’ There’s just nothing like that real amp sound. It can make all the difference in how you respond to the sound you’re getting.”

4. Plot out your career 

“If you’re thinking of being a professional guitarist, it helps to have a goal in mind, whether you want to be part of a band or a session player. Read as much as you can, and talk to people. Nowadays you can contact people online, and they might respond to you.

“It’s hard to predict where opportunities might arise, and that’s not a bad thing. Sometimes you get that call or email about a gig, and it might not be anything you ever considered, but it could be the chance of a lifetime. Things happen that way, and you need to be ready to jump when opportunity calls. But a lot of the time, things happen because of something you did. It’s because you put yourself out there in some way and people hear about you.

“So stay as focused on your career as you are on your desire to play well. Keep your career periphery wide, always be working and networking, and get out there and jam with people. It might be hard at first – maybe you’ve only played in your basement or your bedroom. But just get out there and perform and jam. Nothing happens in a vacuum. Find out who people are and let them know about you. You never know when they’ll be looking for somebody just like you. But that won’t happen unless they know who you are.”

5. Learn from your mistakes 

“We all make mistakes. You might screw up a chord onstage or you play the wrong part on a recording. But what I’m talking about here are career mistakes. For example, you say the wrong thing to somebody and you think, ‘Oh man, I wish I hadn’t done that!’

“I’ve certainly made my fair share of wrong moves, and maybe once or twice I jeopardized an opportunity that could have worked out. It’s important to learn from the moment and move on. And above all, to make sure you don’t make that same mistake again.”

When Kenny Greenberg arrived in Nashville in the mid ’80s, the Cleveland-born guitarist fit right into the country music session scene – because he didn’t fit in.

“I came from a rock and blues background, so I had my own angle going on,” he says. “I infiltrated the country world by bringing a different sound and feel to the records that were being made. I always honored the song, but I had a fiery way of playing that people seemed to like.”

Those people include the likes of Taylor Swift, Brooks & Dunn, Gretchen Wilson, Willie Nelson, Trisha Yearwood, Bob Seger, Kenny Chesney and Amy Grant, among others.

“I’ve been very fortunate to have worked with so many incredible artists,” Greenberg says. “I always say, ‘I’m not the kind of guitar player who can play everything perfectly. I play like me.’ But I think having that little bit of personality has paid off. You can get a lot of guys who sound like each other. I’m not that guy.”

A lot has changed in the music industry since Greenberg began his career. Budgets are tighter, and an increasing number of album projects are being cut in home studios.

“There’s still a lot of work, but you learn to acclimate to the times you’re in,” he says. “I produce, and I do some film and TV stuff. Plus, everybody has a road gig now. I do a fair amount of touring. A lot of times you’re out Thursday through Saturday, and during the week you do sessions.”

Whatever career goals you have in mind, Greenberg’s sage pieces of wisdom are bound to put you on the right track.

“Some things take a little explanation,” he says, “but a couple bits are pretty simple. First, don’t be a cookie-cutter guitarist. Be yourself. Own what you are and be the best version of that. And no matter what, don’t be the musician who’s always late. Nobody appreciates that in any business.”

1. When the Singer is Singing, Turn Down

“I recently had this experience with another guitar player. It was kind of shocking, really, because I thought everybody knew this by now. But it’s very simple: When the singer is singing, turn your volume down.

“I admit, I was once an offender. When I first started playing gigs, I was loud and proud all the time. Finally, somebody said, ‘Dude, when I’m singing, turn your guitar down!’ Over time, while playing with other people, I just figured it out. Some guys like to use their volume pedals, but I prefer the knob on my guitar. It’s always right there.

“By the way, this also applies to when another guitar player is soloing. If you want respect from other players, you need to show them respect.”

2. If You Want to Work, Play Rhythm

“Here’s the truth: If you’re a great rhythm guitar player, you’ll always have a gig. Mack McAnally said this a while back, and he was so right. Everybody wants a great rhythm player in their band or in the studio, and they’re hard to find. There’s tons of soloists. You look on YouTube, and that’s all you see. I’m not knocking them, either – they’re amazing. But the guitarist who plays great rhythm is the one who’s going to be working.

“This applies more to the studio than live situations. When you’re playing a gig, you can get away with a lot. But in a studio environment you’re put under the microscope, and if your rhythm playing isn’t right on the money, you’re not going to get called back. It can be a career maker or a career breaker.

“I fully admit, I’m not the best rhythm guitarist out there. My timing moves around a bit. Sometimes I rush things and I need to go back and punch in. But I play with a lot of feel and attitude, and I know how to get in the right groove. If you’re in the pocket with the drummer and it makes the song work, and if you’re playing off the vocals in the right way, then you’re doing your job.”

3. Make Your Solos Conversant

“I think the best solos are when the guitarist is trying to speak through the instrument, just as the singer is doing with their voice. Some of the best players out there carry on a dialog when they’re soloing.

“Derek Trucks always sounds like he’s talking right to you. Jimi Hendrix and B.B. King had that, too. When you’re playing, think, Am I communicating something to the listener? Am I letting somebody in on a feeling without using words? I’m always thinking that when I play.

“Some guys work off the melodies and lyrics to develop themes in their solos. They’ll play a variation of the verses, and they’ll develop a narrative in their solo. I approach a lot of things that way. Other guys play songs within a song. George Harrison was the absolute best at that. Everything he played was memorable. You can’t even think of the song without his solo. It’s like he was talking to you – because he was.”

4. Say Yes to Everything

“If you’re just starting out, don’t be an elitist – say yes to everything that comes your way. Later on, when you’re established, you can be picky about what gigs or sessions you want to say no to.

“There are a lot of advantages to being open-minded. If somebody likes what you play, they might hire you for more things, or they might recommend you to somebody else. That’s how this business works. But musically, you shouldn’t be afraid to take chances. It’s good to put yourself in difficult or uncomfortable situations. Your first impulse might be to say, ‘I’m not the right guy for that.’ But how do you know?

“I remember one time when I played on a John Mellencamp song. He came to Nashville and re-recorded some stuff with a producer named Tony Brown. I played on a song that was in this weird, totally bizarre tuning. I had no clue what was going on, and somebody said, ‘Oh, Kenny, this is the tuning.’ I still didn’t know what to do.

“There was another guitar player on the date, and I said, ‘Why don’t you play it?’ He said, ‘No, I don’t think so.’ So I said, ‘Okay, I’m going to do it,’ and I ended up doing it, but I came up with my own way of playing it. It was really, really cool. I’m not even sure if the song ever came out. I just remember that I was sweating my ass off, but then I thought, God, this is actually really cool.

“There was another time when someone asked me to play a solo direct to the console. That wasn’t how I recorded, but I said, ‘All right, I’ll try it.’ Not only did it work out and sound great, but it’s now become one of the things that I like to do. It was unnerving at first, but I tried it and it sounded great. I could have said no – but I didn’t.”

5. Don’t Spend Too Much Time Screwing Around With Your Gear

“This is true when playing live, but it’s especially important when you’re recording in the studio. Time is money, and you want to be the guy who can come in and get a sound right away. Be able to dial it up with no worries: There’s my sound – boom. Maybe you’ll be asked to adjust it, or a producer or artist will want to try something else. That’s fine. But you should be able to plug in and have a good sound in 15 minutes.

“With sessions that last a couple of hours, you’re expected to dial up a sound and play. Be aware of that and you can avoid getting nasty glares from people. This is true in Nashville, and I’m sure it’s the same wherever records are being made. You want to be the guy nobody has to worry about.”

When you’re the son of Eddie Van Halen, try as you might, you’re always going to fall under his shadow at times. 

It’s a burden that Wolfgang Van Halen has learned to live with, and in a recent interview with MusicRadar, he detailed how he’s molded his approach to his guitar playing to help veer away from direct associations with his old man. 

“I approach guitar playing more as a producer and more as a drummer than a guitar player,” he explains. “Rhythm is always the first thing for me and melody is the second. 

“It's more about songwriting when it comes to Mammoth,” he continues. “Not every song needs a solo.” 

When a guitar solo does feel warranted, his mindset is a far cry from his dad’s dazzling acrobatics. He cites a very different influence instead, one that harmonizes with something his father taught him that he still holds dear today. 

“You can play a solo that's one note that can be way more impressive than a solo that's 2000 notes,” he believes. “It's not really the speed at which you play.

“A really core thing for me that my dad always instilled is that a solo should be melodically memorable. I think a good example – and I can never shut up about how much I love this guitar player – is Aaron Marshall from Intervals. 

“We toured with them lately and he's such a great example of what my dad and I love about solos, where he's very melodic,” he continues. “He's basically a singer as a guitar player. But he has those moments where he does these impressive, awesome shreddy runs. You can have those fun little moments.

“Everybody needs to listen to intervals,” he enthuses. “Their music is very special and important to me. Incredibly influential. Check out 5-HTP from [Circadian], it's one of my favorite songs ever.” 

Marshall, bestowed with a signature Schecter in 2022, said in a Guitar World interview that same year that he likes “leaving a little extra gas in the tank,” with his lead playing, believing it “is much more musical and interesting overall.

“There is certainly a time and place to come in guns blazing if that is the desired vibe, but the concept of dynamic and contrast is crucial to music in general.” 

Fast-rising blues rock guitar star Jared James Nichols remembers one of the best tips he ever received from a fellow player — only it came in the form of an order, and from no less than Leslie West.

“It was about a year before Leslie died. I got booked to open for him at B.B. King’s in New York,” Nichols says. “I was so excited. I had to take a red-eye flight to get there, and with all the travel expenses I didn’t make a dime from the show, but I didn’t care. I idolized Leslie and no way was I going to miss a chance to open for him.”

Nichols made it to the venue in time for soundcheck, and as he played he noticed West — seated close by in his electric wheelchair — watching him with keen interest. “At first, Leslie was like, ‘Who are you?’ I introduced myself, and he said, ‘Keep playing.’ I played some more, and then Leslie wheeled over and strapped on his guitar. We started jamming — it was really cool. Finally, he stopped playing and looked at me, and serious as can be he said, ‘Slow the fuck down!’ He meant it.”

After soundcheck, Nichols and West had a chat. For the young guitarist, it was a golden opportunity to pick the brain of a veteran six-string hero. “Leslie was great,” Nichols says. “He said that he really liked my vibrato and tone. I remember him saying, ‘You’ve got great feel and a nice touch. Don’t sacrifice all of that for speed.’ I’ll tell you, it meant a lot to me, and I really took it to heart.”

Nichols has some sage advice of his own to pass along. Who knows? Should you ever find yourself face-to-face onstage with one of your guitar heroes, it could come in handy.

Remember to have fun

“When I do clinics or shows, people ask me, ‘How can I get better on the guitar?’ The first thing I say is, ‘Are you having fun when you play?’ Playing the guitar shouldn’t feel like a chore. Even if you practice for hours a day, you should try to make it enjoyable. 

When I was 18, I got a scholarship to Berklee, and I was so psyched. Once I got there, I was hit with this realization that I had to learn all these modes and scales and all this music theory. It was overwhelming, and before long the guitar didn’t feel fun anymore. I literally became afraid to pick up the guitar because I thought I wasn’t any good. It was a terrible headspace to get into. Eventually, I shook myself out of it, and I had to remind myself: Have fun. Play the guitar. If you do that, things will fall into place.”

Practice for discovery

“Building on my first tip, I came up with a way to make practice fun. I call it ‘Practice for Discovery.’ When I was learning scales and modes and things, I was just told, ‘You need to know this stuff,’ but I didn’t know why. Then I started listening to Carlos Santana and Gary Moore, and I’d go, ‘Oh, they’re doing this snippet of a scale here. I see what you can do with that.’ Instead of playing a scale mindlessly, I’d play to records and see what those scales could really do in real life.

“I listened to Zeppelin’s ‘Since I’ve Been Loving You,’ and I’d go, ‘Jimmy Page is playing a minor pentatonic, but he adds in this other thing and gets a cool, sad sound.’ That got me to explore the natural minor scale. Suddenly, I knew how to mix things up. It was a way of learning street theory, if you will, but it was also way more exciting than if I were just playing scales that didn’t sound like music.”

Gear won't solve your problems

“As guitarists, we always think if we get that pedal, that guitar or that amp, we’ll be a much better player. The reality is, none of that matters; it’s what’s in your hands, your heart and your head.

“This hit me four or five years ago, when I started touring a lot. I had my first vintage guitar — a 1953 Les Paul — and after a show I ran into my booking agent. I was all excited — ‘Hey, man, did you check out my new guitar? How did it sound?’ He was like, ‘Yeah, it was cool.’ So I said, ‘You don’t understand. It’s a vintage guitar.’ He laughed and said, ‘You guitar players don’t get it. When we’re out in the crowd, we don’t ever notice that stuff. We just hear a guitar. We can’t tell if one cost this much or that much.’

“It knocked the wind out of my sails, but when I started to watch my live videos recorded from the board, I started to realize just how little gear matters when you’re playing live. I remember playing a show one night with an expensive guitar, and during a solo I saw some guy yawn. The next night, I played an inexpensive guitar, and the crowd went crazy. Why? Probably because I played better that night. It wasn’t about the gear; it was about me.”

Passion over perfection

“I never like it when people say, ‘I don’t want to learn theory because it’ll ruin my feel.’ That’s the biggest load of crap I’ve ever heard. I mean, you have to learn the language in order to write a book. Playing music is really no different.

“This goes back to how overwhelmed I felt trying to learn theory at Berklee. I was training my ear and learning how to read and write music, but it was as if I forgot about the human element — why I love music and how it makes me feel. When I put the technical and the human aspect together, I became a better musician in the ways that really matter.

“In a similar vein, when I started to tour a lot, I decided that, even if I might not measure up to the guitarist I hear in my head, I’m going to play with as much passion and gusto as I can. My goal became to connect with people and give them an experience that allowed them to enjoy themselves. I’ve seen a lot of players who are ridiculously talented but don’t connect with people. Conversely, I saw B.B. King play before he passed, and it was a whole different experience. He played very few notes, but it was like watching somebody catch lightning in a bottle.”

Adapt and overcome

"For anybody who is going on the road, you need to know that If something can go wrong, it will go wrong. All kinds of bad crap happens when you’re on tour, and your mission is to somehow deal with it all and play a great show.

“How do you do it? You have to adapt and overcome. In short, you have to be ready for anything. It helps to consider all the problems you might encounter before they happen, and then you’ll be able to deal with them without losing your mind. Every day when I’m on tour, I wake up and think, What do I need to deal with today? That thing that went wrong last night — how can we make sure it doesn’t happen tonight? 

“Some artists reach a point where everything is done for them on the road. But the majority of us still have to take on a lot of the day-to-day duties of touring ourselves. It’s like we’re running a small business. I’m both the team owner and the coach, and I have to go out there and lead the team at night. It’s a lot of work, but none of it would run smoothly if I didn’t adapt and overcome.” 

On this day, in 1964, the Rolling Stones made their historical debut on The Ed Sullivan Show. The band kicked off their appearance on live national television to rapturous applause with a rendition of Chuck Berry’s Around and Around (originally the flip side to his 1958 Johnny B. Goode single).

Later in the show, the Stones performed their Time Is On My Side single. It was already creeping up the Billboard Hot 100 charts by the time the band appeared. It eventually peaked at number 6 the following month. It was the Stones' first hit on American soil as the British Invasion got underway following the Beatles’ record-breaking appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show earlier in February that year (when an estimated 73 million Americans tuned in to watch). 

As is obvious from the video, the audience struggles to contain themselves and Sullivan has to ask for quiet several times when trying to introduce them. In fact, CBS got many complaints after the broadcast and Ed Sullivan is said to have declared: “I promise you they’ll never be back on our show. It took me 17 years to build this show and I’m not going to have it destroyed in a matter of weeks.” 

The Stones’ manager tried to change Sullivan’s mind, but Ed wrote back before he would even consider booking them again, "I would like to learn from you, whether your young men have reformed in the matter of dress and shampoo.” 

But for guitar players, The Rolling Stones’ appearance is most notable for Keith Richards’ use of a 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard. According to Gibson’s Head of Product Development, Mat Koehler, this was “the shot heard around the world,” that eventually brought the now iconic ‘Burst to the fore of the electric guitar world.

GP spoke to Richard Henry, a UK-based guitar dealer who has traded numerous ‘Bursts over the years, including the famous ‘Greeny’ Les Paul Standard. Now owned by Metallica’s Kirk Hammett the same guitar once belonged to guitar heroes Peter Green and Gary Moore.

He has also crossed paths with the infamous ‘Keith ‘Burst’ – a guitar that has passed through the hands of many a guitar legend over the decades…

Speaking of Richards’ old axe Henry told us: “The previous owner was a guy called John Bowen, who traded it in at Selmers [music store in London]. Keith bought it from there and famously used it on The Ed Sullivan Show in ’64.

“Later [in 1966] Clapton used it at the Windsor Jazz and Blues Festival. Jimmy Page also used it in the studio. Ian Stewart, the Stones’ Road Manager, sold it to Mick Taylor who used it with the Bluesbreakers. Taylor brought it back into the Stones’ camp when he joined the band. There’s footage of him playing it at Hyde Park [in 1969.]

The rumors are it either got stolen at the Marquee [Club in London], or it got stolen in France at Villa Nellcôte. It then eventually ended up in the hands of Cosmo Verrico from the Heavy Metal Kids. He had it for a short while and then sold it to [UFO and Whitesnake guitarist] Bernie Marsden.

“Bernie had it for about a week and flipped it. Later it went to a guy called Mike Jopp who owned it for many years. Dave Brewis at Rock Stars Guitars sold it for Mike to an American investor. I think it currently resides in a private collection in New York.

“Someone asked me what I thought was the most historically important ‘Burst. I said it’s not Jimmy Page’s. It’s not Peter Green’s [Greeny]. It’s not Mike Bloomfield’s. It’s not Eric Clapton’s. And it’s not Jeff Beck’s. It’s Keith Richards’ because he was the first pop star to use a ‘Burst.”

Elsewhere on the show, Brian Jones plays a prototype Vox MK III “Teardrop” guitar  and Bill Wyman plays his trusty Framus Star Bass. 

Keith Richards is interviewed in the current issue of Guitar Player, onsale now and available to buy here.

Nita Strauss’s second solo album, The Call of the Void (Sumerian Records), is a relentless – and relentlessly thrilling – collection of scorching metal that showcases her lethal virtuosic abilities as both a guitarist and songwriter.

Whereas her first record, 2018’s Controlled Chaos, was an all-instrumental affair that proved she could whip up an old-school neo-classical storm, the new album is a more future-forward set aimed at mainstream rock and metal audiences.

More than half of the record features vocals from a variety of aggro guests – among them, Disturbed’s David Draiman, Halestorm’s Lzzy Hale, Dorothy Martin (from the band Dorothy) and In Flames’ Anders Fridén.

Even Strauss’s longtime employer, shock-rocker Alice Cooper, turns up and delivers the goods on the righteous arena-rock anthem “Winner Takes All.”

And in this revealing interview extract from Guitar Player’s October 2023 issue the cover star explains how she managed to transition from shredder to rock guitarist just in time to join Alice Cooper’s live band.

How does a shredder come at something like that?

It was kind of an education process. When I got the confirmation that I was going to be on the Alice Cooper tour, I wound up taking my first actual guitar lesson.

Why exactly?

To learn, basically. I talked to [longtime Alice Cooper producer] Bob Ezrin, who was a big part of my audition process, and he said, “Alice Cooper doesn’t need a shred guitar player. He needs a rock guitar player. Can you become a rock guitar player in time?” I said, “Absolutely. I know I can do it.”

This was two weeks before the start of the Alice Cooper-Mötley Crüe tour. When I hung up the phone, I was in a daze. I remember looking at my phone and thinking, Wow… Bob Ezrin just told me I don’t know how to play rock guitar.

That’ll wreck your confidence.

Yeah. I was like, “I need to figure out what he means – a ‘rock guitar player.’” I called around and found a great teacher. I came in and showed him my audition videos. I said, “What the fuck does he mean?”

My teacher was the first person to really teach me how to incorporate blues licks into my playing, like adding the blues note into the minor pentatonic scale – these little licks and things. AC/DC riffs, Kiss riffs and licks. Ace Frehley’s stuff worked seamlessly with my style of playing, but they added that extra nuance that made it feel a bit more like a classic-rock vibe.

Read the rest of this compelling interview in the October 2023 issue of Guitar Player where Nita Strauss riffs on stress, solos and the importance of heeding Yngwie.

If you still think of Steve Morse as “the new guy” in Deep Purple – even though the brilliant Dregs guitarist’s tenure in the iconic rock band was, at 28 years, far longer than that of founding guitarist Ritchie Blackmore – you’re forgiven.

The new new guy is Simon McBride.

Hailing from Belfast, the Irish guitar hero was already established before joining Deep Purple, with multiple solo albums and videos released under his own name.

In our October issue, McBride talks to us about how his fire-breathing tube tones power a new era of Deep Purple, the enduring influence of Gary Moore, and what it’s like performing one of the most iconic riffs in hard-rock history, “Smoke on the Water.”

We asked McBride if he felt any pressure kicking off Deep Purple’s epic number. “At the moment, no,” he told us. “But the first time I did it I was very nervous, because that was with Ian Gillan in front of about 10,000 people. But it’s such a simple riff. The main secret is just giving it the right tempo. Then Don kicks in with the Hammond playing the same thing, Roger kicks in with the bass, and it’s just a wall of power.

“Some people overcomplicate the ‘Smoke’ riff by playing it like a guitar player – you know, they throw vibrato and other things into it – but then the riff loses its essence. You just have to keep it simple.

“There are plenty of other places in the set for me to try new things. People always ask me, ‘Do you have freedom to improvise in Deep Purple?’ The answer is yes. But there are certain things you just have to play as they were recorded, like Blackmore’s solo on ‘Highway Star.’ 

"It would be very arrogant of me to think that I can do better than that. That’s a brilliant solo. It’s iconic.”

Read the rest of Simon McBride’s revealing interview in the October issue of Guitar Player, out now!

This is a classic GP column by Gary Brawer, a guitar tech whose clients include Joe Satriani, Metallica and Neal Schon.

A question that comes up often in my shop is how to make a guitar neck feel like raw wood, with none of the sticky, tacky feel that is common on finished necks. What everyone is referring to is the feel of a vintage guitar neck, where most of the finish is worn off and feels smooth and slick. 

There is actually still finish on the neck, but it’s thin and burnished from years of playing. Most modern necks have thick finishes and even many of the new lacquer finishes have plasticizers in them to keep them from cracking. The downside to those is that they can feel rubbery and sticky. 

So what can you do?

The quickest and easiest solution is to take your neck finish down to a matte or satin feel. The advantage to this is you can usually buff it back out to a gloss finish if you want to go back to a stock look when you sell the guitar. I find it best to tape off the area you want to sand so you have a nice line. 

Some abrasives to try include sandpaper – I start with 320 grit and see how that feels. (You can try finer grits between 400 and 1000, but the finer the grit the quicker it buffs out by playing and gets sticky again.) Something I like even better is 3M Scotch-Brite. It also comes in different grits, and I start with gray, red or maroon.

An old luthier trick I like is to use pumice stone powder as an abrasive. It is very fine and leaves a silky finish. One way to use it is to put lemon oil or even 3-in-one oil on a felt pad or cloth, stick some pumice stone to it, then hand-rub the neck with it until you get the feel you are looking for. 

If you have a finish on your fingerboard, don’t forget to work on that also. If you sand in the direction of the frets you can buff them up while you are at it. Never sand perpendicular to the frets if you can help it. This will keep the string bending smoother.

If you have an unfinished neck or you’ve stripped off a thick finish, here’s something to keep in mind: Although we all love the idea of the feel of raw wood, I do not recommend a completely finish-free neck. It may not be as stable and need more adjusting than usual. 

One of my favorite DIY finishes is Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil. It is slow-drying and needs multiple coats but feels great after a final scrubbing with 0000 steel wool or a fine Scotch-Brite or Micro-Mesh. 

Another cool, easy-to-use finish is shellac. You can mix your own from flakes or try Bulls Eye Amber Shellac. It can be rubbed on one thin coat at a time with a lint-free cloth until you get a nice smooth finish. If it gets too thick or sticky, try diluting it with denatured alcohol. 

To get the final finish, try pumice, rottenstone or steel wool. You can always mix in a little charcoal powder and rub it in for that relic look.

For a more solid finish, try a rub-on polyurethane satin gel like the ones from Rockler. It will leave you with a glossier and sturdier feel.

If you’re curious about these type of finishes but want to do some experimenting first, pick up a piece of maple, sand it out, try some of the methods listed here, and see how they feel.

Steve Miller is due to release a 50th anniversary edition of his monumental 1973 album The Joker. Slated for release on September 15 via Sailor/Capitol/UME, J50: The Evolution of The Joker explores the artist’s creative process with 27 previously unreleased recordings from Miller’s vault. Among these archive treasures are song demos, live performances, studio outtakes and rehearsals, plus several audio commentary tracks.

J50: The Evolution of The Joker will appear on 2xCD, 3xLP + 7” formats in addition to digital download, DSPs and streaming services. Pre-orders are available now here.

Ahead of the release, fans can listen to “The Joker Suite” – a collection of four tracks (including the previously unreleased “Lidi” and “Travelin’”) demonstrating the “musical path” to the album’s 5x RIAA Platinum-certified number-one hit title track.

The Joker was a breakthrough success for Miller marked by changes to the band’s lineup and sound, as well as his approach to songwriting and recording. Sharing some music-making wisdom with fellow artists, Miller had this to say: “The most important rule that every kid out there who wants to make a record should remember is: When you go into the studio, be ready to do the whole performance the first time you do it, because that’s going to be the best time you do it.

“The whole thing is to capture the first performance. That’s a lot of what The Joker’s about. It was all first takes, and first takes are always better than perfect takes.”

And the secret to writing a hit record? Miller says it’s important to include at least five attention-grabbing moments in a song.

“To make a hit record, I thought it was best to have five hooks,” reveals the tunesmith. “Not one, not two, not three, not four, but five, if you really wanted to deliver a hit. Like if you take ‘The Joker.’ ‘Some people call me the Space Cowboy.’ What the hell was that? Then it continues and it gets your attention again: the slide guitar, the chorus, the harmony, the wolf whistle. It all adds up.

“All of these things are just elements of writing. You learn those elements, and you’re always playing with them.”

Catch the Steve Miller Band on tour. Visit the Store for further details on J50: The Evolution of The Joker releases.

Late last year, Guitar Player announced the release of Samantha Fish and Jesse Dayton’s EP, The Stardust Sessions.

Comprising a trio of covers – including the late ‘50s rockabilly classic "Brand New Cadillac" written by Vince Taylor (of Vince Taylor and His Playboys fame), Townes Van Zandt's late ‘60s acoustic number "I'll Be Here in The Morning," and "Feelin' Good" by Chicago blues luminary Magic Sam – The Stardust Sessions were just a hint of what’s to come.

Slated for release on May 19 via Rounder Records, Fish and Dayton's debut collaborative album, Death Wish Blues, is ready to “push the limits of blues music.”

Produced by the legendary Jon Spencer of Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Death Wish Blues sees Fish and Dayton (Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, X) fulfil their shared long-time mission of opening up the blues genre to new audiences.

“It was always a big deal when Jesse came through town to a play a show,” says blues guitar phenom Fish. “I’d been wanting to do a collaborative project for a while and went to see Jesse perform in New Orleans, and right away I knew he was the guy.

“We got together and had this vision of making something of an alt-blues record, but it turned out to be so much more exciting and layered than I ever imagined.”

Ahead of the release of Death Wish Blues, GP caught up with the pair to talk guitar playing. Here, Fish and Dayton share ten of their best tips for fellow guitarists…

1. Solo With Melody

Samantha Fish: If you're constructing a solo, forget all the flashy stuff. Go for melody. Find a melodic hook somewhere in the solo. 

I like to start with something simple, build up and away from that, and then somehow, at the apex, come back to a melodic hook. 

I don't know why, but that approach just seems to be really effective with an audience. Maybe it’s because people are expecting some kind of return. It's about telling a story, right? And saying something meaningful.

2. Get out of Your Wheelhouse

Jesse Dayton: One thing that’s helped me tremendously is learning pieces of music that are not in my wheelhouse. It can be anything – a commercial on television, a theme song, jazz music, whatever. 

If I work it out on my guitar and deconstruct how they did it, eventually that's gonna find its way into my writing process. It’s like a way to trigger your brain to do something different. 

I like to figure out what horn players or pedal-steel guitar players are doing, for example – things other than guitar. Then, when I go and play, people are like, “What is that?!” It always sticks out. 

It’s a great way to move away from the same pentatonic thing you might have been doing for years.

3. Try Different Tunings

Fish: If I'm falling into the same old patterns, open tunings are really, really good for refreshing your approach to the guitar. I use open tuning when I’m playing slide, but it also makes you think differently about chord voicings and writing riffs. 

If it’s a tuning I’m not familiar with, I’ll almost immediately find something cool and interesting. I mean it could even be like a whole song that you would have never have stumbled upon otherwise.

4. Explore Major and Minor Keys

Dayton: Playing in major and minor has really helped me. A lot of people tend to live in one or the other and they can't go in and out of either comfortably. 

You see a lot of rock guitar players who live in this kind of pentatonic scale thing, especially if they're playing blues. But if you listen to B.B. King, T-Bone Walker and jump blues, you know, a lot of those guys are playing in a major key.

A lot of guitar players think playing in major isn’t dark and moody and mysterious enough. But it really can be if you play it the right way!

5. Speak With Your Hands

Fish: Spend some time working on your expression and phrasing, because that's gonna say so much more than any kind of speedy thing will. Go listen to ‘the three Kings,’ you know, B.B., Albert and Freddie. It’s about playing in a conversational way. My favorite guitar players are conversational. Yes, there’s melody. But it’s the way that you say it. 

Find a way to speak with your hands. I'm always trying to make the guitar sound like a voice, or my voice. There are pauses, breaths and phrasing. It’s not just 90 miles per hour notes, notes, notes. 

It could be just one string bend with a little vibrato and people react so much more dramatically.

6. If Alone, Try a Drone

Dayton: I'm from Texas, and in East Texas, there's this style of playing called droning. Usually, it's a low E string tuned down to a D, or even a C. You can hit the low string with your thumb and play along in those keys on the higher strings with your fingers.

Droning is really hypnotic and it sounds amazing. Lightnin' Hopkins and Mance Lipscomb did that. As did Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck. I’ve turned a lot of people on to this and it’s like they’ve discovered a whole new thing with guitar. 

It’s great when you’re playing by yourself, and it’s a little bit outside the box of 12-bar blues.

7. Pick and Choose

Fish: When you play slide with a pick, it sounds bright and aggressive, and you can really soften the sound if you pick with your thumb and/or fingers. But there's so much to play with using hybrid picking when slide playing. 

I bounce back and forth between using my regular pick and my fingers. You can get a vast difference in tone when you do it like that. I always recommend people play around with that if they want to have fun finding new sounds. 

I've played with many different picks over the years – different thicknesses and composition. Now, I’m accustomed to using a 1mm Ernie Ball pick.

8. Play the Guitar Like a Drum

Dayton: Rhythm guitar playing seems to get overlooked a lot, especially if people always want to play flashy lead stuff. But one thing that helped me tremendously was when I was 18, I got to play on this zydeco record. I was playing rhythm guitar and I realized I was basically playing drums on the guitar! 

After a while of playing these really hypnotic rhythms parts, my picking hand became super loose. It's nice when you can think about your guitar almost like a percussion instrument. It will open your mind to so much more and you'll start playing all these very inventive rhythm parts.

9. Use the CAGED System

Fish: I found the CAGED system really helped me get acquainted with where everything sits on the neck. It helped it all make sense. For me, it just sort of mapped out the guitar neck. 

And once you kind of know where everything is, you're free to solo, you're free to find chords. It just gives you a roadmap – you know where to go and from there you can start exploring. 

I always tell people who are just starting to play guitar to check out the CAGED method. It takes the intimidation factor out of it a little bit. Also, I've known people to get stuck in power chords and it kind of breaks you out of that.

10. Learn 'the Three Heys'

Dayton: When I was learning how to play guitar, a guy by the name of Granville Cleveland said to me, “Man, I'm gonna show you how to play 'the three Heys!'” They were "Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)" by Neil Young, “Hey, Good Lookin’” by Hank Williams, and “Hey Joe” by Jimi Hendrix. 

Those were the first three things that I learned on the guitar. And they're all different styles. But I've been doing variations of those three songs my entire career in some way!

So my advice is go learn something completely different. If you can learn a new song every week, just think how many songs you'll know at the end of the year. The arrangements of those songs will inform everything you do. I mean, when you get up on stage, it'll be really hard for somebody to throw a screwball at you!

Pre/order Death Wish Blues here.

***The following interview extract originally appeared in the November 2018 issue of Guitar Player***

Pull up to the entrance of Joe Bonamassa’s Los Angeles residence and you’re greeted by a large glowing sign that’s proudly emblazoned with the phrase Welcome to Fabulous Nerdville, California.

The display is a nod to the famous signage at the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip. And indeed, for a certain type of nerd – one that hyperventilates at the sight of a ’59 Les Paul Burst, a ’54 Strat or a room full of vintage Fender tweed amps – Bonamassa’s home is a guitar gear jackpot.

Just how much equipment is currently housed at Nerdville? Bonamassa estimates it’s somewhere south of 1,000 guitars and amps – but maybe not too far south.

Whatever the actual number, it’s safe to say Bonamassa is a long way from his first instrument, an Erlewine Chiquita that he “got from Santa” when he was just four years old.

That guitar, however, is no longer part of his collection. “The thing with being a collector is that you horse-trade your way into trouble,” he says matter-of-factly.

But one man’s trouble is another man’s – or, in this case, the same man’s – treasure. To be sure, Bonamassa’s gems result from a lifetime of intense devotion to his instrument as a player, scholar and historian.

A ’59 Les Paul through a vintage Fender Twin is a pretty classic – and pricey – setup. Let’s say you’re on a tight budget: How would you go about achieving a good blues-rock tone on the cheap?

I always say you can get a great blues-rock sound for under $1,000. You can go to any store and buy a used Epiphone Les Paul or an ES-335, or really anything with a humbucking pickup or a P-90.

And then you can buy a [Fender] Hot Rod or a Blues Deluxe or a Pro Junior amp, then you buy a cable, and for $1,000 you can have a very usable world-class sound.

It’s a matter of saying, “This is what I’ve got, and this is how I’m gonna make it work,” rather than, “If I only had a ’59 Les Paul!” Because you know what the problem is when I pick up a ’59 Les Paul?

No. What’s the problem?

Unfortunately, I still sound like myself! [laughs]

So you don’t need the specific gear. It’s like the whole woman tone thing: How do you get Clapton’s woman tone? There’s no box that says… Well, there is a box that says “woman tone” [the Rick Gram Woman Tone overdrive pedal]…

But when Clapton first devised that tone there wasn’t.

Right. Maybe Clapton had a fuzz – an Arbiter or a Vox or something. But you don’t necessarily need it. You can get a woman tone with an SG and a [Marshall] Super Lead. Just turn the amp all the way up, put the front pickup on and roll the tone off.

I know that because there’s a video of Clapton doing it back in 1967! That’s what I learned from, you know?

Then I saw he had this fancy thing called a wah-wah pedal. Shit, that’s like launching rockets! [laughs] And the wah-wah pedal, as forward thinking as that was, it’s just a tone pot you control with your foot. But you’ve already got a tone pot on your guitar. 

So the point is, it’s not the gear that makes the player; it’s the player that makes the gear.

When I plug into any of this stuff that I’m known for collecting, I don’t sound any different than if I just plugged into that $1,000 rig I described.

Bonamassa's new live album, Tales of Time, will be released on April 14 via J&R Adventures in CD/DVD, CD/BR, vinyl and digital formats.

Pre-order Tales of Time here.

Strapped with a Fender Stratocaster or Gibson Flying V, singer-songwriter and lefty axe-slinger Malina Moye has carved out her own funk-infused guitar sound among a new breed of blues-rock artists.

Whether she’s playing alongside fellow luminaries Buddy Guy, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Eric Gales on the Experience Hendrix tour, honoring electric guitar pioneer Chuck Berry at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's tribute concert, or playing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at historic NBA and NFL games, Moye’s jaw-dropping performances have snowballed a loyal following.  

Indeed, 2018’s Bad as I Wanna Be album held the number one spot on the Billboard Blues Chart for two weeks straight while copping rave reviews the world over.

With Moye’s follow-up, Dirty, set for release on March 17, GP decided to catch up for a chat about all things guitar.

From tuning and string gauges to finding your signature sound and the creative process, here Moye shares ten of her best tips for guitarists…

1. Tune Up!

Step one, before anything: you've got to tune up! 

I think this is true for every guitar player, at any level. Because without tuning up, you're going to be so out of key. No matter what tuning you're using, you must always tune up properly.

2. Learn From Fellow Guitarists

Get with guitar players who are better than you. This is how you grow. This is how you learn. This is, to me, one of the most important aspects of being a guitarist.

It could be your neighbor, or it could be your friend, whoever. If you love a lick they're doing, ask them to show you how they do it and break it down. Don't worry if it takes you a minute – just run it a few times slowly and then pick it up. That's how you get great. That's how you get better.

For instance, being on the Experience Hendrix tour, I was able to see certain things that Buddy Guy would do and say, “Hey, show this to me.” And I would try to emulate it.

Same with Doyle Bramhall II, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Eric Johnson. I am that person that just says, “Hey, what are you doing? Tell me. How did you do that?”

And Eric Gales. He’s like my big brother. We both play lefty and upside down, so it was perfect. He showed my this little trick: watch the endings of every note, because every note you play tells a story. It’s the little nuances that make your signature sound.

3. Play While Watching Television

When you're watching television, you'll hear commercials and you'll hear music in movies. Whatever you're watching, lean on your ear. Listen, and see if you can follow along in key. This is training your ear up to play.

What's crazy is sometimes you start writing songs like that. You never know where it comes from. Inspiration comes from everywhere.

4. Gauge the Situation

If the bends aren't working, if you just don't feel it, or you don't want to play as much, it might be the string gauges! As crazy as it sounds, you might just be using the wrong strings.

I think it's important to figure out which gauges work for you. I said to Billy Gibbons, “You made me look cool because you said you use .008s,” and he goes, “Are you sitting? I use .007s.”

It’s like Albert King said: “I'm not trying to work that hard.” 

I really love .008s, you know, and then I'll compensate with my pickups. I have small hands, but I still like to really own my guitar and make it do what I want. So if you have trouble, figure out what works for you. It's supposed to feel good.

5. Center Yourself

When it’s time to perform, a lot of the time there's just so much going – so much commotion. I would tell anybody, especially guitar players: take a space and focus, so you can gather your thoughts.

Meditate, and think of something very simple so that you know exactly what you're doing. Become centered. If you don't, that moment might get away from you and it just could be disastrous. 

Relax, so that you can enjoy your moment. Because if you don't do that, you're not going to have a great show, period.

LeBron James said this to me recently: "Stay present. Relax. Focus. Center. Play."

6. Break out of the Box

Don't get so wound up in a scale to the point where it just becomes tedious with no feel, no soul. 

I would say run it, and then start doing different intervals so you can start to break out of it. Do different exercises with the scale using different fingers.

Let's say you have a solo and you're doing a minor pentatonic and things are working out for you. Well, if you hit a ‘bad note,’ I might be beautiful. I mean if it's right, it's right. It's those things, those little nuances, that can make a record. And it’s what makes your signature sound.

7. Explore the Neck

The first thing, before you turn on any effects, is to find the tone that you like with just the guitar and the amp.

Then, start utilizing different places up and down the neck of the guitar, because each place will hit differently. Go up and down until you start to hear what works. 

Again, that goes towards finding your signature sound.

8. Listen to Singers

Obviously, I'm a singer as well. But I think when it comes to playing melodies it’s worth listening to singers. It’s about noticing the small inflections, how they end a line and the vibrato. It’s those subtle things that become your signature sound.

I look at every note as being important. It’s like what Eric Gales told me: “It’s about how you slide off the note.” Like, every time you hit a note and you hear the ending of it. You can hear it with people like Wes Montgomery and Carlos Santana and Eric Johnson.

And B.B. King: just one note can have so much soul. No matter what you're going through, hit that note and just channel everything, all the stuff you're feeling, into it.

9. Be Open-Minded

Explore different styles of guitar players and listen to music you would never play. It opens your mind. When you bring it back to what you're doing, you don't realize that subconsciously it's actually affecting what you're doing.

I think it’s so important to be open and to understand that inspiration is all around you. It’s everywhere. Personally, I love to take a walk no matter where I am in the world and just listen. I think the world has music in itself. 

I mean, when I’m out walking and I hear the cars roaring, I hear the birds chirping, I hear the chatter from people, I start to hear that as actual music, like different notes.

I’m a student of life. For instance, with my single “Say My Name,” I was literally just driving down the street and the idea came to me. Sometimes the ideas are trying to get through and it’s important to honor the song, however it wants to manifest.

10. Turn Up (But Only When You’re Ready!)

I'm sure we've all been through this. You know, when other guitarists are warming up on full volume? Like, turn it down! 

I don't want to hear you warm up your fingers. It’s the same when you’re warming up vocals; nobody wants to hear it.

Instead, tune up, get your fingers running, get them working and play some licks. Get yourself together. Then turn it up! 

When you’re dialed in you can go kill it.

Malina Moye’s new album, Dirty, is out on March 17. Pre-order it here.

Visit the Malina Moye website for more information.

Australian child prodigy Taj Farrant was known the world over as a fiercely talented guitarist before his tenth birthday.

At age nine, he appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show where he blew the host’s mind with a jaw-dropping recital of “Sweet Child O’ Mine.” At the time, he’d only been playing guitar for two-and-a-half years!

Drawing praise and recognition from across the globe, his YouTube videos have attracted millions of views. Check out this clip of him playing the “Comfortably Numb” solo (blindfolded, of course!)

But he’s far from a stay-at-home musician. Travelling far and wide, Farrant’s performances have seen him trade solos live onstage with the likes of Carlos Santana and Orianthi.

Now endorsed by Kiesel, Elixir, Pig Hog, Celestion, Friedman and Taylor, he is currently gearing up for a U.S. tour.

Before he headed out on the road again, Guitar Player managed to catch up with the young teen and grab some of his top tips for fellow guitarists…

1. It’s All About the Love

You have to love playing guitar if you’re doing it all the time. It’s all about doing something you love and enjoying it. 

For me, playing guitar is like being in a different world. It’s more to do with feeling, rather than thinking. It’s like there’s nothing that can possibly bother me while I’m playing (unless my sister comes in my room!)

2. Close Your Eyes

You don’t want to be robotic or animatronic when you play. You want to be able to flow with the music, and I find shutting my eyes helps with that. 

When I first started playing guitar I’d look down the whole time, and Dad said, “Just try closing your eyes and see what happens.” When I close my eyes, I don’t see anything, but I feel like I see stuff.

3. Don’t Forget Your Pinky

Some people use just one or two fingers for vibrato. I tend to use my ring finger along with the middle and index finger. I find that easier. 

Some people use their pinky as well. A lot of famous players like Gary Moore and Slash didn’t use their pinky, but I think it can give you some dexterity if you build up the strength.

4. Use Backing Tracks

I practice with backing tracks for a few hours a day, rather than using a metronome. I’ll choose a random track in any key and then I kind of do scales over it. When you’re in time, you can put your own groove into it. 

Backing tracks help with free soloing, whereas practicing with a metronome is kind of boring. I recommend having a look on YouTube for tracks.

5. Explore the Neck

You don’t want to be just going up and down scales in one position. It’s much better to explore the neck by putting them together. People often learn just the first position of a scale, but there are several. 

Learning all the positions helps with free soloing. Now, I don’t really think about what I’m playing – it’s more about feeling what I’m playing.

6. Discover Different Genres

One thing that really helped me was playing along to random music on the TV. Whether it’s rock or R&B or Latin or whatever, I think it helps you become a more diverse guitarist. I’ll figure out the scale and just play along. 

I’ll play scales when I’m watching TV anyway – it’s good for muscle memory.

7. Find Your Tone

I used to use a lot of distortion and have everything full bore. But when I got handed a Strat, I realized there’s a lot more to it than humbuckers and drive pedals. 

That’s when I started to get interested in blues – players like Jimi Hendrix, Gary Moore and Stevie Ray Vaughan. But I really want to be known for my own sound.

8. Experiment with Controls

Remember there’s often more than just one pickup on your electric guitar. Try flicking through different positions throughout the song. 

Volume control helps a lot too. A lot of people only have it up full and then rely on pedals for different tones, but you can get a lot of different sounds just with the volume knob.

9. Relax

It’s not good to be tensed up if you’re trying to play music. I tend to close my eyes for most of the gig, apart from when I’m singing. Then I normally look at the end of mic, so I can’t really see anyone. 

I used to get pre-show nerves early on, but I quickly realized it’s a lot of fun playing in front of people. It’s more of an adrenalin rush than nervousness.

10. Push Yourself

Even if you don’t feel like practicing, you’ve got to at least do something. I think it’s good to push yourself if you’re not practicing enough, but it’s also really important to push yourself in the right way when you are practicing. 

Sometimes I’ll have a break if I get stuck on something, but I’ll come back stronger later.

Visit the Taj Farrant website for up-to-date tour info and more.

Standing 6 feet 5 inches tall and having played with some of the biggest names in rock – including Slash, Billy Gibbons, Zakk Wylde and Leslie West – it's fair to say Jared James Nichols is a bona fide giant of the guitar world.

Since he appeared on the scene around a decade ago, Nichols has drawn widespread acclaim while notching up millions of streams.

Now, the Gibson ambassador has announced his new album will be released on January 13 via Black Hill Records.

The eponymous LP showcases the Nashville-based guitarist’s superlative skills and is, he tells us, his own version of rock and roll.

“It musically rings true to who I am as an artist,” Nichols says. “I’m not trying to be anybody but myself and play the music I love for today. I’m giving you loud-ass guitars and no-fucks-given rock and roll. And I’m loving it.”

Guitar Player caught up with the Les Paul-toting guitar behemoth to bring you his best playing tips…

1. Playing Guitar Is Not a Competition

I feel like guitar has turned into a sporting activity. I think a lot of players feed off that and it can make us grow, right? We'll see someone play something and think, Oh my god, I gotta learn how he or she did that. Okay, cool. But everyone has their own style.

Someone told me a long time ago that we're all on the same road. But we’re all at different points and we don’t all take the same turns. We're all on this road of learning the guitar and learning music. It's just a different journey for each of us. So it's truly not a competition.

2. Play What You Love

My first guitar teacher was a younger dude. When I met him, he had a Van Halen Bumblebee strap, a shirt with a skull on it, and a Neal Schon rack. He goes, “You wanna learn how to play a power chord?” I was instantly hooked because he was showing me how to play Sabbath. I thought it was the coolest thing ever. 

However, my buddy had a different teacher who was showing him how to play “Mary Had a Little Lamb” on an acoustic guitar and he got discouraged right away.

Trying to play music and be a guitar player is hard enough. But if you're playing shit you don't like, it can really feel like a chore. It's supposed to be fun!

When you're playing in a band and you're on tour, it’s better to love what you do, because there's a whole lot of other bullshit that goes along with it!

3. Keep It Musical

When we practice technique, we see results. And it's fun because you can see yourself growing in certain ways. That's cool. But I got to a point where I was only fascinated with technique and I started to forget about keeping it musical. 

I had this realization a few years ago and started to listen more. Regardless of genre, if you have a musical head, I think that it makes your playing feel better.

Being more musical is about having more of a melodic mindset rather than a fixation just on guitar technique – how your playing fits in with the band and the song. It’s about serving the music.

4. Practice With Intent

Practice with intent, or you might be sitting there five years later hashing out the same old licks going, "Why aren't I getting better?" It's about having a constructive workflow and working on specific things – having actual goals, or mini goals, and crushing them as you go.

When you pick up a guitar, it's easy to just sit and noodle around. Before you know it, an hour goes by. But maybe you haven't really practiced as much as you think you have. 

How often do we ask ourselves, "What do I really need to work on?"

5. Bond With Your Instrument

Get to know your guitar. Like, what's your favorite guitar? What's the one that sits in your head? 

[Picks up a 1952 Gibson Les Paul Model] When I close my eyes, I can see this guitar... 

I know the dimensions of this guitar and I know what every single knob does at every single turn. I'll sit there fantasizing about playing it, like I'm switching to the neck pickup or rolling the volume.

There's a world of tone within your guitar’s electronics – maybe sounds you haven’t yet discovered. Man, when you just know an electric guitar it's a special connection.

No matter the style, players need to bond with their instrument.

6. Play in the Moment

Playing in the moment was a thing that I struggled with for a long time because I would always be dissatisfied with what I was doing. I was like, “Well, I'm not that good yet.” 

I had to turn off my practice head and turn off my ego and just play – just be in the moment and serve the music.

I used to think, Once I get this pedal and get this technique down better, I'm gonna be a much better guitarist. But, at the end of the day, that doesn't matter. What matters is having fun playing in the moment – when you’re not thinking about what you did before or what you're going to do next.

7. Slow Down

Everything is moving so fast in this world that it’s easy to lose yourself. You know, you go on your phone, you're scrolling, you see other guitar players. But think about yourself – think about what you're doing. 

Think about what you're trying to say, what you're trying to accomplish. Don't have someone else in the back of your head or be thinking about gear all the time.

It’s too easy to go on autopilot. Slow down. Take your time. Focus. Express yourself the way you want to.

8. Adapt and Overcome

It’s important to remember that some things are just out of your control. Things go wrong, despite the best-laid plans, and you have to be ready to adapt and overcome.

I once flew into Spain to do a festival and they lost my guitar. So we got on social media asking if anyone near this small village in the south of Spain had a guitar we could borrow. And sure enough, some guy shows up with an Epiphone Les Paul and I rocked it for two hours.

The point is: if something can go wrong, it will go wrong. Sometimes it feels like you can't get a break. But you’ve got to be ready for whatever is gonna happen. If you're mentally prepared it can really help you out in future.

9. Trust Your Gut

I play with my fingers and I'm a lefty, so I play a little different. When I started playing, it just felt good. But so many people tried to tell me, “If you don't play with a guitar pick, you're never going to be a professional guitar player. No one's ever gonna take you seriously.” 

Up until I was 21 years old, people were saying that, but the whole time I was thinking, Well, this is the way I like to play guitar.

If you have something that speaks to you, trust your gut and go with it, because life's too short to be constantly pleasing other people. 

It's okay to stand out and be a little different.

10. Be Yourself

You are the only version of you. I remember when I was 16 or 17 years old, I just wanted to sound like Stevie Ray Vaughan. I thought if I could have a Strat, Tube Screamer and Fender amp and sound like him then I’d made it. But then I realized I was just trying to copy someone else – I was trying to be a clone of this other guy that already did it.

We all have influences – and I proudly wear my influences on my sleeve – but there is a point where you have to ask yourself, "How do I find myself in the music?" That's so important. 

I think it's a really, really cool and exciting path to try and find yourself within the music you love. You are uniquely you. So embrace it and roll with it.

Jared James Nichols' new self-titled album will be released on January 13 via Black Hill Records.

For tour info visit www.jaredjamesnichols.com. 

The guitar is rather schizophrenic, being essentially one instrument with two polar opposite personalities.

Acoustic was the only option for eons, but by the rock and roll era the script had flipped and electric instruments attracted different kinds of players.

Manufacturers such as Taylor built their brand names creating acoustics that appealed to the electric base.

Even the most die-hard electric guitar aficionados often own an acoustic, even if it just hangs around the house, and most acoustics are more playable than the old war horses of yore.

By its nature, the acoustic beast is a bit more to manage under the fingers, and the world of acoustic electronics is still alien to many.

Here are a few suggestions to make the most of any acoustic experience…

TAKE CARE

Modern acoustics are generally easier than electrics to tweak without a tech’s help, but also more susceptible to environmental changes.

Neglect is the primary reason that house box gets hard to handle. Start by changing the acoustic guitar strings. If it gets left out a lot, go with a coated set that will feel fresher longer.

D’Addario’s XS Phosphor Bronze strings are ultra durable, and I’m looking forward to checking out the brand-new XS 80/20s.

Heavier strings deliver more tone but are harder to play, so unless the body size is a dreadnought or larger, go with a light-gauge set. Electric cats may still want to use lights on a dreadnought for easier playability.

Many vintage acoustics didn’t have adjustable truss rods, but modern ones do, and a simple turn can make a ton of difference. Tighten it until the frets start to buzz a bit, and then loosen until the buzz is gone or acceptable. That’s the easiest action readily available.

Keep the instrument in a space that has the most consistent temperature and humidity, and away from windows. If you hang it, choose an inside wall rather than one that faces outside.

It’s also a great idea to place your acoustic back in its case or bag with a two-way humidification system such as D’Addario’s Humidipak every once in a while.         

TRY A SMALLER/THINNER GUITAR

The voluptuous dreadnought was omnipresent during the ’60s folk-rock revival and remains ubiquitous.

When I was growing up in the 1980s, it seemed like the only option at most music stores, so that’s what we bought. Hey, Stephen Stills and David Gilmour played them. But when Eric Clapton played a Martin triple 0 on MTV Unplugged in 1992 and “Tears in Heaven” became a giant hit, more modern players got hip to smaller acoustics.

Some of those guitars, like Clapton’s, actually pre-dated larger guitars. Myriad new models have come along since, including every sort of hybrid acoustic-electric imaginable.

Even traditional-minded Martin is in on the game with its shredder-friendly SC deep cutaway models.

Takamine and Ibanez are well known for their thinline acoustics that look and feel a heck of lot like electrics.

For traditional acoustics the main specification to understand is scale length. Shorter scale length means closer frets and looser feel, which makes it easier to play stretch chords and bend strings like an electric guitar.

TAKE IT TO THE STAGE

The final issue that keeps electric stalwarts from bringing their acoustic goodness to the masses is amplification.

A player brings a new acoustic-electric guitar to the band’s show, plugs it into the house direct box, and often ends up with an uninspiring sound through a worn-out monitor.

Acoustic electronics is a huge discussion, but there are two simple moves to make forward progress.

First, get a dedicated acoustic amplifier to control your own sound onstage. Fender is doing great stuff with affordable acoustic amps.

Even easier, simply get a magnetic sound-hole pickup for your acoustic guitar and run it through your electric rig. The acoustic guitar will now be essentially a hollowbody electric. It may not sound as truly “acoustic,” but if you’re not a purist, what’s the big deal?

Your pedals are at your disposal to manipulate the sound into something you dig, so have fun using your gadgets and gizmos. In fact, there’s no law against trying the piezo signal through a tube amp. A lot of them sound shoddy, but some can actually sound pretty good.

In his recent Frets interview, Jack Johnson reveals that his main sound onstage is the piezo signal from his Cole Clark acoustic into a Fender Twin.

The rule is, There are no rules. Do whatever makes the acoustic experience electrifying to you.

Jimmy Leslie has been Frets editor since 2016. See many Guitar Player- and Frets-related videos on his YouTube channel.

Marshall Records’ Laurence Jones has been making waves across the pond in recent times.

Spotted on tour with guitar legends such as Buddy Guy, Jeff Beck and Johnny Winter, the PRS Artist is a musical force in his own right, recently “galloping to victory” with his “Anywhere With Me” single in Classic Rock’s Track of the Week pole.  

When it came to choosing the first single from his latest album, Destination Unknown, Jones says he knew that it had to be “Anywhere With Me.”

“It’s the perfect way to open up this record,” commented the guitarist. “The first thing you’re hit with is that rock sensibility that only the guitar could deliver.”

The award-winning blues-rock virtuoso began his recording career around a decade ago, releasing his debut, Thunder in the Sky (Promise Records) in 2012.

In 2014, Jones joined Ruf Records’ roster, releasing his sophomore album, Temptation, that year. This was swiftly followed up by What's It Gonna Be and the Mike Vernon-produced Take Me High in 2015 and 2016, respectively.

In 2017, Jones hooked up with independent record label Top Stop Music to release The Truth, before signing with Marshall Records earlier this year.

“I’m honoured to have signed with Marshall Records,” said the guitarist. “I’ve recorded 10 original tracks with my band at the Marshall studio, Milton Keynes, U.K. in February 2022.

“To join the Marshall legacy is a dream. I’m proud of the album we’ve made together on the legendary Tattoo You [The Rolling Stones] mixing desk.

“Marshall has given me the support and platform to create a British rock crossover album that I’ve been waiting to record.”

“We at Marshall are huge fans of the blues,” said Marshall Music Director Steve Tannett. “When the opportunity came up to work with such a talented guitarist who has played with some of the greats, we knew it was a perfect partnership.

“Laurence is writing some great material that branches out from previous albums, but stays true to his blues rock roots and excellent guitar playing.”

In this exclusive video, Jones breaks down the Destination Unknown single “Can't Keep from Loving You” and gives us a guitar player’s insight into how to write a no-frills stadium rock fist-pumper.

Order Destination Unknown here.

In this fascinating interview by Jazz Guitar Today, visionary prog rock guitarist Steve Howe discusses his creative approach to recording the Yes classic “Roundabout.”

The opening track from the band’s double platinum-selling 1971 album Fragile, an edited version of the song was released as a single the following year, peaking at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Virtuosic, expansive and heroically progressive, “Roundabout” coalesced the band’s multifaceted musical mastery into a singular sound that defines the prog rock genre.

Written by Howe and singer Jon Anderson while on the road in Scotland, the guitarist once recollected, “I was big on intros back then, and the classical guitar intro I came up with for ‘Roundabout’ was one of the most signature things.”

Having developed his sound using Gibson electric guitars – an ES-175D on The Yes Album and an ES-5 Switchmaster during the recording of Fragile – Howe’s decision to record acoustic guitar on “Roundabout” was something of a risk, he says.

“I thought, Wow, this is risky,” Howe tells Jazz Guitar Today in the clip below. “I could start to feel that my electric playing had a certain style.

“But never had I stuck my neck out so much as to have [Bill] Bruford, [Chris] Squire, Rick Wakeman, Jon Anderson all playing, and all I'm doing is playing acoustic guitar.”

Using his now famous Martin 00-18 for the first time on a Yes recording, the prog rock innovator laid down his unforgettable acoustic lines.

“It was adventurous, and the risk paid off!” he concludes.

As well as the addition of acoustic guitar to Yes’s sonic palette, the band’s experimental approach involved shifting parts from one instrument to another.

Blending seamlessly with Howe’s fluid lines, some of Wakeman’s organ parts were written on guitar.

“I gave my lines to other people,” he says. “That meant that a song like ‘Roundabout’ was definitely going to stand out. It was not going to go unnoticed with the opportunities we had.”

Elsewhere in this revealing interview clip, Howe highlights the importance of working with Fragile co-producer Eddy Offord in driving the band’s sound forward.

“Him and I were pretty close,” he recalls. “There was a lot of empathy and enjoyment and adventurousness that him and I shared to get the sound.

“When you hear “Roundabout,” that is a band who’ve said, ‘We want to be as tight as Booker T. & the M.G.'s.’ Like, ‘We want to be as tight as James Brown’s band.’

“It’s very, very tight and I’m very proud of it.”

Order Fragile here.

Loida Liuzzi has been causing a stir online recently with the release of her instrumental debut, The Journey.

“I’m super proud of The Journey,” she tells Guitar Player. “And I feel honored to have had such amazingly talented people feature as guests.”

Though Liuzzi currently makes a living from teaching guitar she sees herself equally as a dedicated student, travelling from her home in Paraguay’s capital Asunción as far afield as the U.S. in order to attend guitar masterclasses.

“I constantly change and explore. It’s a way to keep the fire of passion burning,” she enthuses.

“It doesn’t matter how good you are, you can always learn something new. Last year, I took flamenco lessons for four months and that gave me new insights. Everything I do has a focus.”

A masterclass in guitar instrumental composition itself, The Journey features guest appearances by shred wizard Greg Howe, tone connoisseur Pete Thorn, and drummer extraordinaire Marco Minnemann (Joe Satriani, Paul Gilbert, Steven Wilson.)

Guitar Player recently spoke to Liuzzi as she was preparing to take her music across the ocean and into Europe…

How long have you been teaching guitar?

I started teaching when I was 17 years old. Right now, I have a dozen students. And they are super dedicated. I want to give them the best of me with all the energy I have. I practice a lot and take one-to-one lessons too.

You’re also a triathlete. That must take up a lot of energy too!

Yes! Triathlon is swimming, cycling and running: three sports in one. So I usually train twice a day.

Do you find there are any similarities between being an athlete and being a guitarist?

Yes. For me, it’s the same adrenaline and emotions. But with an audience there it’s different – it’s even more intense.

#LicksByLoi has really taken off. How did that come about?

Before the pandemic, I worked as a session guitarist playing lead guitar in a band here in Paraguay with one of the country's best singers, Hector Candia. We played for two and a half years together and I learned a lot. Performing was my full-time job back then.

Then the pandemic came: no more shows! As an alternative I thought I would dedicate some time to creating content. At that moment I started the hashtag #LicksByLoi. That’s where I’ll use backing tracks from anywhere and try to compose in one minute.

Also, on my Instagram, Facebook and YouTube channel I do covers of famous guitar solos. You know, stuff like Whitesnake or Joe Satriani because I come from the shred world.

But people started to get more interested in #LicksByLoi?

Yeah, people started following that more than the covers. So I eventually had a lot of #LicksByLoi and thought, Why don’t I do an album of the best ones?

I started production with my bass player, Alejandro Duarte, and keyboardist, Brian Halaburda. We did all the drums digitally and kept the central ideas while relaxing and allowing it to expand without the pressure of time.

What inspired the title, The Journey?

The title The Journey is because every song is a short story of my life in music. 

For example, the first track, “Little Big Things,” is dedicated to my dad. He was my first guitar teacher. Sadly, he has Alzheimer’s, so he isn’t aware what an impact that he has had on my life.

Greg Howe features on two tracks on The Journey, “Little Big Things” and “What Really Matters.” Tell us about how the collaboration came about.

When I thought about having special guests on the recording, the first name that came to mind was Greg Howe. I thought that would be a dream come true.

When I’d finished the pre-production, Kiesel Guitars came to me and asked if I would be interested in collaborating. They really liked #LicksByLoi and wanted to see if we could do something together. And they hooked me up with Greg.

I sent him the tracks and those two were the ones Greg chose to work on.

What was the inspiration behind the second track, “Passion Driven?”

That’s about finding your passion and using it to make your dreams come true. 

For me, that was sports. Sports is like the power. It taught me a lot of things about discipline and consistency, which relates a lot to my journey as a guitarist.

The third track, “Make It Happen,” features Pete Thorn and legendary drummer Marco Minnemann, who you’ve appeared with in several videos.

I met Marco Minnemann and we became good friends. He asked me if I would record a solo for his upcoming album, and I said, “Of course!”

We did a video for a piece called “To All New Ghosts In Town,” which is on his YouTube channel. 

He’s done quite a bit of stuff with two of my heroes, Joe Satriani and Alex Lifeson, so I was like, “Sure! Anything you want!” [laughs]

Tell us about the fourth track, “Enjoy the Run.”

I did the video for this at the Grand Canyon and took both of my new seven-string Kiesels along to the shoot.

I didn’t realize it was going to be so cold there! But it was a lot of fun.

As well as Greg Howe, guitarist Daniel Trébol features on the fifth track, “What Really Matters.”

Yes, Daniel Trébol was my first electric guitar instructor, so I have two of my biggest influences featuring.

I Zoomed Greg Howe and he asked me if he could play on this track. I said, “Of course, you can!”

The sixth and final track is titled “It’s All About You” and was released as a single in April this year. What was your inspiration behind this one?

This is dedicated to all the people who have supported me and continue to support me. 

The song is super groovy and features a vocal collaboration with Sol Perez of the band Dali. It was an honor to have his voice duel with the guitar.

I thought it would be a dream to do an instrumental album without following a specific genre. But the blues is the feeling that ties all the songs on The Journey together.

Stream and download The Journey by Loida Liuzzi here.

As the '60s dissipated like an exhaled bong hit, the '70s wafted into history like vapors from an Ohio bowling alley men's room.

Hippie dropouts suddenly faced the dreary prospect of becoming either responsible citizens or musical instrument manufacturers.

Judging by the ads that graced GP's pages in the '70s, most opted for the latter.

How else could you explain the nature-boy aesthetics such as natural-wood finishes, ornamental carved tops and excessively laminated, neck-through-body models that dominated guitar design?

Wasted, mushroom-snortin' scientists concocted active electronic circuits and tried to convince us that we really needed a phase switch.

Anonymous geniuses hypothesized "Mass + Weight = Great Tone & Sustain" and attempted to prove it by offering brass-hardware-endowed guitars that tipped double-digit figures on the scales.

Here are just a handful of the delights that were on offer…

GIBSON MARAUDER

If you had $2,000 in the late '70s, you could have bought either a '59 Les Paul Standard or five Marauders.

Committing Gibson heresy with its bolt-on maple neck (gasp), "super" humbucking and specially designed single-coil pickups (gag), and pan pot for fading between both pickups (splat), the Marauder looked like the freak offspring of a Les Paul Jr. and a Telecaster Deluxe.

Its equally butt-ugly fraternal twin, the S-1, featured three single-coil pickups. Both were heavily advertised, seen in the hands of Mike Bloomfield, Paul Stanley, Ron Wood and Keith Richards along with the usual suspects.

One ad touted, "It'll be loved. It'll be hated." 

At least they were telling half the truth.

IBANEZ ELECTRICS

Though Ibanez spent most of the decade imitating Gibson and Fender's '50s classics (their Gibson archtop copies, Rocket Roll Sr. and Destroyer were some of their better-executed rip-offs), they emerged in the latter half of the '70s with several well-made, original electric guitar designs.

Ibanez's '78 catalog featured several models with attractive, unique body shapes, including the Artist, which resembled a double-cutaway Les Paul, and the Musician, which looked like an Alembic/Stratocaster hybrid.

Both guitars featured a brass sustain block embedded in the body below the bridge, but more important, they looked and sounded great.

B.C. RICH

With names like the Seagull, Eagle, Mockingbird and Bich, B.C. Rich guitars were a koa, maple and mahogany menagerie of heavy metal axes that rivaled the Explorer and V for gnarly, angular coolness.

Joe Perry and Rick Derringer slung their 'Birds low, wearing out their fifth- and twelfth-position frets on jammin' tunes like "Train Kept A-Rollin'" and "Rock & Roll Hoochie Koo."

The double-neck Bich featured more knobs than an all-in-one stereo/8-track/turntable hi-fi.

MOONSTONE

The popularity of redwood-burl tables among the mood-ring generation made it inevitable that this material would wind up being used for guitars.

Moonstone took the burl and brass concept to the nth degree with their cosmic neck-through designs. We recall one specimen that had snail-shell knobs.

L.A. session bassist Lee Sklar had a double-neck Moonstone bass with eagle headstocks and LEDs in the eyes.

Far out.

Pass the brown rice, brother.

OVATION DEACON & BREADWINNER

"Don't dilly dally dude, da Deacon's dynamite" read the hokey ad copy for Ovation's executioner's-ax-shaped Deacon.

Along with the less deluxe but identically shaped Breadwinner, these guitars represented the extreme of '70s kitsch.

Though it looked like it belonged in the hands of a lumberjack, the Breadwinner was a good-sounding instrument.

DEAN

Dean guitars were essentially Gibson Flying Vs, Explorers or a mutant combination of both, dolled up like Kiss groupies.

Featuring oversize headstocks that looked like miniature, inverted Flying V bodies, Dean guitars resembled Gene Simmons 69ing with a dwarf.

These axes played well and sounded good, and featured bound curly maple tops, Honduras mahogany bodies, ebony fingerboards with abalone inlays and DiMarzio Super Distortion humbuckers.

HAMER

Hamer hit the scene in the mid-'70s with the Standard, an expensive ($800!) Explorer-shaped ax with a thick, carved-maple top like a Les Paul Standard.

Early models were equipped with rewound Gibson pickups (rumor has it that a few have Gibson PAFs in the bridge position).

In '78 Hamer introduced the Sunburst, a sensibly priced, double-cutaway solidbody with a flat maple top and two boss humbuckers.

Solid, man!

The fingerboard of an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar is a significant factor in the instrument’s overall tone. 

Various materials affect the vibration of the string differently, thus modifying the sound.

Fingerboard material falls into two broad categories: wood and synthetic. The most common woods are ebony, maple, and rosewood. Synthetics include phenolic, graphite, and other plastic/fiber composites.

Ebony

Ebony is the hardest and heaviest of common fingerboard woods, adding snap and clarity to the sound. Crisp attack and fast decay contribute to ebony's open (as opposed to warm) tone.

"I don't hesitate to suggest an ebony fingerboard to a player doing a great deal of hammer-ons and two-hand work," said Jay Black of the Fender Custom Shop. "They'll get a quick note off of the fingerboard with a nice, direct attack."

Maple

Players often perceive maple fingerboards to produce slightly less snap than ebony ‘boards. More evenly balanced than ebony, maple's attack and decay characteristics yield sustain and bright tone.

Many guitars have one-piece fretted maple necks – in other words, the fingerboard is simply the neck's surface. One-piece necks transfer string vibration differently than those with a separate fingerboard.

Two otherwise identical guitars, one with a one-piece fretted neck and the other with a separate fingerboard, will sound different.

Rosewood

Rosewood fingerboards are often thought of as warmer sounding, with less defined attack than either ebony or maple – both of which are denser woods.

Some attribute rosewood's sweeter, midrange-heavy tone to its high oil content; the oil presumably acts as an acoustic damper, rolling off high end.

Pau Ferro

Pau ferro is a common alternative to traditional fingerboard woods. Indeed, this South American hardwood has gained favor with some of the country's top builders as a fingerboard wood. 

It combines rosewood's warm tone with ebony's smooth feel.

Synthetic

Synthetic fingerboards share two traits that affect tone: high density and extreme stiffness.

Graphite, phenolic, and other composite fingerboards offer extreme high-end response and note-to-note consistency.

Replacing a wood bolt-on neck with a synthetic one usually makes a guitar sound more "hi-fi."

Additionally, some players swear that fretboard inlays affect tone. Whether or not this is true, extensive inlays modify the fretboard's composition and introduce yet another element into the equation.

If you like in-depth interviews with great guitar players AND you like to hear them play, then you need to listen to our No Guitar Is Safe podcast.

Presented by Guitar Player and hosted by Jude Gold, No Guitar Is Safe is free to listen to at your leisure on iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, or wherever you get your podcasts.

In the most recent episode, soulful master of the Stratocaster Philip Sayce invites us into his home where he cranks up one of his favorite Fender rigs and shares how he developed his fiery, fret-melting brand of blues-rock, as well as how he created the songs on his latest album, Spirit Rising.

Sayce also dives into everything from ’60s wah pedals and Fuzz Faces to his friendship with legendary guitar amp tech César Díaz.

Plus, the Welsh-born, Canadian-bred guitar hero shares what he learned being bandmates with such greats as Melissa Etheridge and the late Jeff Healey.

In this clip, Sayce demonstrates his astounding ability to mimic a Whammy pedal – a technique he says was inspired by Healey.

"Trying to get those bends out of nowhere were things that Jeff would do," Sayce recalls. "It always scared the shit out of me."

Check out Jude Gold's YouTube channel for more fantastic clips.

With a solo career spanning nigh on 50 years and dozens of albums, gospel-oriented guitarist/vocalist Phil Keaggy has achieved – and still enjoys – incredible popularity via his albums and concert appearances.

One of Guitar Player's top 50 acoustic guitar players of all time, Keaggy is a strikingly imaginative guitarist who weaves loopers and effects into his fingerstyle playing to create beautifully textured music that inspires audiences and fellow guitarists alike.

He is also a master of the Ebow – a device for electric guitar that, when used well, can emulate the sound of orchestral strings, horns and woodwinds by producing infinite sustain.

Invented in 1969 by Greg Heet, the EBow uses an inductive string driver to form a feedback circuit that creates continuous vibrations.

Early adopters include Blondie’s Chris Stein, Blue Öyster Cult’s Buck Dharma (who used it to create the sustaining note that ends his solo on “Don’t Fear the Reaper”) and Bill Nelson, who many consider to be the EBow master.

It was Nelson who introduced it to the guitarist who made the greatest impression with it: Stuart Adamson of the Skids and, later, Big Country.

While it’s often thought Adamson used an EBow to create the bagpipe-like lead guitar on the hit “In a Big Country,” that effect was created with an MXR M-129 Pitch Transposer, chorus and delay.

His most evident – and influential – use of an EBow was on the Big Country tracks “Lost Patrol” and “The Storm.”

More than 50 years on, the EBow’s appeal, like its effect, is infinite.

Visit the EBow website for more information.

30 years ago, Guitar Player’s Jas Obrecht and Jesse Gress met with Keith Richards in New York. While they were admiring a photo of some vintage fuzz pedals, Richards sauntered into the room, large tumbler in hand...

“Oh, vintage Fuzz-Tones? Well, there's the first one [points to a Colorsound pedal]. But where's that fucking "Satisfaction" one? They bunged me. I mean, it was a miracle. Whatever it was, it was the first one Gibson made [the Maestro FZ-1 Fuzz-Tone].

“I was screaming for more distortion: ‘This riff's really gotta really hang hard and long,’ and we burnt the amps up and turned the shit up, and it still wasn't right. And then Ian Stewart went around the corner to [a music store] and came around with a distortion box: ‘Try this.’ 

"It was as offhand as that. It was just from nowhere.

“I never really got into the thing after that, either. It had a very limited use, but it was just the right time for that song. The riff was going to make that song or break it on the length that you could drag that [sings fuzz line] – unless you wanna get horns, which didn't work.

“We didn't have the time, and it wouldn't sound right. Yeah, it was one of those fortuitous things.”

Distortion has become extremely popular again…

“I suppose it's got something to do with the state of everybody's life. [Laughs]

You've certainly been guilty of some pretty filthy guitar tones.

“Yeah, man. Still lookin' for 'em.”

"999."

“It's bad, huh? Yeah, I figured you might be talking about that. Believe it or not, that's through a Palmer speaker simulator. A little box, no speakers. This is against all my principles, right? I plugged that mother in, and it's also through a Twin. But that sound basically comes out of the Palmer.

Waddy [Wachtel] and I are purists about amp sounds, but we couldn't deny that thing. At the right setting, it was, "Whoa! Hey! We can get this now, but it's taken a long time to find it."

Traditionally, how would you go about getting a nice distortion?

“I'd set up that Twin and maybe slave a little Champ. Put it through the both of 'em and then mix. If I'm looking for some kind of distortion, I usually use two amps rather than go for it out of one thing, because I've always found that a really good distortion needs to come from two different places.

“Obviously, it's not true for ‘Satisfaction,’ where it's an obvious thing, but you want some distortion and some clarity at the same time where you need it, so I'd rather put it through two amps and overload one of them.”

Small amps?

“Yeah. Champ or a little Silvertone, a Kay thing. I've got these little relics lying around, all of those weirdo amps. Bump that one up, use the other one for clear, and then you can mix the two in where you want them.

“It's very rare on a track that you want the same sort of distortion all the way through. I like to be able to play with it, so I can bring one amp up. Put them on separate tracks so you can juice the distortion where you want it.

“You have the opportunity to play around with it after you've played it, because when you're playing it, you're not going to hear exactly what's going down on the tape. You've got the cans on.”

You have a Fender Twin that's serial number #A00003. Is that the third one made?

“Yeah. It's a bad amp, man! I wish I'd had it from day one! It takes a while to find those.”

Browse the Keith Richards catalog here.

We've all seen Michael Lindsay-Hogg 1970 documentary about the last days of The Beatles, Let It Be. And if you haven't, then know this – spoiler alert! – it's a colossal downer. 

The good news is, no-one needs to watch it ever again. Peter Jackson' s Get Back documentary is now streaming in its entirety on Disney+ and it's the music documentary of the year: 55 hours of unseen footage (shot by Lindsay-Hogg) and 140 hours of unheard audio, edited together over two years to create an eight-hour doc that does nothing less than bring The Beatles back to life.

At the time of writing, Rotten Tomatoes has scored Get Back 88% (critics) and 90% (audience) and the only way to see it is by subscribing to Disney+. 

That's not the drag it sounds. At $7.99/£7.99 for a month, that you can cancel at any time (paying just for that first month), Get Back works out at $1/£1 an hour, even if you don’t watch another thing on the channel. 

It's the music TV event of the year and, unlike most music docs with their focus on sex, drugs and scandal, this one is of particular interest to musicians.  This is a documentary about writing songs, and the joy and agonies of being in a band.

All three episodes are available to stream now.

• At the end of June 1967, The Beatles Played Live to an Audience of 400 Million. Is It Any Wonder George Fluffed His Solo?
• How George Harrison Made the Epic Concert for Bangladesh Happen
• What Hendrix Meant To Me – By Some of the World's Greatest Guitar Players

Director Peter Jackson isn't exactly known for his brevity. This is the guy who managed to turn Tolkien's The Hobbit – a relatively slim book for kids – into a three part epic that spanned eight hours. With Get Back, the director's seeming inability to cut has been welcomed with open arms. 

"More Beatles, you say? Lovingly restored and unflinchingly portrayed? A fascinating look at the creative process that's also an insight into the personalities of four men we tend to see as gods? And we get to witness them write those songs in (almost) real time? Count me in."

The reviews have been rave: “Funnier, louder, sadder, realer than anyone even hoped,” said Rolling Stone. "But it’s not really about the making of an album or a concert. It’s a stunningly intimate portrait of a friendship — the world’s favorite foursome."

“In Get Back,” commented Variety, “we’re not seeing grainy old footage with a fake contempo gloss. We’re seeing the footage de-aged, so that it looks like it was shot yesterday, and so we feel like we’re right there in the room with the Beatles, who look and sound just like themselves. As an act of restoration, Get Back is a marvel.”

The Wall Street Journal called it "joyous, tedious, euphoric and fab, “The Beatles: Get Back” feels like a documentary made yesterday rather than 52 years ago, an epic reimagining-cum-excavation

Subscribe to Disney Plus for $7.99/£7.99 a month

Playing blues on an acoustic guitar is as natural as the sun in the sky. After all, that’s how the thing got started.

In the modern era, some acoustics are built for blues and some aren’t. An instrument that requires a little elbow grease is generally a good thing, and unless one seeks a contemporary sound, a vintage instrument or one designed along traditional lines adds an air of authenticity.

The choice of strings can make a significant difference in tone and playability. Here are some historical insights and musings on how to choose a blues box and the strings to make it sing.

Origins & Considerations

A blues acoustic doesn’t have to be fancy unless you need a snappy guitar to play sophisticated licks. Consider “Catfish” Keith. He plays a dazzling signature Santa Cruz that helps him conjure tricky harmonics, and his Catfish Special is an upscale representation of guitars from the formative Great Depression era, when many cats played parlor guitars.

Martin 0 and Gibson L series models epitomize the style, the latter being favored by Keb’ Mo’. With only 12-frets to the body, these guitars have their bridge further from the sound hole and closer to the center of the lower bout, giving the instrument a warm and powerful tone.

Having a shorter scale length and fewer frets also brings the frets closer together and results in less string tension. That means less distance for fingers to stretch, easier string bending and an overall slinkier feel.

These designs are still widely available, with Taylor a notable example of a manufacturer that embraces the 12-fret concept while adding modern touches, such as a cutaway.

Another school of bluesers prefers big 12-strings, often in lowered tunings. They include old-time players like Lead Belly, with his iconic Stella, and contemporary guitarists such as Leo Kottke, who recently reported that he had the chance to buy one of Lead Belly’s Stellas but didn’t because “it scared me.”

Electric icon Jimi Hendrix hardly played acoustic in public, but in the most famous footage of him doing so he’s playing a Zemaitis 12-string.

And of course, a resonator adds an air of legitimacy. Think of Taj Mahal playing a National Duolian on his classic albums such as The Natch’l Blues. These days he plays a Regal RC-56 Tricone Resophonic with a copper-plated brass body.

String Theories

Strings matter. Heavier gauges generally deliver more robust tones, but lighter strings are better suited to the treble-forward nature of the smaller guitars.

Some players leave old strings on as long as possible for the most authentic worn-in tone. As Luther Dickinson once noted, “Think about the situation of the old-time blues players. Those guys couldn’t afford new strings.”

According to Ben Harper, “The rumor and myth of the Lead Belly 12-string is that he used to get free piano strings from a piano refurbishing company. After they put on new ones, they’d give him the old ones. Those thick strings would bend the neck of his guitar if he didn’t lower the tuning way down. That became the Lead Belly 12-string sound.”

Nylon and gut strings have become the exception for American blues since steel strings became widely available in the 1920s.

The 80/20 bronze alloy introduced by D’Addario in the 1930s delivered strong highs and lows with reduced mids. It was succeeded by less corrosive phosphor-bronze strings, which D’Addario introduced in the 1970s. They remain ubiquitous for players of all styles, and are available standard or coated.

More recently, manufacturers have produced strings with alloys designed to let the sound of the wood speak. They include D’Addario’s Nickel Bronze and Martin’s Retro strings, made of nickel and copper.

It’s worth auditioning a few string types to find the best sound and feel on a given acoustic. Once the wood and wires are happening, there are some time-honored tricks that can help make playing acoustic blues easier.

Buy the Definitive Lead Belly here.

Further reading...

• Acoustic Blues Musings, Part 2: Hip Tips and Tricks for Better Playing
• Acoustic Blues Musings, Part 3: Open Roots Tuning Tips
• Acoustic Blues Musings, Part 4: Slide Song Suggestions
• Acoustic Blues Musings, Part 5: Choosing Strings & Slides

The Les Paul is a tonal powerhouse, offering players infinite sustain, a powerful mid-range bark, and a creamy warm tone not found in other guitars. It's no surprise then that so many aspire to own a Gibson Les Paul one day - although the rather sizable price tag can make them unobtainable. Well, luckily for us, Gibson's sister company has seriously upped their game and started to produce some of the best Epiphone Les Pauls ever - giving us all a chance to harness the power of the LP for less. 

It can seem like a daunting task to find the best Epiphone Les Paul for you, considering there are so many variations on offer - not to mention they all look very similar and have a lot of features in common. Well, not to worry, that's what we are here for. 

No matter your personal style and playing technique, you'll be sure to find an Epiphone Les Paul that will suit you. So, whether you're playing away at the blues, bringing the house down with technical shred, or donning a top hat for your best Slash impression, we're pretty sure we can find your next axe among this list. We have put the entries into price order, to make it a little easier to find what you are looking for, and also included some handy buying advice to help you make an informed decision.

Best Epiphone Les Pauls: Our top picks

Best overall

Getting your hands on an original 1960s Les Paul is practically impossible at this point, not to mention incredibly expensive - even a Gibson reissue is massively costly right now. With that being said, it's no surprise the Les Paul Standard 60s tops our list of best Epiphone Les Pauls. Epiphone is offering a delightful slice of history - albeit taking some liberties with spec - at a much more affordable price. 

This stunning guitar certainly punches above its weight and delivers all that LP tone you'd want. Featuring the classic mahogany body and neck with a maple veneer, this guitar looks like the real deal - and feels like it, too, thanks to the slim-taper neck profile. Bringing the rock is a set of ProBucker humbuckers that do a surprisingly great job capturing that mythical PAF tone, the inclusion of CTS potentiometers, is a classy touch from Epiphone. 

It has to be said that the quality of the instrument is streets ahead of where it was, even just a few years ago. There is an attention to detail here that simply makes us smile. Okay, this may not be a Gibson, but for the price, you'd be hard-pressed to find much fault with this truly stunning guitar - so crank up your guitar amp, plug in this epic six-string and let rip!   

Best on a budget

The Les Paul Studio has gone on to develop an identity all of its own. Originally released in '83 as a stripped-down alternative to the flashy Les Paul Standard, the Studio offered the same great tone, without all the bells and whistles. 

This Epiphone version has the exact same mission statement, offering players the thunderous LP tone they're searching for in a no-nonsense, affordable package. Straying slightly from the other models on this list, the Studio is equipped with the Alnico Classic PRO pickup set, which offers a somewhat different flavor from the standard ProBucker found on the other models. The coil-split option also means the Studio lives up to its name as the perfect recording partner.

It's great to see a few new colors available, with the Alpine White giving you the option of channeling your inner Frank Iero or Jade Puget. The other options are Smokehouse Burst, Wine Red, and Ebony. So if you’re looking for a pure Les Paul tone, with none of the flashy extras, then the Studio is the perfect choice for you. 

Best lightweight

It's fair to say the Les Paul is a fairly chunky guitar. With its thick slab of mahogany and carved maple top, it can be uncomfortable - not to mention heavy - for many players. Well, the Muse takes care of this issue with its slimmed-down chambered body. This routing is a lot more extreme than the modern weight relief found in the Les Paul Modern, and the new belly contour offers an extra comfort level. These features not only give the Muse a totally different feel but also changes the sound, giving this elegant guitar a completely unique identity.  

Those looking to invoke the magical tone of the late, great, Peter Green can do so with a pull of the tone control. When both pickups are activated, this engages the out-of-phase setting, giving you that honky quack we all love. 

Epiphone has also supplied an impressive range of finish options, with seven metallic colors to choose from. The marketing department clearly had an excellent time naming these stunning finishes, with Pearl White, Wanderlust Green, Radio Blue, Purple Passion, Jet Black, Scarlet Red, and Smoked Almond. Each option brings its own character, and frankly, it's difficult to choose a favorite among them - although if you made us, then Wanderlust Green may just edge out the rest. 

Best for punk

There is something so elegantly simple about a Les Paul Junior. Conceived initially as a student model and later picked up by countless punk and rock players, the Les Paul Junior is famed for its no-nonsense playability and spikey tone. Unlike the other guitars on this list, the Junior isn't concerned with a fancy carved top, binding, or even two pickups, for that matter. All it cares about is tone - and boy, does it have it in spades! This 1950s classic is certainly one to try if you haven't heard the aggressively mid-focused sound of the P-90. Like the punks that made the Junior their own, this pickup has bags of attitude. 

The Epiphone Les Paul Junior has all the DNA that made the original so beloved. Featuring a sturdy mahogany body, and chunky 50s profile neck - which is not for the faint of heart - and a single dog-ear P-90 pickup. Epiphone has also included the Deluxe Vintage tuners, which completes the retro vibe. 

So if you're looking for a no-nonsense guitar that you can just plug in, turn up and let rip, then this has to be the best option for you. However, if you find yourself craving the second pickup, you're in luck as Epiphone offers the Les Paul Special, as well. 

Best modern Les Paul

For many players, the Les Paul shouldn't be messed with - I mean, they nailed it on the first go, right? Well, no, they didn't. The truth is, Gibson has made many significant changes to the Les Paul over the years in a quest for better playability and to keep up with the demands of the modern guitarist. Gibson's latest ultra-contemporary offering is the aptly named Les Paul Modern, and the Epiphone version here is a direct copy. 

The stylish LP's mahogany body features the Ultra Modern Weight Relief, meaning it's a damn sight lighter than a standard Les Paul, making it the perfect option for a long setlist, an all-nighter jam session, or simply if you have back problems. The pairing of a vivid colored top against the natural mahogany body is rather striking and is quite the sight to behold in person - the Pelham Blue has to be our favorite!

It's not just stunningly good looks this Les Paul has going for it. The Asymmetrical neck provides a lightning-fast playing area, which coupled with the contoured heel, means this is the virtuoso's, Les Paul. If you're on the hunt for a modern take on the standard Les Paul formula, then this designer six-string may be the best Epiphone Les Paul for the job.

Best custom

There has always been something so classy about the Les Paul Custom - especially in ebony. The striking contrast of the dazzling gold hardware against the jet-black body makes many player's hearts beat that little bit faster. The multi-ply Custom white binding helps define the Les Paul shape, while the mother of pearl diamond headstock inlay lets the world know you're holding something special. 

Again Epiphone has done a great job of bringing this icon to life - I'm sure Les himself would have been proud. In addition, the inclusion of a genuine ebony fingerboard is a welcome relief from the usual laurel or rosewood affair found on the earlier incarnations of this guitar - because, let's face it, it needs to be ebony to be a Custom! 

As far as pickups are concerned, it's the usual Epiphone ProBucker humbuckers found on many of these guitars, but this time with gold covers. The Les Paul Custom also features the 60s style Kalamazoo headstock and rolled neck edges for a super satisfying playing experience. So if you're looking for a high-class, sophisticated LP, then this has to be the best Epiphone Les Paul for you. 

Best vintage

You don't need us to tell you how valuable an original '59 burst is - considering every time Joe Bonamassa buys one, someone somewhere writes about it - but even the Gibson reissues are a pretty penny, fetching upwards of $6,000. Luckily for us mere mortals, Epiphone has teamed up with the folks over at the Gibson Custom Shop to produce the Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard, giving us the chance of owning a vintage reissue without remortgaging the house. 

This special guitar marks the first collaboration between these two Gibson offshoots, and long may it continue. This will come up a lot in this guide, but the level of detail here is remarkable. The AAA-figured maple top is stunning, and while not exactly as thick as on the Gibson, it still looks the part, resulting in a gorgeous-looking instrument. The stunning look is helped along by the aged finish, which is somewhere between a gloss and matte finish not too dissimilar from a VOS. The '59 neck profile is exactly as comfortable as you'd expect it to be, and the long neck tenon adds another level of vintage detail, which is something we can certainly appreciate.

What kicks this guitar up a gear is the addition of the Gibson USA BurstBucker 2 & 3 pickups. This, coupled with the CTS pots, 50s era wiring, Mallory capacitors, and non-beveled pickguard, add a whole extra level of authenticity to this quality guitar. 

Read our full Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard review

Best for metal

It's not all vintage reissues and Gibson copy-cats on this list, we also have something for the more aggressive player. On the surface, the Epiphone Les Paul Prophecy may look like a metalhead's dream - and it is - but it's also a lot more than that. 

At the heart of this demonic-looking LP is a set of Fishman Fluence pickups; these high-tech active pickups offer a range of sonic possibilities that even the most traditional among you will love. With just a pull of the volume or tone control, you'll have access to a warm PAF vintage humbucker, a searingly hot modern active humbucker, as well as shimmering single-coil tones - that's all the major food groups right there! 

This guitar has been optimized for the budding shredder, with the inclusion of an Asymmetrical SlimTaper neck that is super comfortable no matter where you are on the fingerboard. At the same time, the modern contoured heel gives you unparalleled access to the upper frets. This guitar is unapologetically a shredder, with a few classic sounds under the hood for when you want to calm things down a bit - and we love it! 

FAQ

Like their bigger sibling, the Epiphone lineup has gone through a massive shake-up over the last few years. Following in Gibson's footsteps, Epiphone has gone back to basics, producing guitars that have their roots firmly in tried and true formulas - with the odd experimental guitar here and there to keep things interesting.

We must say, this new - or old, depending on your perspective - approach is a welcome change, and one we have been hoping would happen for some time. Epiphone seems to finally be listening to the fans and giving them precisely what they want. Nothing signifies this change in mindset more than the shift to the old Kalamazoo headstock design - something fans have been screaming out for. 

It's not only the lineup that has changed, but the overall quality has also seen a vast improvement. We're seeing fewer reports of fret issues, broken plastics, and dead pickups that, unfortunately, had become commonplace on Epiphones of the past. Believe us when we say Epiphone is currently producing the best electric guitars they have made in over a decade, and it's exciting to see what they will bring out next. 

How we selected the best Epiphone Les Pauls

Here at Guitar Player, we are experts in our field, with many years of playing and product testing between us. We live and breathe everything guitar related, and we draw on this knowledge and experience of using products in live, recording and rehearsal scenarios when selecting the products for our guides. 

When choosing what we believe to be the best Epiphone Les Pauls available right now, we combine our hands-on experience, user reviews and testimonies and engage in lengthy discussions with our editorial colleagues to reach a consensus about the top products in any given category.

First and foremost, we are musicians, and we want other players to find the right product for them. So we take into careful consideration everything from budget to feature set, ease of use and durability to come up with a list of what we can safely say are the best Epiphone Les Pauls on the market right now.

Read more on how we test gear and services at Guitar Player.

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• Get the best of both worlds with the best acoustic electric guitars

Combining techniques like percussive slaps, harmonics and left hand hammer-ons is a great way of coming up with complex guitar parts containing both rhythmic and melodic interest. 

In this quick acoustic guitar lesson, composer and Elixir Strings artist Calum Graham illustrates the various techniques he uses in his stunning track Ma Lumiére. Learn how to create a driving groove underneath a strong melody – something you can use in your own compositions to take them to the next level.

“Elixir Strings are the only strings I’ve found to date that consistently stay in tune and sound great even after multiple live concerts and frequent tuning changing," says Graham, who plays Acoustic Phosphor Bronze with NANOWEB Coating.

Named one of the World’s Top 30 Guitarists Under 30 by Acoustic Guitar Magazine in 2014, Calum has written film scores, collaborated with the likes of Antoine Dufour and bassist extraordinaire Michael Manring and released no fewer than five solo albums, including on the renowned CandyRat Records label.

If you like this lesson by Calum, check out other acoustic guitar lessons on the Elixir Strings YouTube channel.

No matter which gauge, metal or coating you choose, all Elixir Strings provide the same long-lasting tone life. Find out more here.

Otherwise known as Led Zeppelin, the band comprising Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and John Bonham were introduced at their very first show together as "The New Yardbirds.” 

While Jimmy Page initially set out to recruit members for a new Yardbirds line-up, Led Zeppelin would prove to be far more than The Yardbirds version 2.0 as they went on to dominate the hard rock world at the tail end of the late ‘60s and throughout the ‘70s.

Though it was their first gig – on this day in 1968 – the band received rave reviews. “Their performance and their music were absolutely flawless,” wrote one attendee following their debut show at the Teen Club in Gladsaxe, Denmark.

“The music continued to ring nicely in the ears for some time after the curtains were drawn after their show. We can therefore conclude that the new Yardbirds are at least as good as the old ones were.”

By October 1968, the so-called New Yardbirds began appearing under the now legendary Led Zeppelin moniker (rock lore has it the name Led Zeppelin comes from the British phrase ‘going down like a lead balloon’ and was first suggested by The Who’s John Entwistle.)

Recounting the formation of Led Zeppelin in a recent interview, Page told a journalist, “I was looking for new [Yardbirds] members and I found Robert Plant first. I was recommended to go and see this guy up in the Midlands. I went up to see him and I listened to him sing and I thought, ‘Well, let’s give him a try. He’s certainly got an interesting range.’

“Robert recommended John Bonham and so then we got a drummer. And then John Paul Jones calls me up and says, “I hear you might be putting a band together. Can I join?” So we have a rehearsal in London and then I get them to my house to rehearse everything that we’re going to need for a set, and everything that we’re going to need for Led Zeppelin I.”

Premiering at the Venice Film Festival just days ago, the new documentary – Becoming Led Zeppelin – chronicles the story of all four members throughout their formative years as musicians during the ‘60s, leading up to the rehearsal that would effectively change the course of popular music forever as Led Zeppelin begin to snowball into the world-dominating rock titans we know and love.

Produced by Bernard MacMahon and Allison McGourty, Becoming Led Zeppelin features never-seen-before interviews with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones, and the late, great John Bonham.

The pandemic may have put the kibosh on many things as far as being a guitarist goes but it hasn’t stopped Steve Howe from writing, producing and recording another Yes album. 

Despite the various challenges faced by musicians in recent times Howe managed to push the project forward with recording sessions taking place both in the US and the UK. Subsequently, the new studio album by Yes – The Quest – is due out on October 1.

Earlier on, we caught up with the prog rock legend to talk music making. Here are his top six tips on how to stay creative…

1. Lifestyle

There is a quagmire of things that can affect how you’re going to be creative. Nobody can tell you exactly how much creativity will be affected by things like what you eat; what you drink; what you smoke; how long you sleep for; what your relationships are like; and how much money you have or haven’t got. So, you’ve really got to make the right choices for yourself.

2. Listen to More Music

Have you listened to as broad a cross section of music as you want to? Are you yet to listen to things you’d like to hear? My advice is keep being inquisitive. For me, [listening to] music is just part of the artistic side of life.

3. Be Ready

Don’t expect anything but be ready when something comes. That’s why I always use digital voice recorders. You don’t have to do anything elaborate – you just turn it on when you think of something nice. Whether it be a simple chord change or rhythm, just record it.

4. Revisit Your Ideas

Store your ideas, go back to them, and find out where they fit. You’ve got to imagine that anything is possible. You might find that what you did today works with something you do tomorrow. Maybe all you need is a key change to make something fit together. Find out how to manipulate your music in the best way you can.

5. Work with Other People

You might think you’re the greatest guitarist, writer, or producer in the world, but you’ve got to work with other people to find out whether that’s true or not. Test yourself. Get out and about. Don’t always try and make your life easy.

6. Look After Your Guitar

Once you’ve got an instrument, look after it. The worst thing is to let an instrument corrode, erode, and be out of sorts, rattling and buzzing all over the place. I need my guitars to play almost perfectly – as well set up as can be.

Pre-order The Quest by Yes here.

“Captain” Kirk Douglas is best known for his blazing fretboard work in “hip hop organic jazz” collective The Roots. As house band for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, The Roots’ stylistic dexterity and dynamic flair demands Kirk pull out all the stops when it comes to tonal versatility. We recently caught up with the man himself to talk inspiration, music gear, and his diverse role as a guitarist.

Although you now have two Gibson signature SGs to your name, you’re also known for playing a vintage Epiphone Crestwood Custom…

I purchased my ’61 Epiphone Crestwood from a store called 30th Street Guitars in Manhattan. Ironically, it’s on 27th Street but it originated on 30th Street. I went in there one day and saw it. I’m a big fan of The Black Crowes and they turned me on to the beauty of natural electric guitar tones and overdrive. Their guitar player at the time – Marc Ford – was playing an Epiphone Crestwood with them. There’s a video for the song "Blackberry" where he's playing one, and I just thought it was the coolest guitar. It’s like the perfect morph of a Gibson and a Stratocaster.

What was cool about it was that somebody had replaced the original vibrato with a regular Les Paul-style [Tune-o-matic] bridge [and stop tailpiece], and the original pickups with Firebird mini humbuckers. It had a great sound, and you didn’t have to be too precious about it. That guitar was with me and served me very well. And then it also took on a life of its own when it found its way into the hands of Prince.

Prince famously trashed your Epiphone Crestwood Custom on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon; what happened to the guitar after that?

When Prince broke my Epiphone, a lot of the fretboard came apart from the neck itself and I had to get that glued back on. But you wouldn’t notice the difference when it was repaired. It sounded every bit as wonderful and every bit as vibey (if not more so than before).

Cara Delevingne once played “Sweet Home Alabama” behind her head using a similar-looking Epiphone on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon…

I believe she borrowed that guitar. After the Prince thing, Epiphone sent me a red version of the Epiphone Crestwood because they were doing reissues of it, and I had it painted in white.

We understand you’re a big fan of 100-watt Marshalls, but what amp do you tend to use on stage with The Roots?

On stage with The Roots, I usually use a Mesa Boogie Stiletto. That was Mesa Boogie’s take on a Marshall. It was Boogie’s EL34 amp, but they discontinued it, I think because it just fell out of fashion. But it’s such a good sounding amp. I’ve done a lot of recordings with it. I really love asking my guitar aficionado friends what kind of amplifier they think it is, and they always assume it’s a vintage Marshall, but then I’m like, “No, it’s actually my Mesa Boogie Stiletto combo that I’m playing at bedroom ‘I don’t want to get evicted from my apartment’-level.” 

I get such a good sound out of it. My latest [Gibson] signature SG sounds really great through that amp. I definitely noticed the difference between the BurstBuckers in that and the ’57 Classic [humbucker] pickups. [Douglas’ 2013 signature Gibson SG is fitted with ’57 Classics.]

Why is guitar gear important to you when it comes to making music?

When it comes to all this stuff, you want to be excited about the guitar and the music you’re making. These guitars are not there for just making comparisons. Of course, it’s fun to make comparisons like, ‘let’s see what this amp sounds like compared to this amp,’ or, ‘this pickup compared to this pickup.’ That’s a fun way to spend time and you kind of do discover things you like. But it’s not necessarily making music. When you’re hungry and you have an apple and an orange, you’ll take either. And you won’t complain, like ‘that sucks because it’s not an orange.’

When you have a fun idea – a riff in your head – and you want to record it, you gravitate towards a guitar that sounds good to your ears, looks good to your eyes, and makes you feel inspired. That’s the fun things about guitars – they come in so many different shapes and colors and there are so many different ways to complement your personality and your music visually as well as sonically. That’s another reason why I’m so attracted to the SG – because of the shape of it, and the associations we have with it like Sister Rosetta Tharpe, AC/DC, and Hendrix. It’s evocative of all those things those players have made you feel.

The Inverness Green vintage custom color finish on your signature SG was an interesting choice...

It’s interesting when you get an opportunity to see an SG in a color you’ve never seen before. It’s like anything else rare, like an albino cat or something. What I love about the other finish (Ebony) is that it stands out in a subtle way. The things that stand out about that guitar are the gold hardware (which, on black, looks very elegant) and I love how you can see the detail in the way the pickguard is cut. It almost looks like a bat wing or something.

I wanted to offer my signature Gibson SG in two colors – one that was striking and unusual for an SG, and another color that spoke to the person who just likes black guitars. With certain outfits it looks great. A lot of the time on The Tonight Show I’ll have to wear a tuxedo. There’s an understated-ness about it but a statement is still being made.

Your latest Gibson signature model SG has a master volume uniquely mounted on the pickguard. Do you tend to ride the volume knob during performances, rather than just flipping between pickups and pedals?

There’s a lot of territory to be explored with that, depending on how you’re running your amp. If you’re using an amp that’s hot and/or loud, you can often get your tone to clean up by way of using your guitar controls. And those tones can have great character. But it’s also a case of, ‘do you have time for that?’ These details might get completely lost if you’re playing in a big band. But if you’re in a band that’s more guitar-based, there’s more space to explore complex tones. Especially with a guitar like [the Gibson Kirk Douglas Signature SG].

How much do you rely on effects pedals?

I rely more on pedals with The Roots. A lot of it is about entertaining – you’re playing to people who have a relationship with the album and the guitar is a small piece of what’s going on in the grand scheme of things. So, it’s more pedal-based with The Roots because it’s about the more obvious and pronounced effects. And also, because I’m running around more on stage, I don’t have time to get into those particulars. The only person that would notice those complexities would be me and me alone. It’s a hip hop group essentially. It’s about the rhythm and drums – it’s rhythm and rhyme – and everything else is supportive of that.

For more information on the Kirk Douglas Signature SG visit Gibson's website.

Earlier this month, progressive rock titans Yes announced The Quest, their first album of new material since 2014's Heaven & Earth, and their first to not feature co-founding bassist Chris Squire, who died in 2015.

Now, the group – currently comprised of guitarist Steve Howe, drummer Alan White, keyboardist Geoff Downes, vocalist Jon Davison, and bassist Billy Sherwood – have premiered The Quest's first single, a seven-minute epic about climate change titled “The Ice Bridge.”

You can give the tune a spin below.

“‘The Ice Bridge’ opens the album in the dark and moody key of C minor, aided by the orchestra," Howe said of the song in a press release. "The rolling bass part kicks things into gear as the vocals and guitars start a winding journey through the various structures till the breakdown happens, where ice breaking is heard.”

Set for an October 1 release via InsideOut/Sony, The Quest was produced by Steve Howe, and can be preordered here. It features 11 songs in total – 8 on the main album with 3 extra tracks on a bonus CD – and will be available physically on vinyl and 5.1 Blu-ray and CD deluxe editions. 

You can check out the album's track list and cover art below.

Yes – The Quest:

CD1:

1. The Ice Bridge
2. Dare To Know
3. Minus The Man
4. Leave Well Alone
5. The Western Edge
6. Future Memories
7. Music To My Ears
8. A Living Island 

CD2:

1. Sister Sleeping Soul
2. Mystery Tour
3. Damaged World