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August 2025

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51 articles

August 30
- “That song was going to be thrown out. I did my guitar part in one take, and it went straight to number one.” Andy Summers tells why he deserves credit for “Every Breath You Take,” the Police monster hit behind his lawsuit against Sting
August 29
- “I’d been clean for over 30 years!” Pete Townshend on the Who’s farewell tour, and the health issues he had to kick to get back on the road
- “I couldn’t join a band with Paul McCartney. But it’s nothing personal.” George Harrison said he was open to starting a new band with only one other former Beatles bandmate
August 28
- “The Gibson double-neck I play is not an off-the-shelf model. I have to have them modified.” How the Eagles’ "Hotel California" forced Don Felder to modify his Gibson double-neck guitars — and how Chet Atkins inspired him
- “The call from Paul was a complete shock. I thought it was Mick Jagger taking the piss.” Studio legend Glyn Johns on Paul McCartney's shocking request to work on what became the Beatles' final album
- “Even though he says he wrote it, I wrote it!" Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page never agreed on which of them composed the song Beck called “the first heavy metal riff ever written"
August 27
- “It's this different sound, and it jumbles your mind.” From Taylor Swift to Phoebe Bridgers and Wilco's Jeff Tweedy — how indie rockers came to adopt a guitar bridge born from parts in Home Depot's toilet aisle
- “Eventually, you get to the take where it all comes together and it's like a firework going off.” Recording engineer Glyn Johns on why he never used click tracks when working with the Rolling Stones, Beatles and Led Zeppelin
- “They say they are owed millions in lost royalties.” Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland sue Sting over the Police hit "Every Breath You Take"
August 26
- “Honoring Ozzy and Randy last night. I’ll be damned if it wasn’t fun to play”: Grace Bowers impresses with flawless “Crazy Train” shred as she pays tribute to Ozzy Osbourne and Randy Rhoads
- “There was just an overall feeling that John was around.” Paul McCartney on the ghost of John Lennon and “strange goings-on” that marked the recording of the Beatles’ ‘Anthology’ hits
- Sweetwater has set the tone for Labor Day with a massive $500 off a rare Gibson and $300 off Dave Grohl's celebrated signature Epiphone
August 25
- “He’s never forgiven me.” Brian May is still upset about the controversial B-side to Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” single
- “We don’t communicate very well. He and I are very different and we have different needs as performers.” Pete Townshend on his and Roger Daltrey's problems as the Who set out on their final tour
August 22
- “I hate heavy metal, and I don't want to be in a heavy metal band!” Brent Hinds’ 2015 viral outburst revealed his love for Mastodon and the no-BS attitude that made him a true guitar hero
August 21
- “I would go to sleep early on a Friday so I could wake up and practice all the way ‘til Monday.” Steve Vai reveals the grueling practice routine that helped him become a virtuoso — and what drove him to do it
- "We are heartbroken, shocked, and still trying to process the loss." Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds has died in a motorcycle crash in Atlanta. He was 51
- “Ozzy told him, ‘Nobody can do that!’ Well, Randy could.” Randy Rhoads proved Ozzy Osbourne wrong with an approach to recording guitar solos that even Eddie Van Halen avoided
- It's official! New Beatles Anthology music, video and book coming this fall, with remixed "Free As a Bird" music and video out today
August 20
- “They changed their mind, and Paul said, ‘If Ace and Peter got on stage with us, the band could be called Piss.’” Ace Frehley on why he didn’t play the final show of Kiss's farewell tour
- "The police were banging on the door. The roadies held them shut until we’d finished the take." Ritchie Blackmore, Roger Glover and Ian Paice on the creation and legacy of Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water"
- “After five minutes, I was like, ‘Can I just go back to the dressing room and start this again?’” Noel Gallagher on his Oasis reunion gig struggles
- Is a new Beatles Anthology release on the way? Paul McCartney's cryptic Instagram post has fans hoping for a new collection of outtakes and rarities to go with the series that launched 30 years ago
August 19
- “He said, ‘You were betrayed.’ And that’s the first time I’d been given a word to describe the situation.” John Fogerty on losing Creedence Clearwater Revival’s music and the epiphany he had revisiting one of his greatest tracks
- “The next day, the phone rings, and it's David.” Steve Vai on accepting his most impossible guitar gig: playing Eddie Van Halen to David Lee Roth
August 18
- Win tickets to see Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals at GP Presents in Oakland, California, Saturday, August 23
- “It was a Les Paul — and it quacked in the middle.” Joe Bonamassa on why he turned down Peter Green and Gary Moore’s iconic 1959 “Greeny” Les Paul — and why Metallica’s Kirk Hammett was absolutely the right owner
August 17
- “I was going to come onstage dressed as Diana Ross. They didn’t think that was a very good idea.” Paul McCartney's 1973 TV special is a fascinating moment from his post-Beatles career
August 15
- “I’m getting one-word answers, and he’s giving me the stare of death. I’m literally sweating, like, ‘Oh my god’…” Anthrax’s Scott Ian recalls his favorite memory of Ozzy, and why he was dressed as Gene Simmons at the time
August 14
- $530 off an Ultra Luxe Tele? I’ve never seen Fender go this big on discounting American-made guitars
August 13
- “That would be great for you, Ringo!” How an unreleased John Lennon demo saw three-quarters of the Beatles write a song together, 40 years after Lennon's death
- “It shows you what you can do with two chords”: Did Van Halen's Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love really start life as a parody of the Ramones?
- “We headlined. He went on first, and he kicked our ass…" Joe Perry and Brad Whitford on the time Aerosmith were schooled by Rory Gallagher
August 12
- “A true grail that connects TWO giants of heavy metal”? Eddie Van Halen’s 1982 Kramer expected to fetch $3 million at auction this fall
- “They're derivative, and they think too much of themselves”: What Paul McCartney thought of Oasis…
August 11
- PRS are working on a Dumble-inspired amp that will make you "slack-jawed" says Mark Tremonti, as he reveals an unexpected Alter Bridge-Van Halen connection
- “Guitar solos got so crazy and had too many notes!” Former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Brad Gillis says rock needed grunge after the “prissy 1980s"
- “He was always the noisy one; we gained strength from each other.” Watch George Harrison talk about the power of comedy and why the Beatles clicked with the public in a resurfaced 1981 interview
August 9
- Mark Knopfler says three bouts of COVID have stunted his abilities – but he'll get over it
- “I recall Paul asking John, ‘Are you making any music these days?’" History says John Lennon and Paul McCartney last met in 1976. A friend says it was two years later over a pizza dinner in New York City
August 8
- “It was a fantastic guitar, and a major step up for me”: Zakk Wylde on selling – and buying back – his first good guitar, and why others should avoid the same mistake
August 7
- “There’s three main issues with him that are going on.” Candice Night says Ritchie Blackmore is facing health problems and gives an update on touring plans for Blackmore’s Night
- “Don’t you read the rumors? You’re working on a new album!” Robert Fripp offers a hilarious response to claim that King Crimson is in the studio making a record
- “He said, ‘I don’t have any fingers; I am only spirit.’ He wanted to utilize my body.” Carlos Santana says Stevie Ray Vaughan begged him to play his #007 Dumble amp from beyond the grave
August 6
- “I realized I was gonna look like I was trying to be Randy Rhoads, with the cream Les Paul, so I sent it to be refinished.” Zakk Wylde says his famous bull’s-eye guitar — used on Ozzy Osbourne's records — was the result of a design mistake
- “And then they couldn't find the tapes.” When Black Sabbath's master reels went missing, Steven Wilson discovered a “fascinating” alternative to remixing
August 5
- “We used to get handfuls of this bloody stuff and then go back home and stick it up.” Robert Fripp’s early music experiments were bizarre says King Crimson cofounder Peter Giles
- "There are only three things happening in England: the Rolling Stones, the Beatles and Terry Reid.” Guitarist Terry Reid, who rejected Jimmy Page's invitation to join Led Zeppelin, has died
- “Make the guitar available so that we can inspect it!” Former Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor insists the Les Paul he bought from Keith Richards is in the Met's collection. The museum denies he ever owned it
August 4
- “The heavy metal version of what John Mayall was doing in the late ’60s — finding Eric Clapton, Peter Green or Mick Taylor.” Joe Bonamassa compares Ozzy Osbourne to the godfather of British blues
August 1
- “I can only imagine how they would have reacted if they had seen us playing their guitars.” How John Lennon and George Harrison's early Beatles guitars found their way onto an obscure psychedelic rock album