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August 2026

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81 articles

August 31
- “I could phone up Eric Clapton. He’d buy it.” Robert Fripp on the six-figure guitar behind King Crimson’s breakthrough
- Billy Gibbons reveals Keith Richards’ text after Frank Beard’s death: “It gave me a lot to think about”
- Stevie Nicks wrote “Landslide” after Lindsey Buckingham left her stranded in Aspen. Now she’s singing it with Olivia Rodrigo: “She reminds me of me”
August 30
- Dolly Parton has been laid to rest in Nashville after a private funeral
- “We both said, ‘Dolly!’” Why Dolly Parton was the magic connection for Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris
August 29
- David Gilmour’s wildest Pink Floyd guitar sound was an accident: “I wired it wrong. David loved it”
August 28
- Adrian Belew on his hit-making sessions for Paul Simon’s Graceland: “He stood next to me and sang these parts. That gave me absolute chills”
- Roger Daltrey says the Who are rehearsing again: “It sounded great”
- Queen’s forbidden Iron Curtain concert brings Freddie Mercury, Brian May and the band back in 4K: “There will never be an event quite like that again”
- New video shows Les Paul’s home and workshop in ruins just before demolition: “It made me sick”
- Tom Scholz shares a rare Boston performance: ”One of the last available recordings“
August 27
- David Gilmour wished he’d written this Fleetwood Mac guitar solo. Then he had to play it: “Maybe I can’t do that”
- Billy Gibbons on the first time he saw Eddie Van Halen live: “That blew my mind”
- Tim Curry made a rock album with Alice Cooper’s guitarist — and it produced his only Billboard hit: “He wanted to have a singing career too”
August 26
- Dolly Parton knew “I Will Always Love You” would be played when she died. She wanted this song instead: “That was my daddy’s favorite”
- Tom Scholz offers studio rarities on 50th-anniversary edition of Boston’s hit debut album: “The most authentic version of this oft-reissued classic”
- John Lennon and Paul McCartney crack up while working out “Day Tripper” on a newly released 1965 tape: "We saw ourselves as full-time trippers
- Dolly Parton died of cancer, her representatives say
August 25
- “Instant sainthood.” Dolly Parton’s death brings tributes from Jack White, Slash, Steve Stevens and other rockers
- Dolly Parton remembered the little guitar that started her career: “It was my treasure”
- Dolly Parton, the Queen of Country, whose music spoke to millions, dies at 80, four days after she was admitted to a hospital
- “I was sitting outside like a stalker.” Behind Mikael Åkerfeldt’s high-stakes backstage pursuit of Ritchie Blackmore
- “I’m heartbroken.” Les Paul’s son speaks out after birthplace of modern recording and electric guitar is razed
August 24
- “Who’s that girl playing the resonator guitars?” Billy Gibbons called Norman’s Rare Guitars looking for a young musician he'd seen online in the shop’s videos
- Alex Lifeson says Paul McCartney convinced Rush to get back on the road: “You can’t argue with a Beatle”
- Television guitarist Richard Lloyd diagnosed with cancer as GoFundMe launched: “Through all of this, he’s fighting”
August 23
- Did John Lennon and Paul McCartney last meet in 1978 over a pizza in New York City? “I recall Paul asking John, ‘Are you making any music these days?’"
- “I loved Tommy, but I couldn't be around the alcohol and drug thing too much.” Narada Michael Walden on the night he walked away from Tommy Bolin
- Dolly Parton reveals the health issues she’s been battling: “My immune system and my digestive system got all out of whack”
August 22
- Former White Stripes drummer Meg White and friend targeted in tabloid stalking error: “They had no idea they were being stalked”
August 21
- Adrian Belew on the last time he saw Frank Zappa: “His voice was a whisper”
- “For decades, he has given us unforgettable music.” Chris Spedding is battling lymphoma — and a GoFundMe has been launched to support the guitar legend
- “The man shaving my balls didn’t tell me.” Robert Fripp says he’s still baffled by his bizarre hospital mystery
- See Jimi Hendrix in newly unearthed Woodstock video footage shot from the stage
August 20
- Brad Gillis says Billy Gibbons had some bad news after a bizarre backstage accident with a scorpion: “Those are the most poisonous”
- Vivian Campbell says his cancer has returned after treatment, but he’s not giving up: “There’s only been one time that I felt it was going to kill me”
- Ritchie Blackmore on why Deep Purple couldn’t survive with him and Ian Gillan onboard: “We just couldn’t be in the same room”
August 19
- The Beatles song George Harrison didn’t think was any good: “It might not be a song at all”
- Phoebe Bridgers forced to cancel Lost Weekend tour dates after requiring urgent surgery: “I got appendicitis for my birthday!”
- Simon McBride defends Ritchie Blackmore after Deep Purple jam: “I just said to Ritchie, ‘I’ll be your rhythm guitar player today. Just do your thing.’”
- The Beatles’ new UMG partnership recalls their greatest business mistake: Behind the blunder that cost them millions
August 18
- Behind the Beatles’ Abbey Road cover with Paul McCartney and its designer: “I thought, I’ve got to do this and get it out on Wednesday?”
- When George Harrison, Bob Dylan and a host of stars recorded in Dave Stewart’s kitchen: “He walked around the corner to see George trying to teach Dylan how to play ‘Taxman’”
- “There's a knock on the door. John was there and he had Paul with him." David Bowie on how he almost got former Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney back together in 1974
August 17
- “That song is literally about my band breaking up.” John Fogerty on the Creedence Clearwater Revival single that predicted their downfall — and ultimately became their biggest hit
- “He dipped the silver tube into a bag of white powder and shoved it up my snout.” Chrissie Hynde on her unforgettable first meeting with Lemmy — and the one band he truly loved
- Ritchie Blackmore recalls when George Harrison jammed with Deep Purple: “He said to me very politely, ‘Can I get onstage with you and use your guitar?’”
August 15
- EXCLUSIVE: Ritchie Blackmore reveals the story behind his emotional Deep Purple reunion. “I think we realized it could be the last time we see each other”
August 13
- “He’s one of the best I’ve ever heard. No question.” Mark Knopfler on the guitarist who blew him away
- “I’m really retracing my steps back to John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers.” Eric Clapton said he spent 30 years “meandering” back to the path he left in 1965
- “Can I state here that I hate the Police?” Ritchie Blackmore says the band helped bring Deep Purple back together
- “This is the high-water mark for me.” Joe Bonamassa and Martin announce two new Bonamassa signature acoustics
- Ritchie Blackmore plays “Smoke on the Water” as he reunites with Deep Purple for the first time in 33 years
August 12
- “It’s such a brilliant answer.” Johnny Marr reveals how Paul McCartney helped him come to terms with the Smiths’ breakup
- Brian May proves “We actually don’t need AI” with appallingly bad Meta attempt at Queen album cover: “So this is the kind of intelligence that will soon be ruling the world?”
- Ritchie Blackmore to reunite with Deep Purple for first time in 33 years. “It’ll be good to see the old guys again”
- “I just plain stole it.” The group that pinched an iconic riff from the Who to make two of the 1970s’ greatest power-pop hits
August 11
- Warren Haynes on the guitarists who changed his life: “He was millions of people’s first guitar hero”
- “What happened with Kurt Cobain was the worst example.” Chris Cornell said “punk rock guilt” contributed to the Nirvana guitarist’s suicide
- Billy Strings says his mother made the cover of his new album just before she died: “It was the last thing she touched”
August 10
- “You can call the police or do whatever you’re going to do to me, but I’m taking it.” How Bob Weir stole one of his favorite guitars from George Benson
August 9
- “She wasn’t feeling very good those days. The longer it went on, the worse it got.” The long road to Lucinda Williams’ breakthrough album — and the creative partnership that didn’t survive it.
August 8
- Lindsey Buckingham says he and Stevie Nicks are “talking all the time now” — and hints that “quite a few things will reveal themselves” next year
August 7
- Robert Plant lost at chess to a teen fan who didn’t realize he was playing his idol. “He’s one of my favorite music artists!”
August 6
- “And in comes this thin, 98-pound, translucent dude.” The guitar legend who launched David Bowie and John Lennon to the top of the charts, got high with Paul McCartney and talked back to Chuck Berry
- David Lee Roth recalls the night Tony Iommi thought he’d kidnapped Ozzy Osbourne: “What did you do to Ozzy?!”
- Tony Iommi’s new bassist thought she’d lost the gig on day one. “Could we get a quick photo together, in case I never see you again?”
- Joe Bonamassa reveals one of the most-played guitars in his 600-plus collection: “It’s basically a Gibson Les Paul jammed into a Fender Telecaster”
- Joe Bonamassa says toxic guitar culture has gone too far: “It caused this guy to go into therapy”
August 5
- Todd Rundgren on the Jimi Hendrix album that changed everything: “This was the first real Jimi Hendrix album”
- David Lee Roth’s Skyscraper drove Billy Sheehan out. ”The whole atmosphere changed“
- Song of the Day: The Journey single that became The Biggest Song of All Time. “They said, ‘Play something dumb!’”
- The Eric Clapton album David Gilmour says every guitarist should study. “Eventually, you will find your own style from that”
August 4
- “Come on, get a move on!” John McLaughlin recalls the night Ginger Baker started throwing drumsticks at Jack Bruce
- Chrissie Hynde on James Honeyman-Scott’s tragic loss. “I am guilty”
August 3
- Tony Iommi reveals Ozzy Osbourne’s final text to him. “It was a hell of a shock, really”
- Richie Sambora on how the Bon Jovi partnership fell apart: “If anybody told Jon the truth, it was me”
- Eddie Van Halen's studio-used Kramer guitars are up for auction — with his cigarette butts still tucked beneath the strings: “Definitely and extensively used by Eddie in the studio”
August 2
- “He’s on fire, the real thing. I wish I could be like that.” Eric Clapton on the one guitarist who mastered the “difficult” art of modern blues. They’re no longer speaking
- “He’s one of the greatest there is, not just in blues but anything. He’s an alien.” Samantha Fish names the five guitar players she says will keep the blues alive
August 1
- Win tickets to see ZZ Top & Cheap Trick in Northern California at Guitar Player Presents