Player archive

March 2025

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25 articles

March 28
- "It’s like you’re making a statement. And you never know where it’ll lead." Pete Thorn shares the tip that convinced Joe Satriani he was the right guitarist for the SatchVai Band
March 26
- “I just started playing a guitar riff, and out of nowhere David screams 'Ooh-wah-ah-ah-ah!'" Dan Donegan tells how a "warm-up" session produced Disturbed's signature hit, "Down With the Sickness"
March 25
- "Shredding is like talking a foreign language at 10 times the speed of sound. You can't remember anything." Don Felder reveals the unlikely influence behind his iconic guitar solo for the Eagles' “One of These Nights”
March 24
- "He said, ‘You get rock. I'm looking for that sort of guy.’" Joe Satriani calls him “the guitar player I wish I was.” But for Pete Thorn, making stars’ dreams come true is the secret to success
March 21
- “Everything’s on 10. That’s how you get the sound. If it goes to 11, that’s even better!” Tommy Emmanuel reveals his custom Maton electro-acoustic — and gives two good reasons to bring three guitars to a gig
March 19
- "Old-school guitar players can play beautiful solos. But sometimes they’re not so innovative with the actual sound.” Steven Wilson redefines the modern guitar solo on 'The Overview' by putting tone first
March 18
- “I played it for Paul Stanley when we were touring with Kiss. He had a look on his face, like 'What the hell is this!?’” Alex Lifeson tells how Rush’s early failure pushed them for their breakthrough success, 2112
- "I left my guitar and amps in the back seat. When I went back 30 minutes later, it was already gone.” Andy Timmons on the guitars that got away — and the best gear deal he ever made
March 17
- “Whoever sold it to you stole it from me!” Stephen Stills cut a deal to sell Waddy Wachtel his Les Paul 'Burst — and then forgot it ever happened
- "They're not your basic C, D and G kind of guitar chords.” His ex called to complain about her marriage. The result was his first hit song. All it took were some open strings
March 15
- “It was like standing next to a hurricane.” Eric Johnson on the night he and Stevie Ray Vaughan jammed Jimi Hendrix. Fortunately, someone was running tape
- “You might call it the blues. But to me it’s cultural misappropriation.” Ian Anderson tells why he clashed with Mick Abrahams and reveals what it takes to become Jethro Tull’s guitar player
March 14
- “I wanted to be the top gun of studio guitarists.” How Jeff “Skunk” Baxter ruled the 1970s session scene with Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers
March 10
- "I don’t keep anything I don’t think is good enough.” Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson is a hard man to please. Here's his take on Martin Barre, Tony Iommi and four other guitarists who have shaped his music for six decades
- "Pink Floyd had to borrow our instruments so they could play the show." With more than 5,000 recordings with ABBA and other acts to his name, he may be the most-heard guitar virtuoso you've never heard of
March 8
- "We used the mic amp of the mixing board to get distortion. It almost sounds like a synthesizer." Jimmy Page on creating the magic behind the famous Led Zeppelin riff he didn't write
March 7
- “This song is called ‘Fiend’ and I recorded it as a performance.“ John 5 fingertaps and shreds a new song in this live-in-the-studio video featuring his custom Fender Ghost Number Two guitar
- "Why it didn't sound like a complete pile of crap, I don't know! It's all riffs. The beat is marvelously tricky.” Steve Howe explains why his 'Close to the Edge' showpiece is so difficult to play
March 4
- “Playing power chords but with the E tuned to low D, it's cool. There's a little bit of sadness in there…” How Lilly Hiatt found domestic bliss and conquered her inner critic on new album ‘Forever’
March 3
- “He was upset that it had ‘douche’ in it.” It might be the most famous misheard lyric in rock history. Behind Manfred Mann’s hit cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Blinded by the Light”
- “I figured that if it didn't work, I could get a job if I had to.” Alex Lifeson on Rush's big gamble — '2112,' the album that became their global breakthrough
- "This is the guitar that didn’t get away — and it never will.” Mike Campbell says it's the original Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers sound, and the guitar he can't live without
March 2
- "He literally is an Iron Man! His fingers are not human." Tom Morello says Tony Iommi's lesson to guitarists is "Don’t be afraid to be simple and awesome”
March 1
- “Jimmy Page’s playing on the first Led Zeppelin album — we just hadn’t heard someone let loose like that.” Phil Manzanera talks Page, Beck, Townshend and the 10 albums that changed his life
- “I got sticky fingers. I thought, What am I doing here?” Paul McCartney said this performance ruined his chance to be the Beatles' lead guitarist