Guitar Player
25 stories
Guitar PlayerGuitarsBrian May on Freddie Mercury’s last days: “He said, ‘I’m not going to be here long. Just give me stuff to sing’” More than three decades after the death of Freddie Mercury, Queen continues to perform — a reality that once seemed impossible to the band itself. Mercury died of complications from AIDS on November 24, 1991, and in the
Guitar PlayerGuitarsWin tickets to see Tommy Emmanuel live in Northern California at Guitar Player Presents No other solo acoustic performer wows a crowd like the cat that graced GP ’s cover when we put a spotlight on the 50 Greatest Acoustic Players of All Time in 2017. Nearly a decade later at 71 years of age, Tommy Emmanuel
Guitar PlayerGuitarsElla Langley’s hit is about to break Mariah Carey’s Billboard record — and it started with a kangaroo Ella Langley is on the verge of making Billboard history with “Choosin’ Texas” — a song whose unlikely origin involves Miranda Lambert, a kangaroo and a story about getting pulled over by a cop. The 27-year-old country s
Guitar PlayerGuitarsNoel Gallagher on the day Johnny Marr bought a nine-pickup Strat: “This is the best bit of advice I’ve ever been given” Johnny Marr is preparing to send nearly 100 guitars from his personal collection to new homes at a Christie’s auction later this week, including some prized electric guitars from his Smiths years. But before the Manchest
Guitar PlayerGuitarsTony Iommi urged Ozzy Osbourne to skip Black Sabbath’s final show: “It was difficult seeing him like that” Tony Iommi admits he didn’t want to perform at Black Sabbath’s historic final gig in July 2025, and he also turned down an opportunity to record a final album with the band’s original lineup. The electric-guitar icon tel
Guitar PlayerGuitarsDavid Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen reunite for the first time in more than a decade: “This is also a step towards world peace” Footage of David Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen sharing a stage for the first time in more than a decade has surfaced online, offering a rare glimpse of the former Van Halen bandmates together in public. The appearance took
Guitar PlayerGuitarsWe review the Warm Audio Dirty Boy Jr. Overdrive, Fuzz and Booster effects pedals: "For players seeking a classic U.K. palette” Over the past 15 years, Bryce Young has made a name for Texas-based Warm Audio by effectively resurrecting legendary analog designs whose rarity and lofty prices put them out of the reach of everyday musicians. He began
Guitar PlayerGuitarsDolly Parton honored at the Emmys as Sally Field remembers her: “If there are truly angels on Earth, then we just lost one” Dolly Parton was honored at Monday night’s Emmy Awards with an emotional tribute from her former Steel Magnolias co-star Sally Field and a performance by Reba McEntire. Field took the stage to remember Parton, who died A
Guitar PlayerGuitarsDave Grohl on how Nirvana were blindsided by the success of “Smells Like Teen Spirit”: “We played that song for the first time and the audience went nuts” Dave Grohl didn’t realize “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was destined to become the defining song of Nirvana ’s career when the band recorded it for their 1991 album Nevermind . In fact, Grohl thought two other songs from the
Guitar PlayerGuitarsDave Mustaine names four bands that could reshape thrash metal’s Big Four — Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax: “I believe there are ways to do it” Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine has named the four bands he believes could form a new generation of thrash metal’s Big Four — and three of his choices are no surprise. Speaking recently with Czech Republic outlet Óčko, Mustaine
Guitar PlayerGuitarsBilly Gibbons and Dion had made music together but never met — until a remarkable backstage encounter this Saturday: “We instantly bonded” ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons finally met one of his greatest musical inspirations in person Saturday, September 12, when he and Dion DiMucci found themselves performing at the same resort. Gibbons and the Bronx-born rock and r
Guitar PlayerGuitarsWarren Haynes on the Allman Brothers vs. the Grateful Dead: “The Dead wait for the magic to occur. The Allmans force it to happen” Given Warren Haynes ’ assortment of band affiliations, solo recordings and collaborations, it takes a proverbial scorecard, or maybe a spreadsheet, to adequately track his long and accomplished career. It dates back to t
Guitar PlayerGuitarsThe Beatles share an early recording of “Norwegian Wood” — Hear the moment the sitar changed rock The Beatles have shared an early version of “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)” from the forthcoming expanded special edition of Rubber Soul , which comes out October 2 . Titled “Second Version — Take 2,” the recordin
Guitar PlayerGuitars"Money, it's a gas…” Pink Floyd collaborates with the UK's Royal Mint to release $6,400 18-carat gold guitar pick From Brian May to Billy Gibbons, many players have found great joy in swapping traditional guitar picks for coins. Pink Floyd have just flipped the entire concept on its head with an 18-carat gold pick that’ll fetch four
Guitar PlayerGuitarsGuitar Center is inviting players to test its new in-house guitar brand – but you’ll need to sign an NDA Ever since becoming Guitar Center CEO in late 2023, Gabe Dalporto has been determined to turn the store’s fortunes around. His latest idea: an in-house guitar brand. It’s a plan that’s been mooted for some time, with the
Guitar PlayerGuitarsRick Springfield: I played for the troops in Vietnam and ended up killing a man Rick Springfield was still a teenager when he flew to Da Nang, Vietnam, to play for troops in 1968. What happened next still haunts his memories today. He spent many of his formative years at an army camp in Broadmeadows
Guitar PlayerGuitars“George was my favorite Beatle, but the music was very simple…” Why Robben Ford’s dream gig with George Harrison turned sour George Harrison’s Dark Horse tour in 1974 has gone down in rock history for all the wrong reasons. The shows were plagued with issues, and the run was so bad that the Beatle wouldn’t tour again for another 17 years. For
Guitar PlayerGuitars"That Echoplex sound Eddie did at the end of Eruption was such an old trick. I thought it was cheesy. But Eddie was from the NEXT generation…" Joe Perry looks back over a lifetime of guitar playing Aerosmith's Joe Perry was born in September 10, 1950. Joe has been a pretty regular fixture in the pages of Guitar Player – the decades of the magazine's life almost mirroring his life in 'America's greatest rock'n'roll
Guitar PlayerGuitarsNew Van Halen book to include a 7" of their earliest-known song –a steal to you at only, um, $475 Van Halen have dug deep into the band’s vault and are pulling out their earliest known song for release as part of a super-limited-edition book. “Glitter”, which was written with original bass player Mark Stone in 1974,
Guitar PlayerGuitarsSteve Lukather on working with Eddie Van Halen, Michael Jackson, George Benson and other music giants: “I’ve had an extraordinary life” “I’ve had an extraordinary life,” Steve Lukather says. “I’m one lucky guy.” Indeed he is. Lukather spent the summer touring with Ringo Starr & His All Starr Band before hitting the road with Toto for their massive North
Guitar PlayerGuitarsHe's played with Mike Keneally, Marco Minnemann, and Ron Thal. Now Phi Yaan-Zek shows you how he uses the melodic minor scale Phi Yaan-Zek is a stunning guitarist and composer with influences ranging from Zappa to Stravinsky, Cardiacs to Mahavishnu Orchestra. His impressive CV includes working with musicians such as Mike Keneally (Frank Zappa),
Guitar PlayerGuitarsEddie Van Halen was asked to do a satellite linkup with Jason Becker – he insisted on doing it in person Jason Becker looked back on his 1996 meeting with Eddie Van Halen , and listed some of the things the late guitarist had done for him. Becker was at the start of a promising career when he was diagnosed with wasting illn
Guitar PlayerGuitars"They said, 'The secret to singles is 120 beats per minute…' But we're not a single band." The Megadeth album that makes Dave Mustaine feel queazy – and how he’d change it Dave Mustaine looked back on a period of Megadeth history in which he said too many mistakes were made – leaving him feeling “queazy“ about the album they’d made. Risk , released in 1999, was their eighth record, but it
Guitar PlayerGuitars"The Telecaster is a different animal!” Bruce Springsteen’s onstage sweating kept shorting his guitar out. Here's what he did about it… Bruce Springsteen has confirmed that he used to sweat so much during concerts that it would short-circuit his favourite Telecaster , and explained how the issue was resolved. The Boss is one of a number of big-name Tele
Nothing matches this filter yet.