EXPLAINED: 2 | Vintage Vibes

“It was a nightmare. My only experience was playing in my room where I was alone”: Laura Cox on the challenges of transitioning from YouTube to the studio – and how to conquer them

The French guitarist made her name with classic rock videos on YouTube, but when it came to cutting her teeth in the studio, Cox admits it was another story altogether...

Guitar World · Jun 29

“It took me 10 or 11 takes to get the timing on the intro right. Jimi easily could have just done it”: The life and times of Dave Mason, the former Traffic guitarist who made a habit of playing on iconic tracks

The Traffic guitarist’s best work of the ’60s and ’70s was magical, but the stop/start nature of his career held him off household-name status

Guitar World · Jun 29

“I bought it for 100 bucks. The guy didn’t think it was fixable. Years later, he came to a show and saw me playing it. He was mad – said I took advantage of him”: Jeff Tweedy says his mom has an eye for guitar bargains – these are the cheapest gems yet

The $100 purchase was in poor condition, and when he got it singing, its former owner was vexed...

Guitar World · Jun 28

“Its popularity extends beyond jazz boundaries – notable players include Steve Howe, B.B. King and even John Frusciante”: Why Gibson’s longest-running production electric remains one of the world’s more affordable vintage guitars

In production for seven decades, the hollow-bodied ES-175 was the perfect partner for jazzers of the 1950s – especially at its original $175 price point

Guitar World · Jun 22

“It’s like the wind is at your back when you’re playing it”: The difference between a PRS Silver Sky and Fender Stratocaster, according to a blues hero who plays both

The guitars have their own unique qualities in Philip Sayce's eyes – and both are welcome in his rig

Guitar World · Jun 17

“Without the guitar, I’d probably be a professional dog-walker or in jail”: The life and times of Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell

Motörhead’s longest-serving guitarist was the perfect fit for a band whose bludgeoning sound and appetite for excess eclipsed all others

Guitar World · Jun 4

“I find that the electric guitar is almost a separate species”: Why being an acoustic guitarist doesn't necessarily make you an electric player – according to Eric Bibb

Bibb admits he won't be calling himself an electric guitar player anytime soon

Guitar World · May 31

“I sold the guitar to Bob Rock like an idiot for $10,000. Then Slash blew up, and I immediately missed out on about $150,000": Billy Duffy on the one guitar he wish he never sold

Duffy’s timing could hardly have been worse

Guitar World · May 30

“I was starting to get tired – as much as I hate to say it – of the very predictable Marshall sound”: Slash took his new favorite amp brand on the Guns N’ Roses tour without telling anyone

Slash pivoted from Marshall to Magnatone in a high profile move back in 2023

Guitar World · May 29

“It turned out to be the worst time to do an auction – his guitars really undersold”: The celebrity guitar auction where guitars did not sell for what they should have

Big money changed hands during the 2021 Neal Schon mega-auction but some collectors – Joe Bonamassa included – believed it was “brutal”, and he should have got a lot more

Guitar World · May 10