Innholdsfortegnelse for Summer 2025 i Guitarist

Future Publishing Limited, Quay House, The Ambury, Bath, BA1 1UA Telephone 01225 442244 Email guitarist@futurenet.com Online www.guitarist.co.uk This month’s cover feature on customisation brought to mind all of the wonderful things – but also the potential pitfalls – of having everything your way when it comes to guitar design. Neville Marten correctly points out that one of the problems can be that, presented with the chance to do anything you want, you end up designing a guitar that’s decked out like a Christmas tree with a motley of disparate pickups, off-the-wall finish, bonkers wiring options and all the rest – and yet somehow it ends up being less than the sum of its parts. But if you approach customisation less like a buffet and more like making a favourite dish…

Those of us who revel in the glorious saturation of a valve amp running full-clip will be all too familiar with the eardrum-splitting consequences. Certainly, many of the higher-wattage amp behemoths only reach their overdriven best at volumes considered unusable in non-stadium environments. Way back in the 70s, load resistors could be found in the toolboxes of amplifier technicians, allowing them to work on valve amps without speakers connected, and occasionally bespoke designs would be found in the rigs of touring musicians. In 1980, Boston guitarist and technical wunderkind Tom Scholz, inventor of the Rockman line of portable amp-related products, released a pioneering loadbox in the form of the Power Soak. Various companies have subsequently produced such devices; however, the potential for catastrophic amp damage is always a simple mismatch…

The latest of Walrus Audio’s rapidly expanding Canvas range of utility items is the Canvas Rehearsal, which the company is promoting as an all-in-one rehearsal tool. Its basic remit is that it allows you to plug in and listen to your instrument through headphones or a connected sound system, playing along to its built-in metronome and/or any tracks you care to send into it through a mini-jack stereo input or wirelessly via Bluetooth. While you can plug a guitar straight in, the natural place for the unit is at the end of a chain of effects pedals to give you a more inspiring sound, particularly so if there’s an amp-in-a-box pedal involved. Walrus Audio sees the Canvas Rehearsal as the ideal companion for the guitarist with a pedalboard who wants…

Artist: Chris Brain Album: New Light (Big Sun Records) Chris Brain is a folk singer from Leeds, whose latest album, New Light, and engaging live shows have been causing ripples throughout folk circles and beyond. Chris’s songs have a pastoral warmth to them that his understated yet precise fingerpicking accentuates. “Angi [by Davey Graham] was the first major fingerstyle song that I learned,” he tells us. “My friend told me that if I go to a folk club I have to know how to play Angi.” When I played it at a club, they said they haven’t heard it in 10 years!” Style For Days Chris is a technically accomplished guitar player with a fairly unassuming approach that belies the depth found in his range of styles. “[After Angi] I…

Over the past couple of years I’ve regretted the sale of a couple of guitars. One was a Martin D-28 and the other a ’52-style Telecaster. The Martin, constructed with hide glue, struggled with my flat’s underfloor heating so had to go, while I simply didn’t play the Tele for a year. Anyway, I got online and narrowed down my choices to a Standard series Martin D-28 at Andertons in Guildford, and a Fiesta Red ’59 Light Relic Tele from Peach Guitars in Colchester. “In various shops I met Alvin Lee, Tony Hicks, Seymour Duncan, and a Beatle paid £10 towards a friend’s bass when he didn’t have enough cash” Calling in to Andertons one Sunday afternoon, the place was heaving. The shop’s acoustic expert Paul came over and –…

AUDIO http://bit.ly/guitaristextra Open tunings are very popular with slide players as they offer the facility of playing triads with one finger (or slide), giving convenient groups of notes with which to build licks and patterns. In this way, open tunings differ from ‘alternate’ tunings, which don’t give us an open chord. Either way, open or alternative tunings provide the opportunity to create wide-ranging, piano-style chord voicings that aren’t available to us in regular tuning. Though they have frequently been used on electric guitar (think Keith Richards and Jimmy Page), open tunings are particularly effective on acoustic guitar (look to Joni Mitchell, Nick Drake, Nick Harper, Jimmy Page and so on). For this reason, the examples here have been recorded on acoustic. They’re designed to give a useful vocabulary of major…

If the old joke has it that Hollywood journeyman Kevin Bacon can be linked to anyone in the film industry within six moves, the same was surely true of Rick Derringer’s thumbprint on the rock ’n’ roll scene of the 70s and 80s. The Ohio-born guitarist – who died in May aged 77 – was never a household name (although he came close with 1965’s Hang On Sloopy and 1973’s Rock And Roll, Hoochie Koo). But as a songwriter, producer, sideman, gun-for-hire or guitar designer, Derringer was never far from the A-list, making vital contributions to the work of such notables as Johnny Winter, Steely Dan, Ringo Starr, Alice Cooper, Meat Loaf and ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic. Inspired by Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley, and declaring himself “a natural” on his…

For almost four decades, the guitars that live closest to the edge of dreams at Fender are those built by the Custom Shop. What began as a means to give players the highest-quality classic electrics money could buy has become a place where Fender heritage is studied and venerated but also combined with the bleeding edge of tone-making tricks and mash-up aesthetics. And the hill of innovation keeps getting steeper as players become ever-more savvy to the options they could order for their dream guitar. Let’s find out what the state of the Custom Shop’s art is in 2025. How has the Custom Shop evolved over the past 20 years? Paul Waller (master builder): “I would say that when I started, we didn’t have the amount of limited-edition replica guitars…

VIDEO DEMO http://bit.ly/guitaristextra EPIPHONE JEFF BECK OXBLOOD 1954 LES PAUL £1,199 CONTACT Epiphone PHONE 00800 4442 7661 WEB www.epiphone.com What You Need To Know 1 Another Epiphone? Well, yes. The Epiphone division has certainly been busy. Not long after a raft of eight new ‘reissue’ vintage repros we saw earlier in the year, this replica of Jeff Beck’s fabled guitar was released at the end of June. It’s not officially limited, but we’re told once they’ve gone, they’re gone. What’s next? The Epiphone Jeff Beck Yardburst? Here’s hoping! 2 Didn’t Epiphone do one of these Jeff Beck Oxblood editions a few years ago? Yes, in around 2010 we believe, a pretty limited model by all accounts. That guitar would have had the then standard Epiphone headstock, too. 3 Hasn’t Gibson…

In a world full of digital modelling and mass-produced amplifiers, Dr Z has built a reputation the old-fashioned way: by building hand-wired valve amplifiers that players fall in love with and never let go. Before he was building amps for Joe Walsh and Brad Paisley, Mike Zaite – better known as Dr Z – was just a Cleveland guy chasing better tone… What inspired you to start Dr Z amps and what was your vision in the beginning? “My dad was a TV repairman, so the basement of my house kind of looked like what my shop looks like now, with tubes and chassis and things spread out and all over. I was fortunate enough to have a father who was very generous with his knowledge and loved to share…

Vintage dealers often place guitars into broad categories that correspond to their condition, rarity and originality, as well as the customers they attract. At the top end of the market, museum or collector-grade guitars may include highly original examples in outstanding condition or those that are exceptionally rare due to low production numbers or unique finishes. There are also those associated with famous players that command huge prices irrespective of modifications or refinishes. At the other end of the market, we encounter vintage guitars euphemistically described as ‘player grade’. These might include Stratocasters that once had locking vibratos, Telecasters with added pickups, and Juniors with tune-o-matic bridge conversions. With every pickup, bridge and parts replacement the value drops accordingly, and as a rule of thumb a refinish will be worth…

Open C Tuning Tutor Richard Barrett | Gear used Atkin J45T Difficulty | 30 mins per example NON-STANDARD OPEN OR ALTERED tunings crop up frequently in blues, folk and country music. One reason for this is that they can greatly facilitate slide playing. But another is that unusual chord voicings and inversions, which would be impossible in regular tuning, can be played relatively easily – depending on the tuning, of course. This does come at the expense of regular chords and scale patterns, but the whole point here is to get into some fresh territory. I’ve chosen open C (low to high: CGCGCE) for the example piece, inspired by Jimmy Page, who uses this tuning on the Zeppelin track Poor Tom. Honourable mention should also go to Justin Hayward, who…

Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter Session legend, pragmatist and no snob, Jeff’s playing has graced some of the finest records ever made. He talks about guitars on p112 Oxblood Test Jeff’s original was a mongrel that became an icon – can Epiphone’s new replica of that famous Lester really do it justice? p92 Molly Tuttle Like so many great talents to emerge from the Americana scene, Molly’s crossover appeal is only just getting started over on p48…

Originally, we were going to take a close-up look at two Grand Auditorium Taylors and compare the upgraded Builder’s Edition to its rank and file sibling. But then we heard the news that the 514ce is being retired in Europe and so our review has changed tack accordingly. Taylor never stands still for long and the company’s ongoing mission to review, upgrade and remodel its inventory is typical of a brand that is intent on remaining at the cutting edge of acoustic guitar design and manufacture. According to our records, the last time the 500 Series enjoyed a refresh was in 2022. Three years later and there’s movement within the line once again. The 500 Series has proved to be a popular one among players internationally and so it’s really…

Martin OM-28E Standard with LR Baggs Anthem £4,099 CONTACT Westside Distribution PHONE +44 (0)141 212 0087 WEB www.martinguitar.com Martin has recently upgraded its Standard Series. Gone is the ‘Reimagined’ moniker but retained are all of that range’s upgrades, plus many more that are significant for looks, playability and tone. ”One of the key updates,” says Martin, “is the use of Sitka spruce Golden Era [GE] top bracing, as featured on the Modern Deluxe Series. It offers a more vintage, ‘breathy’ tone with enhanced sustain.” Along with this comes a GE modified low oval neck profile, “optimised for vintage appeal with minimal increase in total mass”. Other playability enhancements include a thinner fingerboard with comfort bevelled edge, and more smoothly contoured belly bridge with bone (or sometimes ebony) pins. Aesthetic updates…

If there’s one thing I’ve been reminded of this week, it’s that the frets on your instrument are not to be underestimated. Most players understand that those little strips of metal spanning the fingerboard are important when it comes to pinpointing tuning and shaping the playability of an instrument, but what is less obvious are the different skills the experienced luthier must develop in order to repair and replace the frets on the multitude of instruments out there. With the history of fretted instruments stretching back at least as far as 1500BC, there have been as many ways to fret an instrument as you can imagine. Wood, metal and animal intestines have all been used to create stopping points along the strings, initially tied onto the neck (as with lutes,…

STAR LETTER CLOSING DOWN Driving in Salford recently I saw that PMT (Play Music Today) was closed, I later discovered that they had gone into administration. I bought all five of my guitars from them, plus my amp, straps, capos, tuners, strings and other bits and bobs. I also had my guitars maintained at the tech shop next to their store. These larger stores may not be to everyone’s taste, but they provide a service to many. I spent hours picking my instruments, and the staff were patient and knowledgeable. Sadly, this is a sign of the times; too many use high street shops to try out guitars and other instruments, then after having their fill, they go and buy online just to save a few quid. Now what will…

We first interviewed Molly Tuttle in issue 449 back in 2019 when she was playing a tiny venue in Bristol. In those days, she was beginning to gain recognition through YouTube videos that displayed her stunning acoustic-guitar technique, but she still wasn’t very well known on this side of the Atlantic. Since then she’s become a regular at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry as well as the annual Grammy Awards, having won Best Bluegrass Album for two consecutive records, Crooked Tree and City Of Gold. When we met up with her in London in May, she was about to play at the Royal Albert Hall as part of the Highways Festival and was eager to talk about her new record, So Long Little Miss Sunshine. It’s an album that signals a…

What was the first serious guitar that you bought with your own money? “That would probably be a Fender Jazzmaster. Because number one, when you grow up in Mexico, American guitars were so expensive. But I’d always wanted a Jazzmaster because Bob Bogle from The Ventures had one. I’d sent him a fan letter and he told me to buy one, but they were just too expensive. So when I went to the United States to go to school when I was around 13, I went to Manny’s [Music in New York City] with all the money I’d saved up and bought a Jazzmaster. And I still have it today. I love that guitar; I think it’s one of the coolest guitars ever.” What was the last guitar that you…

It might look like another very cool vintage guitar, but, no – this new-for-2025 Dakota Standard is the work of Worcestershire-based illusionist Neil Ivison. Arriving in its very practical logo’d cream Hiscox case (like many quality UK builds do), it just doesn’t prepare you for the time-warp vibe of the guitar itself. The Dakota came from a desire to create a more usable version of Gibson’s classic Firebird: “There must be a way I can make this more ergonomic but still keep the sound...” Neil mused when we spoke to him, back in issue 508 in 2023, about the origins of the design. Since that time, the Dakota has more than earned its place in the Ivison line-up alongside the Hurricane, and it now comes in single-pickup One format and…

There’s something delightfully different about ThorpyFX’s latest pedal: instead of the usual military-derived theme, this one is decorated with a floral graphic. The pedal takes its name from the Japanese custom of ‘Hanami’, where people gather to enjoy the transient beauty of cherry blossom season. But plug it in and you’re more likely to be enjoying the transient beauty of a ripping guitar solo – this is one powerful fuzz pedal! New fuzz pedals don’t appear in a vacuum, they are usually an evolution of a previous design, and Thorpy describes the Hanami as “a natural successor sonically from where the Boneyard left off… [sitting] perfectly between the Boneyard and the Fallout Cloud”. Now, the fact that the Boneyard was based on Tone Bender sound and the Fallout Cloud channelled…

“Knowing I could record on my own without the banner of Lamb Of God, and have it exist authentically, I gained confidence” Artist: Mark Morton Album: Without The Pain (Snakefarm Music) With Lamb Of God, Mark Morton has chugged and shredded away while running the thrash, groove and death-metal gamut. He dropped his first solo record, Anesthetic, in 2019, which was a little different in sound. But even then, influences outside of heavy metal weren’t so apparent… until now. Morton tells Guitarist that the Southern rock and blues vibes inherent in his latest solo record, Without The Pain, have always “kind of been there” for him, adding: “I was probably tuned into this kind of music even before heavy metal. Lamb Of God is a big band. It’s well known.…

One of the first things I do when picking up a guitar is play it unplugged. Before I even think about plugging into an amp, I want to feel how the wood responds, hear how long a note rings out and sense whether the guitar has that certain spark, like it’s alive in my hands. In my experience, natural sustain and resonance begins with the guitar itself, not the gear it’s plugged into. If a guitar doesn’t speak to me acoustically, I’ll probably move on to something else. Sustain and resonance are some of the most sought-after qualities in a guitar, giving the player more expressive control, dynamics and tonal richness. Simply put, sustain is how long a string vibrates after being plucked. Resonance refers to how freely that vibration…

On 23 June, it was announced that English guitarist Mick Ralphs, famous for his work with Mott The Hoople and Bad Company, had passed away at a care facility in Henley-On-Thames, aged 81. He will be remembered as one of the most influential rock guitarists to emerge in the late 60s and 70s, though he continued writing and recording with Bad Company through the 80s and 90s, and even released a pair of albums with his own blues band in times more recent. Born in 1944 in Stoke Lacy, Herefordshire, Ralphs picked up the guitar as a teenager and began his career playing in bands like The Buddies and Mod Doc Thomas Group, the latter of whom would go on to rename themselves Mott The Hoople in 1969. Their self-titled…

A customer walks into a shop. Nothing unusual about that, did you say? Well, the customer talks to the man behind the counter. And that man is Leo Fender. The customer has an acoustic guitar but wants to be able to plug it into an amp. He’s heard Leo might be the guy to make it happen. This apparently unimportant event happened around the start of the 1940s at Leo’s Fender Radio Service store in Fullerton, Los Angeles. But this walk-in would result in a guitar with a retrofitted pickup – in other words a customised guitar. And all this happened many, many decades before the Fender company opened an official Custom Shop, and indeed a number of years before the Fender company even existed. Of course, Leo himself wouldn’t…

ELECTRO-HARMONIX OCEANS ABYSS £475 CONTACT Electro-Harmonix WEB www.ehx.com What You Need To Know 1 Another Oceans reverb pedal? Well, Oceans is the family name for EHX reverbs, but this does more than its closest sibling, the Oceans 12. Naming it Abyss is about right as this thing goes deep! 2 Deep? Does that mean it has a lot of adjustable parameters? Yes, but there’s more to it than that: as well as two reverb engines, it has additional effects blocks – such as delay, modulation, gain and EQ – that can be placed into the signal path. 3 So, it’s more multi-effects unit than a reverb pedal… In a way. It offers composite effects that combine a number of types in a chain, but it will also do single effects…

‘Made in Hurry’ is a whimsical put-down we often use to refer to a guitar that’s less than perfect. The good old ‘guitar-shaped object’ is another. But while those far-from-complimentary terms see occasional mention in our review pages, we have to admit both are getting rarer. I can certainly remember, in the not-too-distant past, having to ‘sort out’ a guitar or three before I could actually attempt a review. Recently, well, it’s the exception. Now, we are talking about lower end guitars, but even that’s changing. Guitars are not getting cheaper. Have the price rises coincided with a better quality instrument? In some cases, yes, but even that’s not straightforward as, increasingly, the prices we’re given for new large-production guitars can sometimes bear little resemblance to what you might actually…

“ This is a virtually immaculate Jaguar Tan over Copper Mist Gretsch Streamliner. There is absolutely no colour fading, and the best part is that it has Western motif inlays on the fretboard. That makes it such a cool and unique piece, and it may have been a custom order because I’ve never seen another one. Then again, it might have been a 6120 fretboard that was just laying around and they slapped it on there. After all, we are talking about Gretsch. “Streamliners were not premium guitars in the Gretsch catalogue, but even so, you have to appreciate the attention to detail. Sometimes the cheaper Gretches were only some f-hole or fretboard binding away from being identical to the high-end models, and this Streamliner is essentially the same as…