This model is a little different from Suhr's limited-run Aura guitars in that these are bolt-on and have more of a T-style shape. The guitar will have arm, tummy, and hand contours, as well.

I think specs are still being worked out, but it looks like the Oso will come with the option of either an alder or mahogany body and an option for a maple top. The models Suhr had on display had SSV neck and SSH bridge humbuckers with an option of either a string-through stop-tail bridge or Suhr's new 2-point vibrato bridge.

It's not clear yet whether there will be a standard model similar to their Classic series guitars or if each Oso will be made-to-order for the dealers. The neck profiles on the NAMM guitars were Suhr's Even C Slim .800" - .880" profile, which I've found to be very comfortable, and their Historic C .850" - .950" profile, which John describes as similar to a great LP '59 neck profile. Other specs include a 1.687" nut width, nickel frets, and a 10" radius.

While subject to change, it looks like the street price of the plain-top models will be $3,849 and the maple-top models will be $4,449.

I like what I've seen so far with the Oso model, and I'm really looking forward to trying one out once they start reaching stores.

Gibson is now offering vintage guitars for sale via their Gibson Certified Vintage program that launched today. The launch includes five vintage guitars from their vault: a 1982 Gibson Moderne, a 1961 Les Paul SG Standard, a 1956 Gibson Les Paul Junior, a 1959 ES-355 Mono, and what they are describing as a "pristine 1959 Les Paul Standard sunburst." However, only the '59 Les Paul and ES-355 appear to still be available as of this writing.

If you're in the market for a vintage Gibson guitar, I imagine this will be a great place to go to ensure you're getting an authentic vintage guitar. They say that all Gibson Certified Vintage guitars sold will come with "a detailed letter of appraisal confirming the provenance and history of the instrument, a certificate of authenticity, and exclusive case candy. In an industry first, all guitars will receive a new lifetime limited warranty."

The guitars are sold via the Gibson Garage and can be picked up there, but it looks like they'll offer shipping as well. Keep an eye on the Gibson Certified Vintage page for more guitars in the future.

David Galvañ recently reached out to let me know about his Kickstarter project to fund his Altar guitar, bass, and amp stand. It looks like the project was funded in the last few days, but there are still a few days to back the project.

The combo stand starts at €48. Unfortunately, for those of us in the US, the shipping costs are a little prohibitive at €35, but David is looking for a distribution partner in the US to help lower those costs. Since David and his company are based in Spain, shipping costs are lower to many European countries and starts at €15.

As far as the stand goes, I think it looks like an interesting idea. I could actually use something like this right now as I have a corner with limited space where I'd like to put a guitar and amp. Additionally, I like the fact that some pieces are modular.

Here are some more details about the stand:

Altar is a new approach to the standard floor guitar stand or the wall hook. It goes beyond keeping your instrument accessible as it is designed to give the user a new experience, not only by helping to show-off their rig but to keep everything organized. The electric guitar and the amplifier are a nearly inseparable couple but they are mostly stored separately as well as the cables, picks, capo and other accessories which always are kept in a pocket of the gig bag or in a drawer or just laying around. Altar creates a totem with all the necessary elements; v shaped legs for the amp, height adjustable hook (for guitar or bass), a tray for accessories and space to hang the cables/straps/headphones to stay together neatly and handy because as it is said "out of sight, out of mind". 

I first heard about the band Goose early last year. I'm not generally a big fan of jam bands, but for some reason Goose has really hit home for me. And, based on their ever-growing fanbase, they seem to be hitting home for a lot of people.

What sets them apart for me from some of their peers is their strong songwriting skills coupled with vocalist and guitarist Rick Mitarotonda's playing and singing. Additionally, I enjoy the interplay between Rick and guitarist/keyboardist Peter Anspach. For that matter, I think all of the band members add a unique flavor to the band's sound, which has gotten them noticed by such luminaries as Trey Anastasio and Bob Weir. In fact, Goose toured with the Trey Anastasio Band last fall and recently played a show in Mexico with Weir's Dead and Company.

If you're interested in the type of gear Rick and Peter play, Premier Guitar did a Rig Rundown with them last year. In short, Rick plays a Paul Reed Smith Hollowbody II into Mesa amps, and Peter plays a Suhr Mateus Asato signature guitar through Fender-style amps.

Another aspect that Goose does a really good job at is marketing. They professionally record every show and stream it live through nugs.net. They also upload a selected number of full shows to their YouTube channel for free. If you prefer audio over video, every show is uploaded to the band's Bandcamp page. The band played two shows in Nashville last year and, though I didn't attend either one, I listen to the March 4, 2022 show all the time.

One of my favorite shows they've shared on YouTube is their show from last year at Radio City Music Hall, where Anastasio guested with the band for several songs:

This show seemed to be the point where the band started getting noticed by more people (deservedly so).

If you haven't heard Goose yet, I highly recommend checking out the Radio City Music Hall show above or perusing their YouTube channel. If you prefer studio recordings, I also highly recommend their June 2022 release Dripfield.

Carter Vintage Guitars will become part of The North American Guitar and together they will pursue a shared mission to bring the world’s finest guitars and instruments to players, collectors, and enthusiasts worldwide. CVG co-founders Walter and Christie Carter will remain at the helm of the vintage instrument operations from their iconic location in Music City, Tennessee.

The Gibson Garage, located in the heart of Downtown Nashville, combines a live performance venue with interactive brand storytelling, a Custom Shop Made To Measure experience, historical and celebrity memorabilia displays, a Repair & Restoration Center, and a public retail shopping experience with hundreds of guitars, amps, and pro audio gear from Gibson USA, Gibson Acoustic, Gibson Custom Shop, Epiphone, Kramer, Mesa Boogie, and KRK.

Americans seem to be listening to more vinyl records amid the pandemic.

In fact, vinyl outsold CDs for the first time since the 1980s, according to a recently released mid-year report from the Recording Industry Association of America. The report underscoring the state of the U.S. music industry captured how people's music listening has changed during the coronavirus crisis.

Kenny Wayne Shepherd’s fiery leads, meaty rhythms, and hard-driving songs have propelled his robust career through nine solo records – three certified platinum, major tours with Buddy Guy, Van Halen, and The Rolling Stones, and an ongoing collaboration with blues-supergroup The Rides with Stephen Stills. The Kenny Wayne Shepherd Stratocaster features a chambered ash body for vibrant and resonant tone, while the Transparent Faded Sonic Blue lacquer finish highlights the beautiful ash grain. The early ‘60s inspired “C”-shaped maple neck and bound rosewood fingerboard—with a 7.25” radius—offer comfort and playability straight out of Fender’s golden age. Loaded with three Kenny Wayne Shepherd custom pickups, this guitar delivers punchy and full-throated Strat tones.

Based on a classic low gain overdrive circuit which Brian has tweaked to perfection, The Claymore is a strictly limited edition pedal designed to commemorate the immeasurably sad passing of our tone brother, Alex Abernathy Clay. We loved Alex - theres no other way to phrase it - he was the baby in our team, the soft spoken gentleman with a wicked sense of humor, and everyone at Wampler Pedals is mourning his loss harder than anyone would like to admit. He was a devoted husband to his childhood sweetheart Jessica, and a proud loving father to Tyler and Grayson, and all of the profits from this pedal will go to them.

For the first time ever, the story of guitar pedals and effects will be told by the people who make them and the artists that use them. Coming this summer, The Pedal Movie—Reverb's first-ever feature-length film—will dive into the culture of pedals and tell the story of how a small industry grew from a handful of companies into the galaxy of different makers building pedals today.

Romeo-SC is the first Eastman guitar to include a lipstick style pickup,  via  Seymour Duncan's Vintage Stack in the neck - in addition to a  Seymour Duncan ’59 pickup in the bridge. This allows for an incredibly versatile range of tones that seduces the imagination from all genres. It’s also the first guitar in the lineup to feature a beautiful Red Burst finish, found exclusively on Romeo.

Ampire is a feature length film which takes a fun peek into the evolution of ‘Sound’: the Amp and the ever changing voice it has given the guitar. Ampire is loaded with laughs, great behind the scenes stories, little known facts and even a few secrets. All new, never before seen interviews with artists and band members of The Doors, Rush, R.E.M., Cheap Trick, John 5, Pat Metheny (2018 Lifetime Achievement Award), Lita Ford, Pete Thorn, Joe Bonamassa, Paul Gilbert, Black Eyed Peas, K.D. Lang, Rob Zombie, Chris Cornell, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Gilad Hekselman, Peter Bernstein, Jefferson Airplane, Alice Cooper, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley’s bands are featured.

Guitar hoarding is still around. Social media is filled with people who share their latest instrument purchases. It’s an illness and they lovingly know it! People post photos of guitar collections that fill entire rooms. Once the guitar-collecting compulsion takes hold, you seldom can give it up—unless you can find a way to put it to good use. That’s what I did in my mid-40’s. I took a more minimalist approach in my lifestyle during the 1990’s after reading the book “Voluntary Simplicity” by Duane Elgin. In the past two decades, I haven’t really given up buying guitars and ukuleles, but now I buy them to share on loan or as gifts to kids that are with out. At any given time, I probably have 90 to 100 instruments in circulation to kids so they can take music lessons and practice at home. It’s a way of putting my hoarding tendencies to good use and I still get the pleasure of finding new instruments.

Billie Joe Armstrong’s guitar tone on Green Day’s groundbreaking album Dookie sounded dirty and punchy with the perfect amount of articulation to express the musicality of his fast, melodic riffs. He got that sound by running his signal through two heavily modified amplifiers—one scooped with a ton of gain and the other with a well-defined midrange. When it came time to mix the record, the band blended the two signals together in different ratios to match the vibe of each track. The MXR Dookie Drive Pedal captures the sound of both the amps used on that record in a single pedal so that you can dial in your own variations of the famous Dookie sound. We borrowed the amps themselves so that the MXR team could carefully analyze all the sonic qualities that make them sound so darn good. After much analysis and A/B testing, our engineers rebuilt the amps from scratch in pedal circuit form and fit them into a single housing. The High Gain and Crunch Gain sections each have their own controls, while the Blend control allows you to mix them together just like Green Day did in the studio. If you want some extra scoop in the midrange of the overall output signal, just hit the Scoop switch. The Dookie Drive isn’t just for Green Day fans—this totally unique pedal provides a full harmonic range of overdriven tones for a playing experience that is full of depth and dimension. To celebrate the launch of Green Day's eclectic thirteenth studio album "Father of All...", this special limited edition version of the pedal features the album cover's rainbow-upchucking unicorn over a brushed aluminum housing. In the words of Billie Joe: "Nothing says f*** you like a unicorn."

A collaboration between Mythos Pedals and guitarist Rhett Shull, the Lark is inspired by one of Rhett’s favorite 60’s combo amps. The 5 watt, tremolo laden, Kalamazoo made amplifier that inspired this pedal has been a studio favorite for years and for the first time you have the unique tone of this small combo in pedal format.

The Lark features a unique drive circuit with an interactive Overdrive control that, in essence, functions like your guitars volume knob in front of cranked amp. With the overdrive set low you have a clean tone that just nudges the sound more towards a small combo. As you crank the overdrive things get hairy and sound big and punchy. Internally if you want to fatten things up there is a Body trim pot that lets you cut bass and sound more like a small amp, or keep things nice and full. The Tremolo circuit has a single external Frequency control that controls the speed of tremolo. The Tremolo is activated via footswitch and features an internal depth control to go from subtle to choppy.

• Interactive Overdrive circuit with Germanium clipping diodes.

• Internal Body control to shape pedals overall tone.

• Classic sounding Tremolo circuit with internal Depth control.

• Red Amp Jewel Light

• Top Mount Jacks

• Top quality jacks, switches, pots, and components throughout.

A unique collaboration between Mythos Pedals and guitarist R.J. Ronquillo! The SusMaryOsep! is a 3-in-1 do it all pedal that offers players a clean boost, the Herculean V2 overdrive, and simple yet musical echo circuit.

In early 2019 R.J. approached me to put the Herculean V2 and a slap echo in one box. Initially the idea was just for echo to have a single mix control, eventually we added a Time and Feedback trim controls to the side. We added the boost after the name came, SusMaryOsep is a common Filipino slang word and we think is befitting of this 3-in-1 stompbox. The color, had to be a strong Teal and while the LEDs don’t look it, they light up a bright Pink!

• Tight/Punchy clean boost with slight boost at minimum and approx. 20dB at max.

• Herculean V2 offers up clear and bright to dark and smokey overdrive sounds.

• Echo circuit features a PT2399 chip with approx. 450ms of delay time. External Mix slider with side accessible Time and Feedback trimpots.

• Top Mount Jacks

• True Bypass Switching

• Top quality jacks, switches, pots, and components throughout.

Today, on the first day of the 2020 Winter NAMM Show, PRS Guitars is pleased to announce two new updates to the John Mayer Silver Sky model, including a long-awaited maple fretboard option, two new colors, and a limited run with a flip-flop premium finish.

Limited to only 500 pieces worldwide, the Silver Sky Limited Edition in “Nebula” finish is another exciting offering from PRS Guitars in 2020. This premium limited-edition is outfitted with a unique “flip-flop” finish that reflects hue and light differently at different angles. The polychromatic finish accentuates the lines of the Silver Sky’s body and gives the guitar a dynamic look that is both delicate and powerful. Perfectly timed with the start of a new decade, this finish also reflects the Silver Sky’s goal to redefine what a vintage-inspired guitar can be and shift the focus to the future.

Beloved by country players and indie rockers alike for its semi-hollow warmth, rounder twang and elegant appearance, the Telecaster® Thinline is a classic in its own right within the venerable Telecaster lineup. The American Original 60s Telecaster Thinline recreates this sophisticated six-string with tastefully modernized playability.

Tim Shaw designed 60s Telecaster Thinline pickups deliver authentic late sixties Tele tones, while the 21 Vintage Tall frets and a 9.5” radius contribute to comfortable playability. Other touches include original-era body radii, vintage-style hardware - including F logo tuners, vintage-style hardshell case and a lacquer finish that lets the wood breathe naturally with resonant tone, and wears in a distinctively appealing way.

Dapper and bold – the Uptown Strat® commands attention when it enters a room. Static White lacquer highlights and accentuates the slab mahogany body, a bound and block inlaid rosewood fingerboard radiates class and a pair of chrome DoubleTap™ humbucking pickups draw the eye. Featuring a 24.75” mahogany neck with 22 medium-jumbo frets and a 9.5” radius, 2-point Synchronized Tremolo System, and individual volume and tone controls for each pickup, the Uptown Strat is as versatile as it is unique.

One of the most outlandish models offered by Fender® over the years, the Maverick – also known as the Custom – may just be the boldest of them all. Comprised of leftover 12-string necks, bodies and pickups transformed into a very unique 6-string. It was like nothing else on the market, with a kind of misfit glamour that made it greater than the sum of its parts. Whether you loved it or not, playing a Maverick was a statement. Inspired by the bravado of that original model, the Maverick Dorado kicks up the swagger with a pair of Tim Shaw designed Filter’Tron™ style humbucking pickups, a Bigsby® vibrato and dark ebony fingerboard. Available in Mystic Pine Green, 3-Color Sunburst and Firemist Gold, you’re sure to cause a sensation with your Maverick Dorado.

The Ernie Ball Music Man Sabre guitar features an okoume body, a carved maple top, and custom Ernie Ball Music Man humbucking pickups, delivering lively, dynamic sound with a striking clarity and sustain. Aesthetically, the Sabre is equally compelling. Its bookmatched premium top is adorned with natural binding, which elegantly highlights the raw beauty of the figured maple wood grain. Crafted with a slender, contoured body and slightly wider neck (1 11/16″ at the nut), the Sabre guitar provides unmatched playability. Equipped with a roasted figured maple neck, Schaller locking tuners, a 5-way switch, and Ernie Ball Music Man’s super smooth modern tremolo system. The Sabre is truly the player’s guitar. Offered in the Cobra, Boujee Burst, Honey Suckle, and Blue Moonstone finish options.

It’s time to rethink what an acoustic-electric guitar can do. Do you want to play leads all the way up the neck? Play longer? Play louder? Now you can with this super-comfortable, easy-to-play acoustic-electric from Martin. The all-new SC-13E, with its patent-pending Sure Align^TM neck system, gives you full access to all frets so you can comfortably reach those high notes. It’s also equipped with a new, low-profile velocity neck barrel that ergonomically accommodates your hand as you move up the neck, giving you the comfort and playability of an electric. It was designed from the ground up to be plugged in, and its asymmetrical body shape provides balanced output, giving you more gain before feedback. So the next time you’re on stage with an SC-13E, go ahead, play it loud. But, don’t forget, the SC-13E is still a Martin, so it sounds amazing unplugged. And with the limitations of the conventional cutaway acoustic-electric removed, you can now play your way, any way, without limits.

Terrific for any kind of music, Fender’s Princeton is simply one of the most versatile and beloved guitar amplifiers of all time. It delivers quintessential Fender tonal response, reverb and tremolo; and it is the perfect size for guitarists who want a moderately powered amp for any stage or studio situation. And in the modern pedalboard era, it is the perfect platform for tone building. Highly collectable 1960s models bring big money on the vintage gear market. These originals, as well as long-running Fender reissue models, are used on every stage and in every venue worldwide. Hand-wired in Corona, Calif., the 12-watt ’64 Custom Princeton Reverb joins this prestigious group. Premium features include: Hand-wired AA1164 circuit with tube-driven spring reverb and tremolo, Fender Vintage Blue tone capacitors, Three 12AX7 and one 12AT7 preamp tubes, 5AR4/GZ34 rectifier tube, Matched pair of 6V6 power tubes, 12 watts output power, 10” Jensen® alnico P10-R speaker for sparkling clean tones and moderate breakup, Solid pine cabinet for resonance and lighter weight, Extra-heavy textured vinyl covering, Lightly aged silver grille cloth, Footswitch and amp cover included.

The Fender Stories Collection pays tribute to legendary musicians, their beloved modified Fender electric guitars and the extraordinary music they created together. Eric Johnson already had his 1954 "Virginia" Stratocaster® when he recorded Tones* and the Platinum Ah Via Musicom**, groundbreaking albums that made him a hero to music fans and guitarists alike. To this day, Eric continues to release brilliant music, tour constantly and is, to the electric guitar community, a savant and widely followed tastemaker. In 2020, for the first time, Eric's 1954 Virginia Stratocaster will be replicated by both Fender Custom Shop and the Fender Corona Production line in limited numbers. With its rare rift/quartersawn sassafras body, lacquer finish, custom wiring and more, the Eric Johnson 1954 Virginia Stratocaster will thrill players and collectors alike with its distinctive look and exceptional tone.

Tom Morello's unique, powerful sounds - from gentle rhythms to screaming feedback, chaotic stutters, and more - require a very special Stratocaster®. The Tom Morello “Soul Power” Stratocaster – based on the modified Designer Series Strat used during his time in Audioslave – features an alder slab body with binding and a "Deep C"-shape maple neck with 9.5"-14" compound radius rosewood fingerboard and 22 medium-jumbo frets. Other features include a recessed Floyd Rose® locking tremolo system, Seymour Duncan Hot Rails bridge humbucker, two Fender® Noiseless™ pickups in the neck and middle positions, chrome pickguard, kill-switch toggle, locking tuners, matching painted headcap and iconic "Soul Power" body decal in the black Fender case.

NASHVILLE, TN (January 7, 2020) Gibson today announced GIBSON TV, the iconic American-made guitar maker’s first-ever all-original network. Featuring original series from the world’s best storytellers, GIBSON TV launched worldwide today, January 7, with the first episodes of the series titled “THE PROCESS” and “THE COLLECTION” available for streaming. All GIBSON TV original shows will be streamed via Gibson.com (HERE); subscribe to GIBSON TV (HERE)

• “THE PROCESS” – Season 1 of “The Process” takes a cinematic look at Gibson’s crown jewel, the main Gibson USA Factory in our hometown of Nashville, TN. This landmark series will take viewers on an episodic look at the physical process of how a Gibson guitar is made as well as introduce them to the artisans who hand-craft these beloved instruments.

• “THE COLLECTION” – In this series, host Mark Agnesi will take viewers on a deep dive into the extraordinary, personal guitar collections of music’s biggest artists.

• “THE SCENE” – This travel and lifestyle series follows host Mark Agnesi to cities around the US and aboard to find the coolest music destinations that help make up that city’s music scene.

• “MY FIRST GIBSON” – An epic series that gives the artists the stage to tell the story of how and why they acquired their first Gibson guitar, delving into their musical history and influences and playing style.

• “ICONS” – This longform interview series sits down with some of the most iconic artists, producers and music business pioneers. “Icons” explores a deep dive into the rarified world of these music luminaries.

• “BEHIND THE BOARD” – This “in the studio” series gives both musicians and producers a chance to look back and discuss the recording process in detail of their most ground-breaking and inspired albums.

• “THE SONGBOOK” – This special, acoustic all-performance series showcases stripped down performances shot in beautiful spaces from world renowned artists and up-and- coming musicians.

Brand new for 2020, the Excel Mini DC is a fourteen-inch-wide double cutaway semi-hollow boasting punchy vintage tone and unparalleled comfort. The Mini DC's undersized body, sleek headstock and slim C-shape neck profile combine to create a lightweight design perfect for players who want total control over their instrument. Strapped with Seymour Duncan 59 humbuckers and coil-splitting push/pull tone knobs, the Excel Mini DC offers a remarkable variety of rich tones and sweet sustain. Available in Black, Trans Cherry and Vintage Natural.

JHS Pedals is proud to release the Paul Gilbert signature distortion "PG-14!” This is a new and unique distortion pedal specifically designed to Paul's specifications. At the heart of the circuit is a FET based distortion engine that emulates the touch, feel, and the response of a pushed tube amplifier. This circuitry allows the player to have the dynamics and tone of loud stadium level amplifier at low/moderate volume levels. ALL THE MIDS CONTROL! A second unique and essential feature of the design is that an active mid-frequency preamp is located at the front of the FET distortion circuitry. This design feature gives the user a vast sweep of tonal possibilities with any amp or guitar combination. The PG-14 is an end-all pedal for adding the ultimate dirt channel to your amplifier. A bonus feature is that it gives you all of Paul Gilbert's talent, decades of experience, and countless years of practice! Just hit the footswitch!

Several months ago I decided it was time to use everything I've learned and improved over the past eleven years, and breath new life into this popular, but very old course. I shot new lick demonstrations, updated all the tablature, and created 12 new backing tracks. That work is finally done, so I can finally announce the release...

1) It needs to be affordable. This is pretty obvious, I suppose, but I’m not above writing it so you know nothing is implied here. If a guitar is too expensive, a beginner won’t buy it. They are hesitant and nervous about this whole venture they’re thinking about and don’t want to risk losing too much money if they end up not liking the guitar.

2) It needs to be acoustic. Now, I’ll admit that there are two camps of players out there: those that think you need to start on an acoustic because it’s harder and will build up your hand’s muscles, eventually making playing an electric guitar easier. Then there’s my camp that knows that this is easily one of the more ridiculous statements that could be thrown around and it’s REALLY all about player satisfaction. How a player feels is key to them continuing to learn. If you give them something that’s hard to play, sure, playing an electric will be easier down the road, but you also increase the probability of them quitting because it’s hard and learning guitar is already hard enough!

3) It needs to be easy to play. There are a few ways to make an acoustic easy to play: you can shorten the scale and make it a 12-fret. You can make the body smaller than normal and give it curves that are easy to negotiate. Dreadnoughts are unwieldy beasts of guitars that people have an odd attachment to, but they just don’t make good beginner guitars. They’re massive and tough to play when you’re a beginner.

4) It needs to look good. It all goes like this: a pretty guitar is a guitar that’s picked up more. And if you have it picked up, you might as well play it. And more playing means more progress and more progress means more playing because you’re stoked about your progress. That’s the musician’s cycle. An ugly guitar is ignored and your playing becomes stagnant or begins to regress since you’re not practicing.

5) It needs to sound good. Similar to looks, a guitar that sounds good (or at least has the potential to sound good) is a guitar that’s played and with practice comes skill and a stronger desire to play more. But what sounds good? Surely that’s objective, right?

6) It needs to grow with you. Think about any beginner guitar and you’re sure to think of the things that make it LOOK like a beginner guitar. Ibanez’s obvious “GIO” tag, Squier’s Fender-ey, but not Fender-ey ENOUGH logo, or Epiphone’s ridiculous headstock. The reason companies do things like this is obvious: they want you to be somewhat appalled by the guitars - or at least appalled enough that you won’t consider them and, instead, cough up more money for their more legitimate (read: pricier) offerings. They don’t want to cannibalize sales of more expensive guitars by offering quality beginner guitars that can handle a player that’s developing their craft.

7) It needs to be strong enough to withstand the knocks and dings the new player will absolutely give it while being light enough to be resonant.