General Interest

“Another company would have to make a guitar that’s more me than the JEM”: Steve Vai explains why he keeps sticking with Ibanez

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Steve Vai performing live

Steve Vai and Ibanez just go together. While he used to be endorsed by Charvel, and has used models from Fender and Jackson in the past, among others, he’s almost always seen with his signature JEM guitars.

And, in a new episode of Ultimate Guitar’s On the Record podcast, he explains why he chose Ibanez over other brands – and that he wasn’t actually a fan of the first guitar they sent him.

He compares Ibanez favourably to other guitar companies, explaining that they have history and creativity, in comparison to other companies who were merely “started by guys who loved the guitar” with “a little bit of business acumen.”

He adds, “[Ibanez] build whatever I want. It’s just amazing. Who would have built the Hydra? I don’t know of a company… they would have, but it wouldn’t have come out like that. So that’s why I stick with them. I have no reason to move because it’s worked so great.

“When you find good people to work with, there’s no need to go anyplace else. Plus, I’m kind of a specialised player. I’m not very authentic in any particular genre. I’m very authentic at being me. And when I designed the JEM, it was based around my idiosyncrasies as a player.

“The 24 frets at the time, that was rare, virtually non-existent with humbuckers. Jackson had a neck through the body that had humbuckers that were sort of Strat-shaped. But I just wanted 24 frets, and I wanted a big cutaway that fits my hand perfectly. No other cutaways on any of those guitars are like this. I don’t know why they give you the frets when you can’t play them.

“So another company would have to make a guitar that’s more me than the JEM, and I just don’t see it.”

However, when Vai was designing the JEM, not even Ibanez got it right straight away. He explains, “Even Ibanez, the first guitar they sent me, was hideous. It was nothing like my guitar. It was a weird shape, weird coloured, and totally nothing like what I had sent out. Nobody gave me anything that was correct.

“Tom Anderson was the closest, but it still wasn’t perfect. I mean, I had four completed JEMs. They weren’t called JEMs, but they were the prototypes. I had them hand-built. So I knew exactly what I wanted. But most of them sent back their instrument because most signature guitars, like if you play a signature Les Paul by Slash, there are certain things he likes, particular pickups, neck, and frets, but it’s in the body of a Les Paul.”

You can view the podcast here:

The post “Another company would have to make a guitar that’s more me than the JEM”: Steve Vai explains why he keeps sticking with Ibanez appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

“I was sitting around my house, drinking too many margaritas because I thought the world was ending. I got a call asking if I’d be interested in playing with St. Vincent”: Jason Falkner’s “oddball” guitars took him from Jellyfish to Beck and St. Vincent

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The journeyman guitarist and session pro developed a bass technique without owning one (landing him a gig with Noel Gallagher), discovered St. Vincent isn’t the musical dictator he’d expected, and knows his fans are impatient for his next solo album

Music store says theft of $2,200 Les Paul feels like “a punch in the stomach” amid plea to find the perpetrator

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CCTV showing a man stealing a Gibson Les Paul from a guitar store

A theft captured on CCTV at Bill’s Music in Catonsville, Baltimore, has been shared in the hopes of tracking down the stolen guitar and preventing further thefts from other music stores.

In what the store owner describes as a “punch in the stomach”, a Gibson Les Paul reportedly valued at $2,200 was taken and the thief managed to escape after being followed by employees, as they took the guitar into a getaway vehicle outside.

The individual in the footage can be seen wearing a cap and a partial face covering. Bill’s Music says he left in a grey Acura RDX SUV and believes it had a “borrowed” licence plate.

The individual has been captured across six different cameras throughout the store, which have been shared both online and via news outlets in the States.

Watch the footage below:

DO YOU KNOW THIS PERSON? If so, we would be very interested in speaking with him! Possibly driving a gray Acura RDX SUV with a "borrowed" license plate. See VIDEOS in comments

Posted by Bill's Music on Saturday, March 16, 2024

Brian Higgins, the shop’s general manager, tells CBS News, “We saw it happen as it happened. It’s almost shocking. You’re in disbelief somebody would be just that brazen to just run out…but some people get a little desperate and they’re just determined.”

Higgins says the store has never seen a theft carried out in such a bold way. Thankfully, the business will be okay financially, and things are still up and running as usual. “We have cameras all over the place. We have everything under lock and key. But, when it happens, it’s like a punch in the stomach,” he adds.

“Frankly, it’s more important to get this fella so this doesn’t happen to anybody else. If we get our guitar back, that’s great, but that’s in a way secondary to us.”

CBS states that a police report has been filed, but Higgins says the perpetrator is free to call the store. “The best thing you can do is give us a call, bring the guitar back. Whatever issues you may have, hopefully we can help deal with it.”

If you think you can help, you can call Baltimore County Police at 410-887-2222 with any information.

Find out more about Bill’s Music.

The post Music store says theft of $2,200 Les Paul feels like “a punch in the stomach” amid plea to find the perpetrator appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Glen Andrew Brown on Composing for TV, Movies and Games

Acoustic Guitar -

Glen Andrew Brown on Composing for TV, Movies and Games
Sponsored by Taylor Guitars: Composer, producer, multi-instrumentalist and Taylor player Glen Andrew Brown has made a name for himself as a BAFTA-award-winning creator of music for a wide range of media, from video games to television and movies. In this special video from the Taylor Guitars artist team, Glen demonstrated how minimal instrumentation—in this case, a […]

Gibson revives The Everly Brothers J-180, “one of the most striking acoustic guitars in music history”

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Two of The Everly Brothers J-180 acoustics photographed together under a spotlight

Gibson has announced the return of The Everly Brothers J-180 acoustic guitar to its Custom Shop Artist Collection lineup. Available in a striking Ebony finish, the model is regarded as one of the most “recognisable acoustic guitars in music history”.

Don and Phil Everly rose to prominence during the early rock era of the 1950s and early 1960s, with their matching Gibson acoustics in-hand. They released iconic hits such as Bye Bye Love and Wake Up Little Susie.

The newly revived model celebrates their legacy and features a maple body and a Sitka spruce top, plus all of the decorative details that make the Gibson Everly Brothers acoustic so renowned. It hosts an Ebony gloss nitrocellulose lacquer finish, double tortoise moustache pickguards originally designed in co-operation with the Everly Brothers, and mother of pearl star inlays on the headstock and neck.

The Everly Brothers J-180 also hosts a bone nut and saddle, TUSQ bridge pins, and Grover Rotomatic tuners with Keystone buttons. It comes with an L.R. Baggs VTC under-saddle pickup and preamp, and ships with a hardshell case.

Gibson Everly Brothers J-180Credit: Gibson

Speaking to Gibson Gazette, Phil Everly’s son Jason says, “When my father and uncle [Phil and Don Everly] first started playing and singing, the idea they’d have a signature Gibson guitar with their name on it would be ludicrous in the extreme.

“The fact that The Everly Brothers were given such free reign to design such a radical acoustic guitar (for that time), was beyond amazing. In my opinion, the Gibson J-180 Everly Brothers model is the most beautiful acoustic guitar ever built. At a glance, in that first split second, before your brain takes in the whole image of the guitar, you have an emotional connection.”

He adds, “You are looking right at Rock ‘n’ Roll, in its original form and spirit. It’s different. It’s beautiful and it makes you feel like you can change the world. My family is so grateful and humbled by all the care and dedication Gibson has put into our new Everly Brothers J-180. All the details, all the spirit and all the artistic dedication. It’s something only Gibson could do, and we are so proud to be a part of it.”

The Everly Brothers J-180 acoustic is available now for £4,799. Find out more at Gibson.

The post Gibson revives The Everly Brothers J-180, “one of the most striking acoustic guitars in music history” appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Joni Mitchell follows Neil Young in returning to Spotify over two years after taking music off the streaming platform

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Joni Mitchell performing live

Days after Neil Young returned to Spotify, Joni Mitchell has now followed suit.

The legendary singer-songwriter removed her music from the streaming platform over two years ago, alongside Young, citing what they described as COVID-19 vaccine misinformation being allowed to spread there.

In January 2022, Young said that he was pulling his music from Spotify due to its hosting of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, as he joined over 270 scientists and healthcare professionals of accusing it of spreading misinformation.

A few days later, Mitchell did the same, writing in a post on her website at the time, “Irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives. I stand in solidarity with Neil Young and the global scientific and medical communities on this issue.”

Young allowed his music to return to Spotify recently as Rogan’s podcast is no longer exclusive to Spotify, saying, “My decision comes as music services Apple and Amazon have started serving the same disinformation podcast features I had opposed at Spotify.”

For her part, Mitchell has not yet released a statement herself, with the latest news on her website being about her induction into the Folk Americana Roots Hall of Fame. But, regardless of her reasoning, we can now enjoy her classic tracks on Spotify as though they never went away.

And she’s been busy of late. Earlier this month, Mitchell, who turned 80 in November, covered I’m Still Standing alongside Brandi Carlile and Annie Lennox at the Gershwin Prize concert to honour Elton John and Bernie Taupin – she won the Gershwin prize herself last year too.

Last month, she performed at the Grammys for the first time – an impressive achievement particularly considering that she only returned to live performance in July 2022 after a brain aneurysm ruptured in 2015.

The post Joni Mitchell follows Neil Young in returning to Spotify over two years after taking music off the streaming platform appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

“It’s evolved into its own thing”: Richie Faulkner gives his opinion on Polyphia and the next generation of metal guitarists

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Ritchie Faulkner and Tim Henson

Richie Faulkner’s been keeping his eye on the next crop of metal talent and while he acknowledges that guitar music is “evolving”, he seems to think guitar music is in safe hands.

The Judas Priest guitarist speaks to Ultimate Guitar about the state of modern music, discussing the modern players he admires and where metal is going.

“It’s evolving,” he says. “You have the guys from Polyphia. I guess that’s metal, but it’s done in a different way. It’s evolved into its own thing. You’ve got some great players, right from the blues end of the scale you’ve got Joe Bonamassa and Jared James Nichols, and then you’ve got the Polyphia guys from the other end of the metal guitar playing chart. And everything in between.

“I think there’s room for everyone. There are a lot of good players out there with a lot of different styles under that heavy metal, hard rock, blues guitar banner. It keeps evolving the guitar. Someone picks up the guitar and plays something completely different.”

George Lynch, Zakk Wylde… I don’t think anyone works as hard as Zakk does to fly the flag for metal guitar and hard rock guitar. It’s pretty healthy and it’s still evolving. I think it’s based on the past and moving into the future, like it’s natural for it to do.”

Faulkner also goes into detail elsewhere the interview about modern guitarists. “I’ve just been listening to Simon McBride from Deep Purple,” he reveals. “He’s the guy that replaced Steve Morse. Phenomenal player. He’s got a great sound, great technique, and he’s different from [Ritchie] Blackmore and [Steve] Morse. He does his own thing. But it fits so well. He’s such a clean player. His technique is so good, but his sound fits into Purple, even though it’s different from the other two guys before him. I was listening to Simon last night and he’s a stunning player.”

The post “It’s evolved into its own thing”: Richie Faulkner gives his opinion on Polyphia and the next generation of metal guitarists appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Pattie Boyd memorabilia collection – which includes love letters from George Harrison and Eric Clapton – sells for nearly £3 million at auction

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[L-R] George Harrison with Pattie Boyd, and Eric Clapton with Pattie Boyd

Memorabilia belonging to Pattie Boyd, the former wife of both George Harrison and Eric Clapton, has sold for almost £3 million at a recent auction via Christie’s.

Among the collection are letters from the trio’s love triangle, as well as photos and drawings – including the original artwork Clapton decided on for the cover of Derek and the Dominos’ 1970 album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.

The artwork was expected to fetch between £40,000 and £60,000, but eventually went for £1,976,000, a huge chunk of the overall £2,818,184 the collection sold for in total.

There are also handwritten postcards and letters, plectrums, and dresses from the 1970s in the collection. One love letter from Clapton, sent in January 1971, was written on a page torn from a copy of John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, and was expected to fetch between £10,000 and £15,000. However, it eventually went for £119,700.

Meanwhile, the original handwritten lyrics for Harrison’s solo track Mystical One went for £47,800, while a photo of The Beatles in India in 1968 was sold for £52,920.

Model and photographer Boyd says of the sales, “I am completely blown away by the enthusiasm of international bidders for these special treasures that I have always loved.

“I am so happy that new hearts will now enjoy them, as they enter into their next ‘chapters.’ I am lucky that my life today continues to bring me joy and different adventures – I would encourage people to follow their passions and live their lives with gusto.”

She married Harrison in 1966 after they met on the set of the 1964 movie A Hard Day’s Night. Harrison and Clapton were friends, and Boyd divorced Harrison in 1977 before marrying his friend in 1979. They then divorced themselves in 1989.

For more information on the results of the auction, head to Christie’s.

The post Pattie Boyd memorabilia collection – which includes love letters from George Harrison and Eric Clapton – sells for nearly £3 million at auction appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

“Richard Fortus messaged me and said, ‘I’ve shown Slash your guitar and he likes it, too…’ After that, the phones didn’t stop”: How a small UK boutique builder became a Guns N’ Roses favorite and the next big name in retro-inspired electric guitars

Guitar World -

Ivison Guitars has only been in business for six years, but its Dakota model has already headlined Glastonbury with Guns N’ Roses star Richard Fortus. Founder Neil Ivison shares its story

This acoustic fingerstyle cover of Toto’s Rosanna is so stunning it’s been approved by Steve Lukather himself

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Steve Lukather playing guitar live

There’s no higher compliment when covering a song than receiving praise from the original artist themself. Well, in the comment section of Casper Esmann’s new cover of Toto’s Rosanna, that’s exactly what’s happened.

Under the video of Esmann’s acoustic fingerstyle rendition, Steve Lukather has left his stamp of approval. Apparently, the cover was first shown to him by an impressed Zakk Wylde, too.

Rosanna is the opening track to the band’s 1982 album, Toto IV. It landed as the first single from the record, and won a Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1983. In Lukather’s glowing feedback, he says he prefers Esmann’s bouncy cover to the original. A pretty big deal if you ask us.

“Wow man, that is so killer! Like your version better than ours!” says Lukather of the cover. “Zakk Wylde sent me this. Glad he did. Hope I see ya live sometime! Very touched you would bother. Thanks.”

Check out the video below, featuring some sliding capo wizardry:

Lukather is often supportive of up and coming musicians. In fact, the guitarist sympathises with the next generation of musicians as more artists are having to cut through social media trends and highly populated streaming services to get heard.

Last summer, Lukather told Rock History Music, “It’s really hard for younger people to bust out wide open, like we were lucky enough to do when we were young. You could have a single, and your whole career could blossom from that.”

He added, “The album sells, you get enough songs to go out and play for at least an hour, and build your career. Now, it’s like, if you don’t have one song and a million followers on Instagram, you could write Sgt. Pepper’s [and] nobody’s gonna take it.

“That’s backwards,” he said. “It’s like, ‘Wait a second, what do you need a record company for if you can get that many people to listen to your stuff?’ It makes no sense. So, a different world.”

Check out more from Casper Esmann via his YouTube channel.

The post This acoustic fingerstyle cover of Toto’s Rosanna is so stunning it’s been approved by Steve Lukather himself appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

“We’d play every territory in the world and then crawl off to die”: Pete Townshend talks a potential final tour with The Who

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Pete Townshend performing live

The Who have been going for six decades now, but they’re not finished yet. Speaking to the New York Times, Pete Townshend says he wants to create new music, and that the band want to undertake a final world tour.

The guitarist shares, “It feels to me like there’s a final tour where we play every territory in the world and then crawl off to die. I don’t get much of a buzz from performing with The Who. If I’m really honest, I’ve been touring for the money. My idea of an ordinary lifestyle is pretty elevated.

“I’ve been immensely creative and productive throughout that period, but I haven’t felt the need to put [new music] out. And if I can make it personal, I don’t care whether you like it or not. When White City came out and the sales were so slow, I thought ‘screw this.’ Nobody wanted me as I was – they wanted the old Pete.”

He goes on to contrast The Who with AC/DC, who “made 50 albums” that “were the same,” whereas he described The Who as an “ideas band.”

Townshend continues, “The Who isn’t [Roger] Daltrey and Townshend onstage at 80, pretending to be young. It’s the four of us in 1964, when we were 18 or 19. If you want to see The Who myth, wait for the avatar show. It would be good!”

Meanwhile, Daltrey himself also recently weighed in on the future of the band. He told The Times in January, “We need to sit down and have a meeting, but at the moment I’m happy saying that part of my life is over.”

He said that Townshend is the one who’ll decide the band’s future, but that he’s happy leaving it where they are. Now an octogenarian, will we see Daltrey and his 78-year-old bandmate on stage together again? Only time will tell.

The post “We’d play every territory in the world and then crawl off to die”: Pete Townshend talks a potential final tour with The Who appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

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