Guitar Player articles from May 2008

Guitar Player archives from May 2008

Noize from the editor.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] WHEN JOHN LENNON SANG, "JUST GIVE ME some truth," it was a far different era, and one populated with different demons. But, today, the truth is perhaps even harder to distinguish from fairy tales. Blogging,...

Letter of the month.(FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2008... I'm officially in the old fart's club, having just turned 50--and having been a GP reader since John McLaughlin was a newbie on the cover and the giveaway was a first reissue Les Paul Custom--but it strikes me as strange that John Fogerty looks...

Dear John.(FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2008... I love the success story of John Fogerty. It's the American Dream: Playing and recording simple music that can stand proudly beside the most sophisticated jazz and classical ever played, despite insane business and legal obstacles. I can still...

Shop talk talk.(FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2008... I was surprised to find March's "Back Page" containing a circuit photo. But then I checked back issues, and sure enough, you warned us about this "Shop Talk." As a full-blown D-I-Y addict, I'm happy to see this column. Sound, basic knowledge...

Robot.(FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2008... Great article on the Gibson Robot. I had been curious about it since it was trumpeted in the mainstream Wall Street/business press as a major breakthrough that would render standard guitars obsolete and set a new industry standard. That fodder...

Lyle workman.(FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2008... Thanks for featuring me in the March issue. Really cool. I would, however, like to clarify something: I intended no disrespect towards Blues Saraceno when I used his playing to illustrate the difference between a roots-based guitarist like B.B....

Hey, that's not funny!(FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2008... I was excited to see the "Extreme Sweeping Seminar" in your January issue. At last, an article to help guitarists with their day jobs! Peter Hartberger COVINGTON, GA

Steve Lukather.(RIFFS: Rock)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... "MAN, I GRABBED ONE OF THOSE HUGE GARDEN GNOMES FROM THE CASTLE, and I put it on the front seat of our tour bus," exclaimed Steve Lukather, entertaining some Swedish fans who happened to be seated at our table at Benihana in Anaheim,...

The Sword.(RIFFS: Metal)(.D. Cronise and Kyle Shutt)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] WHEN AUSTIN'S THE SWORD RELEASED their debut, Age of Winters, in 2006, it was a triumphant moment for fans of old school metal. Guitarists J.D. Cronise and Kyle Shutt's thick-toned caveman riffery served to remind...

Radiohead.(RIFFS: Oeuvre Easy)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] RADIOHEAD'S RADIO SUCCESSES MAY BE limited mostly to the angst-fueled 1993 hit "Creep" (from the British quintet's debut, Pablo Honey) and 1997's sweetly soaring lamentation "Karma Police," but it's no overstatement...

Coolest artist signature guitars.(RIFFS: Reader's Poll)(List)
May 1, 2008... By Guitar Player Forum Members [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] MOST NOMINATED! LES PAUL, GIBSON LES PAUL Johnny A., Gibson Custom Shop Johnny A. Signature Jeff Beck, Fender Custom Shop Tribute Series Jeff Beck Esquire George...

OK Computer, 1997.(INSPIRED)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] From the epic, crisply distorted guitar-and-cello intro on "Airbag" to the dreamy dean chords dripping with delay in "Subterranean Homesick Alien, the simple acoustic guitar and stompbox-driven sound implosions of...

In Rainbows, 2007.(INSPIRED)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Despite the widespread publicity about Radiohead's history-making decision to release In Rainbows directly from its Web site, the real story here is how the band triumphantly retains its trademark-sounds while...

The Bends, 1995.(REQUIRED)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Many Radiohead fans would argue that this sophomore effort was the band's best album ever. And it's a great place to start if you love accessible alt-rock with tons of guitar. Indeed. The Bends' provocative cavalcade...

Hail to the Thief, 2003.(REQUIRED)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Heralded as a long-overdue middle ground between The Bends and the extremely experimental albums that followed OK Computer (2000's Kid A and 2001's Amnesiac), Thief saw the return of bracingly prominent guitar...

Pablo Honey, 1993.(TIRED)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The complex, sparkling clean chords and solo mayhem of "Blow Out" and the unlikely worldwide hit "Creep" provided exhilarating glimpses of the inventiveness and songwriting savvy to come on later albums, but...

Kid A, 2000.(TIRED)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] While plenty of die-hard Radiohead fans lauded the band's fearless, albeit bleak, traipse into meandering techno experimentalism. this effort's almost complete lack of recognizable guitars (save for unremarkable...

John McLaughlin.(RIFFS: Jazz)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... MUCH OF LEGENDARY GUITARIST AND composer John McLaughlin's prolific output has been inextricably tied to an interest in Indian music spanning more than 40 years. It first came to the fore on his second solo album, 1971's My Goal's Beyond, which...

Editor boy's big eight.(RIFFS: MySpace Hordes)
May 1, 2008... GP IS EMBRACING D-I-Y MUSICIANS by spotlighting thrilling (or, at least, interesting) guitar talents in this column and at guitarplayer.com. If you think you've got something going that our readers should hear, go to myspace.com/michaelmolenda...

Jared Scharff.(RIFFS: Super Sideman)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ALREADY AN ACCOMPLISHED L.A. SESSION ace and bandleader, Jared Scharff recently signed on with the Saturday Night Live band--an arrangement that keeps him busy bopping between coasts. "It's the best scenario you can...

Michael Lee Firkins.(RIFFS: Roots)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] BACK IN 1990, BAY AREA-BASED MICHAEL Lee Firkins released a self-titled album on shred-centric Shrapnel Records that sold more than 100,000 copies. That an instrumental guitar album could sell so well is one...

Patty Larkin.(RIFFS: Acoustic)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... WHAT SETS PATTY LARKIN APART FROM the standard singer/songwriter set is that she is as well known for her inventive guitar playing as she is for her songs. The Berklee alum also differs from that crowd in having been an early adopter of...

Juanes.(RIFFS: World)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] IMAGINE IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY, AND YOU can invite any rock star you want to the party. Tony Bennett did just that when he recorded Duets: An American Classic to celebrate his 80th year. The legendary singer's guests...

2007 SX SJM 62: eBay prize.(RIFFS: Vinta Vault)(Product/service evaluation)
May 1, 2008... A FEW MONTHS AGO I WAS ON A GUITAR discussion page when someone mentioned how pleased they were with their Chinese-made SX brand guitar. I was already familiar with the SX, because one of my neighbors had bought three of their instruments for...

Jan Akkerman.(RIFFS: No Guitarist Left Behind)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "WHEN YOU RE-READ GUITAR MAGAZINE articles about me from the '70s, you see they had a hard time pinning down where I was coming from," says Jan Akkerman. "I played loud and fast rock, but it wasn't from the blues. My...

Adam Levy.(RIFFS: Songwriting)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] WHEN ADAM LEVY WAS AN EDITOR AT Guitar Player, "sensitive" was perhaps the word to describe his demeanor and approach to the guitar. The guy knew a bazillion chords, never grandstanded, and seemed to possess a...

Arlen Roth.(RIFFS: Blues)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... FOR THE TEN YEARS BETWEEN 1982 AND 1992, one thing you could depend on in the pages of Guitar Player magazine was Arlen Roth's Hot Guitar column. The bending, sliding, and chicken pickin' science that he dropped in those pages inspired...

The 2008 GP Readers' Choice Awards.(RIFFS: Community)(Guitar Player readers)
May 1, 2008... GP'S ANNUAL READERS' CHOICE AWARDS LET YOU play editor, and shout out the guitarists who thrilled, astounded, and inspired you throughout the past year, as well as spotlight what you felt were the best products reviewed in the magazine's pages,...

What's spinning in the editors' heads this month?(RANTS & RAVES)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... MATT BLACKETT Butch Walker, Leavin' the Game on Luckie St. Blue Highway, Through the Window of a Train Rage Against the Machine, Evil Empire BARRY CLEVELAND Supergenius, Heel Thyself Jon Zeeman, Zeeland Jacob...

The Wrong Object: Stories From the Shed.(Audio)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THE WRONG OBJECT Stories From the Shed From the avant-prog-klezmer-jazz opener "Sonic Riot at the Holy Palate" to the similarly themed horn arrangement that ends the otherwise modal jazz drone of "The...

Various Artists: Get the Led Out! Led Zeppelin Salute.(Audio)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] VARIOUS ARTISTS Get the Led Out! Led Zeppelin Salute Tribute albums rarely rate much wow factor, but this one is interesting in that along with a bunch of modern players doing instrumental versions of...

Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band: 13 Blues for Thirteen Moons.(Audio)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band 13 Blues for Thirteen Moons If you're a little burnt on the same-old same-old, consider giving this record a spin. It opens with a dozen five-second...

Peppino D'Agostino: Made in Italy.(Audio)(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] PEPPINO D'AGOSTINO Made in Italy Fingerstyle monster Peppino D'Agostino works his magic again on this collection of tunes, many of which feature lyrics sung in Italian. D'Agostino's gorgeous steel-string...

Laurence Juber: Understanding DADGAD and Building Repertoire.(Instruction)(Brief article)(Video recording review)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] LAURENCE JUBER Understanding DADGAD and Building Repertoire As players as varied as Adrian Legg and Eric Johnson have proven with brilliant solo pieces, DADGAD tuning sounds quite amazing on steel-string...

Chairmen of the boards: effects system designers reveal how to build the perfect pedalboard.(Cover story)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] BACK IN THE MID 1960s, GUITARISTS HAD A CHOICE OF MAYBE THREE OR FOUR pedals, and the players who were far out enough to use them all at once connected them together with cables several feet long, and used 20-foot...

10 things you gotta do to play like Tom Morello.(LESSONS)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ALTHOUGH HE CLAIMS HIS MUSICAL CAREER IS BASED ON playing "the same two strings on the same two dots," Tom Morello isn't exactly what you'd call a one-trick pony. With his groundbreaking band Rage Against the Machine...

Whammy bar pyrotechnics: Brad Gillis gets wild with the wiggle stick.(LESSONS: Soloing Seminar)(Interview)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "FLAMES USED TO SHOOT OUT OF MY GUITAR." SAYS BRAD GILLIS. YES, he's speaking literally. "I found a finger-mounted flash pot at this magic shop in Seattle back in the '80s, and I attached it to the back of my...

Divide & conquer: demystifying the art and science of harmonics.(LESSONS: Master Class)
May 1, 2008... WHAT DO CHET ATKINS, LENNY BREAU, TAL FARLOW, TED GREENE, Jeff Beck, Roy Buchanan, Rory Gallagher, Leslie West, Billy Gibbons, Michael Hedges, Eddie Van Halen, Joe Satriani, David Torn, the Edge, and Jaco Pastorius all have in common? Each has...

Intermediate: Emily Remler's dropped-D jazz.(LESSONS: Quick Licks)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] "I'm trying to get back to where it was when I first started, which was having fun, like when I was 15 and 16 and went into my room, played guitar, and had fun all day," says Emily Remler on The Guitar Show: Volume...

Advance: slippin' & slidin' in E major.(LESSONS: Quick Licks)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... Take it from GIT grad and Steve Vai guitar sharpshooter Dave Weiner: Just because you're playing one scale doesn't mean you have to play in one position. Weiner, who's played in Vai's band for years and records on Favored Nations (Vai's label),...

Beginner: Dorian cascade a la Coryell.(LESSONS: Quick Licks)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] On its own, a descending E Dorian scale hardly qualifies as a piece of music. Play it the way Larry Coryell did in the December '87 GP, though, and suddenly it's not so far off. Coryell's trick? Replace scale tones...

Intermediate: Vernon Reid's rockinest riff.(LESSONS: Quick Licks)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Crank a Pro Co Rat distortion, throw on some flanging and chorusing, a short delay, a touch of digital 'verb, and play this heavy, funky lick, and you may be transported back to 1988, when Vernon Reid and Living...

Intermediate: a fun way to tap.(LESSONS: Quick Licks)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... What do you get when you intermingle Greg Howe-approved "hammer-ons from nowhere" (notes hammered by fretting fingers on strings that weren't previously ringing) with standard tapped notes? Ask Tony Smotherman, a finalist in GP's Guitar Hero...

Beginner: Green Day's "September" secret.(LESSONS: Quick Licks)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] There's one thing tying together Billie Joe Armstrong's catchy guitar part on Green Day's 2004 poignant radio/video hit "Wake Me Up When September Ends"--the open G string. The next time you hear the tune, notice...

Beginner: Joe Satriani's mini-chord magic.(LESSONS: Guest Guru)
May 1, 2008... Last month, Joe Satriani shared enough open-position chords to get you through a zillion different rock, pop, and blues tunes. But the more chords you play--and the more songs you learn--the more you realize that chords don't always need to be...

49 guitar cables at all price points.(GEAR: Fight Club)(Buyers guide)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] UNLESS YOU'RE A WIRELESS USER OR A PURELY acoustic player, you've likely got a few cables you rely on transmit your fine guitar licks to your amp. You may not pay much attention to which cords you pull out of your...

Winners circle.(GEAR: Fight Club)(Product/service evaluation)
May 1, 2008... REVEREND ARMOR GOLD The Reverend Armor Gold has a mellow top end, sweet upper mids, and nice overall balance. This cord dishes out a slightly smoky flavor, which is great for rockers seeking more buttery tones. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]...

Digidesign eleven.(GEAR: Digital Guitarcraft)(Product/service evaluation)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THE FIRST POPULAR DAW GUITAR-MODELING plug-in--Line 6's Amp Farm software--worked solely with Digidesign's Pro Tools TDM sequencer. A decade later, Digidesign has decided to enter the 'fray with its own...

Ten new stompboxes.(GEAR: Roundup!)(Product/service evaluation)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] HERE AT GP HEADQUARTERS, WE AMASS A TON of soon-to-be-reviewed gear. But even with the glut of acoustic and electric guitars, tube amps and modeling amps, practice amps and full stacks, software, and speakers, the...

GHS Carlos Santana Big Core.(GEAR: Accessory File)(guitar strings)(Product/service evaluation)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] LEGENDARY GUITAR TECH RENE MARTINEZ helped develop the pure nickel wrap over a larger core wire concept for GHS, and he also showed the strings to Carlos Santana--who dug them so much he adopted them as his signature...

Hot stuff from winter NAMM 2008.(GEAR: New Gear)(Buyers guide)
May 1, 2008... EVERYONE KNOWS THAT THE ANNUAL WINTER AND SUMMER NAMM shows are a gear lover's paradise. And, of course, all guitarists with GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) want to know what cool new toys are released as soon as they're more than just rumors....

Dim Sum.(BACK PAGE: Shop Talk)(amplifiers)
May 1, 2008... THE INDICATOR LIGHT ON MY 1957 FENDER Twin amp goes dim--almost to the point of looking like it's off--when I switch the amp from Standby to On. Any idea what could be going on here?--Rich Mahan, Torrance, CA The pilot lamp is going dim...