Latest articles by Gary Graff
The new MC5 album took more than 50 years to arrive. Guitarist Wayne Kramer and his bandmates have passed on, but the celebration is just beginning
Kramer was assisted by Vernon Reid, Tom Morello and Slash in making the group's final album
Warren Haynes explains the lucky break behind his take on U2's "One"
The guitarist has included the cover in his set from time to time, making it a fan favorite
Coco Montoya explains how John Mayall turned him from a bartender into his Bluesbreaker guitarslinger
The guitarist, who spent 10 years in Mayall's company, learned his stylings from Albert Collins
Rich Williams recalls how his choice of guitar picks ruined a day’s worth of playing on the biggest hit Kansas ever had
The problem was made worse by the fact that he'd quadruple-tracked his guitars
![Diego Garcia, a.k.a. Twanguero, plays his 1955 ES-295 on Panamerica. “I purchased [the boat] because rehearsal rooms are so expensive,” he says.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/cfFmbvV4c4GjJAKeGQvyU5-840-80.jpg.webp)
Diego Garcia’s ship is home base for his new album, as well as his musical life as the seafaring Spanish guitarist Twanguero.
Garcia Diego's unique approach begins with his music, an unusual and energetic mix of traditional Spanish acoustic styles and rock
Thurston Moore was gifted a vintage axe when Sonic Youth's gear was stolen. He had no idea how rare it was
Patti Smith gave Moore the guitar after suffering a similar theft of gear and personal items years before
As Trans-Siberian Orchestra revs up again, Al Pitrelli reflects on how it all began
The guitarist also shared the stories behind his five favorite TSO tracks
How I Prevail and All Time Low teamed up to create their monster hit “Hate This Song”
All Time Low guitarist Alex Gaskarth reveals the Police and U2 roots of a riff you can't get out of your head
It took guitarist Randy Bachman seven years to write "Takin' Care of Business." It finally came together at one nearly disastrous show
The guitarist reveals that the Bachman-Turner Overdrive hit was actually inspired by the Beatles' "Paperback Writer" and written for the Guess Who
People say, ‘Do you think you'll be able to go out for 10 days'?" Peter Frampton gives health update as he gets his Rock Hall induction
The guitarist, who uses a cane and sits while performing, says he's determined to "play for as long as I'm able"
“The guitar allows me to switch my brain off from trying to understand the music... The mistakes make it interesting.” Crowded House's Neil Finn on his trial-and-error approach to playing and songwriting
Four decades in with Crowded House’s ever-changing lineup, Finn remains committed to exploring possibilities
Roland Orzabal reveals how a chance guitar riff resulted in the Tears for Fears monster hit “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”
“I had just written a classic — and I was terrified I might never do it again.” John Fogerty on CCR’s "Proud Mary"
Fogerty also names the classic rock-and-roll guitarists who influenced his roots-rock style
Brian Setzer played Eddie Cochran's guitar just as he left it in 1960: "He was way ahead of his time with how he strung it."
Today is Eddie Cochran’s birthday. We asked Setzer what made the '50s guitar icon such an innovator. Here's what he told us
Neal Schon explains how Journey broke the first rule of songwriting with “Don’t Stop Believin’”
Schon says he was shocked when Forbes named it the Biggest Song of All Time
“I said, 'Well, Lee, I've been using a lot of Black Sabbath–style moves in Sonic Youth.'" Thurston Moore reveals an unlikely influence on his unique guitar style
In an interview about his new solo album, 'Flow Critical Lucidity,' Moore also reveals the modern appeal of old tech, weird six-string tunings and unusual guitar slides.
Tom Petty shared his greatest advice on rhythm guitar playing in a long-lost 1997 interview
The guitarist, who died on October 2, 2017, also gave his insights on Telecasters and Rickenbackers and the art of songwriting
“It’s all done”: David Gilmour dismisses talk of future Pink Floyd shows
Though two of the surviving members of Floyd reunited for the 2022 Ukrainian aid single, Hey Hey, Rise Up, Gilmour says there are no further plans to resurrect the band
The Doobie Brothers’ Tom Johnston recounts the stories behind five of the band's classic tunes
From Listen to the Music to Long Train Runnin’, China Grove and more, Johnston reveals the jams, studio wizardry – and political movements – that sparked some of the Doobies' biggest hits
John Oates discusses the end of his longtime partnership with Daryl Hall
The seemingly dramatic end of Hall & Oates' incredibly successful run, the latter maintains, is a matter of “very boring business details,” rather than personal acrimony
Mark Knopfler on the guitars he couldn't send to auction, and that all-star version of Going Home
Following the release of One Deep River, Knopfler reflects on the guitars he’s loved – including his “serial number zero” Strat – the music that keeps his passion youthful, and how he’d like a do-over on that Dire Straits Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction
How Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner transformed Lou Reed's moody, street-smart performances into an album of twin-guitar-led hard rock heroics
After Reed’s dark concept album, Berlin, bombed, guitarists Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner helped him get his groove back. The result was Rock ’n’ Roll Animal, the live classic that revitalized Reed's spirit and rescued his career
John Fogerty on Creedence Clearwater Revival's disappointing Woodstock set
Creedence were scheduled to go on after the Grateful Dead, who, unsurprisingly, took liberties with their allotted set time, leaving the band to take the stage at 12:30 in the morning
Blue Öyster Cult's Buck Dharma on the stories behind (Don’t Fear) The Reaper, and other BÖC classics
Less cowbell, more songs – the Blue Öyster Cult guitarist goes deep on the writing and recording of some of the band's greatest tunes
With a spunky vintage National resonator, Tinsley Ellis has finally gone acoustic
Though he often feels, when called to the stage to start a solo show, “like the executioner has arrived to take me to the gallows,” Ellis's new acoustic album, Naked Truth, finds the veteran guitarist right at home without accompaniment
