Latest articles by Gary Graff
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
Mark Knopfler says he had begun planning to record an album with Jeff Beck shortly before Beck's death
Saluting the late guitar hero's “beautiful” contribution to his all-star 2024 re-recording of Going Home (Theme From Local Hero), the Dire Straits man expressed regret that the plan never came to fruition
How Noel Gallagher and Beck helped bring the Black Keys' latest funky full-length, Ohio Players, to life
The Black Keys began life as a bare-bones two-piece, but, as Dan Auerbach tells GP, collaboration and an open musical mind have expanded the duo's sound to thrilling new heights
“I was on the toilet with my acoustic guitar and I just started playing the riff. I thought, 'Wow, that’s either something or it’s just a bunch of irrelevant notes'. The next day, the riff came back…" How Trevor Rabin wrote Yes’s Owner of a Lonely Heart
Trevor Rabin reveals the origins of the 1983 mega-hit that put Yes on top of the charts
”There’s 12 notes on a guitar and Steve Vai and Zakk Wylde sound like they have more. How do you do that?” Blues prodigy Kenny Wayne Shepherd on his new solo album Dirt on My Diamonds, Vol. 1, and why unpredictability is so important
Looking for fresh inspiration, Kenny Wayne Shepherd left Nashville for Alabama’s FAME Studios. The result is the first half of a new album project that continues his breathtaking blues-rock evolution
“I want my solos to be melodic — but not a ‘pretty’ melodic, an aggressive one…’‘ Grammy award nominee Christone “Kingfish” Ingram’s top five tips for guitarists
Whether it’s being happy to warm up the audience as an opening act, not getting lost in solos or letting a lukewarm crowd prey on your mind, these are the tips Christone “Kingfish” Ingram uses to stay at the top of his game
"When I got the B-Bender, I learned how to find a way to bend so that it doesn’t sound just like a B-Bender but sounds like the strings are being bent by fingers…" Ex-Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin chats about Rio, his first new album of songs in 34 years
“The idea was to visit different genres but make sure it still sounds like a cohesive, coherent thing”: Trevor Rabin on scoring his new album Rio using a 1962 Fender Strat, Alvarez and B-Bender Tele
"I wrote a few songs with Joe Strummer. I don't know if they'll ever see the light of day. I like to think that I guard Joe…" Brian Setzer opens up on old friends, new music – and shows us his gear
Brian Setzer made rockabilly cool again and revitalised the big band sound in the era of grunge. With a blazing new album, The Devil Always Collects, he opens up on his creative processes and shows us some of his amazing guitars
“I Love Guitar Players, and I’ve Been Lucky Enough to Work With so Many Great Ones”: Alice Cooper Talks Guitarists and His “Revolving-Door Policy”
“To me, rock and roll is guitar music. That’s the crux of everything,” says the veteran shock rocker
“I Kind of Stole Ed...And That Wasn’t Something That Happened Very Often”: Brian May Expounds on Eddie Van Halen’s Role in the Fabled ‘Star Fleet Project’
As he releases his expanded ‘Star Fleet Project’ box set, the guitarist reveals his thoughts on EVH, the future of Queen, and the dangers AI poses for music in the coming year
“You Have to Account for 'Tales'…I Don’t Think We’d Be the Same Group Without It”: Steve Howe Talks Yes's ‘Tales From Topographic Oceans’ and Other Milestone Albums
As Yes release their second album in two years, the guitarist reflects on the 50th anniversary of ‘Tales From Topographic Oceans’ and his newly reconceptualized take on the debut album from his 1960s band Tomorrow
“I Think We Might Look Back on 2023 as the Last Year When Humans Really Dominated the Music Scene”: Brian May Shares His Hopes and Fears About the Impact of AI
Having been involved with artificial intelligence in his scientific pursuits, the astrophysicist and Queen guitarist has some unique insights that may shock you
