Latest articles by Jackson Maxwell
Richie Sambora reflects on his departure from Bon Jovi
In 2013 – in the midst of a tour, and just one month after the release of Bon Jovi's What About Now album – Sambora ended his 30-year run with the enormously successful band
PRS launches the triple humbucker-equipped, Strat-style SE NF3 model
A spin of sorts on the company's ultra-popular John Mayer signature Silver Sky, the new model brings PRS's Narrowfield pickups into the company's SE line for the first time
Why Allan Holdsworth ditched Strats for Charvels
Finding other makers and luthiers unwilling to listen to his ideas, the virtuoso turned to a more receptive Grover Jackson
That time forgotten rockabilly guitar hero Cordell Jackson dueled with Brian Setzer – in a Budweiser commercial
The ad was a rare moment in the spotlight for Jackson, a trailblazing Mississippi native who amused audiences with her grandmotherly appearance before leaving them slack-jawed with her raw, overdriven playing
How Marty Friedman wrote one of his greatest Megadeth solos – and the invaluable lesson it taught him about guitar composition
Hangar 18 is one of Friedman's finest hours with the thrash metal legends, and it taught him an invaluable lesson about guitar composition
Marty Stuart on the legendary Clarence White B-Bender Tele
“It’s an indescribable guitar,” the Nashville titan says of the late Byrds legend's iconic '54 model. “You could put a hundred Telecasters in a row, and when you plug this guitar in it just has a voice all its own”
That time Lee Ritenour bailed Steve Lukather out at a session
“Back then, a guy like that could make or break you. We’ve been friends for 35 years now”
How an 8-year-old Quinn Sullivan became Buddy Guy's protégé, and friend
After a chance backstage meeting, Sullivan quickly fell under Guy's wing, forming a close bond with the blues legend that holds to this day
Heart's Nancy Wilson on rhythm guitar, and the mistake acoustic players often make when playing electric
In a 1979 chat with GP, Wilson reflected on the importance of rhythm playing, and how she imbued it – her acoustic work in particular – with more than enough attitude to go 'round
Ronnie Wood on the early days of Marshall, and his loudness war with the Who
Alongside many other budding British guitar heroes of mid-'60s London, Wood – via Marshall – consistently pushed the boundaries of amplification
Ben Harper borrowed back a Martin from his One Direction fan daughter to use on a Harry Styles album
“I had been playing Harry Styles when he was in One Direction and giving her tacks to put up their posters,” Harper explained to GP. “But I didn’t tell her why I wanted her guitar, because I didn’t know if I was going to make the track”
Eddie Van Halen on Frankenstein, and why he never apologized for modding
Always keen to take his sound into new territory, the late guitar hero never viewed any guitar – even the none-more-iconic Frankenstein – as a great treasure, never to be altered or touched
Vince Gill on his role in the Eagles, and the wonders of playing with Joe Walsh
Gill had already played with the best of the best before joining one of the biggest rock bands of all time – and he's more than happy to play a supporting role
Dweezil Zappa reveals the ins and outs of Frank Zappa's futuristic setup
Though guitar gear, of course, has advanced in leaps and bounds since Frank Zappa's heyday, the elder Zappa enthusiastically pushed its technological limits
Instrumental guitar legend Duane Eddy has died at 86
Through twanging, Gretsch-powered hits like Rebel Rouser, Eddy helped define the guitar sound of early rock 'n' roll
Why Eddie Van Halen stopped throwing guitar picks into the crowd
People, it turns out, often went to extreme lengths to get their hands on one...
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
Jimmy Page reflects on the Yardbirds, and his short-lived two-guitar tandem with Jeff Beck
Though the two budding virtuosos had plenty of respect for one another, it perhaps isn't a huge surprise that their respective styles occasionally clashed in the Yardbirds
How a deeply personal twist of events brought a beloved 'Burst into Vince Gill's life
In a 2017 interview with Guitar Aficionado, the country-rock six-string ace revealed how a sad and deeply personal twist of events brought a prized '59 Les Paul into his life
“I was 17 years old and found it in this local paper. It said, ‘Gretsch guitar, 100 bucks.’ I called the guy up and asked, ‘Is it like Eddie Cochran’s?’ He was like, ‘Who?’”: How Brian Setzer forged his trademark twanging tone
The rockabilly legend attributes landing on his guitar and amp of choice at a young age mainly to “destiny”
“Young kids that buy their first really good guitar end up in a love relationship with it – I've never had that”: Why Pete Townshend won't apologize for his '60s-era guitar-smashing antics
Rock's most famous guitar-smasher (mostly) abandoned that particular act over 50 years ago, but that doesn't mean he's wracked with guilt over his innumerable six-string beatings
“It’s just one note, but it took my entire life to get to the point to where I could do that one note”: Steve Vai regarded this solo as his “ultimate achievement of phrasing on the guitar”
No, it's not For the Love of God
“I've tried to avoid playing like Eddie. I've never learned the songs on purpose so I didn't steal anything. Then I had to learn the songs – I was like, ‘This is gonna be torture’”: Joe Satriani on his preparations for this summer's Van Halen tribute tour
Satch is intensely studying the intricacies of the late guitar hero's technical quirks and tone, while trying to avoid outright mimicry. The fine line between paying tribute and copying is an act of needle-threading the virtuoso says he also faced during his tenure in Deep Purple
“I was using a Telecaster because it had a really clean tone for my fingerstyle approach. Fleetwood Mac's pre-existing sound was much fatter, and they felt the Tele really didn’t fit”: Lindsey Buckingham on his turn to Turner guitars
Though numerous guitarists cycled through Fleetwood Mac in the years following Peter Green's departure, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood remained partial to the crunch of a Les Paul, which Buckingham was hesitant to adopt
“If Seven Worlds had come out at the time it was ready, instead of being held back, he would have been as big as Jeff Beck”: Stevie Ray Vaughan details his friendship with Eric Johnson
As fellow Austin, Texas-based, up-and-coming guitarists in the 1970s and '80s, Vaughan and Johnson developed a close friendship, and had great admiration for one another
