January 2012 Guitar World Out Now: Billy Gibbons, Holiday Gift Guide, 60 Years of the Fender Telecaster

Guitar World rings in the holidays with ZZ Top frontman Billy Gibbons, who graces the cover of the January 2012 issue, which is available now.

The new issue also features a handy holiday gift guide, representing the best in new gear, albums, box sets, toys and more. Plus, Slash, Zakk Wylde, Lamb of God and Judas Priest talk about their 2012 albums and projects.

JANUARY 2012 GW: A SAMPLING

•TOP SCORE: With a long-awaited ZZ Top album on the way, plus his new Dunlop accessories and signature hot sauce and tequila, Billy Gibbons has a wealth of things to celebrate this holiday season. By CHRIS GILL. What was it like working with Rick Rubin? A lot of beards. Rick has quite a collection of surfboards, which is convenient as his house is within walking distance of a really cool beach in Malibu. Instead of wasting time comparing beard length or grooming techniques, we had a contest to see who could leave the water with the most leftover seafood for a snack.

•TELE-BRATION: Guitar World celebrates 60 years of the Fender Telecaster, the electric guitar that revolutionized the industry and remains one of music's most vital players. By ALAN Di PERNA. On of the most illustrious names in the guitar universe celebrated its 6oth anniversary this past year. When the Fender Telecaster first appeared in the Fifties, it was something brand new -- a blank canvas, if you will, awaiting a handful of gifted mid-20th-century guitarists to create new modes of expression around the bright, steely tone of this new kind of solid body guitar.

•'WHOLE NOTES' WITH WILCOJeff Tweedy and Nels Cline discuss the guitars and gear behind Wilco's latest album, The Whole Love By RICHARD BIENSTOCK.Jeff, you've said in the past that you primarily write on acoustic guitar. Was that the case as well for The Whole Love? Yes. It's really the only instrument that I have any kind of... I wouldn't say mastery of, but I've certainly been playing it long enough that I'm conversant with it in a way where I'm able to go to what I hear in my head pretty quickly. As a writing tool there's no point in me using anything other than an acoustic unless I'm wanting to shake myself out of some kind of rut and play something where I have no idea what's happening. [laughs]

NEW VIDEOS

Offerings include a Theory of a Deadman "Lowlife" lesson, a Redlight King "Bullet In My Hand" lesson, the latest "Professor Shred" with Guthrie Govan and "Metal For Life," which examines at whammy-bar acrobatics. 

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

•Johnny Winter: Texas blues icon Johnny Winter returns with Roots, a tribute to his favorite blues greats, on which he gets a little help from a team of very special friends.

•Animals as Leaders: With his eight-string guitar and virtuoso shred abilities, Animals as Leaders guitarist Tosin Abasi is at metalcore’s cutting edge.

•"Dear Guitar Hero" with Five Finger Death Punch

•Soundcheck: Mesa/Boogie TransAtlantic TA-30 1x12 combo, G&L ASAT Deluxe Tribute Series electric guitar, Hughes & Kettner TubeMeister 18 head, ModTone Mini-Mod pedals and much more!

•Tabs include ZZ TOP, "Got Me Under Pressure"; FALLING IN REVERSE, "I'm Not A Vampire"; OPETH, "Slither"; VAN HALEN, "Women In Love" and ADELE, "Rolling In The Deep."

For more info about the issue, or to order, head to the Guitar World Online Store.

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