Latest articles by Jackson Maxwell
Joey Molland, guitarist, singer, last surviving original member of Badfinger, dies at 77
In addition to his time with the early '70s hitmakers, Molland worked independently with all four Beatles, playing guitar on George Harrison's All Things Must Pass and John Lennon's Imagine
When Rory Gallagher was asked to fill Eric Clapton's shoes in rock's pioneering power trio
As Cream began to disintegrate barely two years into their existence, the enormously successful band's managers were desperate to keep them going
A guide to every guitarist who's played with Thin Lizzy
Thin Lizzy are tough enough for punks, heavy enough for metalheads, poetic enough for romantics – and their catchy riffs and licks have been played by some of the finest guitarists on earth
February 2025 Guitar World Editors’ Picks
A round-up of the best new guitar releases from the month of Feb, with new cuts from Sam Fender, Tash Sultana, Los Pirañas, and... Buddy Guy and Switchfoot?
The Hollywood-like “kidnapping” and ransom story of one of George Harrison's most famous guitars
Clandestine meetings, dramatic TV pleas, ransom demands, hurried getaway drives across the Mexican border... it sounds like a thriller, but it all revolved around a very special Les Paul
You’ve heard of AC/DC’s Angus and Malcolm, but a third Young brother was responsible for a ’60s classic
In George Young, guitarist for the oft-overlooked Australian band the Easybeats, Malcolm and Angus Young had a significant creative role model
That time Miles Davis stopped his entire band to give John McLaughlin some unlikely advice
The famously blunt and temperamental jazz icon was determined to realize his boundary-pushing late-'60s creative vision, but nonetheless had great respect for the budding guitar virtuoso
PRS unveils the Charcoal Phoenix – Paul Reed Smith’s personal guitar of choice
The new, limited-edition beauty sprung from Paul Reed Smith’s desire to create a stoptail-equipped variation of John McLaughlin's signature Private Stock PRS
The Cars' Elliot Easton considers this lost gem from a Guitar World compilation to be one of his best performances
Walk On Walden stood out in comparison to Easton's previous work with the Cars, and especially in the context of the compilation in question. Not that this was an accident
A labor of love, Wes Borland's beloved custom Jackson King V began life as a factory floor reject
Rather than a top-of-the-line custom job involving the best of the company's best luthiers, Borland's favored King V was brought to his attention by Jackson because, not in spite of, the quirks that led to its initial rejection
Unreleased Jimmy Page/Rich Robinson composition set to feature in Jimmy Page & the Black Crowes: Live at the Greek reissue
The newly remastered set, Page says, provides a glimpse of “the full explosive passion and exciting energy of those alchemical moments”
Jimi Hendrix said he was a better guitar player than he was – yet this Telecaster icon often remains overlooked
Had he not died tragically at 31, there's no telling what virtuoso Chicago guitarist Terry Kath would have gone on to do with the instrument
Nuno Bettencourt joins Steven Tyler for jam at charity gig – and, wait, is that a Les Paul?
Backing Tyler and some of his A-list friends at a fundraiser for the Janie’s Fund foundation at the Hollywood Palladium, the Extreme virtuoso ditched his signature Washburn
“It sounded awful. I could hardly play”: Brian May on the one time he experimented with a Marshall stack
The Vox AC30 amp/Red Special guitar combo is one of the most iconic in rock, but the Queen guitar hero didn't solidify that setup straight away
Opeth's Mikael Åkerfeldt on playing Kurt Cobain's “haunted” Martin D-18
Åkerfeldt was decidedly more moved when handed a 19th century Martin, a guitar so pristine he was scared to play it
The guitar Eric Clapton wouldn't let Andy Fairweather Low use onstage
“I was drawn to it immediately,” the journeyman player says of the guitar in question. “It's got colors and knobs and bits of Lego”
Watch Slash join the Black Crowes for a Led Zeppelin cover at FireAid
Unlike the surviving members of Nirvana, the Black Crowes were featured on the FireAid bill beforehand, but they had a surprise of their own up their sleeves
Surviving members of Nirvana reunite unannounced at FireAid concert, with four guest frontwomen
But for Violet Grohl taking the place of Lorde, it was the same group of singer/guitarists the remaining Nirvana trio played with at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction performance in 2014
How Steve Vai consoled Pete Thorn after Chris Cornell's death
“Here, I'd lost a close friend and collaborator; and a hero of mine, from the time I was 11 years old or so, took the time to console me,” the newly appointed SatchVai Band guitarist tells GW
Dweezil Zappa showcases the Kramer Eddie Van Halen gifted him when he was 12 years old
Zappa was set to perform Runnin’ With the Devil at his middle school talent show, and was struggling with his guitar. Then, somehow, Eddie Van Halen showed up at his band's soundcheck...
12-string Teles, baritone offsets, and diamond-laced Strats headline the Fender Custom Shop's 2025 Prestige Collection
Featuring half-a-dozen Strats, a pair of Teles, a Meteora, and a rare Performer model, all handcrafted, the Prestige Collection aims to represent the best of the best from the vaunted Fender Custom Shop
Taylor unveils the Gold Label Collection, a vintage-inspired line with an entirely new body shape
The '30s and '40s-inspired Super Auditorium design is said to build on the company's Grand Auditorium shape, with a couple of key differences
John Mayer has developed a new acoustic string set with Ernie Ball, and it's designed to be ideal for solo performers
The new Earthwood Bell Bronze strings are said to have been inspired by alloys traditionally used for bells and cymbals, with the result being strings with better sustain, projection, and resonance
