Latest articles by Matt Owen
How jazz guitar legend Mike Stern ended up joining Miles Davis’ band – and had a song named after him
Stern was playing with Billy Cobham one night in the early 1980s when Evans decided to bring along the legendary jazz trumpeter, who was in the market for a new guitar player
Nuno Bettencourt’s N4 Padauk was stolen from a storage lock-up – but was discovered dismembered years later
Bettencourt's OG Padauk N4 featured two distinct dark stripes embedded into the wood, which became crucial in its eventual discovery
Guitarists on Reddit are going nuts for this ingenious pick trick
Struggling to deal with unwanted pickup switching when strumming? This clever hack might be able to help
Warren Haynes has two signature Gibsons in the works – including an unusually spec’d Firebird
The upcoming builds will see the Allman Brothers Band icon swap his tried-and-trusted humbuckers for something a little more left-field
Steve Cradock once smoked the shavings of Hendrix’s Strat by rolling them in a page from the Bible
A regular studio session took a turn in the spirit of Purple Haze, when the Ocean Colour Scene guitarist ended up getting high on Hendrix's guitar
Billy Corgan on how watching Iommi taught him the key to the playing style of Eddie Van Halen
As Corgan explains, the distinctive aspect he observed of the ’Sabbath great, also shaped his understanding of players like Eddie Van Halen and Uli Jon Roth
Fender to open Shanghai Artist Showroom in its latest high-profile move in overseas guitar markets
Two years after opening its flagship store in Tokyo, Fender has decided to further increase its presence in the Asian guitar scene with 'The Fender Backstage'
JHS Pedals launches Lari Basilio’s first-ever signature stompbox – and it offers “a new take on distortion and overdrive”
Basilio has been using a prototype of The Violet on almost everything she's played since mid-2022 – and now the core of her celebrated guitar tone has been given a signature release
“Gretsch’s most exciting release of the year. A genuine joy to play”: Gretsch Electromatic Jack Antonoff Signature "Princess Antonoff" CVT review
Gretsch's collaboration with the Bleachers mainman and Taylor Swift collaborator is a versatile surprise
Ibanez reimagines its beloved Tube Screamer into its most high-end format yet – with a $300 hand-wired TS808
New components and a fresh lick of paint have helped Ibanez reboot the flagship TS808, but it comes at a hefty price
Black Friday Positive Grid deals 2024: Save up to 50% off amps and software in the huge Black November sale!
Positive Grid's official Black November sale will be live throughout November with huge hardware and software discounts up for grabs. But is Positive Grid holding any Spark 2 discounts up its sleeve?
Martyn LeNoble was once in desperate need of bass gear – and The Who’s low-end legend came to his rescue
When he first moved to the US, LeNoble was unable to ship has trusty Trace Elliott over with him. When a local bass store couldn't provide a replacement in time, Entwistle stepped in…
How Kirk Hammett ended up in possession of the legendary ‘Greeny’ Les Paul – and why he had no interest in it at first
The Metallica guitarist never intended to buy Peter Green and Gary Moore's iconic single-cut – but changed his mind once he finally got his hands on it
Tony Iommi tried to reclaim his iconic Gibson ‘Monkey’ SG but wasn’t allowed
After retiring the Monkey SG, the Black Sabbath legend sold it to the Hard Rock Cafe – but ran into a spot of bother when he tried to get it back
“The sonic equivalent of a fist-fight between James Hetfield and Alex Lifeson”: October 2024 Guitar World editors’ picks
The hot new tracks and deep cuts GW editors have been listening to this month
John Frusciante’s first-ever Fender signature guitar is here
Fender Master Builder Paul Waller has painstakingly recreated the Red Hot Chili Peppers icon’s legendary sunburst Strat, which features all the relic’d cosmetics and electronics upgrades of the original
How a 9-year-old Julian Lage ended up playing with Carlos Santana in front of 20,000 people
While Santana was touring the US with Jeff Beck, Lage turned up unannounced to meet his hero – and was invited onstage for a jam
John Mayer busts out his Charvel and an ultra-rare ESP as he breaks new ground during A-list R&B guest solo
Mayer has shared behind-the-scenes snippets as he composed his latest collaborative lead effort, which takes his solo chops to new experimental heights
Johnny Marr’s Martin M-7 is a seven-string bottles his studio sound into one acoustic
Marr's latest signature model, the M-7 – also available as a regular six-string – features an extra string to provide his trademark jangle
Fender has rebooted its top-selling Champion modeling amp family – and prices start at $129
The ultra-affordable amps offer onboard effects and a suite of amp voices for added versatility
Billy Corgan on why he thinks he’s still under-appreciated as a guitarist
The creative force behind Smashing Pumpkins is often overlooked in the 'greatest guitarists of all time' conversation
Tony Iommi was a Fender Stratocaster player before fate intervened – and he had to reach for his Gibson SG
Iommi went to the studio intent on recording Black Sabbath's debut album with his heavily modded Strat. Things didn't quite go according to plan...
Iced Earth’s Jon Schaffer shares statement following sentencing for US Capitol riot involvement
Schaffer has been sentenced following his involvement in the January 2021 US Capitol riots in Washington DC – and says he “profoundly” regrets his actions
