Wolfgang Van Halen, the year's best gear and 2023's guitarists of the year – only in the new Guitar World

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Plus! The year's biggest and wildest guitar news, a transcription of Jeff Beck's final masterpiece, Dethklok, Buzzcocks, Paul Stanley's son and more!

january 2024
(Image credit: Future)

In this sprawling issue – which is available during those final magical moments before Father Time and Baby New Year take turns dancing on 2023's grave – Guitar World takes one last look back on "the year that was"!

Coverage includes...

* Our editors and writers choose the guitarists of the year – 20 players who left their indelible mark on 2023, including our cover star (Wolfgang Van Halen), plus Nuno Bettencourt, Andrew Watt, Josh Klinghoffer, the Rolling Stones, John 5, Vernon Reid and a ton more.

*  A recap of the biggest guitar news of the year – including the tragic death of Jeff Beck, the Rise of Nuno, the endlessly interesting "Mick Mars. vs. Mötley Crüe" saga, the return of Sunn amps, the unexpected reappearance of Mary Ford's 1961 Gibson and more.

* The GW gang chooses our favorite new gear of the year, including Fender's outstanding Tone Master Pro, those new Marshall pedals, Guild's S-100 Polara Kim Thayil, Boss's DM-101 Delay Machine and many, many more things that we'd love to own.

* A plethora of guitar stars – including Wolfgang, Kingfish, Devon Allman, Sophie Lloyd, Nuno Bettencourt, Zakk Wylde, Herman Li, Marty Friedman, Steve Morse, Jennifer Batten, Myles Kennedy and more – choose the year’s best solos, riffs, songs, guitar moments, guitarists of the year and more.

The issue – aka the devilishly good-looking January 2024 issue of Guitar World – is available right here, right now.

January 2024

(Image credit: Ryan Piorkowski)

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Damian Fanelli
Damian Fanelli
Editor-in-Chief, Guitar World

Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.