John Petrucci grew up in King Park, Long Island, where he attended school with John Myung and Kevin Moore. He started learning guitar at a young age but temporarily gave up due to seeing his sister's dedication to learning the organ. However, he became inspired by...
Back in 2009, Guitarist magazine published a huge tribute feature to Les Paul, who died on 12 August that year. Spanning his early life, musical and technical achievements, it explored the legacy left by The Wizard Of Waukesha.Les was 93 years old when the interview...
Paul Gilbert, a renowned guitarist, gained recognition through his band Mr. Big, whose successful record elevated his status in the rock music world. At the age of 17, Paul astounded the guitar community as the fastest player in the world while in the band Racer X. He...
Classic interview: In the summer of 1988 Stevie Ray Vaughan had just completed an intensive tour of Europe when Tom Nolan sat down to talk to him for a remarkably frank discussion about his roots, overcoming trouble and finding redemption. It would be his first and...
Nuno Bettencourt is highly regarded as one of the best rock guitarists, particularly for his exceptional rhythm playing. His creativity in developing new techniques has been well recognized since his early days with the band Extreme and their albums "Extreme" and...
In 1987, Guitarist magazine's Neville Marten went to visit Rory Gallagher as he made what would become the Defender album to discuss the studio approach of a player renowned for his live fire. And he gave that, and much more insight into his uniquely creative mind…Is...
Michael Schenker is considered one of Germany's top guitarists of all time. He was inspired by bands like Wishbone Ash and Mountain and joined his brother Rudolf's band, The Scorpions. However, their debut album, Lonesome Crow, did not receive a positive response....
The following interview was conducted in 2004"Yesterday," sings Paul McCartney, "all my troubles seemed so far away." It is the Ed Sullivan Show, and as his fellow Beatles wait in the wings, Paul does it on his own with nothing but an Epiphone Texan acoustic guitar...
Brian May, the son of an electronics repairman and musician, inherited his father's talent for soldering and music. He pursued his interest in technology and music, earning a degree in Physics while making guitars in his spare time. His homemade guitar became his...
The former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett named one classic from the British prog institution's back catalog that he says became a large influence on the Queen guitarist Brian May. Aside from being two British gentlemen who both wrote their names in the annals of...