Guitar Player

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YES MEN

Guitar Player

EXPERIENCE HENDRIX • With the HDRX 100, Paul Reed Smith lets guitarists bask in the spirit of Jimi Hendrix’s Marshall Super Lead.

GOING BIG • Josh Smith’s band grows a larger horn section. The result is his big-band extravaganza Bird of Passage.

TIP SHEET • Grammy-winning jazz guru Bill Frisell delivers advice to make performance a pleasure.

MY CAREER IN FIVE SONGS • Joe Ely shares highlights from his rockabilly career and recalls his former Lubbock, Texas, neighbor: Buddy Holly.

The Flirty Dozen • Fender’s Electric XII wooed late-’60s guitarists, but the course of true love ran any way but smooth.

Confidence, Man • Impossible to upstage, Roy Brown let his guitarists try their best.

Blue and Improved • With a few mods, this budget 1967 Teisco K2L lab rat became a great playing — and priceless — custom build.

SOME KIND OF MONSTER • Kirk Hammett set out to write background music. Instead, he created the four horror movie–themed guitar instrumentals that make up his debut solo effort, Portals.

LIVING ON THE EDGE • WRITTEN AND RECORDED PIECEMEAL ON DAYS OFF BETWEEN GIGS, CLOSE TO THE EDGE COALESCED INTO A PROG-ROCK MASTERPIECE. ON THE ALBUM’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY, STEVE HOWE REVEALS HOW YES CREATED THEIR GREATEST TRIUMPH.

AND THEN THERE WERE THREE • Following a 13-year hiatus, Porcupine Tree regroup with one less member and a broader musical palette. Steven Wilson explains why this is a new beginning for the progressive-rock group — or maybe the end of the road.

REPRO MAN • Steven Wilson reflects on his career as the record industry’s hot remixer.

The LAST SINGING COWBOYS • He tutored under Woody Guthrie and influenced a young Bob Dylan. Now 90, folk legend Ramblin’ Jack Elliott reflects on his role in the postwar folk revival and a life spent making music.

KING of the ROW • With more than 700 albums to his credit — including his Dean DeLeo project, Trip the Witch — Nashville session ace Tom Bukovac is one of the world’s busiest guitarists. Here he shares the guitars behind Music Row’s biggest records.

A STRANGE NEW WORLD • Is NAMM history? The Anaheim event gave insights to the future of acoustic gear — and of the show itself.

WHAT SHOULD I PRACTICE? • In the first part of this two-part lesson, great guitarists share advice on how to make the most of your time in the woodshed.

Let It Rub • Trey Anastasio on using “rubs” to open up standard tuning.

MARTIN • 0012-28 and 000-42 Modern Deluxe

REVEREND • 25th Anniversary Limited Edition Six Gun HPP

PHIL JONES BASS • Nanobass X4 digital amp

POSITIVE GRID • Spark MINI smart guitar amp and bluetooth speaker

ELECTRO-HARMONIX • Nano Pulsar

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE 82% PLUS FREE GUITAR GODS: THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION

How I Wrote… “Close My Eyes Forever” • Lita Ford looks back at her badass signature 1989 power ballad.