As reported by Modern Guitars Magazine, Gibson Guitar will announce six new additions to the Gibson Custom line of “Inspired By” guitars, honouring Steve Jones, Mick Jones, Alex Lifeson, lee Ritenour, Johnny Winter and Joe Bonamassa.  The lineup of custom reissues includes: Mick Jones Les Paul Custom Alex Lifeson ES-355 Steve Jones Les Paul Custom Lee Ritenour ES-335 Johnny Winter Firebird Joe Bonamassa Aged Les Paul Goldtop For more information, head over to their site for the lowdown, or visit…

Only one guitar has the infamous claim of being the first guitar burnt onstage by legend Jimi Hendrix.  The 1965 Fender Stratocaster was doused with lighter fuel and set alight during a performance at London’s Finsbury Astoria in March 1967 – and Hendrix himself was rushed to hospital with minor burns to his hands.  It was seemingly lost until last year – all this time stashed away in a garage by Herdrix’s press officer. The fabled guitar will now be…

Thanks to Thumbrella for spotting this – here’s a cool 12 picture series on how pieces of wood are transformed into a guitar, by luthiers from Knights Guitar. Below is a stage by stage example of how we made Jacks Guitar. All our guitars are handmade by either Gordon or Rob, both experienced luthiers. Our guitars are custom built with plenty of input from the customer. Before:                    After: View the photo…

The world’s largest and finest collection of Gretsch electric guitars, has been purchased by the Gretsch company for its museum in Savannah, Georgia.  The collection was previously owned by Randy Bachman, amassed during his 30 years of touring, scouring music stores, pawn shops and garage sales around the globe. The collection of around 375 instruments, including Gretsch amplifiers, banjos, drobos, ukuleles and an organ, is worth several million dollars.  It is said that “some of the instruments, from the 1920s and…

Apparently, only 1 in 20 guitars that arrive from the manufacturers are correctly set up.  I’m not sure whether that claim is meant to be sensationalist or what the criteria is for being “properly set up”, but it does make a good point in that you should always make sure that you set your guitar up correctly once you’re purchased it. Some people aren’t overly fussy with setups, but most will have some sort of preference. Things like the action…

Ibanez have made a flurry of announcements at the Summer NAMM show in Nashville, including limited edition guitars, new amps and a whole lot of bass products.  Thanks to Harmony Central – here are brief descriptions and links to the headlines: Ibanez Introduces Additional Xiphos Series Model – the XPT700FX metal guitar with fixed-bridge simplicity and sustain to six string shredders Ibanez Announces Alternate Finish for Ultimate S Guitars – now come in fiery Viking Red! Ibanez Releases Limited Production RG770DX – the 2008 RG770DX has all…

Sparrow Guitars is partnering with Ashton Music to bring their line of guitars to a select number of retailers in the UK. The Canadian based operation imports bare bones guitars from Asia, overhauls the hardware and transforms them with custom artwork. We’ve covered the launch of Sparrow Guitars in Australia previously, and have even reviewed the Sparrow Primitive Boss – have a read if you haven’t done so already. We are also currently reviewing the Rat Rod Ace, so stay…

Gibson is featuring a unique guitar each month during 2008 and is highlighting the Gibson Longhorn Double Cut Electric Guitar with Trans Blue Finish during July. The Longhorn guitar was produced in a limited run of 1,000 instruments. The Gibson Longhorn Double Cut Guitar has a unique body style that incorporates slightly extended, asymmetrical cutaways on a solid piece of mahogany with an AA figured maple top. The special-design L.R. Baggs piezo pickup beneath the Tune-O-Matic bridge combined with two…

Guitarists looking for diversity and a more unique look will appreciate two new releases in the “alternative” guitar range. The Kronodale Recycled G is a 3D open body shaped guitars, which backs up its imaginative telecaster shape with 2 Kent Armstrong pickups, gotoh locking tuners and a variety of finishes. Alternative Guitar and Amplifier Company have released the Alien Electric Guitar, with its radically shaped heelless maple neck, EMG-HZ humbuckers but no pickup selector switch.  It is available in red…

For those who really want to travel light and still enjoy their guitar playing, check out the Rees Ramble Travel Electric Guitar. The neck is a full size 25.5 inch scale, but everything else is built with lightness and durability in mind, including simplified recessed controls, double truss rod, wrap around bridge, korina hardwood body and pau ferro fretboard. It is equipped with Seymour Duncan vintage P90 pickups for that classic tone as well. I think the Vox Amplug and…