Guitars for Kids Wpg helps kids from low-income families get their first real six-strings Are you the parent of a potential Jimi or Eddie, but don’t have the financial means for a Fender? Don’t fret. Guitars for Kids Wpg is a non-profit organization that aims to afford acoustics and axes for adolescents living in the city’s lower-income areas. “I’m a guitar teacher and I live in the North End,” says Ashley McCurdy, 36, founder of Guitars for Kids Wpg. “I’ve taught…

A young couple was fortunate to escape as the South Osborne building housing their apartment suite went up in flames early Monday morning. Tenant Alexandra French, 20, was taking a bath about 4:30 a.m. when she heard the fire alarm sound and woke her boyfriend, A.J. Dakin-Schmid, 21. The two quickly fled, grabbing their pet rabbit Nibbles and Dakin-Schmid’s guitar. Sam Dakin, Dakin-Schmid’s mother, quickly arrived on scene to see the two-storey building engulfed in flames. “We’re so lucky that…

Adara Claphan, 10, is not only learning to play guitar herself—she also is raising money so that poor children in Nicaragua will have guitars to play. One of the guitars she is sponsoring is the 100th to be donated through HeartStrings, a program of Wichita nonprofit Trees for Life International—bringing the count halfway to the overall goal of 200 guitars. Adara, a fifth grader at a public school in Wichita, was inspired when she visited the Trees for Life office…

Diamond Amplification today announces Diamond’s 2010 Support Your Troops benefit. CEO/Owner Jeff Diamant and business partner Terry Martin have put together a program to turn 10% of all proceeds from sales of Diamond products between November 1 and December 31, 2010 into musical equipment that will ship overseas for military troops. Many enlisted men and women are musicians but are unable to transport their instruments while on deployment. This campaign will provide guitar amplifiers to troops serving overseas in Iraq…

Pearl Jam have donated a signed Fender Telecaster to raise money for the family of Andy Kotowicz, the marketing director for Seattle-based Sup Pop records. Kotowicz was killed in a Ballard car accident last month. His daughter, also in the car during the crash, was saved by a bystander. Members of Pearl Jam, one of Seattle’s most notable hometown bands, knew Kotowicz. The band explained why they chose to donate the guitar on their website and the CharityBuzz.com auction listing….

Kids Rock Free has announced legendary musical icon, the Steve Miller Band, recently raised over $500,000 from individuals, local and national business, performing artists, music industry executives, and community leaders in support of music education at a sold-out benefit concert at The Fender Center in Corona, CA. All proceeds from the event went to benefit the non-profit Kids Rock Free music education program, to reduce the 800 kids on the program’s waiting list into classes at The Fender Center. With…

In the late ’70s, 14-year-old Griffin Black wasn’t even born yet. But “Refugee,” the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers 1979 tune, is his favorite song. In fact, while most his friends would rather listen to hip-hop, the Heartbreakers are his favorite band. So it’s not uncommon for Black to watch old Tom Petty videos on YouTube. One night in front of the computer, Griffin was watching footage of a 1985 concert. “And Mike Campbell, the lead guitar player from Tom…

From the Olean Times Herald: SHERIDAN, Wyo. (AP) — If music fans who attended Friday night’s Molly Hatchet band concert enjoyed the smooth playing of guitarist Bobby Ingram, they’ve got a Sheridan-Wyo-Rodeo volunteer to thank. After a unique guitar normally played by Ingram was lost by an airline en route to Billings, SPURS volunteer Joe Campbell offered up his own guitar for Ingram to play at the show. Ingram performed the concert using Campbell’s Gibson Les Paul guitar for all…

Fans of Nashville Superspeedway will have the opportunity to get their hands on another special, commemorative Sam Bass-designed Gibson Les Paul trophy guitar following the Nationwide Series race on Saturday, by placing their bid in a NASCAR Foundation online auction following the race. The guitar, a Nashville Superspeedway-themed custom Gibson Les Paul designed by NASCAR artist Sam Bass, will be autographed by Bass, Grammy-nominated Warner Bros. recording artist John Rich, and the winning driver of the Federated Auto Parts 300….

Jeff Beck completed his latest album Emotion & Commotion with just three fingers on his left hand – after he sliced through one in a kitchen accident. The guitar great cut off a fingertip in the incident and had to tightly tape the damaged digit to another to allow the tip to reconnect with his finger. He tells Gibson.com, “I had to finish up the album, I had to play two or three tracks without that finger. Over the Rainbow…