It’s been an awesome couple of weeks in the guitar world. We were treated to a movie about pedals, had lots of great gear news, and many helpful lessons. This week is no different! We have some classic videos getting a facelift from Steve Vai and Prince, interviews with Nita Strauss and Lari Basilio, classic moments from Danny Gatton, and lots more.

Reverb’s The Pedal Movie Is An Absolutely Inspiring Look At The Effects Pedal World - Last week was the debut of the Pedal Movie, and since then, I’ve watched it 3 times already! It’s a fantastic look at the history of effects pedals, and the people who make them. Check out my mini review after watching the movie.
The Pedal Movie Presents: the Greatest Moments in Effects Pedal History! - Shortly following the movie coming out, we had various YouTubers do a series of videos chronicling the 5 top moments of certain effects - phasers, overdrive, fuzz, and more. The link is to the full playlist where you can find them all.
LIVE: The Pedal Movie Exclusive (w/ Directors Michael Lux & Dan Orkin) - The makers of the Pedal Movie have been doing the rounds on podcasts and elsewhere, and recently they sat down with JHS’ Josh Smith (who was featured in the film) for a behind the scenes interview about the movie.
Effects Pedal Order Explained - If you’re just getting started building your pedalboard, you might want to take a look at this video from The Rig Doctor, where he explains effects pedal order. Pedal order makes a big difference in your tone, and Mason gives some great advice!
Steve Vai - For the Love of God (2021 Upscaled Version) - Steve Vai’s Grammy nominated classic, “For the Love of God” has gotten a massive facelift. The video looks sharper than it ever has, and is a must listen if you’ve somehow never heard this track before.
My First Guitar Lesson In 10 Years - After listening to a lot of Ariel Posen, I’ve been messing with Open C tuning. Wrapping your head around a new tuning can sometimes be difficult, which is why I was so excited to see Rhet Shull’s new video. In the video he takes a lesson from Joey Landreth (of the Bros. Landreth - of which Posen was a part of for a time). They take all about getting to grips with open C tuning, and it’s super helpful.
Eric Johnson's GENIUS CHORDS for Stevie Wonder's Up Tight - Speaking of super helpful videos, you should check out this video that talks about the amazing chords Eric Johnson used to cover Stevie Wonder’s “Up Tight”.
Tedeschi Trucks Band - Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad? - The Tedeschi Trucks Band just announced that a new live album is coming in July. The album will cover Derek & The Dominos entire ‘Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs’ album. Check out a video from the performance, featuring Phish’s Trey Anastasio, as the group cover “Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad?”
Catching Up with Nita Strauss - Nita Strauss was the first female Ibanez signature artist ever. In this interview with Sweetwater, Strauss talks about new gear, playing with Alice Cooper vs. her solo project, her new album, working out and more. I was lucky enough to see Strauss with Alice Cooper a few years back, and the whole band was awesome.
Mary Spender Interviews Lari Basilio - Speaking of great female Ibanez artists, Lari Basilio followed Strauss and has her own signature guitar too. It’s a beautiful purple T style guitar. Mary Spender talks to Lari about the guitar’s creation, songwriting and more.
The mysterious 'Stairway to Heaven chord'... - Paul Davids enlists the help of Adam Neely and Rick Beato to figure out Zeppelin’s mysterious “Stairway to Heaven” chord.
Secret Chords of Allan Holdsworth with John Vullo - But the secret or mysterious chords don’t end with Zeppelin. Later in the week, Make Weird Music broke down some of the coolest Allan Holdsworth chords of all time. Get your hands ready for some serious stretching!
Make Basic Chord Progressions Sound Beautiful | Intermediate Guitar Lesson - And if we’re talking about chords, don’t miss Ross Campbell’s latest video on making beautiful chords progressions. This is a great video to start understanding why common tones in your chord progressions are so powerful.
We have a new director’s cut of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” with Prince, Petty and more - This is a classic video of Tom Petty, Prince and others playing George Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”. But this time there are less visual effects, and a better focus on Prince’s solo. Of course my first question was, do we find out where Prince’s guitar went at the end? Unfortunately reader…the answer is no.
How To Break Away From Comfortable Licks And Scales? - Maybe the guitar transcended time and space, changed into a Strat style guitar and fell into David Wallimann’s hands? But I digress….David is back this week to help us break out of our comfort zone, and move away from overplayed licks and scales.
Pete Townshend says he "invented the guitar tech” - Did Townshend invent this classic road warrior gig?
Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Tone: 1964 Silvertone 1484 Demo (Love & Sockets) - The Vans Warped Tour was always a huge part of my life growing up - either going to multiple stops, playing the tour itself, or helping out bands and following the tour. One year I was following the Warped Tour, I got to see Rev. Peyton and his Big Damn Band wow crowds each and every day. He’s one of the most exciting slide players I’ve seen in a while. Premier Guitar caught up with Peyton to see his 1964 Silvertone 1484 amp. It sounds killer!
Guitar Habits That Change EVERYTHING - Tim Pierce recently did a livestream to answer viewers questions, and the entire 48 minutes is really worth a watch. I find I always come away with a wealth of knowledge every time I watch a Tim Pierce video.
Julian Lage - JAZZ AUDITORIA ONLINE 2021 - One of my favorite jazz guitarists, Julian Lage, performed a solo set for the Jazz Auditoria Online Festival. Julian is such a talented player, and I can’t wait for his new trio album to come out in June.
Five of Danny Gatton's Greatest Performances - Danny Gatton was a true Telecaster legend. As this post says, Steve Vai once noted that, Gatton came “closer than anyone else to being the best guitar player that ever lived.” Here are 5 reasons why that’s true!
And finally, let’s talk about some gear - Peter Frampton has a new signature Gibson guitar called the “Phenix”, and it’s 7 thousand dollars. Friedman amps launched a super small BE-MINI, which is a 30-watt solid state head. Wampler just launched the Gearbox, which is a dual overdrive for Andy Wood - the pedal combines a Tumnus and a Pinnacle in the same pedal. Gibson unveiled a new signature acoustic for Orianthi, called the SJ-200, which comes in a beautiful red. Fender’s Noventa line of guitars shipped this week, that all feature MP-90 pickups, and are limited edition. And, Godin released the Montreal Premiere LTD, which features a ‘breath-through’ core.