
Alan Harrison, E6 Boatswains Mate 1st Class, is a 21-year US Navy veteran who's taking part in the Guitars for Vets program at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Guitars for Vets organizers Patrick Nettesheim and Dan Van Buskirk help veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder find hope again through music.
In the time it takes to read this story, another US serviceman or servicewoman will lose their life. It won't be to an IED on the battlefields of Iraq or Afghanistan. It will be to suicide on the battlefield of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and depressionāright here at home. Every day, 19 soldiers take their own lives. Fifty percent of our homeless population is made up of veterans, and more than 250,000 veterans now suffer from PTSD. A 2004 Department of Defense study estimates that 17 to 20 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq āsuffer from major depression, generalized anxiety, or PTSD." And according to a 2008 report cited in Tears of a Warrior: A Family's Story of Combat and Living with PTSDāa book the Veterans Administration uses in its PTSD treatment programā roughly 40,000 troops have been diagnosed since 2003.
It's easy to slap a "Support Our Troops" magnet on the back of a vehicle to show solidarity in times of deployment, but where is that support when these men and women come home physically and emotionally broken? Where do they turn when society is not informed or empathetic enough to understand their state of mind, or when they are shamed into silence by the stigma of "mental illness"?
These are crucial questions too often left both unasked and unanswered. However, two guitarists with their hearts in the right place are doing their best to make a difference. Guitar instructor Patrick Nettesheim and guitar-playing Vietnam War veteran Dan Van Buskirk decided to take matters into their own hands by creating Guitars for Vets (G4V), a unique form of music therapy they're taking to VA medical centers.
Founded in 2008, Guitars for Vets is a nonprofit that provides six free, one-on-one guitar lessons and a new acoustic guitar to veterans in recovery. Its mission is simple: Turn the guitar into a source of healing, communication, and self-expression. Veterans enrolled in the program receive their own new Oscar Schmidt acoustic guitar at their sixth lesson, and thereafter they can continue learning through group lessons. G4V began in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but has chapters in several other statesāas well as one in Afghanistanāand it's receiving requests from VA centers across the country. Six strings at a time, it's working miracles.
To Hell and Back Again
Van Buskirk and Nettesheim met in 2007, when Van Buskirk became Nettesheim's guitar student. It was a fortuitous step on the long road to recovery for a lifetime pacifist who joined the military to uphold family duty.
Although the Peace Corps was his first calling, Van Buskirk joined the Marine Corps and became a reconnaissance scout and sniper during a time when, he says, "We were a bunch of young men confused by John Wayne movies, masculinity, and serving your country. I was assigned to Albrook, the hottest, best team battalion. We were on patrol schedules in Laos, and it was so dangerous that all the guys left letters and valuables for their loved ones because no one expected to return alive. Because Albrook was so good, the whole team would go on patrol. Except they wouldn't let me goāI was too inexperienced. One day, the North Vietnamese set up an ambush for Albrook. They shot down the helicopter with a rocket and all the guys died."
During Van Buskirk's 1968-1969 tour, he did 40 patrols in Laos and Cambodia, lost his best friend there, and witnessed unspeakable horrors that remain with him today. Upon return, he was hospitalized for a year and told he had "shell shock," as it was called then. "They didn't know how to treat it," he says. "I was in a deep, deep depression. You feel like you are in a black tunnel that has no light on the other side. I just wanted some light, but I couldn't see it."
Van Buskirk struggled to maintain a normal life. He married, became a father, worked, and went back to school to earn degrees in sociology and anthropology. Though he attempted to become an adjusted civilian, Vietnam never left him. "I mostly had a sense that 'I just don't get it,"' he says. "It plagued me. Some people live joyously, but for veterans with PTSD, we're in survival mode." Van Buskirk still experiences flashbacks and nightmares.
In 2005, after losing two jobs, Van Buskirk was placed on full chronic disability. As part of his search for ways to deal with depression, he bought a guitar. He had tried playing years before, but lacked focus due to PTSD. Cream City Music, in Brookfield, Wisconsin, recommended Nettesheim as an instructor. The lessons became educational for both men: Van Buskirk learned to play, while Nettesheim learned about Vietnam and the struggles returning veterans faced. They realized they were on to something.
Guitars for Vets debuted in the Milwaukee VA spinal rehab unit, where Van Buskirk and Nettesheim performed for paralyzed veterans whose lives are spent in wheelchairs and on their backs. "Dan played 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door' and we saw guys who had been staring at the ceiling for 40 years just light up," says Nettesheim. "The smiles, the happinessāthey would hold the guitars while I strummed them. I knew it was magic. These men with broken bodies, broken spirits, and no way out of their situations as prisoners of their own bodiesāI saw the light in their eyes." During their next lesson, Van Buskirk and Nettesheim put a plan in action and created Guitars for Vets.
Asked to explain the source of that rekindled lightāwhy the guitar is a source of comfortā Nettesheim says, "How you hold it against your midsectionāit's a metaphoric shield. When you look at trauma as part of the human condition, in moments of sadness and weeping, you rock back and forth and hold a pillow or a teddy bear to your midsection. It's an innate trait. The guitar is a good surrogate for that. It allows you to speak without words. The cool thing with the guitar, and many instruments, is the universal language: Others get what you're feeling by what you play. It helps us communicate emotions that may be too difficult to verbalize. That's why music touches so many people deeply."
Faces of the Faceless
A group of vets from the St. Louis, Missouri, chapter of G4V gathers to socialize and support each other through song.
Photo by Glen Harris
Miami resident John Miranda understands using music in place of words. He spent a good portion of his adult years entrenched in the rock-musician lifestyle on the West Coast. In 1973, he joined the service and became a parachuter during the final stages of the Vietnam War. "Conflict and war are no picnic," he says. "Nor was the way we were treated when we came home. When I got out of the military, I began drinking heavily, jumped onboard with a band, and played my life away."
Miranda is now in his mid 50s, and not long ago he found the courage and the means to clean up his life. He went to the Miami VA for help in 2009 and met music therapist Elizabeth Stockton, whom he credits for not giving up on him during the hospital's three-month program. Through music and sobriety, he is learning to unlock emotions he believed didn't exist. "I know the power of music and what a program like this can do," says Miranda, who became the first instructor for the Miami chapter of Guitars for Vets. "There's life to music. It's very spiritual."
Guitars for Vets is staffed entirely by volunteers. Instructors must train through a strict VA program, and they're submitted to rigorous FBI background checks that require fingerprinting and official badges for admission to facilities. In addition to government protocol, G4V has three requirements. "Instructors must show gratitude toward veterans for what they have given," says Nettesheim. "They must be empathetic and sincerely able to feel these veterans' stories, and they must be nonjudgmental and throw all political thoughts out the door."
Marc DeRuiter instructs the Grand Rapids, Michigan, chapter of Guitars for Vets. A Navy veteran from 1972ā1975 who was stationed in both the Philippines and Vietnam, he discovered the organization in 2009 through a web search. Based on his experience performing for patients in Alzheimer's Disease units for seven years, he understands the therapeutic effects of music. He has been a musician since his teens, and he has a repertoire of country, bluegrass, rock, and oldies tunes. He has performed with the same musicians for 30 years, and he began teaching guitar at his church 10 years ago. After discovering G4V online, DeRuiter says he emailed Nettesheim because he thought he'd be "a good fit." He explains, "Our philosophies are right in line with each other. I'm sold on the therapeutic value of musicāyou spend an hour a day doing it, and your body treats it like a workout. It relieves your stress. You practice until you get it right, and that provides a sense of accomplishment."
Marc DeRuiter (right), a Navy vet who served in Vietnam from 1972 to 1975, instructs Richard Pierson in a Guitars for Vets class at the Grand Rapids, Michigan, VA center.
Photo by Marc DeRuiter
For that reason, DeRuiter makes a point of teaching actual songs to his students right away, helping them through "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" and "The Ballad of Tom Dooley." "If you've got a song, you've got something," he says. "Some of these veterans have never played guitar before, and they love it. They practice on their own and get together to practice too."
Nettesheim says that camaraderie is a crucial element of Guitars for Vets. "When you talk to veteransāespecially combat veteransāthey'll tell you that they miss the teamwork and close friendships they formed while in the service. When their tour is over, they often move on and never see each other again. They fight to protect each other's lives, and there is a great sense of loss when those relationships are gone. They go from the battlefield to being thrust back into civilian life. Concentrating on playing and practicing in groups helps them to stop thinking about their grief. Working together brings them feelings of family and belonging."
Dan Van Buskirk (right), a Marines reconaissance scout during the Vietnam War, took up guitar in 2005 after years of PTSD had ravaged his personal and professional lives. In 2008, he and his instructor, Patrick Nettesheim (left), formed Guitars for Vets.
Photo by Tim Evans
Alan Harrison, another Vietnam vet involved with G4V, learned about the organization through the Milwaukee VA hospital. He had played guitar as a teenager but gave it up when he joined the Navy, where he spent 21 years. He also suffers from severe PTSD. During his time in the service, he says, "I saw a man dismembered, sucked into the intake of a jet, and that wasn't the worst thing I saw."
When Harrison returned to civilian life, he couldn't erase his memories.
PTSD and depression had set in. Two years ago, he signed on for lessons with Guitars for Vets and now he's a volunteer for the program. "When I pick up the guitar, it takes me to a simpler time when I didn't have these memories," he says. "The guitar eases the pain. Without this program, I would still be in serious therapy. It helps me cope." (Visit myspace.com/guitarsforvets to hear "Dusty Old Road," a song Harrison and Meaghan Owens wrote about his experiences as a veteran.)
Of course, Harrison, Van Buskirk, DeRuiter, and Miranda are just a few of the countless veterans of past and present armed conflicts who suffer from the debilitating effects of PTSD. Van Buskirk expresses great concern for those who have served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. "I see a lot of men and women slip through the cracks when they come home. I see them get fired because employers aren't held accountable for dealing with soldiers with anxiety issues. I see things that sadden me," he says. "But a smiling face, a compassionate heart, a listening ear, and the vibrations of a guitar can help. I can't sit back and not be part of the solution. Medication is a useful band-aid but in no way helps the soldier get their soul back. If a soldier takes meds as the end-all be-all, they will miss out on getting their whole person back. If we take the lead with this program, maybe others will find it easier to help veteransāand maybe the VA will become more progressive and not just say, 'Increase your meds.'"
How to Help
Guitars for Vets has distributed over 600 guitar packs to date, but these instruments are purchased, not donatedāand G4V incurs significant shipping costs to send guitars to its chapters. Each guitar pack consists of an instrument, a bag, and a tuner, and it is paid for by G4V, with the Oscar Schmidt acoustics being purchased at dealer cost. To date, no manufacturer has been willing to donate any instruments, so the organization relies on monetary donations from supporters. For the price of an evening outādinner, movie, and drinksāyou can help pay for one of these packs. Stay home one night and change a veteran's life.
Before receiving their free guitar at their sixth lesson, veterans enrolled in G4V learn to play on donated practice guitars. If you have an acoustic guitar gathering dust in your closet, send it in. Even if the instrument is no longer playable, artists associated with the program can turn it into an art piece that will then be sold to raise funds for G4V. Even if you don't have an old guitar to donate, you can help raise awareness of the program and provide useful funds by purchasing Guitars for Vets merchandise on the organization's website. There are other ways to get involved, too. G4V needs instructors and coordinators to set up new chapters and help with existing groups. Visit their website guitarsforvets.org or G4V's Facebook page for more details on the program and ways you can make a difference.
[Updated 11/10/21]
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Brent Mason is, of course, on of the most recorded guitarists in history, who helped define the sound of most ā90s country superstars. So, whether you know it or not, youāve likely heard Masonās playing.
Professional transcriber Levi Clay has done the deepest of dives into Brent Masonās hotshot licks. At one point, he undertook the massive project of transcribing and sharing one of Masonās solos every day for 85 or so days. Mason is, of course, on of the most recorded guitarists in history, who helped define the sound of most ā90s country superstars. So, whether you know it or not, youāve likely heard Masonās playing. Levi shares the insight he gleaned from digging deep, and he tells us what it was like when they shared a stage last year. Plus, Levi plays us some great examples of Masonās playing.
For the first time ever, two guitar greats, John 5 and Richie Kotzen will be heading out on the road this year. The tour will launch October 16 and run through November, hitting markets across the U.S.
Find the full tour itinerary right plus a link for tickets & VIP, including additional dates featuring John 5 only. Reserved seating tickets will go on sale Friday May 16 though a fan presale will begin today at noon local time and fans are strongly encouraged to buy early to get the best seats.
Meet and Greets for both artists will be available. For John 5 please go to: https://john5store.com/collections/vip.
Today, John 5 also announces more details of his anticipated new album. Called The Ghost, it will be released October 10 and is led by the new track āFiend,ā featuring Kenny Aronoff.
John 5 continues running public tours this month for his Knights In Satanās Service Museum of KISS Memorabilia in Los Angeles, California. Guided tours are open to the public for one month only (with a possible expansion). Current dates available are May 12-16, May 19-23 and May 27-30. Each will be led by John 5 himself who will provide tons of rich detail and answer any questions. Secure your place HERE.
JOHN 5 continues to tour with Mötley Crüe including an upcoming residency in Las Vegas in 2025.RICHIE KOTZEN &
JOHN 5 FALL 2025 TOUR
October 16 El Cajon, CA @ Magnolia
October 17 Riverside, CA @ Fox Performing Arts
October 18 Roseville, CA @ Goldfield Trading Post
October 19 San Jose, CA @ The Ritz
October 21 Phoenix, AZ @ Celebrity Theatre
October 22 Albuquerque, NM @ KiMo Theatre
October 24 Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
October 25 Leander, TX @ The Haute Spot
October 27 New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues
October 28 Memphis, TN @ Minglewood Hall
October 29 Nashville, TN @ Fogg Street Lawn Club
October 30 Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
October 31 Orlando, FL @ House of Blues
November 1 Fort Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room
November 2 Clearwater, FL @ Capitol Theatre
November 4 Richmond, VA @ The National
November 5 Leesburg, VA @ Tally Ho Theater
November 6 Patchogue, NY @ Patchogue Theatre
November 11 Glenside, PA @ Keswick Theatre
November 12 Derry, NH @ Tupelo Music Hall
November 13 Foxborough, MA @ Six String Grill & Stage
November 14 Stroudsburg, PA @ Sherman Theater
November 15 Lorain, OH @ Lorain Palace Theatre
November 16 Columbus, OH @ The King Of Clubs
November 17 Warrendale, PA @ Jergels
November 19 Wyandotte, MI @ District 142
November 20 Flint, MI @ The Machine Shop
November 21 Fort Wayne, IN @ Piereās
November 22 St. Charles, IL @ Arcada Theatre
November 23 Belvidere, IL @ Apollo Theatre
November 25 Denver, CO @ Oriental Theater
November 29 Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy & Harriet's*
*John 5 only
AEROSMITH guitarist and songwriter JOE PERRY is set to return to the road for a series of August performances with THE JOE PERRY PROJECT. The 8-date run kicks off August 13 in Tampa, FL and wraps August 23 in Port Chester, New York, with an August 19 performance in PERRYās Boston hometown (see the itinerary below). For the North American trekāwhich marks the first solo shows for PERRY this yearāthe legendary guitarist will be joined by his Aerosmith bandmates Brad Whitford (guitar) and Buck Johnson (keys), along with The Black Crowesā Chris Robinson (vocals), and Stone Temple Pilotsā Robert DeLeo (bass), and Eric Kretz (drums).
āWellā¦itās time to let the music do the talkin again,ā PERRY says. āIām really excited about the JPP line up this year!!!! Most of these guys played with me at The Roxy in L.A. at the debut event for my latest solo album [Sweetzerland Manifesto] in January 2018. Theyāre all busy as hell but thankfully theyāre able to carve out some time for this run. And Iām not only lucky enough to have Brad Whitford onstage with me but Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes! [who sang āFortunate Oneā on Sweetzerland Manifesto MKII], Robert DeLeo and Eric Kretz from STP!!! and Buck Johnson who plays keys and sings with Aerosmith, the Hollywood Vampires, and is also a solo artist in his own right.ā
For the shows, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee says āthe set list is gonna include my fav JPP cuts, STP, Black Crowes, and with Brad weāll be hitting the Aero hits and some deep cuts and then ya never know!!!! Gonna be a BLAST, and if youāve ever been to one of my shows you know the words GARAGE BAND on STEROIDS come to mind! See you there!!!!ā
DATE | LOCATION | VENUE |
Wednesday, August 13 | Tampa, FL | Seminole Hard Rock - Tampa |
Thursday, August 14 | Hollywood, FL | Seminole Hard Rock - Hollywood |
Saturday, August 16 | Toronto, ON | HISTORY |
Sunday, August 17 | Muskoka, ON | Kee to Bala |
Tuesday, August 19 | Boston, MA | Wang Theatre |
Wednesday, August 20 | Hampton Beach, NH | Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom |
Friday, August 22 | Mashantucket, CT | The Premier Theater at Foxwoods Resort Casino |
Saturday, August 23 | Port Chester, NY | Capitol Theatre |
A sample page from the authorās analog log.
Seasonal changes are tough on your acoustic. Hereās how you can take better care of your prized instrument.
As you read this, spring is in bloom in most of the US, or maybe it has been for some time. Iām timing this column specifically to ask acoustic guitarists, in this season of increasing humidity and comfortable conditions, to prepare for whatās coming. Itās never too soon, and time flies. Before you know it, weāll be back to the maintenance phase and you might be blowing up the phones of your local guitar shops, luthiers, and techs. Iām here to encourage a decidedly old-school approach to preventative guitar maintenance, and yes, it starts now.
Why, you ask? Well, as the lead luthier at Acoustic Music Works, I can tell you that in my nearly 15 years in this position, this was the worst winter ever for preventable repairs on acoustic guitars. Fret sprout, bridge lifts, top sink, soundboard cracks, back cracks, loose binding, general malaise⦠These hit us very hard in the winter that spanned 2024 and 2025. Am I complaining? On the one hand, no. This is part of how we make our money. On the other hand, yes! Repair schedules related to dryness and humidity issues can stretch into weeks and even months, and nobody wants to be without their favorite instruments for that amount of time. With a little thoughtfulness, however, you might get through next winter (and every one thereafter) without hefty repair bills or time apart from your musical companion.
Our preparation is going to start with an unlikely but very important guitar accessory: the humble notebook. Plain, lined, grid, day planner⦠it doesnāt matter. We all need to actively participate in our instrument maintenance, and in my experience, fancy apps that track humidity via Bluetooth breed a kind of laziness, a feeling of safety that might prevent us from actually physically looking in on conditions. Better we keep an analog, well, log, so that we know where things stand, and I suggest checking in daily.
āThis was the worst winter ever for preventable repairs on acoustic guitars.ā
Track your relative humidity, both in the case and in the room where your instruments mostly reside, but also take notes on your action height, top deflection (StewMac has some great tips for measuring this) and anything related to playability that you believe you can observe empirically.
Dryness is the root cause of most guitar issues that manifest in the fall and winter months. Symptoms of dryness include sharp fret ends, falling action and dead frets, sunken top around the sound hole, and cracks and bridge lifts. With your trusty notebook, youāll get a feel for the sensitivity level of your instrument, and that knowledge is power!
A few other basic implements will not only assist you in your observations, but may also satisfy your need to buy guitar-related things (at least for a minute). Getting quick and comfortable with a fret rocker is a great skill to have, and is invaluable in diagnosing buzzes due to high frets or frets that have come unseated due to dryness. A well-calibrated relief gauge might seem luxurious, but it can prevent you from making unnecessary or extreme truss rod adjustments. A string action gauge, or even a simple machinistās rule or set of feeler gauges, will help you keep track of your action. Get a three-pack of hygrometers so you can average their readings, rather than depending on one.
Lest we forget: A guitar can not only be too dry, it can also be too wet. By beginning your maintenance diligence in the spring/summer, youāll also be able to tell if your instrument is the victim of a too-humid environment. The signs of over-humidification are subtle: Your action may rise from a puffed-up top, and in extreme cases, glue joints could begin to fail. In my experience, an over-humidified guitar will suffer from dulled tone, almost like a sock in the sound hole. If youāre sensing a lack of clarity in your guitar all of a sudden, start with new strings. If it persists, it might be due to over-humidification, and you may want to introduce a desiccant to the case for a time. The more lightly built your guitar is, the more sensitive it will be to seasonal changes.
By getting into these habits early, youāll be empowered by knowing your instrument more intimately. Youāll understand when and why changes in tone and playability might have occurred, and youāll hopefully save on repair bills year-round. Feel free to reach out with any questions. Who knows? I might just send you a notebook with an AMW sticker on the cover!