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GALLERY: Guitar of the Month 2011

All 12 axes featured as Guitar of the Month in 2011.

"After returning from a recent tour with his band With the Punches, guitarist Dustin Wallace acknowledged that his old knockoff Les Paul was on its last legs, so he took to eBay and Craigslist in search of a replacement. Doing so, he remembered hearing about a designer named Leah Culver who needed a new laptop and had companies buy advertising space on the computerуs lid to cover her expenses. In an effort to avoid the corporate route and stay in line with his bandуs DIY ethos, Wallace decided to see if he could get a similar type of response using his Tumblr account. рI wanted this to be something personal between me and the friends, family, and fans who donated,с says Wallace. рAfter getting a $1500 quote for the Warmoth guitar parts and laser engraving I wanted, I figured I could comfortably fit 100 namesяat $15 a pieceяon the top of the guitar without running into a major issue.с As for the guitar itself, itуs a left-handed, Les Paul-style single-cut with a Seymour Duncan Invader in the bridge position. The guitarуs top, body, neck, and fretboard are all made of maple, making this axe weigh a back-busting 12 pounds. "

Want the world to know about your pedalboard? Got a great story to tell about it? Fill out the form below for your shot at being in Premier Guitar's March issue! Not everyone will be used, so be sure to say why your pedalboard stands out. And be sure to include good hi-res photos of your board!

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Billy Doyle of Man/Woman/Chainsaw

Photo by Ella Margolin

Guest picker Billy Doyle of Man/Woman/Chainsaw joins reader Eddie Carter and PGstaff in musing on the joys of playing music.

Question: What’s the most rewarding aspect of playing music for you? Photo by Ella Margolin
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Gallagher’s road worn Strat in play in the cover of his 1972 concert album.

How the Irish guitar virtuoso got a unique tone with a factory-stock Strat.

Hello and welcome back to Mod Garage. In this column, we’ll take a closer look at the very unique sound of the famous Rory Gallagher Stratocaster and discuss why it sounded so outstandingly good.

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Saxophonist Charlie “Bird” Parker’s challenging version of a 12-bar blues is one of his most enduring contributions. Learn how to navigate these tricky changes by combining bebop and blues.


Chops: Intermediate
Theory: Intermediate
Lesson Overview:
• Use IIm–V7 progressions to add interest to a blues progression.
• Combine the blues scale with Mixolydian and Dorian to create swinging phrases.
• Increase your rhythmic awareness by using triplets and syncopation.


Click here to download a printable PDF of this lesson's notation.

A big part of the bebop spirit was learning how to navigate through seemingly unrelated chords at speedy tempos. Saxophonist Charlie “Bird” Parker was a pioneer in the bebop movement and he combined his love of the burgeoning style with a deep appreciation for the blues. It’s easy to look at bebop in 2017 and think of it as a complicated and overly intellectual genre, but adding in a blues sensibility can make the changes a bit more approachable.

When looking at a traditional I–IV–V blues, there’s not all that much harmonic information to outline, so bop players like Parker would add chord substitutions. His composition “Blues for Alice” is an example of what’s become known as “Bird Blues.” The changes Parker used on this tune of become so accepted that other composers have written contrafacts—a different melody written on the same changes.

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