In this issue:

DREAM THEATER: As Dream Theater get ready to spend 2017 celebrating the 25th anniversary of their 1992 breakthrough album Images and Words, guitarist John Petrucci shares his memories of the record that changed everything for the band.

SOUNDING BOARD: Letters, reader art and Defenders of the Faith

TUNE-UPS: Black Veil Brides, Atilla, Sepultura, Once Human, AFI, the Doobie Brothers, Dear Guitar Hero with Tesla’s Frank Hannon and much more...

MESHUGGAH
Meshuggah’s Mårten Hagström takes you inside the making of the Swedish death metal masters’ unrelenting new album, Immutable, his weakness for Simon & Garfunkel — and the return of co-founding guitarist Fredrik Thordendal.

LAMB OF GOD
Willie Adler and Mark Morton, LOG’s yin-and-yang guitar duo, take you behind the scenes of the band’s “combative,” “confrontational” (and mostly live-in-the-studio) new album..

ZIGGY STARDUST TURNS 50
Hunky Dory and Ziggy Stardust producer (and Beatles engineer) Ken Scott recalls the making of two of David Bowie and Mick Ronson’s most iconic albums.

MEGADETH
Dave Mustaine and Kiko Loureiro take us behind the scenes of their ferocious (and long-awaited) new album, The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead! Plus, meet the newest addition to Gibson’s Dave Mustaine Collection!

THE WORLD'S HOTTEST NEW GUITARISTS
GW reveals the results of a massive online poll that asked readers, “Who’s the hottest new guitarist in the world today?” Featuring Jake Kiszka, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Billy Strings, Sophie Burrell and many more!

GRETCHEN MENN
We check in with the winner of the Martin No Limits Challenge, which ruled GuitarWorld.com in April and May..

GAME-CHANGING '80S GEAR REVISITED
Twenty ultimate examples of quintessentially Eighties gear.

VITO BRATTA
GW reconnects with the former White Lion guitarist.

THE HISTORY OF IBANEZ GUITARS
The ascension of Ibanez — as we know it today — started 50 years ago. This month, Chris Gill delves into the rise of one of the world’s top guitar brands. Plus, an inside look at the company’s remarkable new Custom Shop Collection!

GHOST
Tobias Forge and Opeth’s Fredrik Åkesson take GW deep inside the writing and recording of Ghost’s multiple-chart-topping new album, Impera.

MULTI-EFFECTS MADNESS : Guitar World’s editors present eight of their favorite recent-vintage multi-effect floor units.

RUSH'S ALEX LIFESON AND PRIMUS: As Primus prepare to set off on a tour that pays tribute
to Rush’s A Farewell to Kings, they check in with GW and — of course — Rush’s Alex Lifeson.

ALEX LIFESON'S NEW BAND: “I feel like I’ve explored the whole area of soloing,” says
the Rush legend, whose sleek, song-servicing playing can be heard on the debut album by his new project, Envy of None..

30 YEARS OF EASTMAN GUITARS
Eastman celebrates 30 years of bringing true handcrafted stringed instruments to the masses.

ANIMALS AS LEADERS
Tosin Abasi and Javier Reyes discuss Animals As Leaders’ heavy (and highly anticpated) new album..

GLENN TIPTON UNLEASHED
The guitarist looks back on 50 years of triumph and tragedy in Judas Priest — and also addresses some recent comments by his former bandmate, K.K. Downing.

ROBERT FRIPP'S GREATEST MOMENTS
Yes, he’s more than just a Covid-era YouTube celebrity! Join us as we explore the venerable King Crimson guitarist’s 20 greatest guitar moments.

FRANK ZAPPA
When Frank Zappa shut up ’n stopped playing guitar: The late, great one’s on-again, off-again love affair with his six-string.

STEVE VAI
After back-to-back surgeries affected his ability to play, Steve Vai could’ve just packed it in. Instead, he gave himself some familiar advice — “Shut up ’n play yer guitar!”

COBRA KAI'S GUITAR GUYS
How the composers on Netflix’s Cobra Kai craft the show’s perfect — and/or badass — Eighties-style score, plus an interview with series star (and guitarist) William Zabka

THE BIGGEST GUITAR NEWS OF 2021 - From fart pedals to beloved Robert Fripp videos, these are the news stories that really moved the needle over at GuitarWorld.com this year.

2021'S KILLER ALBUMS, RIFFS & SOLOS - Seventy top-notch working guitarists (players with their ears to the ground) choose 2021’s best guitar-centric albums and songs, plus riffs, guitar solos, new artists, new gear and more

TOM MORELLO
Why is he recording gnarly new riffs into his iPhone?

ZAKK’S DIRTY DOZEN
Zakk Wylde pinpoints 12 musical milestones, from Ozzy onward.

IRON MAIDEN
Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gers get loud!

JERRY CANTRELL
Alice in Chains memories and a brand-new solo album !

K.K. DOWNING
The former Judas Priest six-stringer sounds off!

THE LATEST IN ACOUSTIC GEAR
Our editors’ favorite recent-vintage acoustic guitars, amps and more.

A JOHN PETRUCCI EXCLUSIVE
A new Dream Theater album — and an exclusive lesson by the man himself!

THE ROOTS OF EDDIE'S FRANKENSTEIN
Discover the true origins of Eddie Van Halen's legendary Frankenstein guitar!

CHRISTONE “KINGFISH” INGRAM
Road-tested royalty: Christone “Kingfish” Ingram assumes his throne atop the Delta blues tradition.

DIRTY HONEY
Guitarist John Notto explains why this riff-fueled Los Angeles four-piece is ready for whatever comes their way.

JOHN MAYER'S EIGHTIES FANTASY
“I still want to make a song that sounds like Eric Clapton, you know? I still want to wear a big black trench coat”.

HELLO, HOLLOWBODIES!
Ten addictive hollow- and semi-hollowbody guitars for every budget, including four standout models for less than $500..

WOLFGANG VAN HALEN
The son of one of the greatest guitarists of all time discusses his long-awaited debut album.

ALL THINGS MUST PASS TURNS 50
George Harrison’s son, Dhani Harrison, celebrates his father’s masterpiece, 1970’s All Things Must Pass.

GUITAR'S GREATEST LIVE MOMENTS!
From the iconic to the infamous to the incendiary, here are the 40 (-ish) wildest on-stage antics in six-string history.

BLACK VEIL BRIDES
Jake Pitts and Jinxx unleash The Phantom Tomorrow, BVB’s first full-length album in three years..

10 MIGHTY LUNCHBOX AMPS
Hungry for tone? Here are 10 compact lunchbox amps that eat other amps for breakfast!

ERNEST RANGLIN
“I invented [ska] music, but not the word. Even reggae — I didn’t invent that word either, but I invented the music.” All hail the king of ska guitar!

GRETA VAN FLEET
Can Greta Van Fleet — one of rock's most polarizing young bands — silence critics with their cinematic new album, The Battle at Garden's Gate? Guitarist Jake Kiszka aims to find out!

STEVE VAI'S CROSSROADS GUITAR
On the 35th anniversary of Crossroads, a sedulous reporter sets out to solve the mysteries behind the Jackson guitar Steve Vai played in the film — and to make his own one-of-a-kind replica!

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH
We check in with FFDP founder Zoltan Bathory and the band’s new guitarist, U.K. shred ace Andy James.

VERY REAL GEAR FROM A VIRTUAL NAMM
Behold the most drool-worthy new gear for 2021!.

ZERO TO EIGHTIES IN FIVE PEDALS - Modern pedals that conjure some gritty ol’ Eighties sounds.

MEET THE GUITARISTS OF THE YEAR! ...as chosen by our star judges and a massive online poll.

ADRIAN SMITH GOES FISHIN'!
The venerable Iron Maiden guitarist gives us a good idea of what he’s generally up to when he’s not onstage.

MR. BUNGLE
Founding guitarist Trey Spruance — and delighted newcomer Scott Ian — reignite The Raging Wrath.

2021: A GUITAR ODYSSEY: We rounded up Kirk Hammett, Adam Jones, John 5, St. Vincent, “Kingfish” Ingram and Mateus Asato — so you
don’t have to! Plus Gorillaz and John 5’s extra-busy year...

BLACK AND WHITE AND ED ALL OVER
Brad Tolinski details Eddie Van Halen's long and fruitful relationship with Guitar World (and a whole lot more).

EDDIE VAN HALEN: THE DEEP CUTS
A guide to 25 of Eddie's lesser-known guitar masterpieces.

JOHN PETRUCCI
Find out what happens when the lord of the strings teams up
with his former Dream Theater bandmate, Mike Portnoy

BROTHERS OSBORNE
Hell is raised on this guitar-playing duo's biggest, loudest
album; John and TJ Osborne tell all

40 GREATS WHO CHANGED OUR WORLD
Which guitarists have left their mark on our universe since 1980, the year GW was founded? Find out! We also present the results of GuitarWorld.com's recent "Best Guitarists Right Now" poll, plus a few more 40th-anniversary-themed GW staff recollections.

THE MAKING OF A DAVID BOWIE CLASSIC Bassist/producer Tony Visconti recalls Mick Ronson and the making of David Bowie's The Man Who Sold the World.

HOW TO PLAY SLIDE LIKE LOWELL GEORGE
By popular demand (check out those two Sounding Board letters), a lesson dedicated to the Little Feat luminary!

GW'S 40 GREATEST MOMENTS!
If you haven't figured it out yet, this entire issue (except for the Tune-Ups, reviews, columns and one feature) is dedicated to the 40th anniversay of Guitar World. And why not? After all, it happens only once every 40 years! In this mega feature, we look back on the 40 greatest moments in GW's remarkable history — the thrills, the chills… and a few spills!

A HISTORY OF GUITAR WORLD
Former GW editor-in-chief Brad Tolinski walks us through 40 years of publishing hijinx. PLUS: The history of GW's song transcriptions (by GW's very own Jimmy Brown) and noteworthy recollections by current GW staffers.

GROOVE LIKE GARY CLARK JR.
A brief tribute to this talented Texan's multifaceted lead- and rhythm-playing approaches.

CANADA'S BEST-KEPT SECRETS
From PUP to Monster Truck to the Dirty Nil and beyond, here are some of Canada's best-kept six-string secrets.

MIKE CAMPBELL
Tom Petty's longtime "co-captain" discusses life with Fleetwood Mac, keeping his Heartbreakers past alive and the debut album by the Dirty Knobs..

DUNABLE GUITARS
Meet Intronaut guitarist Sacha Dunable, the man behind Dunable Guitars, makers of the Yeti, the Cyclops and more!

TUNE-UPS
George Lynch, Eric Gales, Gary Lucas, Built to Spill, Wishbone Ash, Four Year Strong, Death Valley High and Dunable Guitars, plus a playlist by Máté Bodor of Alestorm

35 YEARS OF PRS GUITARS
Thirty-five guitarists — from Alex Lifeson to John Mayer to Dave Navarro to Carlos Santana — choose their favorite song (from their own catalogs) recorded with a PRS guitar.

ROGER McGUINN
GW revisits this 12-string pioneer's influential work with the Byrds, aka "America's answer to the Beatles"..

November 2022

October 2022

September 2022

August 2022

July 2022

June 2022

May 2022

April 2022

March 2022

February 2022

January 2022

Holiday 2021

December 2021

November 2021

October 2021

September 2021

For more than 31 years, Guitar World has served as North America's leading publication for rock guitarists, providing unique instructional content, exclusive photography and interviews with the genre's leading celebrity guitarists. Each month, Guitar World offers lessons that help players refine their craft, in-depth reviews of the latest guitars, amplifiers and effects, current happenings from around the rock scene, celebrity columnists and one-on-one conversations with artists ranging from iconic superstars to the young guns of today.

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Guitar World - March 2017

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