PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS

Contributors past and present share their recollections and closing thoughts on GT’s incredible 30-year ride!

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Neville Marten (editor 1994-1995 and 2004-2022)

Towards the end of 1993 I was editing Guitarist and Phil Hilborne handled the music. We felt the market could stand an all-technique guitar mag so we planned it: real song tabs, popular genres, the best tutors. Before long Phil was doing A-Z Of Great Riffs, Lee Hodgson had Hot Country, Frank Evans did Jazz, Eric Roche handled Acoustic, Shaun Baxter took on Rock, Geoff Whitehorn brought us Blues, and Cliff Douse wrote about Scales And Modes. We also had Guthrie Govan, Dave Kilminster and Jamie Humphries doing full song transcriptions. Launched in March 1994 we were an instant hit. To highlight GT’s sheer reach, in the early 2000s Guthrie and I were strolling around LA’s NAMM Show where he was demoing Cornford amps. As we perused the aisles people were coming up to greet him, stunned by his playing on the stand but also due to GT. And to the end we’ve had the greatest tutors and the finest guitar tuition. But things change. They have to. And I’m happy to say I was here for the first and very last issue of a magazine that’s as highly regarded today as it was 30 years ago. Thanks for coming along for a unique and spectacular ride!

Phil Hilborne (music editor 1994-2003, writer till now)