No Guitar Is Safe

From Janet Jackson to Stevie Wonder, ERROL COONEY is one of the most in-demand guitarists working today. Presented by TASCAM and the cool TASCAM MIXCAST 4 podcast workstation this episode finds Errol plugging in and jamming on Stevie Wonder tunes and much, much more, as he regales an inspiring musical adventure that has found him playing with everyone from the two aforementioned superstars to Chri...

PHILIP SAYCE plugs in! The soulful master of the Stratocaster invites us into his home where he cranks up one of his favorite Fender rigs and shares how he developed his fiery, fret-melting brand of blues rock, as well as how he created the songs on his latest album, SPIRIT RISING. Plus, the Welsh-born, Canadian-bred guitar hero shares what he learned being bandmates with such greats as MELISSA ET...

Inspired by everyone from Ritchie Blackmore, Joe Pass, and Mike Stern to his late, great guitar buddy, Allan Holdsworth, ALEX MACHACEK is a spectacular voice in the world of jazz fusion guitar. I had a blast “flying the ‘copter” over to his home studio, plugging in a couple of his signature-model Strandberg guitars, and having him demonstrate for us several inspiring soloing techniques and composi...

Today we plug in and jam with Chicago guitar hero DAVE UHRICH. A solo artist, super sideman, and stellar session cat, Dave stays busy playing, teaching, tracking, and composing. He has even worked out a solo arrangement of "Bohemian Rhapsody" (which he performs for you on this show). Dave also reflects on playing with legendary and none-too-serious WLUP "The Loop" deejay Kevin Matthews (and his al...

In addition to winning Grammy Awards for his work on albums by Beyoncé and John Legend, guitarist/composer ERICK WALLS has recorded and/or performed with many other superstars, including Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Jennifer Hudson, Will Smith, Kanye West, Alicia Keys, Jay-Z, Black Eyed Peas, Whitney Houston, and Michael McDonald, to name a few. And from the moment Erick plugs in on this episod...

How cool would it be if Django Reinhardt jammed out on some Nirvana? Well, unless you get to heaven and find Kurt Cobain and the aforementioned Gypsy jazz legend jamming together, the closest you may come to hearing that all-star duo is listening to the amazing GUSTAV VIEHMEYER performing on today’s episode of this show. Gustav may be just 26 years old, but he swings like a veteran jazzer. And he...

Grammy-winning solo artist, session ace, and super sideman RICKY Z (aka Rick Zahariades) is one of the most versatile guitarists you'll meet. That's why he has played with everyone from Josh Groban, Steven Tyler, Harry Nilsson, JpegMafia, Jessica Simpson, John Fogerty, Steve Lukather, Nick Lachey, Don Grusin, the Sweet, Beto Cuevas, Vesta Williams, Lauryn Hill, and Sheila E., to Gary Wright, Paul...

Plugging in no less than four amazing (and totally different!) guitars on this episode, Jim "Kimo" West, the Grammy-winning solo artist and longtime lead guitarist for "Weird Al" Yankovic, demonstrates everything from his own music and his take on the hypnotic Hawaiian II-V-I turnaround to "soprano" textures and rock guitar feedback (the latter via a rare Moog guitar). Hosted by Jude Gold. Present...

FERNANDO PERDOMO is equal parts lead guitarist, producer, and musicologist, which means you're in for an exciting ride through all things rock and roll as he invites you into his Los Angeles studio, plugs in his favorite Fender Mustang, and shows you the way he plays guitar — and the way he transplanted himself from Miami to California to become an established producer, sideman, and solo artist. H...

From Les Claypool (Primus) to Jerry Cantrell (Alice In Chains) to M.I.R.V to Duo De Twang (again featuring Claypool) to his own band, Kehoe Nation (AKA Kehoe International), nuclear-powered guitar hero BRYAN KEHOE — with his badass guitar kung fu, operatic singing voice, and anything-goes comedic spirit — is a treasured member of any band he is in. He’s also a full-time “brand evangelist” for Jim...

It's hard not to describe the amazing SID JACOBS as a master of guitar, but he'll be the first to tell you he's an eternal student of the instrument. And it's true — the renowned jazz solo artist, teacher, and instructional book author is still on a mission to unlock more secrets of the fretboard. Luckily for us, in this episode, Sid shares a ton of playing approaches — everything from blues turna...

Soulful hard rock guitar ace DOUG RAPPOPORT plugs in and shares what it's like playing with rock legend Edgar Winter and also how he tracked what just might be the most blazing guitar moment in TV commercial history. Doug also reveals some the tracking approaches he employed on his solo song "Bionic Warz." This episode is brought to you FOCUSRITE and their great line of Focusrite audio interfaces....

The secret to many a great Led Zeppelin song is knowing which tuning Jimmy Page used when writing and recording it. Today, I am thrilled be in the Bay Area, where GRETCHEN MENN and ANGELA PETRILLI are on hand with acoustic and electric guitars to demonstrate for you many of Page’s most magical tunings, including: “Kashmir” (DADGAD tuning: D, A, D, G, A, D, low to high) “Going to California” (Doubl...

This episode presents a one-on-one IN-PERSON funk throwdown with guitarist/producer JEFF TAMELIER (Tower of Power, Lydia Pense and Cold Blood, Starship feat. Mickey Thomas). That’s right — live jams are back! Sure, during the pandemic, guests on No Guitar Is Safe played a ton of guitar for you and showed you a lot of playing approaches over Zoom, etc., but the latency and other restrictions of int...

Whether he's sharing cool improvisation tactics, ways to use "illegal" tempo shifts, ways to heal from playing injuries by using the Alexander Technique, or his thoughts on playing learned riffs and phrases versus purely spontaneous ones, jazz guitar prodigy JULIAN LAGE explores much in this episode. And throughout the interview he's got his beautiful new signature model Collings guitar in his han...

Focusrite brings you a deep guitar hang with MISHA MANSOOR, who plugs two of his favorite signature-model Jackson guitars, deconstructs some of his great riffs for you, and shares how he created PERIPHERY, one of the most influential prog-metal bands in history. (Some would even say Mansoor is one of the chief architects of the genre known as “djent” — we’ll see if the ever-humble guitarist/produc...

It's not easy to establish yourself in Nashville well before you've turned 30, but guitarist/singer JOE ROBINSON — with a heap of musical talent, a ton of great songs, and a tireless work ethic — seems to have done just that. Today, the Aussie-turned-Tennesseean six-string wunderkind demonstrates many of his amazing riffs, songs, and approaches (including material from his new album, Borders). Joe...

Grammy-winning rock/fusion guitarist JAMIE KIME has worked with everyone from Zappa Plays Zappa to Dr. John to Jewel, and back on episode 94 of this show — which was recorded in person, well before the world ever dreamed a pesky virus would put the world in lockdown — Jamie and I played a ton of guitar and he offered up many great soloing tips. In fact, there was so much musical insight from Jamie...

From Allan Holdsworth (Bonus: This episode features a previously unreleased interview clip with Holdsworth that may save you from ever playing "mayonnaise" chords again) to Steve Howe/Yes to Eddie Van Halen, renowned bassist JEFF BERLIN has played with some truly great guitarists. On this episode, he plugs in and shows you what he loves to play, study, and teach, and write, with demonstrations spa...

He's a founding member of the two biggest rock bands ever to have the word "Guns" in their names. He's an icon of California metal and hard rock. He's got a lethal looking new Kramer signature model guitar in his name. He's TRACII GUNS, and his main band since the early- to mid-'80s, L.A. Guns, is enjoying a resurgence — and also enjoying the return of lead singer Phil Lewis. Plugging in that new...

From GUNS N’ ROSES to ASIA to SONS OF APOLLO to ART OF ANARCHY to his own BUMBLEFOOT albums, RON 'BUMBLEFOOT' THAL is not only one of the most in-demand rock guitarists of the new millennium, he’s also one of the most innovative, as you will discover when you hear him demonstrating everything from his Vigier double-neck electric (one neck is fretless) to his “portable fret” (a thimble!) to his fav...

What do QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, A PERFECT CIRCLE, FAILURE, IGGY POP, and other great rock acts have in common? They've all at one time had (and, in the case of that first band, still DO have) guitarist/producer TROY VAN LEEUWEN as a member. On this episode TROY plugs in his signature-model Fender Jazzmaster and shares his guitar playing and recording approaches with host JUDE GOLD. Today's show i...

From demonstrating guitar parts off his new solo album, DREAMCATCHER, to reliving an incredible career that has found him collaborating with everyone from George Benson to Pink Floyd, Grammy-winning guitarist/composer LEE RITENOUR visits us for a deep guitar hang — and he's playing guitar during most of the interview! Today's show is brought to you by NAMM's BELIEVE IN MUSIC WEEK, which starts Jan...

Texas-based, internationally beloved guitar hero ANDY TIMMONS plugs in his go-to ’94 Ibanez AT100 prototype and demonstrates several songs (he even SINGS one for you!), shares many of his tasty guitar techniques, and takes you on an audio tour of the amps and pedals that make up his rig — the tools that contribute to his amazing sound. He also shares the musical inspirations that have motivated hi...

British fingerstyle virtuoso MIKE DAWES demonstrates the techniques, tunings, technology, talent, and none-to-serious stage banter that have made him a rising star in the steel-string community and beyond. In addition to being a solo artist, Mike is also lead guitarist for Rock Hall-of-Famer JUSTIN HAYWARD (MOODY BLUES), who often lets Mike open his concerts with a solo set. One result of having d...