Jeff Floro's All About Guitar

NAMM 2018 has just concluded and a lot of new guitars and gear were debuted. Yamaha product specialists, great guitarists and friends, Andy Winston and Armando Vega, join me tonight as we take a closer look at what new acoustic guitars Yamaha has released for 2018! It's a night of some truly beautiful guitars with great tone and the kind of quality Yamaha is well known for!

We all know that music is a global phenomenon. So much so that guitar making is becoming a global affair also. Universum Guitars is one such company, a new one, started in 2016 and hailing from the Ukraine. But the luthiers, Vadim & Dmitry Gavrilenko, have 20+ years experience building guitars, and with Alexander Doroshenko have created some truly beautiful instruments. We take a closer look at these remarkable instruments and explore what makes Universum Guitars a company to be reckoned with. Joining me tonight are special guests Gary Roudenko, Steve Fister and Tony Pulizzi, as we try out these new instruments and find out what makes them tick!

Although Steve Fister has been on the show several times in 2017, it has been a while that we talk to Steve about what he is up to, and he has been busy. We welcome back Steve and take a close look at his new upcoming EP, "The Steve Fister Band: Authorized Bootleg." We also look at the changes to his rig, his new guitars from Godin, and more! It's a night of great tone, great playing and cool gear you won't want to miss!!

In 1896, one man started a company that would significantly impact the development of the archtop and electric guitar in America and the world. Orville Gibson started his music instrument company and the rest is history. We celebrate the anniversary of the passing of Orville with Gregg and Sharon De Lorto of Heritage Guitars. We take a look at the life of Orville Gibson, his guitars and his incredible impact on history of the guitar. Also joining us are Edwin Stepp, a documentary film producer who is working on a film on Orville Gibson's life, and Richard Gellis, owner of Union Grove Music in Santa Cruz, California. Richard is an authority on pre WWII fretted instruments built by Gibson, Martin and other American manufacturers. An authorized repairman for over 40 years for Gibson, Martin, and Fender, Richard is also a contributing dealer to the VIntage Guitar price guide. It's a night of guitars, history and more!!

I am honored to have guitarist, writer, historian, and educator, Jim La Diana on the show. Jim has written a fascinating book, Strings of Memories, on the jazz, session and sideman guitarist that predate the Wrecking Crew. These artists basically developed the arch top guitar and electric guitar and brought the instrument from being used primarily as a rhythm instrument and timekeeper to a true solo instrument. These were the pioneers who worked with the guitar manufacturers to develop the electric guitar of today. We talk to Jim about such greats as Bob Bain, Eddie Lang, Les Paul, and others, and learn how the archtop guitar developed, from acoustic to electric and led the way to the session scene of the 1960's and beyond!!

I am very honored to have Stephen Bishop on the show tonight! Besides being a two time Grammy nominee, an Oscar nominee, and the writer of such hit songs as "Save It For A Rainy Day" and "On and On," Stephen is also an accomplished guitarist. We talk to Stephen about his guitar playing, its impact on his songwriting, and the guitars he has used and is using. We also will take a look at his latest album, "Blueprint" and delve into the musicianship and creative process of an amazing artist!

G & L Guitars (David McLaren, David Brown and Ron Moreno) returns to All About Guitar and we take a closer look at the beautiful Doheny guitar. Also, we take a peek at what also to expect from G & L at NAMM 2018. And I invited a few of my friends to join us and check out these great guitars: Tony Pulizzi, Prescott Niles (The Knack, Missing Persons), Janet Robin (The String Revolution), Jean Pierre Durand and Liza Carbe (Carbe-Durand, Incendio), Howie Anderson (The Strawberry Alarm Clock), Ben Woods (Heavy Mellow, Steve Stevens), and Steve Fister. A great show about Leo Fender's and G&L's continuing goal to make great guitars even better!

The sarod is a traditional East Indian instrument and, along with the sitar, is one of the most prominent and popular instruments in India and Hinduism. Stephen Day is an accomplished artist and sarod player and we take a closer look at this fascinating and beautiful instrument. We take a listen to Stephen's performance on the instrument, both in a traditional and contemporary context.

I am truly honored to have on the show an amazing artist and guitarist, Janet Robin. Besides backing such artists as Lindsey Buckingham, Michelle Shocked, Maia Sharp, Ann & Nancy Wilson of Heart, and many others, Janet is part of "The String Revolution," a quartet of some incredible guitarists taking the instrument to all sorts of new places! We talk to Janet about her guitar playing, taking lessons from Randy Rhoads, her great tone and technique, what gear she uses, and talk about her latest solo album, "Take Me As I Am."

About 2 years ago I won a Surreal Amp Cult 45 head at Loni Specter's L.A. Amp Show in 2016. I didn't know too much about the company but I did meet Jerry Dyer and we talked about having him come on the show. I was impressed by the tone of the amp I won and I was even more impressed with the new models he came out with at the most recent L.A. Amp Show earlier this month. We will be taking a look at these incredible amps and some special guests will be joining me to check out how much tone they have!