Have Guitar Will Travel

125 - J.D. Simo In episode 125 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine host James Patrick Regan speaks with guitarist extraordinaire J.D. Simo, they spoke at the Uptown Theatre in Napa, CA where J.D. was supporting Tab Benoit and Anders Osborne. In their conversation J.D. tells us about his current tour and his main Telecaster he got from Dan Strain at Danocaster Guitars as well as his amp a Headstrong Lil King. J.D. discusses growing up in Chicago and what a great influence the radio station WXRT had on him as well as the Blues Brothers movie and seeing Elvis on TV. J.D. walks us through his playing in bands while he was real young including a Cumbia band in Arizona and how his friendship with Zac Childs led him to moving to Nashville. J.D. tells us about being a session guitarist in Nashville and how he ended up joining the Don Kelley band at Robert’s Western World on Lower Broadway. J.D. talks us through his work as a producer and some of his other proje...

124 - Brad Wendkos (TrueFire) In episode 124 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine host James Patrick Regan speaks with Brad Wendkos guitarist and founder of TrueFire online guitar education. In their conversation Brad gives us the history of TrueFire from a phone based marketing firm to a web based marketing firm to teaching online lessons. Brad also takes us through his history as a guitarist. Brad takes us through his original instructors and his first big catch as an instructor, Larry Carlton. Brad talks about his new program Eco System Channels which allows educators to start their own educational programs. Brad takes us through the other platforms from TrueFire studios ArtistWorks, JamPlay and FaderPro. Brad also gives us his take on being a musician in 2024 and what is needed financially to survive the future. Brad also tells us about his guitar collection which includes some D’Angelico’s, Buscarino’s and a special Collings acoustic. . You can find ...

123 - Ram Tuli In episode 123 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine host James Patrick Regan speaks with Ram Tuli guitarist, author and host of Vintage Guitar Magazine’s other podcast, “Buy That Guitar!” Which if you haven’t already listened too and you love guitars you need to take a listen! It’s very compelling and you’re gonna want to buy that guitar after listening! In their conversation they cover Ram’s start at Vintage Guitar Magazine, his books on vintage guitars and his love of vintage guitars (and basses). They discuss Ram’s careers outside of music as a nuclear engineer and how he escaped at times to satisfy his musical itch. Ram tells us about his connection to the San Francisco Blues scene of the mid 80’s and how that led to his blues band in the Phoenix area the “Psychedelic Mooj” that spent a lot of time supporting the national acts coming through the Phoenix area. Ram tells us about his fascination with vintage guitars that started early on ...

122 - Nathan Jacques In episode 122 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine host James Patrick Regan speaks with singer/songwriter Nathan Jacques who has a concept album called Dark Wanderer and the Bounty Heart. The album tells the tale of a singing cowboy movie star who travels across dangerous lands in search of his lost love and a chance at redemption. Using a mix of contemporary and mid-1900s period-specific techniques and instruments during the recording process helped actualize true Western authenticity. In their conversation they cover: The production and process for the Dark Wanderer concept and the influences that contributed to the production and where the concept came from. Nathan tells us how he recreates the album when playing live and future tour dates. Nathan also tells us about growing up in New England and his musical endeavors early on and his schooling which led him to become an audio engineer for the film industry which brought him to So...

121 - Marty Friedman In episode 121 of “Have Guitar Will Travel”, presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine host James Patrick Regan speaks with guitarist extraordinaire Marty Friedman. In their conversation Marty tells us about the Drama album and the tour for that album that begins after his appearance at the 2025 NAMM show in Anaheim the end of January. They discuss Marty’s beginnings in Washington D.C. and his parents record collection with its lack of rock and roll. And Marty talks about DC Area guitarists like Danny Gatton and Jeff Adams. Marty tells us about how he met Mike Varney and how Mike helped Marty’s career. Marty also tells us about how Mike hooked him up with Jason Becker and how they started Cacophony. They discuss the now defunct studio Prairie Sun which was Mike Varney’s home studio. Marty tells us about his time living in Hollywood in abject poverty teaching seminars at GIT. They talk gear Jackson Guitars and Engl amps. Marty tells us about learning the Japanese langua...

120 - Mark Race (Raynes) In episode 120 of “Have Guitar Will Travel” presented by Vintage Guitar Magazine host James Patrick Regan speaks with Mark Race guitarist with the band Raynes. In their conversation we discuss: Mark’s wedding in Newcastle England and his Honeymoon in South Africa and we discuss growing up in Durham, England and his relocation to Miami. They discuss how two guys in a band from Bismarck, North Dakota found Mark and why they decided to include him in their band and why Mark took them up on their offer. They talk gear, Mark tells us about his Fender Custom Shop ‘61 Strat and his VOX Night Train amp which Mark mistakenly calls solid state (it’s a 15watt tube amp). Mark tells us about when they are able to carry a drummer vs when they perform as a trio. They discuss his upcoming tour dates with a novelty band of a sort “Yachtley Crew” and a “Beatle” (Ringo Starr’s All Star Band). They discuss Raynes new EP which is a concept album with songs regarding the 1849 Cali...