What’s New: August 12, 2025 – Planet Six String

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“The Best Telecaster I’ve Ever Played” —John Bohlinger

Pablo Picasso had his famous Blue Guitar. Now, so does Brad Paisley, courtesy of the Fender Custom Shop. Last Wednesday, Paisley unveiled his latest signature model, the “Lost Paisley” Telecaster, at a Q&A session and mini concert at Fender’s East Nashville headquarters. The instrument is an exacting reproduction of Paisley’s own, rare 1967 Tele in a stunning, practically glowing, blue-flower paisley finish, with custom-wound Seymour Duncan pickups and a bender that can be set to the B string or, as Paisley prefers, the G string. Spoiler: It looks and sounds badass, even with Paisley playing through a Fender Champ, which you’ll experience when you watch our video. The street price for this limited edition instrument is $7,000.

A Soulful Sound for More Players: Taylor’s Gold Label Collection Grows

For years, Taylor Guitars design guru Andy Powers was ruminating on a sound. It was something deep and warm, with the soul of a bygone era—but unrealized in Taylor’s lineup.

The BIGGEST Metal Pedalboards We’ve Covered | Rig Rundown BEST-OF

Step into the world of colossal, meticulously crafted pedalboards that power some of the heaviest, most creative guitar tones in modern music.

A Mysteriously Excellent Kay Effector

Guitar players today don’t know how good they have it. Inexpensive guitars imported from outside the U.S. are widely available, dependable, and high quality for the price. Folks in the ’60s and ’70s weren’t so lucky. Most instruments made at beginner-friendly price points by brands like Harmony and Kay were inferior to the Martins and Gibsons they copied, but a top-of-the-line Harmony had high-end features. Once you started looking at models with fancy inlays and multiple pickups, some cost even more than low-end and mid-priced Gibsons.

Where to Start with Funk Guitar

The 1960s saw the rise of many legendary guitarists bringing us revolutionary new styles and techniques that we still use and build upon to this day. Arguably, one of the less heralded is Jimmy Nolen whose recordings with James Brown gave birth to the funky 16th-note, scratchy staccato-style playing that has become such an iconic building block of popular music to this day. To cover all the great players who have added their own unique flavor, from Freddie Stone to Nile Rodgers up to Cory Wong, would fill a whole book. But to think of funk guitar playing as purely a gimmick would be a huge mistake as these techniques can be seen across so many styles of music. Ultimately, if you want to be hired as a guitar player, chances are you will need to funk it up at some point. Here are the building blocks to start grooving with the best of them.