The Fretboard Journal Guitar Podcast
The Fretboard Journal magazine's weekly podcast, where we interview legendary guitarists, luthiers, and much more.
Episodes
Bluegrass guitar hero Bryan Sutton joins us this week to talk about his brand-new album, From Roots to Branches, Vol. 1 ( Mountain Home Music Company). The album features Sutton in a duo setting with a bevy of friends, including Tommy Emmanuel, Billy Strings, Joe Bonamassa, Sierra Hull, the late Doc Watson, and others. As you'll hear, the performances range from straight bluegrass to a rather rocking tune with Billy Strings.
Nashville-based singer-songwriter Maisy Owen joins us this week to talk about her gorgeous debut album, Dark on a Sunny Day (Tompkins Square).
Maisy talks about her music-filled upbringing (her dad is songwriter Gwil Owen; radio programming legend Rob Bleetstein is a family friend); her decision to take up the guitar; unlikely jobs (and songwriting sessions); her newfound love for British f...
Today, we pay tribute to singer-songwriter Glen Hansard (1970-2026), frontman for the Frames and Swell Season.
In 2009, Fretboard Journal publisher Jason Verlinde sat down with Glen at Seattle's Kells Irish Restaurant & Pub for an hour-long chat about guitars (including his famously worn Takamine), meeting your heroes, busking, and more. Today, we're sharing the audio from that co...
Today on the podcast, Summer School Electronics founder Mark Turley joins us once again. We talk about Summer School's current pedal offerings, the 2026 Fretboard Summit, and the two pedal-making classes that Mark will be teaching at the Summit.
https://www.summerschoolelectronics.com
Sign up for Summer School's Pedal Classes: https://www.summerschoolelectronics.com/shop/p/fretboard-summit-pedal-building-class-amnk8
Today on the podcast, we are joined by guitarist Louis Campbell, who talks to us about growing up playing traditional music, studying with Martin Simpson, his affinity for using the electric guitar like a piano, and much more.
You can check out his original music via his duo Spafford Campbell: https://www.spaffordcampbell.com
Subscribe to the Fretboard Journal's quarterly print magazine. Issue 60 is just a few weeks away:...
LA-based singer-songwriter/composer/guitarist Micah Preite joins us this week!
https://micahpreite.bandcamp.com
Though millions have streamed his lo-fi/indie songs on Spotify, Preite's background includes time with SoCal jazz legend Bruce Forman, a visit as a teenager to the OG 2015 Fretboard Summit in California, and studying music at CalArts. He's now working on...
Today's podcast episode is with songwriter and guitarist @alex.amen, who has a new album out today on ATO Records.
In this conversation, we talk about Alex's Texan roots, mountaineering, living on a California commune, and the musical influences found on his new album.
Join us at our 2026 Fretboard Summit in Chicago (August 20-22, 2026) for three days of guitar demos, concerts, workshops and live podcasts with ...
On this week's Fretboard Journal Podcast, we're joined by photojournalist and musician Ryan Salm.
When the 2026 World Cup descends on North America, Salm and his group of friends, The Home Team String Band, will hit the road in a converted school bus, visiting match sites to play music and bridge cultural divides.
It's a fun tale of soccer fans using music to open doors and make friends.
On this week's episode of the Fretboard Journal Podcast, we talk to singer-songwriter Darryl Rahn about his new album (out today on Capitol Records).
Darryl shares a look into his recording process, his gear set-up to get that perfect acoustic live sound, his love for his '50s Martin, and more.
https://www.instagram.com/darrylrahnmusic/?hl=en
Join us at our 2026 Fretboard ...
Musician Brad Barr joins us this week to share the story of the Barr Brothers' 2025 album, Let It Hiss, and talk guitar.
Brad's guitar playing is uniquely shaped by world music sounds. For years now, Brad has been using a simple but effective trick to make drone/violin sounds on his guitar: Tie a piece of sewing thread on a guitar string near the bridge. The effect, inspired by the playing ...
On this week's podcast, we're mixing things up. Take a peek inside our brand new, 59th issue and hear an excerpt from our cover story with Jeff Tweedy of Wilco. Also, Fretboard Summit news, some of Jason's favorite stories, and more.
Get the issue here: https://www.fretboardjournal.com/features/whats-inside-fretboard-journal-59/
On this week's podcast, we're joined by Adam Dardeck and Andy Cambria of The Music Emporium. Founded in 1968 by Stu Cohen, The Music Emporium is one of the most successful retailers of boutique and vintage guitars in the world. The Lexington, Mass.-based store is sponsoring our 2026 Fretboard Summit and, thanks to their generous support, we're granting our first-ever scholarships to the guitar festival!
<...Guitarist, composer and Berklee professor Lyle Brewer joins us this week.
We talk about his journey as a professional guitarist and educator, how he ended up teaching at Berklee (and what the students are listening to), his influences (from Pat Metheny to Andy Shauf), his love for nylon-string guitars, workshopping new music on the internet, and so much more.
Brewer has a ton of in...
On today's Fretboard Journal Podcast, we mix things up.
Our very own Ryan Richter (https://www.instagram.com/misterrichter/) just wrapped up playing two of the most talked-about sets at Coachella backing Dijon and we wanted to hear all about it. We discuss the prep that went into Dijon's Coachella performances, the gear that Ryan used, and more.
Watch the whole interview on YouTube: https://youtu.be/zKa...
Guitarist Michael Daves and mandolinist Jacob Jolliff join us this week to talk about their latest project, 'We Like Jim & Jesse!' The album, a tribute to Jim & Jesse and the Virginia Boys, features 10 of the famed bluegrass duo's tracks.
During our conversation, we talk about the magic of Jim & Jesse McReynolds, some of the unique quirks of their performance style (including Jesse's wild fingernail routine), h...
The incredibly talented Wendy Eisenberg joins us this week to talk about their new, self-titled album, which just earned a Best New Music nod from Pitchfork.
Wendy talks about their start playing music in Western Massachusetts, the perils of awful guitar instructors, discovering prog rock (and eventually jazz…and singer-songwriters), and so much more. Hosted by Sofia Wolfson
Thomm Jutz's story is unlike any other we've ever shared.
Born in the Black Forest of Germany, Jutz became obsessed with American music when, at the age of 11, he saw Bobby Bare on TV. He eventually moved to Nashville, where he has worked with Nanci Griffith, Mary Gauthier, Billy Strings, and others. These days, he also teaches songwriting at Belmont University.
On this...
This week, we're chatting with Rhys John Stubbs, founder of UK-based Bigfoot Engineering. Rhys is best known for his effects pedals, but he just released a beautiful album of original acoustic guitar instrumentals called 'Zems.' We love it.
We talk about Rhys' journey through music (and how a Fretboard Journal video with the Milk Carton Kids shaped his playing!), his love for acoustic guitars, pe...
Singer-songwriter John Craigie joins us this week to talk about his new album, 'I Swam Here.'
We also talk about Craigie's unique humor during his sets, his Beatles covers, album covers, and so much more.
Plus...a really exciting Fretboard Summit update. Our next Summit takes place August 20-22, 2026, at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. Register today: https://fretboardsummit.org
This week, the Fretboard Journal's Sofia Wolfson talks to Tulsa, Oklahoma-based songwriter Ramsey Thornton. Ramsey is a multi-instrumentalist with a love for both banjo and guitar. In fact, he's one of those rare individuals who boasts a graduate degree in banjo!
We hear all about it and about Ramsey's forthcoming debut album, 'I Called It!'
Follow Ramsey here: https://www.instagram.com/ramsey.thornton/
Our...
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