No Guitar Is Safe

Charlie Hunter’s love of all things groove-related is infectious — and after you take in this deep guitar hang and jam with the prolific 6-, 7-, and 8-stringer (Charlie’s custom bass/guitar hybrid instruments are always evolving) you’ll likely be inspired to take the art of “lockin’ it in the pocket” to a higher level in your own playing. Additionally, we dive deep into such musical topics as melodic phrasing, why Charlie keeps his iPhone in mono audio mode, his amazing new album with Ella Feingold (called Different Strokes for Different Folks), which single rock band he feels truly knows how to groove, and which guitar player knocked him out (literally!) when he was 12 years old. I was thrilled to record this episode at Earthtones Recording Studio in Greensboro, NC, with producer/engineer Benjy Johnson at the console. Thanks to GuitarPlayer.com for making this episode happen. To play better and sound better, follow Guitar Player!
— JUDE GOLD, host and creator, No Guitar Is Safe

From Gov’t Mule to the Allman Brothers Band to his prolific solo career, Warren Haynes has long been one of the busiest, hardest working guitarists in rock and jam band circles. In the deep guitar hang that follows, the famed guitarist/singer/songwriter plugs in a Les Paul and shares everything from how to approach Allman Brothers-style twin leads to how he learned to survive playing onstage with the late, great (and apparently very loud!) guitar legend Dickey Betts, to how to release multiple albums in just two years. Thank you, Warren. And thanks to GuitarPlayer.com for making this episode happen. Enjoy!

— JUDE GOLD, host and creator, No Guitar Is Safe

Today, I report on a behind-the-scenes tour of the GRAMMYS I was lucky to take on Day One of artist rehearsals at Crypto Arena, relive adventures from the three JEFF BECK tribute concerts I played earlier this month, and share with you one of the most inspiring guitar performances I saw at this year's NAMM convention — PHILIP SAYCE's soul-stirring, fret-melting set in the Anaheim Hilton's cavernous lobby. In fact, Sayce was so mind-bogglingly great that night, I decided to include in this episode an ENCORE of our May, 2022, interview/jam, recorded at his home in Los Angeles. ALSO: Hope you enjoyed the Eric Gales episode, which posted last week. Today's and last week's episodes are presented by Guitar Player and guitarplayer.com

Today we “fly the ‘copter” across the country to plug in with blues/rock powerhouse ERIC GALES at Earthtones Recording — the Greensboro, North Carolina studio where guitar phenom does most of his tracking. With his second Grammy-nominated album out (2025’s A Tribute to LJK — recorded in honor of his brother Manuel “Little Jimmy King” Gales) — plus a new signature model Kiesel guitar in the works (he plays one of the prototypes on this episode), tons of 2026 tour dates on the calendar, and an in-depth guitar course from TrueFire.com just released, Eric is as busy as ever. So, I appreciate him taking some time to talk guitar and music with me, jam with me, detail his guitar approaches and musical inspirations, and dive deep into the huge topics of gratitude, redemption, and helping others. Special thanks to Benjy Johnson at Earthtones Recording for capturing this episode, GuitarPlayer.com for sponsoring, and for TrueFire for setting the whole thing up.

— JUDE GOLD, host and creator, No Guitar Is Safe

With both a U.S. tour and a new session of Sky Academy booked for April/May, Uli Jon Roth is headed for an exciting Spring of 2026. It’s all part of his passion to reach (and help his Sky Academy students reach) new musical heights. “A great musician is always growing,” says the German-born, U.K.-based guitar hero. Indeed, Uli could have rested on his laurels as the lava-hot lead player of ’70s-era Scorpions hard rock. But, taking inspiration from the music of heroes such as Keith Jarrett, Jimi Hendrix, and Antonio Vivaldi, he has always strived for a much deeper level of artistic expression. In this exclusive visit to Sky Academy, we plug in with Uli and embark on some epic improvisational odysseys, gain insights into his hugely influential rock masterpiece “The Sails of Charon,” learn about his unique extended-neck Sky Guitars, and, best of all, learn why, as he says, “the fingers are the least important part of your sound.” Hosted by Jude Gold, this episode is brought to you by your online guitar instruction friends at TrueFire. TrueFire offers thousands of hours of guitar instruction from A-list players. For a free 30-day all-access membership (no credit card required!), click to truefire.com/safe.