The Players
News and happenings from the world of your favourite guitarists
Peter Frampton has announced a farewell tour following the revelation that he’s suffering from a degenerative muscle disease that threatens his ability to play guitar. The guitarist was diagnosed eight years ago, with the disease initially affecting his arms and legs, but it will eventually impact his fingers. “In a year’s time, I might not be able to play,” Frampton told Rolling Stone. “Right now, it’s progressing, but I’m still at the top of my game. We decided to do a farewell tour now since I don’t want to go out and not be able to play well. If I’m going to do a farewell tour, I want to play good.” Frampton will tour the USA from June until October 2019, but also revealed that he is working intensely on new material with two albums already completed.
Trivium’s Matt Heafy has unveiled his collaboration with German company Richter on a guitar strap to help alleviate the strain of heavy guitars by spreading the weight of the instrument. “Guitar straps are not ergonomic,” says LP Custom lover Heafy. “The concept of a weight on one side of a trapezius/ shoulder joint for an entire musical lifetime is detrimental to the balance of your body.” The MKH Double Guitar Strap (£135) boasts an additional strap for the other shoulder that wraps around the guitar’s body.
Danish effects company T-Rex is back on track after being saved by co-founders Lars Dahl and Sebastian Jensen. Though the firm filed for bankruptcy in February following a challenging 2018, it’s now looking ahead and “rebooting” according to a positive statement from the founding duo. “We will continue to deliver some of the best effects pedals, power supplies and guitar accessories in the world – and we will be able to continue to service the needs of all of you that have been so loyal to our brand during the years. We hope that you will continue to support us – we guarantee that we are stronger and more alive than ever before.”
27 years after it was stolen at a 1992 gig in Detroit, the 70s Strat Billy Corgan used to track Smashing Pumpkins’ debut, Gish, and featuring a hand-painted design by Corgan, has been reunited with the player. For the past 10 years, the guitar had been in the home of Flushing, Michigan resident Beth James after she bought it in a yard sale for $200. When she looked into its roots, the Corgan connection emerged. The guitarist now aims to use it in the studio and on stage: “I wrote a lot of great songs on that guitar and hopefully there’s more in it,” he told local journalist Gloria Ruth Finney. “I look forward to playing it – that’s what it’s there for.”