After 6 decades, Guitar Player magazine will publish its final print edition

“You’ve witnessed a revolution,” Christopher Scapelliti, Guitar Player’s editor-in-chief for half a dozen years, said of the glossy magazine, which has shrunk in recent years under the effect of a drop in advertising revenue. Other classic publications suffered a similar demise, largely for the same reasons.

“When Guitar Player debuted 58 years ago, in 1967, it marked a new era for the guitar,” Scapelliti continued. “For the first time, the instrument was celebrated in a regularly published magazine devoted to the improvement of guitarists, equipment and their makers, and guitar virtuosity. What founder Bud Eastman started laid the foundation stone for an empire that would launch many other magazines – including Bass Player, Frets and Keyboard – publishing books, releasing records and videos, and much more.

Guitar Player magazine was published for 57 years.

Its first edition in 1968 contained an article about a tall, lanky guy with untamed hair from Seattle, a newcomer to the rock scene who had an uncanny ability to extract sounds from that electric guitar that few had achieved before. His name: Jimi Hendrix.

For the final edition, on sale October 15, Guitar Player will close its storied history with a cover story on former Led Zeppelin guitar master and rock and roll legend Jimmy Page, who most recently worked with Gibson for release a $50,000 replica of the double handle. guitar he used on Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.” In the piece, Page will discuss recreating the guitar and amplifiers he used on the song.

The final December issue of Guitar Player goes on sale next week.