The preeminent magazine about “axes” has finally gotten the axe. Guitar Player will halt publication after almost 58 years, putting out one last issue on Oct. 15, with an interview with Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page as the final cover story to hit newsstands.
The website guitarplayer.com will continue, with the magazine’s current editor, Christopher Scapelliti, assuming the role of digital editor-in-chief of the site.
Print subscribers will have their subscriptions transferred to a sister publication, Guitar World, unless they specifically request a refund.
Closure of the print magazine had been rumored for some time, as observers noticed in September that new subscriptions were no longer being made available. And the fact that its owner, Future, had two guitar magazines in print made it unlikely both would survive indefinitely in the current tough climate for print subscriptions and advertising.
“You have witnessed a revolution,” Scapelliti wrote in a final editor’s letter included in the December 2024 issue. “When Guitar Player made its debut 58 years ago in 1967, it marked a new era for guitar. For the first time, the instrument was celebrated in a regularly published magazine devoted to furthering guitarists, guitar gear and its makers, and guitar virtuosity. What founder Bud Eastman began laid the first stone of an empire that would go on to launch many other magazines — including Bass Player, Frets and Keyboard — publish books, release records and videos, and much more. Guitar Player’s success also opened the door for numerous other titles, including our sister magazine Guitar World, further enriching the lives of guitarists everywhere.”
Scapelliti continued, “The ‘why’ will be obvious even if you don’t keep each issue tucked away chronologically on shelves. These increasingly slim volumes demonstrate our almost heroic efforts to persist in an era where advertisers find greater opportunities online. Throughout the ups and downs of these years, we’ve appreciated the support of those readers and advertisers who have kept Guitar Player’s print edition a going concern.” He said he “look(s) forward to seeing you at GuitarPlayer.com, where we’ll continue to bring you the best in guitar stories, interviews, gear reviews and lessons.”
Guitar World had changed ownership several times since being founded in the Bay Area by L.V. “Bud” Eastman. In 2007 it was acquired by NewBay Media in New York, where it joined a portfolio of magazines that included Bass Player, Electronic Musician, Keyboard, Mix and Guitar World.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Guitar World had a monthly circulation of 130,000 as recently as 2018.
In related gearhead print-publication news, Sound & Vision, a magazine devoted to audio-video products — and the successor to the veneral Stereo Review magazine — announced at the end of September that its current issue would be its last. “I know you’ve heard this one before: All good things must come to an end. To quote the Doors, ‘This is the end.’ The final print issue of Sound & Vision magazine has left the printer,” read that magazine’s editor’s note. “We are a purely digital property now…. Many other magazines didn’t make it this far, which makes this moment both a significant milestone and a bittersweet farewell. … The print edition may be ending, but Sound & Vision lives on.”
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