Electric Guitars: The Illustrated Encyclopedia

by Tony Bacon, Dave Burrluck, Paul Day (Contributor)

From the award winning team that produced the best selling Ultimate Guitar Book comes the most comprehensive book about the electric guitar. Its A-to-Z format covers more than 120 makers from around the world and details their successes and failures through 1,200 unique color, studio quality photographs. The book focuses on the iconic electric guitar with an introduction that places the electric guitar in a historical context, running from early acoustic instruments in the 16th century to amplification experiments in the 1930's. The main body of the book is the A-to-Z of brands, covering the key 65-year period from 1935 to 2000.

Genres: Music, Reference, Nonfiction

318 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[J.A. Willoughby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was given this book as a Christmas present from one of my music students many years ago. Being a professional musician most of my adult years made me familiar with most of the instruments pictured in the book. However, I learned much about the history behind their development, things I did not know. The only downside (if you can call it that) to this book is it makes you want to go out and buy the guitars! It's a real tease.

[Per-Erik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Basically a book detailing the history of the electric guitar through a broad selection of manufacturers in alphabetical order, complete with an interesting selection of photographs.

Fender and Gibson naturally gets a lot of space, but the huge selection of both well-known and lesser known manufacturers of the instrument and the space they get is without a doubt enough to give a wider and more multilayered picture of the history of the electric guitar than is usually given.

Upon the selection of manufacturers and their given coverage, I only have one complaint and that concerns ESP. A huge manufacturer and one of the most important in the metal scene today, and they are only given a paragraph or so. The reason for this is unclear, but it's the only real complaint since the book easily could have been 1000 pages without being able to cover exactly everything - it's an overview mostly, going in depth at select places.

Overall, the book is definitely well researched enough as to come off as informative even to someone with vast knowledge on the subject at hand. The historical ads featured are of tremendous value, as well as the excellent photographs of the famous instruments. Extra plus points for featuring pictures and coverage on less known unsuccessful models from Gibson and Fender.(Exactly how many have heard of the Gibson Futura?)

Well written and informative, this illustraded encyclopedia is an excellent book and a recommended addition to the bookshelf of anyone interested in the subject. A perfect gift, but if you have any interest in it yourself - buy two copies. Trust me.

[Jorge]

its going to be good