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Guitars and Heroes: Mythic Guitars and Legendary Musicians

by Julien Bitoun

A visual history of influential guitars and the players associated with them

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Paperback New English

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AlbakiReads Editorial

A visual history of influential guitars and the players associated with them

Organized across three broad periods—“Birth of an Art,” “The Golden Age,” and “Modern Times”—this illustrated reference links more than 100 guitarists with the instruments they favored. Entries span delta blues, jazz, British blues, psychedelia, hard rock, grunge, metal, and newer guitar-driven music, placing figures such as Robert Johnson, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Jimi Hendrix, Joan Jett, Kurt Cobain, St. Vincent, and others within an era-based survey. Photo features widen the focus beyond individual players to guitar construction, replica models, amplifiers, pedals, landmark sounds, and selected albums. The recurring question is practical as well as historical: what musicians chose to play, and what those choices reveal about their artistic approach.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Guitarists interested in instrument models, gear, and playing-history connections
  • Collectors and guitar-design enthusiasts
  • Listeners exploring guitar-led music from blues and rock to metal and alternative

Themes

Guitar historyMusicians and instrumentsRock, blues, and metalGuitar gear and designIconic guitar sounds

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

An encyclopedia of more than 100 guitars and the musicians who have mastered them.

Guitars and Heroes is organized by era, from the rockabilly pioneers to the guitar heroes of the future. Each chapter contains portraits of guitarists (past and present) and their favorite instruments. The authoritative text describes the musician's favored guitar or guitars and why they prefer them, often revealing a hidden facet of the musician's artistic approach.

Special photo spreads include The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Van Halen, Prince, Billie Joe Armstrong, AC/DC, Les Paul, anatomy of a Stratocaster, 5 Replica Guitars; Burst, the world's most expensive guitar; 5 Most Desirable Amplifiers, 5 Pedals That Changed the World, 5 Groundbreaking Sounds, The Chicago Blues in 5 Albums, 5 Essential Hard Rock Albums and 5 Design Gibson Mistakes.

The book is organized into three sections (Birth of an Art, The Golden Age, Modern Times) and nine chapters, each with a selection of artists and their guitars, including these:

  • Delta Blues and Rockabilly
    Robert Johnson, Jimmie Rogers, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Buddy Holly
  • Chicago Blues and Jazz
    Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Trini Lopez, George Benson
  • British Blues Boom
    Dave Davies, Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Peter Green
  • Surf, Garage Rock and Psychedelic
    Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa, Santana, Ry Cooder, Duane Allman
  • Birth of Hard Rock
    Ritchie Blackmore, Neil Young, Brian May, Peter Frampton, Joan Jett
  • Arena Rock, Shred and New Wave
    Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Edge, Joe Satriani, Slash
  • Grunge and Alternative Rock
    Kurt Cobain, Buzz Osborne, Sonic Youth, Rivers Cuomo
  • Metal to Djent
    Dimebag Darrell, John 5, Buckethead, Meshuggah, Tosin Abasi
  • Guitar Heroes of the Future
    St. Vincent, Joe Bonamassa, Jack White, Ron Thal, Matthew Bellamy.

Guitars and Heroes is a sensational encyclopedia for all guitarists, guitar geeks, collectors and avid listeners, and an essential purchase for all collections.

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