BOOKS & DVDs
each night, but his effortless methods don’t
detract from his innate abilities. In this performance, like many before, Earl’s guitar is a pulpit of his religion dedicated to blues and tone.
All the tracks played during the two-night
jam are featured on Ronnie Earl and the
Broadcaster’s latest release, Hope Radio.
However, there are some bonus treats found
within the DVD. There are two rare solo
acoustic guitar selections and an exclusive
interview segment with the blues guitarist.
Not only is this a great chance to capture the
spirit of Earl’s live performance, now that his
extensive touring days are behind him, but it’s
a special way to celebrate Ronnie Earl and the
Broadcasters’ two decades as a band.
MSRP $17.99
Street $15.99
stonyplainrecords.com
Books
Million Dollar Les Paul: In Search of
the Most Valuable Guitar in the World
With current economic woes, it’s highly
unlikely that most players are about to splurge
on a 1958-60 Burst Les Paul when they are
valued at a mark that could house, furnish and
clothe an average-sized American family. In
Million Dollar Les Paul, Tony Bacon, best-selling author of The Ultimate Guitar Book, asks,
What makes these guitars so valuable?
While you’re digesting that initial query,
the book unfolds a
number of additional
intriguing and informative layers. Bacon
tackles the obvious
questions about the
players, buyers and
collectors, but the
book’s focus soon
narrows to a more specific question: What
makes this guitar so coveted in today’s world
of technology and modernity?
Starting all the way back to when Les Paul
only known as a player, it details not only how
the ‘Burst came to be, but how the young
man from Waukesha, Wisconsin made his first
prototypes. Within this important context,
the reader is taken on a ‘Burst journey. As
expected, the guitar’s place in rock history is
recognized through great songs and albums
created by Clapton, Page and Allman. Where
the book earns it’s spine-wear and place on
the bookshelf is with insightful back-stories,
a retrospect on the dedicated craftsmanship of the fifties, a chronicle of the guitar’s
development as a coveted collector piece in
the eighties, and the unfortunately necessary
chapter on counterfeits titled, “Was it made
50 years ago or 50 days ago?”
Through a series of interviews with players,
collectors, guitar-makers, dealers and historians, Bacon contemplates the core questions
of the book, and in the process gathers an
abundance of answers and opinions on why
the ‘Burst might deserve to be the Holy Grail
of electric guitars.
MSRP $19.95
Street $13.57
jawbonepress.com
Pink Floyd: The Black Strat: A
History of David Gilmour’s Black
Fender Stratocaster
Famous guitars are paid tribute through
signature models, collectible reproductions,
and, rarely, through entire works of literature.
Single guitars iconic enough for this honor are
in an exclusive club, and after the September
release of a Fender Custom Shop reproduction and this dedicated book, David Gilmour’s
“Black Strat”
is officially
inducted.
In this all-access
book, Phil
Taylor, long-time Pink Floyd
and David
Gilmour production director and guitar
tech, covers
Gilmour’s gui-
tar usage even prior to the Black Strat. While
most music and guitar-driven books can lean
towards the artist, this book keeps its focus primarily on the six-string protagonist. This book
takes its story to another level with over 250
photographs of the Black Strat, Gilmour and
Pink Floyd, including 130 previously unpublished shots. Another feature that sticks out
in this book is the closing pages that feature
Gilmour’s accessories he used with the guitar,
including straps, picks, strings, cases and cords.
MEDIA
Preview
Everything from Gilmour’s ordinary purchase
at Manny’s Music in New York City in the
seventies, to its extensive modifictations, to
its recreation by Fender is chronologically
covered through a tight narrative and informative illustrations featuring detailed specs and
exclusive insight.
MSRP $32
Street $21
halleonard.com
State of the Axe: Guitar Masters in
Photographs and Words
In this coffee table book, more than 80 guitarists give their take on how the six-string
has affected them and what it means when
it’s in their hands. Well-known players like Al
DiMeola, Lou Reed, Vernon Reid and Andy
Summers are featured, along with players
whose names might only elicit a hint of recognition. Each guitarist comments on how the
guitar has befriended them; each has their
own page, where they eloquently describe
a particular anecdote, moment or emotional
state the guitar has rescued them from—
something all guitarists, or even all musicians,
can relate to.
The book is really a showcase of the artistically riveting
photography that
accompanies each
guitarist’s words.
Author and photographer Ralph
Gibson’s brilliant
black and white
photography was
featured at the
Museum of Fine
Arts, which published this book.
Gibson explored the guitar similarly in 2004
with Light Strings: Impressions of the Guitar,
with Andy Summers.
State of the Axe is a moving look at the
relationship between guitar and guitarist. It’s
best put by one of the featured guitarists, Jim
Campilongo, “I can say whatever I need to
say (with the guitar)—without getting thrown
in jail or in an insane asylum.”
MSRP $24.95
Street $16.47
mfah.org/shops
