Two new historic books on Fender guitars, Rickenbacker 12-string
(Dave Molter | Posted 2010-05-18)
Tony Bacon, well-respected author and guitar historian based in the UK and author of a number of books including "50 Years of Fender," "Six Decades of the Fender Telecaster," "Electric Guitars – The Illustrated Encyclopedia," "Feedback & Fuzz," and "The Ultimate Guitar Book," has written two new books that should have guitar afficianados drooling.
60 Years of Fender: Six Decades of The Greatest Electric Guitars takes a look at the 60-year history of Febder guitars and basses. For over half a century the Fender Stratocaster, Telecaster, Jaguar, Mustang, and Jazzmaster guitars have been synonymous with rock’n’roll. At the same time, Fender basses have found a home in the hands of players of virtually every style of music from rock to jazz to electronica, and Fender amps are venerated to this day for their unmistakable tone. Exile on Main Street and Electric Ladyland wouldn’t be nearly the masterpieces that they are without that rich distinctive Fender sound. And that’s just the beginning.
In the early 1950s Leo Fender set up shop manufacturing sturdy and affordable solidbody guitars, applying his electronics expertise to the instruments and giving them distinct tonal qualities with a unique single-coil pickup design. Today these instruments are the benchmark by which all others are measured.
In "60 Years of Fender," Bacon takes a look year-by-year at the guitars and amps that changed the world and the players who wielded them. He traces the company’s humble beginnings in Southern California to its current place at the top of the guitar heap.
This book -- updated from the previous 50 Years of Fender-- features hundreds of full color photos, many of which were not included in the first edition. It documents nearly every make and model of Fender, from the early prototypes to Custom Shop originals, and includes a full reference section with a detailed chronology of Fender’s innovations and milestones stretching from 1950 to the present day. No other book offers such complete and meticulously compiled information on rock’n’roll’s most enduring icon!
60 Years of Fender: Six Decades of The Greatest Electric Guitars is available at music retailers or from www.halleonard.com for $24.99.
That Rick sound
When The Byrds recorded their hit version of Bob Dylan’s ‘Mr Tambourine Man’ they popularized a new sound in pop music: the electric 12-string guitar. There was even a suitable line in the lyric: “In the jingle-jangle morning…” Electric 12-string has been aptly described as a jangling sound ever since.
Rickenbacker is the guitar maker who brought the electric 12-string to market and has since been almost single-handedly responsible for the idea of what such a guitar should do. The California company gave one of their earliest 12-strings to George Harrison of The Beatles on the group’s first tour of the United States in 1964. He immediately used it live and in the studio and showed off the sound of electric jangle to the rest of the world.
The Rickenbacker Electric 12-String: The Story of The Guitars, The Music, And The Great Players tells the story of those heady days in the ’60s, of the competitors who tried and failed to match the sound, and of the instrument’s continuing production by Rickenbacker and use by many modern guitarists. Complete with high-quality photos and exclusive interviews with many of the 12-string’s leading players, this is the best guide yet to the history of the sound of jingle-jangle.
The Rickenbacker Electric 12-String includes hundreds of full color photos of nearly every make and model from very early prototypes to the most recent models. Additionally, there is a full reference section complete with a body shape key and model directory that includes specs on neck, body, fretboard, and much more! It is available from musi retailers , booksellers or direct from www.halleonard.com for $24.99
From a press release.
