BOOK: ‘Play it Loud: An Epic History of the Style, Sound, and Revolution of the Electric Guitar’ by Brad Tolinski and Alan Di Perna
The title of this book says it all. Play it Loud expertly tells the epic history of the electric guitar and the stories of the musicians who strove to achieve a revolutionary style and sound with the instrument.
The authors know their subject matter intimately and are excellent writers. Their effortless weaving of technology, business, and history throughout is appealing to both general readers and experienced musicians; even the most technical aspects will thoroughly understandable to guitar novices.
Understanding how an electric guitar was first envisioned, how it went through many iterations, and how even today it’s being improved upon is interesting. Additionally, Carlos Santana provides a short but passionate forward in which he places the electric guitar in the context of an instrument of social change, bringing together races and impacting people’s lives.
While a single guitar serves as a focus point for each of the 12 chapters, other makes and models also appear, giving each guitar a historical context, i.e., who was the competition, who was playing it, and the type of music in vogue when the guitar was at its peak popularity.
This method makes for a scholarly, chronological approach to a complex and entertaining subject. The book also contains a useful visual timeline of the electric guitar’s development. The notes are excellent, but the bibliography is surprisingly brief — only two pages.
From the beginning, the primary goal for the electric guitar inventors, designers, and tinkerers was to make the sound louder and cleaner. As the title suggests, Play it Loud also tells the parallel story of amp and speaker design developments; building a component system so those in the back of the room could hear what was being played on the stage.
The development of the electric guitar, along with innovations in amplification, would contribute to the creation of groups with guitars as accompanists, the growing popularity of the amplified blues and jazz guitar sound (primarily by African-Americans), and a rise in record companies that specialized in recording them.
This system would replace saxophone and piano as the lead instruments in many jazz and rock groups; generate an era of garage bands, surf music, and heavy metal; and lead to the anointment of “guitar gods.”
To my surprise and delight, I was amazed at the number of tinkerers profiled in the book. (Tinkerers take apart various guitars to create a composite instrument that achieves the exact sound they’re looking for.) The authors introduce us to many, most notably Eddie Van Halen, who has never stopped in his quest to attain the ultimate system of electrified guitar music. It’s a fascinating set of stories and a highlight of the book.
Other tinkerer profiles include George Beauchamp who, after realizing the guitar string was the best source of vibration, created the first electric-guitar pickup and sold it commercially. Also Leo Fender, a non-guitar player who saw an opening for better instruments, started to make them along with amplifiers and bass guitars. Stratocasters? Telecasters? Remember them? Their stories, and several others’, are here in fascinating detail.
Other notable anecdotes include the story of Paul Reed Smith (PRS Guitars) and his persistence in selling one of his handmade guitars to Carlos Santana, as well as the Beatles’ use of both Rickenbacker and Gretsch guitars and the respective company histories.
Chet Atkins, who many consider the best, or one of the top five, guitar players ever is highlighted as both a player and representative of Gretsch guitars. Vox in England, a company that first made amplifiers, and later guitars, is given good coverage, as are the mighty Marshall amps made famous by stacks of them being used in concerts around the world.
Sketches of the many artists who took playing the electric guitar to incredible heights of music making and physical dexterity are here, too. The earliest was Charlie Christian, who made history after joining Benny Goodman’s Sextet and Orchestra from August 1939 to June 1941. Pete Townsend, Jimi Hendrix, Jack White, Steve Vai, and many other guitar greats also make appearances.
Another fascinating story is the invention of the steel guitar and the rapid growth of Hawaiian music. It was amazing to learn the scope of its popularity, with thousands of records being sold, bands playing it in clubs, and Hawaiian tunes used in movies. The Hawaiian influence was still heard in the ’50s and ’60s when the surf guitar sound became a big trend.
In short, Play it Loud is an informative history of the electric guitar that will appeal to professional and amateur musicians, music fans, and history buffs alike. I cannot think of another book that presents the story of the electric guitar so well. I highly recommend it.
Get your copy of Play It Loud via Amazon.
