Guide to British Music of the 1960s
May 1998
Book Review
Classic Guitars of the 1960s
The 1960s were the decade of the guitar. Guitar groups were not on their way out but they were about to take over music. This book takes us on a tour through the sixties in terms of the groups and the guitars they played. It is lavishly illustrated with colour pictures of the guitars, many of which can instantly be associated with the sounds in your head. Looking at George Harrison's Rickenbacker 12-string makes you think of Ticket to Ride. The Rickenbacker is still heavily associated with this decade and we learn more about the sounds made by Roger McGuinn and the destruction of Pete Townshend.
It is equally important to look at the oddities as well as the better known Fenders and Gibsons. The Vox Teardrop guitar had a very distinctive shape and there are many pictures of one such guitar being played by Brian Jones. Odder still is the Rickenbacker guitar kit, the guitar with built-in amplifier and the Domino California Rebel. Many guitars were customised by their owners. George Harrison (again) had the painted Fender Stratocaster used on Magical Mystery Tour. Eric Clapton played a Gibson SG painted by The Fool, the group responsible for the Apple mural in Baker Street and the sleeve of the Incredible String Band's 5,000 Spirits. Then there were the paisley Telecasters....
The strong point about this book is that it is not just a book for guitar enthusiasts but it places the instruments in the context of the players and the music they made. The pictures of the guitars are accompanied by an extensive text and descriptions of the guitars, linked backed to what they were used for.
ISBN: 1-871547-50-4
First published 1997 by Balafon Books