cover image Masters of Rock Guitar

Masters of Rock Guitar

Ernesto Assante, White Star (Sterling, dist.), $39.95 (344p) ISBN 978-88-544-0423-6

This five-pound monster celebrates guitar heroes from the ‘50s to the present, from Les Paul to Ben Harper. In his first full-length effort, Italian journalist Assante writes that the guitar is the foundation on which rock and roll was built, and in a lengthy introduction to this richly-illustrated, handsome book he provides a thorough, scholarly history of the instrument. He then profiles 66 of its most impressive practitioners, including usual suspects Jimi Hendrix ("the king" to Assante), Bo Diddley, Jimmy Page, Eddie Van Halen, and Stevie Ray Vaughan, as well as unexpected but deserving players like Duane Eddy, Robert Fripp, Richie Sambora, and Tom Morello, while oversize photos and colorful headers ooze with aesthetic appeal. The problem is Assante's stilted style, marked by superlatives and unnecessarily long sentences, and riddled with errors (for example, Keith Richards released two solo studio albums, not one). In the preface, Adrian Belew asks why the electric guitar continues to fascinate after more than half a century. The answer lies in the music these amazing artists have created, which is only partially reflected in Assante's effort. Photos. (Jan.)