Guitar Heaven: The Most Famous Guitars to Electrify Our World

by Neville Marten

In this captivating guide to the greatest electric guitars of all time, guitar expert Neville Marten selects the most seminal instruments, from Ampeg to Zemaitis, and reveals why each is musically and historically significant. Each guitar is presented with beautiful, evocative images and shown in the hands of an iconic musician to illustrate how, through combining the skill of the player and the instrument maker, an inanimate object of wood and metal can be transformed into one of the world's most expressive tools of communication.

The instruments showcased in Guitar Heaven have left an indelible impression on popular music, both in terms of sound and visual impact. This fascinating gallery shows the instrument not as the two-dimensional object so often depicted in most guitar books, but as a vibrant, epoch-changing icon of the twentieth century—and into the future.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction

224 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2007

Reviews

[Mason Cantwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Right off the bat Neville says he didn't include Dean and B.C. Rich. This really derailed my interest and it took me months to finish this thing. I also noticed that Carvin wasn't included. It's still a good book, and the sort of thing I was looking for. I'm just not totally satisfied with it.

[Joseph.distefano]

​Guitar Heaven by Neville Melvin
Music - Non-fiction about the history of guitars.
Forward by Les Paul


​I liked this book because I learned about guitars I never heard of. This made me want to start playing the guitar again which I am very excited about and it puts me in a good mood! The book was a bit too long for me. I would suggest this book for anyone who is interested in music. I'm very excited to read more about guitar!