Secrets from the Masters

By: Various Authors

Book Overview

(Guitar). Interviews with 50 of the world's greatest guitarists spanning the past 25 years and collected into one information-packed volume. Based on articles originally published in Guitar Player... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0879302607
• ISBN13: 9780879302603
• Release Date: December 1992
• Publisher: Backbeat
• Length: 296 Pages
• Weight: 1.86 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 1.1" x 1.1"

Customer Reviews

Fascinating

Secrets from the Masters is a real treasure for guitar players, amateurs and pros alike. It collects forty interviews from the entire run of Guitar Player Magazine, and you're more than likely to find your favorite players in here, since over the years the magazine interviewed the leading guitarists from the full spectrum of styles; in this book you'll find interviews with the greats of classic rock and blues rock like Jeff Beck, Duane Allman, Jimmy Page, David Gilmour, Eric Clapton and George Harrison; more modern players like The Edge and Billy Gibbons; rock n' roll pioneers like Chuck Berry and Carl Perkins; solo virtuosos like Steve Vai, Joe Satiriani and Yngwie Malmsteen; masters of country music Chet Atkins and Les Paul; some jazz greats like Wes Montgomery, Pet Metheny and John McLaughlin; masters like Frank Zappa, Jimi Hendrix, Mark Knopfler and Jerry Garcia; and even classical guitar genius Andres Segovia. There are even a few surprising, less widely appreciated masters like acoustic master Michael Hedges; funk/jazz/rocker Vernon Reid of Living Color; and The Police's Andy Summers, a fantastic and little appreciated fusion musician by his own right. Only a few major names are missing, notable ones including Brian May, Prince and Ritchie Blackmore. Each of these master musicians offers here insight into his music, into his style, technique, and his very approach to the guitar, his playing methods, his compositions and his take on the guitar as an instrument and as a concept, and often into his personality and personal history as well. It's a fascinating read for any guitar player (especially those in the rock/blues vein) as well as for any music lover, though they may not get as much from it as those with a professional interest, who's bound to get some interesting notions and ideas, as well as lots of useful practical advice. That makes it both a great read and an immense well of knowledge for players. Secrets from the Masters is a perfect gift book for guitar players and guitar aficionados, an unsurpassable book that will earn an honorary place on your bookshelf. Guitar players - Secrets from the Masters is not to be missed.

Amazing and full of information

Would you like to know how Chuck Berry started playing? What kind of strings did Eric Clapton use in the early 70's? How Eddie Van Halen learned to play? Suffer no more, this grat book answers all the questions any guitar lover could think of. From Jimi Hendrix to Stevie Ray; from Duanne Eddie to Alan Holdsworth, this 40 masters of the guitar reveal some of their secrets, techniques, tips or simply talk about life in this great compilation of interviews conducted by top journalists from Guitar Player Magazine. Most of the interviews range from 1970 to the early 90's. The book has a very nice white cover, with black and white texts and a picture of every player interviewed. Of course one would love color pics, but then the price would go up. My only complaint with this book is that it is too short and features none of the blues greats (They mention why in the intro, though) and maybe that some interviews could seem far too old for the average modern player. You can consider Conversations... as a bible of the modern electric guitar (though Segovia and other acoustic players are featured). If you are into Blues-Rock-Jazz or play guitar, you can't let this one pass.

Well worth reading

This 1992 book is a collection of interviews with famous guitarists - primarily rock and jazz guitarists from the 60s, 70s and 80s. There are some big names missing, but most are there. There are some interesting insights and anecdotes, and some music history. Sometimes I wished the interviews would get more a little more technical - rather than re-hashing the stars band-hopping history. I would like to know more specifics about how these top players view the neck, how they think and how they learnt, for example. That said, the book does contains a lot of insights and variety. I particularly enjoyed the interviews with Steve Morse and Howard Roberts -- guitarists that I was not previously familiar with. Les Paul is incredible. Actually - there are just too many good bits to itemize them here. A good read, and each chapter stands alone. I find that I re-read parts of this from time to time. Worth buying, for a classic rock/jazz (and possibly blues) oriented guitarist.

extremly helpful

I will be brief. This book is not only informative and interesting but, exteremely fun to read. To get into the mind of a genius like Jerry Garcia, to learn how Jimi Hendrix played that solo that you could never figure out. Things like that are the coolest thing that could happen to a person (while reading).