Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: The Gibson Super 400: Art of the Fine Guitar by Thomas A. Van Hoose, George Gruhn ISBN: 0-87930-344-1 Publisher: Backbeat Books Pub. Date: January, 1995 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (1 review)
Rating: 4
Summary: PLENTY of Information Here
Comment: Anyone who picks up this book will immediately recognize that Dr. Van Hoose honestly loves guitars. He also picked one of the most finely crafted guitars as his instrument of choice. In page after page, in sometimes excruciating detail, he labors over the most miniscule differences in these guitars, as they evolved from year to year. Just when you think you've seen enough, there's a photo section on the guitar restoration process (of course, the guitar happens to be a Super 400, but believe it or not, the process would be pretty much the same for a more pedestrian arch top guitar). The reader is treated to plenty of fine color photographs, as well as loads of black and white photos and catalog page reproductions. Also included is a bounteous appendix, with shipping totals and the like, as well as Dr. Van Hoose's own analytical contributions (including his ingenious rarity index, derived from comparing an individual model's production to the entire production for every year of Super 400 production) and opinions regarding the "vintage" guitar market.
In short, this book gives the reader the best and worst faces of modern stringed instrument (banjo and guitar) collecting. On one hand, you have an educated and articulate individual who has an obvious appreciation for finely crafted instruments. To Dr. Van Hoose's credit, he did his homework and clearly wrote the information that he had gathered (unlike some other collector/writers). On the other hand, this book, to some degree, reinforces the popular opinion that acquisition equals expertise. Collectors such as Akiro Tsumura (with his "1001 Banjos" book) or Scott Chinery (who had the brainstorm and funds to commission a fleet of blue guitars from the world's top builders, to add to his already huge collection) are regarded as experts, whether they can play a note, dress a fret, conduct research, or do anything else that would be considered expertise when writing about musical instruments. Coincidentally, this view seems to be held in high regard by top instrument dealers (such as George Gruhn, who wrote the forword for this book). It turns out to be a mutually beneficial arrangement, to be sure.
If you obsess over guitars, this is a good book for you. Believe me, a lot of work went into it. The book is loaded with plenty of information and a good helping of pictures, and it IS the be-all-end-all for this particular subject. If you don't obsess over guitars, this book will get old pretty fast. I really DO appreciate the effort that was put into this work, but I think it just ends up being a little too much for anybody but the most die-hard fans.
 |
Title: The Gibson L5: Its History and Its Players by Adrian Ingram ISBN: 1574240471 Publisher: Centerstream Publications Pub. Date: November, 1997 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
 |
Title: Acquired of the Angels: The Lives and Works of Master Guitar Makers John D'Angelico and James L. D'Aquisto by Paul William Schmidt, Jonathan Kellerman ISBN: 1578860024 Publisher: Scarecrow Pr (Trade) Pub. Date: 01 December, 1998 List Price(USD): $45.00 |
 |
Title: Blue Guitar by Ken Vose, Leslie Jean-Bart, Kenneth E. Vose ISBN: 0811819124 Publisher: Chronicle Books Pub. Date: June, 1998 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
 |
Title: Gibson Guitars 100 Years of an American Icon by Walter Carter ISBN: 0972751017 Publisher: Gibsons Pub Pub. Date: May, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
 |
Title: Acoustic Guitars and Other Fretted Instruments: A Photographic History by George Gruhn, Walter Carter ISBN: 0879304936 Publisher: Backbeat Books Pub. Date: November, 1997 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
