Hawaiian Steel Guitar and Its Great Hawaiian Musicians [Paperback]

Lorene Ruymar (Author), Joe Boyd (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1996

The term "steel guitar" can refer to instruments with multiple tunings, 6 to 14 strings, and even multiple fretboards. To add even more confusion, the term "Hawaiian guitar" refers to an instrument played flat on the lap with a steel bar outside of Hawaii, but in Hawaii, it is the early term for the slack key guitar. Lorene Ruymar clears up the confusion in her new book that takes a look at Hawaiian music; the origin of the steel guitar and its spread throughout the world; Hawaiian playing styles, techniques and tunings; and more. Includes hundreds of photos, a foreword by Jerry Byrd, and a bibliography and suggested reading list.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Centerstream Publications (August 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1574240218
• ISBN-13: 978-1574240214
• Product Dimensions: 11.9 x 9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #140,838 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent source of information on Hawaiian steel guitar., January 5, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Hawaiian Steel Guitar and Its Great Hawaiian Musicians (Paperback)

Sponsored by the Hawaiian Steel Guitar Association, The Hawaiian Steel Guitar (and its great Hawaiian Musicians), edited and compiled by Lorene Ruymar, stands as the ultimate reference work for people interested in the Hawaiian steel guitar, much in the same way as Bob Brozman's "The History and Artistry of National Resonator Instruments". In this book Lorene Ruymar has condensed the 100 year history of this quintessential Hawaiian instrument into 200 pages. Packed with photographs, drawings and reprints of various types, this book gives you a lot of information. Contributions are included from over 70 different people, including Jerry Byrd, Bob Brozman, Mike Perlowin, and many others.

There are seven chapters in this book, with each chapter containing several articles by various authors. Chapter 1 discusses the origin of the steel guitar. Chapter 2 documents the steel guitar's spread throughout the world, from Sweden to Tonga, with special mention of the steel guitar's acceptance into other forms of American music such as blues and country music. Chapter 3 discusses the various mainland schools, cultural influences and instruction methods. Chapter 4 is devoted to short biographies of many steel guitarists around the world. Chapter 5 covers the physical development of the steel guitar, including acoustic Hawaiian guitars, resonator guitars, lap steels, table steels, and pedal steel guitars. This chapter contains many photographs of various steel guitar models, both acoustic and electric. Chapter 6 discusses the many playing techniques developed over the years, and includes a very complete list of common steel guitar tunings. Chapter 7 is all about the Hawaiian guitar today.

This is a wonderful resource and good reading for the steel guitar fan. You can't miss the cover, with a painting of Sol Ho'opi'i holding a National tricone guitar.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the book you must own, August 2, 2005

By 

Loic Navennec "hula boy" (charleval france) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hawaiian Steel Guitar and Its Great Hawaiian Musicians (Paperback)

hawaiian guitar lovers, you must buy this book !
there's a lot of informations, photographs and histories inside.
the autor is really a big lover of this instrument...
and it's the only one, of this kind !
don't hesitate !