Martin Guitar Book (Softcover) (Kindle Edition)

by Carter Walter (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
The Martin Book chronicles the history of an instrument that mirrors the development of the acoustic guitar and acoustic music in America. This photographic 150-year journey pulls together the strands of the past to create a fascinating and entertaining testimony to the unparalleled quality and craftmanship of the Martin acoustic guitar. It features color photos of 75 classic and modern Martin guitars, a detailed reference section for collectors and enthusiasts, and much more. 7-1/2 inch. x 9-3/4 inch..

Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• Print Length: 160 pages
• Publisher: Backbeat Books; 2 edition (March 31, 1995)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B001GNC9I6
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #92,485 in Kindle Store (See Bestsellers in Kindle Store)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A short history of Martin guitars., July 31, 2000

By	Old Fisherman "Jim" (Orange, California USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Martin Book (Hardcover)

This book is an excellent story of the Martin family and how they came to be guitar manufacturers for the past 133 years. It gives you a brief history of the family and the many guitar styles that have been produced through the years. The book also touches briefly on the history of guitar playing in the United States and how the Martin family rose to meet the challenges of the era of the banjo and the mandolin. The book also contains many fine photographs illustrating the Martin line from the beginning until the mid 1990's (when the book was written).

The second half of the book is a reference section that lists each Martin guitar style and gives information on how to date particular instruments. This is valuable, especially for collectors since on the early instruments only the cases were labeled and not the guitars themselves.

All in all I found the book interesting. My only complaint, and it is a minor one, is since the book was published in 1995 Martin has come out with many special run guitars. Unfortunately they're not covered in this book. If you have even a passing interest in Martin guitars you'll find this book interesting.

4.0 out of 5 stars Very nice book., May 29, 2008

By	J. J. Assink-lemans (The Netherlands, Europe) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Martin Guitar Book (Softcover) (Paperback)

I liked the book. Interesting and everything kept short and snappy. I would've liked some more in depth stories about the important things like the development of the Dreadnought, but there was some nice inside info with the interviews with C.F. Martin IV.

I found the 'interruptions' with pictures of models and artists a bit annoying and a bit too brief. I would've liked to read more about important moments like the MTV unplugged series and the Eric Clapton signature models.

All in all definitely worth reading and having. I am looking forward to receiving and reading Richard Johnston's "Martin Guitars"

3.0 out of 5 stars Nice book, but I prefer the previous edition, February 8, 2008

By	J. Van Veen (The Netherlands) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Martin Guitar Book (Softcover) (Paperback)

I already had the 1995 edition and was very curious to this 2006 update since a lot has happened at CF Martin.
The front cover states 'new pictures and revised text' and that is true. But they also changed the format, layout and paper quality. And so it has lost all the magic of the 1995 version. That one had very nice fold out pictures, was very easy to read because of font types and color, and had those body size sketches and charts and style charts.

If you haven't seen the 1995 edition you will probably like the 2005 edition. But for me the 2005 edition has become a book as many others already available.