Whether it is a beautiful and classic model or an unglamorous and inexpensive starter instrument, a musician’s first guitar can be the catalyst that motivates a lifelong passion. The pages of this book contain interviews with 70 of the world’s most well-known guitarists across musical genres and playing styles to discover how their love of the instrument compelled them to pursue music as a career. These guitar icons reveal how they got their first instrument, the music they loved, and their heroes and inspirations. With an impressive list of Subjects—including Dick Dale, Melissa Etheridge, Jimmy Page, Les Paul, and Carlos Santana—as well as childhood photos from such guitar legends as Alex Lifeson, Joe Satriani, and Jimmie Vaughan, this book has appeal for guitar heroes and nonmusicians alike.

Julia Crowe's profile page

Andy Summers' profile page

Julia Crowe is a guitarist and columnist for several guitar magazines in the United States and abroad. Her music has been featured on National Public Radio, and she composed music for the feature film documentary Drop City. She lives in New York City. Andy Summers is a guitarist, composer, and producer best known as the guitarist of the internationally successful rock band the Police. He has numerous solo albums and is the author of the books I'll Be Watching You and One Train Later.

"This book is testament. It's not just about the first guitars or the players themselves, really. It's much more: the follow-up from that first chance meeting—that coming-of-age experience with music. This is life, told and celebrated through guitars."  —Premier Guitar (September 2012)

"Overall, this book is entertaining, and for the fan of the instrument, creates a very poignant picture of the rise of the guitar in pop culture." —San Francisco Book Review (December 2012)

"Anyone who loves guitars and guitar players (whether or not you're a player yourself) will love looking through this book." —American Songwriter (September 2012)

"The first-person stories told here are as compelling for music fans as they are for non-guitar folk." —Vancouver Sun (December 15, 2012)

"Ask a musician to talk about their first instrument and it seems they are off and running, full of anecdotes, joy, and poetic longing, describing those beat-up first guitars as if they were their first loves, which in many ways they undoubtedly were."  —Graham Parker, Singer/Songwriter

"The book is a rich vein of practical information from which one may extract a huge surplus of musical inspiration." —www.PopMatters.com

"Crowe captures what all of her interview Subjects share: a love, sublime or offbeat, of the instruments that inspired them to make music." —Publishers Weekly (August 27, 2012)

"The way My First Guitar is divided makes it a quick read, easy to refer back to for those certain favorites and easy to put down and start reading again no matter how much time has passed." —The Weekender (September 2012)