For generations an international symbol of freedom, danger, rebellion, and hedonism, the electric guitar had an explosive impact on music and culture. Now Tolinski and di Perna tell the story of its inventors and iconoclasts, of scam artists, prodigies, and mythologizers as varied and original as the instruments they spawned. They use twelve landmark guitars, each of them artistic milestones in their own right, to illustrate the conflict and passion the instruments have inspired.