COLDPLAY MUSIC BOX +DVD

John Teagle's 1995 publication represented the first attempt to research and collate the real story behind Lyon & Healy's flagship brand, Washburn...and a very readable and fascinating book it is.... Unfortunately, the facts (as they often do) unearthed by Teagle completely contradicted the accepted view of the Washburn brand's reputation within the collectible guitar industry.... In addition, Teagle devotes the second half of the book to the instruments made by the 'new' Washburn company; a company that has no relationship to the makers of the original, pre-WWII, Washburns except through its fairly recent purchase of the rights to the brand name... Although Teagle makes this clear in the book, the title suggests a continuation, at least in spirit and has probably made it easier for the Vintage Guitar industry, and particularly for those with a vested interest in (and a great deal of money tied up in) maintaining the fiction that Washburns were just mass-produced , flashy but flawed, imitations of Martins....when in fact the truth is almost completely the opposite... Huub Pleijsier's 2008 book on identifying pre-war Washburn instruments builds on Teagle's foundation study and is also essential reading for anyone interested in the history and development of the 'American' steel-string flattop...and in the myths and misinformation supporting the reputation of Martin and other brands..

Full of great photography, this book has a short section in the front that addresses the early years. There is a large amount of material addressing the more recent instruments, with many pages of electric guitars. If yi are into Washburn electrics, this is a a book you'll want to obtain. Well researched, and attempts to follow the convoluted history of the company as it changed hands, leading up to the current incarnation of the company.

Only good updated source for information about Washburn. A *must have* if you are looking at early guitars (Pre-War especially)

Horrible, useless book

good book

Good info on the entire Washburn history but would have like more on the early years and the Tonk brother period.

Finally! Thanks to the good offices of Amazon's out-of-print and rare books service, I have obtained a copy of this excellent reference book. About nine inches by twelve inches in size, with an attractive 4-color process (full color) photographic cover, it is an eye-catching coffee table type of book. More important is the information on Washburn instruments it provides; John Teagle has done his homework (and his research) well. The book is replete with informative old Washburn ads, beautiful full-color photographs of antique as well as modern Washburn guitars, mandolins, banjos and other instruments. He also confirms my suspicion, which I voiced in another review, that Gorge Washburn's real name was George Washburn Lyon--hence the business name Lyon & Healy. It appears that there was even a George W. Lyon guitar at one point, probably around 1890. Lyon died in 1894, while Patrick J. Healy, the merchandiser of the two partners, lived on until 1905, but between the two of them they had built an instrument manufacturing empire. The Lyon & Healy harp is still the world's finest. The book details many Lyon & Healy triumphs, awards and firsts--including the acknowledged first "Dreadnaught" guitar, decades ahead of the famed Martin D-1 and D-2s. Altogether a book full of information about America's first and leading guitar manufacturer, world-famous for high quality instruments long before Martin and Gibson made the cut. I am particularly interested in this famous old line because I own a fine example of the George Washburn New Model of 1897-a parlor guitar with amazing tone and resonance, with Brazilian rosewood back and sides, spruce top, and ebony fingerboard, ivory nut and saddle on the ebony bridge, with mother-of-pearl position inlays on the fingerboard. Their plainest, smallest model. It probably retailed for $15, when new. I've turned down $500 for it. This is the only book on Washburn I have ever seen. It was published in New York by the Music Sales Company in 1996, and is already out of print. The copy I received is mint, however, and it didn't take Amazon long to locate it for me. If you are interested in purchasing a copy, good luck! Joseph H. Pierre Author of The Road to Damascus: Our Journey Through Eternity

I have only just been introduced to the delights of Washburn guitars having just bought one of their replica 130 year celebration Lakeside models (the mass produced version). Wishing to know more about the company, I was fortunately able to get a mint paperback version of their 100 year celebration book. To be fair a lot of the greyscale images could be clearer, but they are good enough for the purpose of this book, and who knows how good they were in the first place? At least they are originals. The colour plates are excellent and really put across the glory of many of the instruments. It is not a book you need to read cover to cover as it is written in sections and you can just read the section on the history of the company if that is all you want to know - that alone is fascinating, how the company founders somehow predicted the depression and managed to convert most of their assets to cash in time. The book is divided up into fairly logical sections and is a good and informative read. It was clearly a challenge trying to write a sensibly sized book to cater to the interests of everyone, but the author has done a better job here than in many similar publications I have owned. The Amazon.com reviews are a 'must read' and I have made no attempt to duplicate their contents. If you are interested in the history of this important manufacturer or the instruments he produced, buy this book. Unfortunately if you try and get a hardcopy version through Amazon you sem to end up with Coldplay boxed set - Amazon please fix. Remember this was published many years ago so its worth holding out for a good copy at a sensible price.