Origin and Facts of the Guitar

Guitars have been around for a long time. They even date back to the 14^th century. In its earliest form it was given three double courses, pairs, of strings plus a single string, the highest. The guitar is in some cases said to have originated in Spain. It became popular in other countries a few centuries later, and by the late 17^th century a fifth course of strings had been added below the other four. Only until the 18^th century did the guitar take a more modern form of appearance. Guitar makers broadened the body, made it curvier around the waist, thinned the belly, and changed the internal bracing to give us what we have today. “The electric guitar, developed for popular music in the United States in the 1930s, usually has a solid, nonresonant body. The sound of its strings is both amplified and manipulated electronically by the performer. American musician and inventor Les Paul developed prototypes for the solid-bodied electric guitar and popularized the instrument beginning in the 1940s.”

From "Guitar," Microsoft(R) Encarta(R) 96 Encyclopedia

Les Paul died last year.

Being a musician myself, and having learned to play the guitar, I have grown to appreciate more of what went into play with the making of the guitar. Without someone just messing around with wood I would have never gotten to play. I love playing guitar, I myself play a Les Paul, and it looks phenomenal.