Few writers are in a better position than Scott Yanow to have written this book. Writing about jazz since 1975, he's penned liner notes, composed stories for leading jazz magazines including Downbeat, Jazziz, Coda and others, and simply has impeccable taste when it comes to separating the wheat from the chaff.

Arranging entries alphabetically in an encyclopedia-like array, he has chosen more than 560 guitarists and identified 342 of them as significant players, 218 as runners-ups, and 175 newcomers who might one day ascend to the ranks of the truly influential. Profiles on the main jazzers here include bio information as well as quotes culled from 154 interviews conducted by the author.

Yanow covers everyone from George Benson and John McLaughlin to Les Paul and Barney Kessel, along with hundreds of names you probably don't know--unless, like Yanow, you are a hardcore jazz geek--but will come to recognize after reading this book.