SPILL BOOK REVIEW: SUE FOLEY – GUITAR WOMEN: CONVERSATIONS & LIFE LESSONS WITH SIX-STRING HEROINES

SUE FOLEY – GUITAR WOMEN: CONVERSATIONS & LIFE LESSONS WITH SIX-STRING HEROINES

SUTHERLAND HOUSE

BOOK REVIEW BY TRISH MELANSON

Sue Foley, author of Guitar Women: Conversations & Life Lessons with Six-String Heroines, is no stranger to the music world. She is a highly accomplished Canadian Blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. She is a five-time Blues Music Award winner, is a Juno Award recipient, and has won an incredible 17 Maple Music Awards, among many others. She has played with the likes of B. B. King and Buddy Guy. She has released over a dozen albums of her own and has made guest appearances on at least twice as many other releases.

In 2001, music journalist Don Wilcock was interviewing Foley about her latest album. At the time, she jokingly suggested he write a book about female guitarists. “For several days, that conversation lingered. When I searched for books about women guitarists, I realized there weren’t any. At best there were passing mentions, as if the subject were an afterthought. That angered and frustrated me, but it also lit a fire.” That fire grew, and over the next decade, Foley interviewed over 100 female guitarists, a swathing cross-section over a multitude of genres.

Her curiosity and passion eventually led her to pursue and obtain a Ph.D. in Musicology from York University, with a particular focus on the female pioneers of the guitar. This first lead to her award-winning 2024 album, One Guitar Woman, as part of her dissertation. The album consisted of covers of female guitar greats of the early 20th century, including the likes of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Memphis Minnie, and Lydia Mendoza. The logical next step for Foley, at this point, was the creation of this book.

In Guitar Women: Conversations & Life Lessons with Six-String Heroines, Sue Foley has managed to narrow down the bulk of her interviews to a collection of 25, cutting through genre, celebrity, and time frame. Each interview is preceded by full-page introductory bio, celebrating the influence and accomplishments of each guitarist. The interviews are then presented in Q & A format, giving the reader a sense of intimacy and of “being there.” Most questions are specific to each artist; however, the overall mission of the book was to uncover the experience of each female guitarist in what is considered by most a “man’s world.” Sexism is clearly rampant in all genres of music (especially in rock, to no one’s surprise), and those that made it had to work hard – perhaps harder – than men and were valued more as sex symbols on stage than for their skill and musicianship. Each and every one’s experience and journey was different, however. These women came from all walks of life, family backgrounds, influences, personalities. Twenty-five different women guitarists, including the likes of Charo, Nancy Wilson, Joan Armatrading, Carol Kaye, Susan Tedeschi, Vicki Peterson, Etta Baker, Bonnie Raitt, Lita Ford. Some you will know, some you may not have heard of. All have carved their own place and pioneered the guitar for women in music.

Guitar Women: Conversations & Life Lessons with Six-String Heroines is most definitely a one of a kind look at a topic that is often overlooked. Each interview is raw, honest, and intimate. Sue Foley, who has also experienced this journey, is able to draw out each legend’s own personal experience, as well as their sources of inspiration.

If you are looking for guitar technique and songwriting inspiration, this book is not for you. This book celebrates guitar women, along with their dedication and hard work in a world where they are often paddling upstream. In a world where the -isms are making a terrible comeback (or did they ever leave?), Sue Foley has written a beautiful and honest book, dedicated to those who survived and thrived. This one is a must-read.

ISBN-10: 1998365301
ISBN-13:‎ ‎978-1998365302

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