A People's History of the Guitar

About A People's History of the Guitar

A People's History of the Guitar is about people, guitars, people and their guitars, and guitars and their people. We'll be exploring histories, origins, innovation, triumphs, and tragedies, and talking to well-known, little known, and unknown people who make music with the guitar, and who make, and think about the instrument. A People's History of the Guitar starts with the idea that the guitar belongs to all of us, and it deserves a history for all of us. This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

Publisher

Grant Samuelsen

Category

music · music · music

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

2 May 2024

Latest episode

29 Aug 2026

Latest episodes

16 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   29 Aug 2026

   UNREDACTED! Guitars and the Epstein Files

   This episode is about guitars in unexpected places. Like...the Epstein Files. Yes. There are guitars in the Epstein Files. There are also dishwashers. Does this mean that Jeffrey Epstein had a thing for guitars? Or dishwashers? Nah, it doesn't. But it does mean that guitars are everywhere in our world. Even in the world of one of the most despicable people to have ever shared our world. Some of the instances of the word "guitar" in the Epstein Files are dumb. But others seem to tell stories. Telling stories about and with guitars is what this podcast is about. This episode is also partially about the guitar and gender. Which has a lot to do with the stories. And there's some personal editorializing. Sorry, not sorry. It goes off the rails a bit, but it does that in under 20 minutes. And by the end the episode, I think you'll see where I'm going with it. Support the project here (https://aphotguitar.com/support)! This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

2. 

   15 Jul 2026

   Broken Guitars and Broken Hearts

   I've been thinking more and more about people and their relationships with their guitars (and their guitar-adjacent instruments), and what happens when those relationships break up. Or more specifically, when guitars get broken, and those broken guitars break hearts. There are different kinds of guitar breakage. Sometimes breaking a guitar is the thing ya gotta do to make a point. Then again, sometimes guitars break when you don't want them to break. This one runs from the ancient suburbs of Cairo to the stages of London, Leeds, and the Monterey Pop Festival. I also explore a work by the artist Christian Marclay, who destroyed a guitar to tell a heartbreaking story. And I couldn't help adding four stories of guitars that broke my own heart. All of that in under 30 minutes? I'm dedicated to making the most of your podcast listening time, and you're welcome. If YOU have any stories of broken guitars that broke your heart (or guitars you broke to make a point) I want to hear them. Tell that story to your phone, send that audio file to me at aphotguitar@gmail.com, and with your permission I'll include them in future episodes. I like this one. I hope you do, too. Support the project here (https://aphotguitar.com/support)! This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

3. 

   6 May 2026

   INVASION OF THE LUTES!

   This episode is about Lutes. Not the Lute we know, but the Lutes we call Lutes that aren't the Lute we know, which came before the Lute we know, which is a Lute that led to the guitar...which is also a Lute. The episode spans a couple of thousand years, and thousands of miles, to paint a picture of ancestors of the guitar that were common among many ancient peoples, and which connected the musical cultures of the ancient middle east, the near east, and the far east, via the Silk Roads. There's a little sex, and a pinch of violence, and I had a ridiculous amount of fun making this episode, which is part of the reason it took me so f++king long to produce. Enjoy, and learn something in the process. Support the project here (https://aphotguitar.com/support)! This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

4. 

   17 Feb 2026

   NEW! The Lute of Har-Mose

   From The Lyres of Ur in episode 10, this episode takes us 1,000 years into the future, and 1,000 miles to the west of Mesopotamia, to ancient Egypt. Once we're there, we'll find a 3,500 year-old musical instrument, played by the in-house musician of the architect and polymath, Sen-en-Mut, who was in the employ of the first female Pharoah, Hat-Shepsut. Sen-en-Mut's favorite musician was named Har-Mose. His instrument was a type of Lute, and it was buried at his side. This accident of history meant that this ancient, delicate instrument, made of wood and animal byproducts, survived the centuries, alongside the stone pyramids and temples of ancient Egypt. The Lute of Har-Mose is the second-oldest extant string musical instrument in the world. The way it was designed, constructed, and played makes it a critical step in the long history of people and their guitars: it's not just a distant cousin of the guitar, it's almost a kind of prototype. It points us directly to the guitar, and the episodes to come, when we'll move through the ancient world and the Middle East, to North Africa and southern Europe, as we continue to follow the trail of the guitar's DNA and the cultures it helped to create. ------ Click here to support A People's History of the Guitar! (https://aphotguitar.com/support) Even $4/month, or a one-time contribution, goes a long way. If you want to see where this goes as much as I do, it'll help me build this project, create more episodes, license music, conduct interviews, and reach more people. I'm always interested in direct feedback and ideas, so get in touch at aphotguitar@gmail.com (mailto:aphotguitar@gmail.com). This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

5. 

   3 Feb 2026

   New! Ur U Experienced?

   In this episode we uncover the oldest existing examples of the kinds of string instruments that led to the guitar. They're called The Lyres of Ur, they're over 4,000 years old, and they were discovered in the 1930s by someone with the best name ever for a British archaeologist, alongside his extremely interesting wife. Filled with a couple of distractingly curious side-stories, this episode also speculates about how those ancient instruments might have introduced distortion to the sonic palette of string instruments. Trust me, you'll find it to be a fun and interesting way to spend 25 minutes of your life. Click here to support A People's History of the Guitar! (https://aphotguitar.com/support) Even $5/month, or a one-time contribution, goes a long way. If you want to see where this goes as much as I do, it'll help me build this project, create more episodes, license music, conduct interviews, and reach more people. No paywalls yet, but when exclusive content starts to appear, anyone contributing any amount in 2025 and 2026 (monthly or one-time) will have lifetime access to everything. Thanks for listening and for thinking about supporting A People's History of the Guitar. Get in touch at aphotguitar@gmail.com (mailto:aphotguitar@gmail.com) This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

6. 

   12 Dec 2025

   New! Where Does Guitar Come From?

   Episode nine about the word guitar. That's not bad grammar, its a question: what is the origin of the word, guitar? It's an odd word with deep roots, and the evolution of the word tracks with the evolution of the instrument itself. Join me for a slightly speculative, and ultimately inconclusive, exploration of one word that might have come from more than one place, because no word comes out of no-where. ---- Learn about how to support the project here! (https://aphotguitar.captivate.fm/support) Check out all previous episodes below. Episodes appear in order of publication (oldest first rather than newest first) because that's how I want it, ya know? Anyway, to get a clearer sense of what this thing is about and where its going, start with episode one, below, and listen in order. But feel free to bounce around as much as you like, because you can do that without any interference from me. But maybe at least listen to Episodes one and five, OK? Episode related playlist on the way! This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

7. 

   3 Dec 2025

   Sinners: People & Vampires & their Guitars

   This episode goes off-road a little. I'm late to the party, but when I recently/finally saw Ryan Coogler's Sinners, I couldn't not do an episode on this movie. Sinners is a cracking good vampire movie that also happens to be a micro-history of Black Music, with details that can tell us a lot about the history of string instruments in the United States. Its about the guitar, people and their guitars, and the guitar and its people...even if some of those people aren't people anymore. Playlist and links coming. This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

8. 

   14 Jul 2025

   NEW! Strung Theory II: The Musical Bow

   Host [Host Name] interviews [Guest Name] about the musical bow's ancient origins and its surprising connection to the modern guitar.

9. 

   20 May 2025

   Strung Theory (Part One)

   Host [Host Name] explores the ancient origins of cordage and its transformation into the stringed instruments we know today in this interview.

10. 

    5 Feb 2025

    Some German Guys Figured it Out

    Host [Host Name] interviews musicologists [Guest Name 1] and [Guest Name 2] about the Hornbostel-Sachs system and its impact on guitar history.

11. 

    11 Oct 2024

    Why Music?

    Host [Host Name] explores the origins of music and human musicality, referencing the ideas of Charles Darwin, Steven Brown, and Steven Pinker in this interview with Steven Pinker.

12. 

    10 Oct 2024

    Hit It! (Mostly About Hitting Things)

    Host [Host Name] explores how controlled violence and kinetic energy transform into musical sound, revealing the guitar's inevitable evolution through historical and personal anecdotes.

13. 

    13 Jul 2024

    Walk This Way

    Host [Host Name] explores how bipedalism, the evolution of walking upright, laid the foundation for music and the eventual creation of the guitar.

14. 

    30 May 2024

    There is No Origin Story

    Host [Host Name] explores the elusive origins of the guitar, revealing its multifaceted history across diverse locations and cultures.

15. 

    3 May 2024

    Intro to A People's History of the Guitar

    Host [Host Name] introduces "A People's History of the Guitar," exploring the instrument's cultural impact and the podcast's inclusive mission for all listeners.

16. 

    2 May 2024

    Trailer

    This trailer offers a preview of "A People's History of the Guitar," introducing the show's sound and purpose.

Who has been a guest on A People's History of the Guitar

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• [Guest Name]
• [Guest Name 1]
• [Guest Name 2]
• Steven Pinker

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.4 / 5

12 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 9 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

6

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

31