Remembering Les Paul
. Les Paul was a tinkerer. The Wizard of Waukesha's hands were always busy and his mind was, too. Busy with ideas, busy with inventions, busy with improvements. And Les Paul's hands and mind stayed in near-constant motion from the day he was given his first harmonica until his final Monday night performance at New York's Iridium Jazz Club in June of 2009, before dying from complications related to pneumonia on this day in '09. Jazz players, rock players, blues players, pop players and musicians of any genre all revere the man and his work. It's astounding, and at the same time, it makes perfect sense. After all, this is the guy who invented the Les Paul guitar. Born Lester William Polsfuss in 1915, Les became enamored with music at an early age. As a teenager, he began performing as a country-western musician, and then dropped out of high school to join a radio band in St. Louis. He spent his early 20s in Chicago, dividing his time between hillbilly music, blues and jazz, and became an accomplished player via Django Reinhardt's influence. He adopted the stage name of Les Paul and released his first records. more on this story Gibson.com is an official news provider for the Day in Rock.
|
On the Blue: New Horizons Cruise Days 4 & 5: Starship Lands on the Pearl, Alan Parsons Takes It Home
Kandace Springs - Run Your Race
On the Blue: New Horizons Cruise Day 1: Marbin Gets the Fun Started
Hot In The City: Prog Band Tu-Ner Coming to Phoenix
Pink Floyd's David Gilmour Reveals Song From First New Album In Nine Years
AC/DC Launching High Voltage Dive Bar At Stops On Power Up Tour
Vince Neil Says Motley Crue's New Song 'Dogs of War' Old School Meets New School
Watch Twenty One Pilots' New 'Backslide' Video
Billy Idol Goes Behind The Scenes Of Classic Hit 'Eyes Without A Face'
Ringo Starr Reunited with John Lennon's Lost 1965 Help! Guitar Found in an Attic After 50 Years
Hear Say Anything's New Song 'ON CUM'
Metal Supergroup Leviathan Project Deliver 'MCMLXXXII'