Jazz guitarist.
Inventor of the solid-body electric guitar.
Pioneer in overdubbing, delay and phase effects, multitrack recording.
Began performing on guitar at age 13.
Released first record in 1936.
Hosted the Les Paul Show on NBC in 1950.
Played with Nat King Cole, Bing Crosby, and the Andrews Sisters ... and later with Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page, among countless others.
Godfather of Steve Miller, and also gave him his first guitar lesson.
Inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.
Won two Grammys in 2006 at the age of 90.
He was a regular performer (once a week, usually Monday or Tuesday nights) for long-running stints at various jazz clubs in New York City.
He lived for much of his later life just two towns away from me, and his apprentice once repaired a broken neck on my 1969 Gibson SG.
...
This is perhaps his most well-known invention:
One of the three guitars I owned in my heyday was a Les Paul. In fact, it was my main instrument for seven of the ten years I was active in bands. It survived two dozen gigs, three demo tapes, close to a thousand rehearsal jams, and a whole lot of sweat, cigarette smoke, and beer. It had an awesome crunchy distortion sound and was a pleasure to play.
Les Paul died today of complications from pneumonia. Rest in peace.
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