The Real Guitar Hero: Les Paul

Posted by S-Dott (Follow Me)- S-Dott is a graduate of Virginia Tech with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. Be advised that he'll engage in a political debate with any worthy adversary; however, he does not suffer fools gladly - To see more posts by this author click here

On August 13, 2009, legendary guitarist and inventor Les Paul died at the age of 94. Being as that I own a Les Paul standard electric guitar, I felt obliged to acknowledge the passing of such a legendary American musician here on Food for Thought, and while I’m at it, I may as well throw in a little background information on the man.

Credited with inventing the solid body electric guitar in 1939 (although Leo Fender was the first to mass produce them), Paul was a true legend the craft whose name became synonymous with one of the finest electrical guitars ever made. You can’t go to a live performance today without seeing at least one guitarist brandishing one of the Paul’s signature solid body guitars, and there’s good reason for that. To this day, Paul’s model is still Gibson’s best selling guitar and his patent for the “Electrical Music Instrument” earned him a spot in the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame in 2005.

Paul was also a recipient of the Grammy’s Trustees Award for his lifetime achievements, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a member of the National Broadcasters Hall of Fame, and was an honorary member of the Audio Engineering Society.

Truly a man ahead of his time, he will be missed. Rest in peace to the original guitar hero.

udothedishes . . .