Les Paul
Les Paul
Lester William Polsfuss, known as Les Paul, was an American jazz, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid-body electric guitar, which made the sound of rock and roll possible. Paul taught himself how to play guitar and while he is mainly known for jazz and popular music, he had an early career in country music. He is credited with many recording innovations. Although he was not the first to use...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionGuitarist
Date of Birth9 June 1915
CityWaukesha, WI
CountryUnited States of America
We go in there and we work on altering those ideas and in many cases go in different directions.
Steve used to walk through the room I stayed in to get to the bathroom. One day, he must have been 5 years old, Steve said to me, 'Are you Mr. Paul?' I said yes. He was looking at my guitar and I asked him, 'Do you play guitar?' And he said, 'A little bit.' So I handed him my guitar and he played it and I said, 'Gee, you're good. Someday you'll be doing what I'm doing.' I was his mentor . . . but then I watched him take everything he admired and copied and learned and become Steve Miller. He's a very, very good blues guitarist.
It has to be said, we must all own up that without Les Paul, generations of flash little punks like us would be in jail or cleaning toilets. This man, by his genius, made the road that we still travel today. I don't know how he did it, but I'm so grateful he did, said Keith Richards, as quoted in the
If Waukesha needs more, I have more. All they've got to do is ask.
I have younger friends who dont work, and they arent doing so well. My secret is to keep going, keep working.
The worst is over. I am doing better.
I feel like a condemned building with a new flagpole on it. It's exciting for us.
We're the first non-U.S.-based team to be requested, ... They're going to be helping as many people as they can.
You can't go to the store and buy a good ear and rhythm.
Every setback might be the very thing that makes you carry on and fight all the harder and become much better.
..I wanted to create music that was so different that my mother could tell me from anyone else
.. the guitar is just a wonderful instrument. It's everything: a bartender, a psychiatrist, a housewife. It's everything, but it's elusive
Paint pictures with sound. First, find your white-the deepest, roundest sound you can play on the guitar. Then, find your black-which is the most extreme tonal difference from white you can play. Now, just pick the note where you've got white, pick it where you've got black, and then find all those colors in between. Get those colors down, and you'll be able to express almost any emotion on the guitar.?
This guitar is such a pal. It's a psychiatrist. It's a doggone bartender. It's a housewife. This guy is everything. Whenever I find that I've got a problem, I'll go pick my guitar up and play. It's the greatest pal in the whole world.