Friday, August 14, 2009

R.I.P. Les Paul

2 comments:

Eastside Steve said...

Barman

Thank God that someone has put the right message out there.

This is a huge night for me.

My young son (12) has just taken up playing the drums and the gee-tar.

We have talked about Les Pauls, SGs, Strats and Teles in the last few months - and I have tried my best to explain the cultural currency that they richly deserve.

Happily, my boy is now an aficionado.

He absolutely wants an axe with a "whammy bar".

That is cool - and it makes me proud.

A father and son connection.

Noyce.

Junior came home tonight from a school concert where he sang with 1,000 other kiddies - and I sent him off to bed with wild thoughts that "he" might be the "musician" in the family.

Finally.

Then - out of the blue - Lateline very awkwardly spewed out out the death of Les Paul.

And it hit me right between the eyes.

Modern culture has been absolutely shaped by the millions of guitars from the Les Paul and Leo Fender mould.

Yet when Les Paul passes - the newsrooms have no idea.

RIP Les.

As the Gibson factory T-Shirt says..

"Les is More".

A great man and a great loss.

Rest In Peace.

Steve

iODyne said...

interesting that two Polish guys - Les and Andrew Warhola - shaped modern US popular culture.