Les Paul R.I.P.

Sad news this morning, as guitar legend Les Paul has gone to his great reward. In addition to being one of the most iconic players of the jazz and rock & roll era, Les made modern recording possible with his non-stop invention. Dissatisfied with the volume he got from acoustic guitars, Paul built what he called "The Log" - a piece of lumber with a bridge, guitar neck and pickup attached. This primitive piece of caveman tech would be the ancestor of all of today's electric guitars. He was the first to release an album that contained overdubbed parts with 1947's Lover (When You're Near Me), which featured eight different guitar parts, all played by Paul, recorded onto acetate disks, and overlaid on top of each other. This technique was quite literally the most important thing to happen since the invention of recorded sound - now, musicians no longer had to perform songs perfectly, in real-time - they could edit, replace, and experiment with sounds in a studio environment. He also lent his name to one of the most famous electric guitars of all time, the legendary Gibson Les Paul, which is played by Slash, Eric Clapton, and dozens of other famous musicians. He continued to innovate new technology for musicians and held down a regular gig on Monday nights in New York up until his tragic death at the age of 94.