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Earliest Les Paul Players


freedy6060

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Posted

I just got an Epiphone Les Paul this week and on the way home from work today I was trying to think of the earliest Les Paul rock players. I could think of Buddy Holly for the Strat and the Stones for a tele but not a Les Paul. Clapton, Jimmy Page and Peter Green are the earliest I can think of. I want to go back as far as I can to listen to their playing, how they sounded without pedals, etc. and pick up some pointers. I want to bring out the best sound this guitar has then add pedals. 

Thanks for your help.

Posted

Hmm...   Well Clapton would  be the first player that comes to mind but hes more blues than rock....  I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that the LP was out of production from 61-68 I think..  So a lot of the "rock" players didn't come along until the late 60s...  So for instance I wonder if LPs had still been in production if we would have seen Tony Iommi with a LP instead of an SG ???:-k  

Other than that the next one that comes to mind.. This is probably a good example..

 

Posted

Yes, that's a great example. I love Free's music. I've been working on "Fire and Water".

Hmmmm, I didn't know the LP was out of production for a while, that would probably explain a lot. 

Speaking of Toni Iommi, I've always liked the SG because of him. 

It looks like I have a bit of catching up to do.

Posted

Michael Bloomfield.

Franny Beecher with Bill Haley.

Freddie King.

Muddy Waters (famous photo with him and Gold Top) .

Buddy Guy (cover of "I Was Walking Through The Woods" LP  - White SG Les Paul which was stolen).

Posted

John Lee Hooker played an un-bound neck Gold-Top so that dates to '52.

As jdgm said above Freddie King. Arguably the photo of Freddie King with his '55 (I think) Gold Top on the cover of his album 'Lets Hideaway and Dance away" changed the course of guitar-centric music forever.

Google is your friend.

Pip.

Posted
3 minutes ago, pippy said:

John Lee Hooker played an un-bound neck Gold-Top so that dates to '52.

As jdgm said above Freddie King. Arguably the photo of Freddie King with his '55 (I think) Gold Top on the cover of his album 'Lets Hideaway and Dance away" changed the course of guitar-centric music forever.

Google is your friend.

Pip.

Yeah, but that's all blues...  WE WANT ROCK dammit   😄  😛 

Posted

Well. 

There were, of course, Les Paul and Mary Ford. 

It all began right there. 

The first Gibson Les Paul I became acutely aware of was the one that Jeff Lynne (of ELO) played on some TV show in the early/mid 1970's. 
It was a gold-top. 

I had to have one, and so, in 1976, I bought one. 
I foolishly sold it in 1978 when I went off to the Army. 

Dumbest move I ever made. 
😞
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Posted
6 minutes ago, pauloqs said:

This is very quickly turning to one of my favorite threads. Keep em' coming Rabs 🙂

Ok I will try   🙂

 

 

 

Posted

Yeah..  Not rock but check the solo out in this tune..  The first Les Paul shredder  🙂 

 

 

Posted

Not that its necessarily  a good example of Les Paul tone (erm or of music in general 🙂)  But Gary Moore always loved his Les Pauls this is from 1971

 

Posted
18 hours ago, freedy6060 said:

Yes, that's a great example. I love Free's music. I've been working on "Fire and Water".

Hmmmm, I didn't know the LP was out of production for a while, that would probably explain a lot. 

Speaking of Toni Iommi, I've always liked the SG because of him. 

It looks like I have a bit of catching up to do.

By the way.. I have one other video to add... Ive posted it loads of times but I think its relevant to your post.

Its not an early player far from it..  But what it is, is a lesson I how to use the controls of the guitar...  Many people don't use them properly and miss some of the natural sounds you can get from a LP before you even need to go near a pedal.. 

 

 

Posted

Jimmy Page's #1 --  The 1959 and 1960 Les Pauls were highly desired and very scarce even back then.  In early 1969 on Led Zeppelin's first US tour, Joe Walsh  (of the James Gang) saw an interview of Jimmy Page saying that he has not been able to find one of those old Les Pauls.  So Joe Walsh -- who had never met him -- felt compelled to provide him one as he had more than one.   He flew to the east coast to present it to him, charging him his a reasonable value plus his expenses to travel there  ($1200).  Due to a refinishing job commissioned by Walsh, the serial number on the guitar was removed, which has led to many a debate over the guitar's year of manufacture. However, due to the neck profile, most experts concur that it is likely to be a late 1959 model, or an early 1960. 

sRULNJd9CtGY3qGCojHNqT-650-80.jpg

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