Les Paul has died today from complications of pneumonia at White Plains Hospital today. The New Jersey resident was a pioneer of the solid body electric guitar, including the famous Gibson that bears his name. Still playing residencies in New York City up until just a few years ago, the blues guitarist and self-taught electrical engineer was part of a pure hobbyist inventor movement in the music and electronics world that will likely never be duplicated.
Here’s Les wowing the audience with his Les Paulverizer, essentially a boomerang looping device that was attached to his guitar in the form of a black box. On this recording, it’s pretty plain to see that backing tracks are being used as he’s barely even manipulating the box.
