As guitar pickers go, ol’ Lester has most of ’em licked. But that’s not why I love him. I love him because nearly every piece of musical equipment that I embrace to lift met up when the times are tough, and the days are rough, and the sun just don’t seem to shine, was designed a little bit by him.
On the occasion of his 90th birthday, a film crew followed him around New York and put together the documentary Les Paul: Chasing Sound! If you like popular music (defined anyway you will) between the years of 1930 and 2010 you will find something to love about this film. Quite literally, nothing would sound the same without him. And he’s still got the chops, swinging that old ax every Monday night, taking another whack at life while he’s still around to chase his sound.
