Les Paul

I’d be remiss if I didn’t write a few thoughts about the passing of Les Paul last week.  As someone who has been playing the guitar since he was 11, and a good many of those years playing on a Gibson ES-335, a derivative of the original Les Paul, my life was touched by Les and his work.  The most interesting thing about him, however, is how the technology he invented was always a means to an end – making great music.

You may not know that Les Paul is responsible for a great deal the technology we now use regularly in the recording industry.   Things as simple as the neck-worn harmonica holder made famous by Bob Dylan and as complicated as multi-track recording were things Les Paul invented to enhance his own ability to make the music he wanted to play.

Thats the lesson I’m always trying to explain to my clients.  The technology ISN’T the business – it’s a way to make the business happen, whatever it may be.  Electric guitars and social networks are the same in that regard (and who but me would ever make THAT comparison!).  They’re means to an end and different people can use the same tools to very different ends (Jimi Hendrix vs. Django Reinhardt) but the tools aren’t the ends themselves.  How many start-ups have failed because they can’t figure out a business model?  Great technology – no business.

How much of today’s technology is going to last and become as much of a standard as a lot of what Les Paul invented has become?  He provides us all with a great measuring stick with respect to adoption and permanence of his inventions.  It’s a shame there won’t be any more from him, either musically or technologically.

When he passed, there wasn’t a big name guitar player who didn’t express his gratitude and indebtedness to Les Paul.  Let’s hope each of us can have the same impact in our fields.