Les Paul

I've haven't been sleeping well lately, so this morning I was up and wide awake at 2:15.  I spent my time  listening to YouTube.  I found myself really interested in Les Paul and the various musicians who play the Gibson Les Paul guitar.

For those of you who don't know (and please forgive me, I'm pretty much cutting and pasting this bio from Wikipedia), Les Paul was an American jazz, country and blues guitarist, songwriter, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid-body electric guitar, which made the sound of rock and roll possible. He is credited with many recording innovations. Although he was not the first to use the technique, his early experiments with overdubbing (also known as sound on sound), delay effects such as tape delay, phasing effects and multitrack recording were among the first to attract widespread attention.

His innovative talents extended into his playing style, including licks, trills, chording sequences, fretting techniques and timing, which set him apart from his contemporaries and inspired many guitarists of the present day. He recorded with his wife, Mary Ford, in the 1950s, and they sold millions of records.

Among his many honors, Paul is one of a handful of artists with a permanent, stand-alone exhibit in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He is prominently named by the music museum on its website as an "architect" and a "key inductee" along with Sam Phillips and Alan Freed.

The Gibson Les Paul is a solid body electric guitar that was first sold in 1952. The Les Paul was designed by Ted McCarty in collaboration with popular guitarist Les Paul, whom Gibson enlisted to endorse the new model. It is one of the most well-known electric guitar types in the world.
  
The Gibson Les Paul is one of the most recognizable guitars of all-time and the artists who brandish it seem to transcend age, era, gender and genre. From heavy metal enthusiasts to indie rock icons to reggae superstars, it seems like nearly every musical legend has strapped on a Les Paul at some point to take advantage of its signature sound.
 
Here are YouTube links to some of the music I found by musicians playing a Les Paul guitar.

Les Paul playing Sleep Walk 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HH8vjxFIUC4

Duane Allman used a 1957 Les Paul Goldtop with PAF pickups, a 1959 cherry sunburst Les Paul, a 1958 tobacco sunburst Les Paul and a 1968 cherry SG which he used for slide guitar. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCtdKWWfZG8

 

 

All of the guitarists of the Rolling Stones (Keith Richards, Mick Taylor, Ronnie Wood, and Brian Jones) played (and still play) Gibson guitars, including Les Paul models. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kucq5gxMjwA

 

The American blues musician who is considered the "father of modern Chicago blues," Muddy Waters was a major inspiration for the British blues explosion in the 1960s and is ranked No. 17 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. Muddy Waters used a Les Paul Goldtop in his early career.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aav1shpaK6s

 

B.B. King has used many different Gibson models, including an ES-5 and an ES-175 early in his career; later he began using thinline semi-acoustic models such as an ES-330, ES-335 and ES-345. King's Signature ES-355, nicknamed Lucille, has been his main guitar for many years. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9ozjCQkqZs

 

Mick Ralphs used a Les Paul Junior, a Firebird and a Les Paul during his Mott the Hoople tenure; and a Les Paul Standard and a Flying V during his years with Bad Company. Although being a British band, Bad Company had more success in the United States than in the United Kingdom. Four of their albums were certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry, while another four other albums were certified Multi-Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOj_93UP8kY

 

 

Eddie Van Halen has used a Les Paul, an ES-335 and a 1958 Flying V. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sI7XiJgt0vY

 

 

Joe Walsh uses a Les Paul Standard and an EDS-1275. Walsh was known for "hot-wiring" the pickups on these guitars to create his trademark "attack" sound 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JocjTXmqiS0

 

Mark Knopfler is known for playing a 1979 Gibson Les Paul Standard Reissue '59 on the Dire Straits song 'Money for nothing'. He also owns a 1985 Gibson Les Paul Standard Reissue '59, Sunburst. This customshop model has got his birthdate (12849) as the serialnumber. He also plays other Gibson models like a 'super 400', an 'es 175' and a 'Chet Atkins. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rztpwexog30

 

Albert King was a left-handed "upside-down/backwards" guitarist: he usually played a Flying V flipped over upside-down so the low E string was on the bottom. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=gopiZc1F_Yk

 

Jeff Beck purchased his first Les Paul, a 1959 model, for £150 while still a member of The Yardbirds. Beck's fascination with the guitar sprang as much from his interest in Les Paul, the man, as from his love of the guitar itself. Beck told an interviewer: "It had a deep powerful sound and you could use it to imitate just about anything - violin, sax, cello, even a sitar." Beck also used an "oxblood" colored 1954 Les Paul Standard, with PAF pickups, from 1972 to 1976 and is pictured with the guitar on the cover artwork of his Blow by Blow album. 
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ej3BdMpgZw
 

Les Paul and his Wife, Mary Ford 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iGXP_UBog4

I hope you enjoyed this varied collection and found something you like.  See you next time.
Nan

Linocut Block Printing Part 2

 Last week I showed you how I cut a piece of linoleum for a linoprint.  This week I’ll show you how the printing itself turned out.

There are a variety of textile inks/paints available.  I bought three brands specifically made for fabric painting/printing, and also tried acrylic paint. 

For the print process you’ll need something to print on, ink/paint, something in which to mix the ink if you want custom colors, a plexiglass or ceramic surface to lay out the ink, a brayer (what you’ll use to spread the ink onto the block), a wooden skewer, and, if you like, a burnisher (what you can use to press the inked block onto the fabric -- you'll see that I don't use one).  You’ll also need an iron and clothes dryer.

 

Pour some ink/paint onto your plexi/ceramic surface.  Roll your brayer back in forth in the ink/paint  to load it.  Make sure it’s evenly loaded with no blobs or empty spots. 

Invest in a good brayer, don’t use one of those really spongy yellow things.  This brayer is also from Blick (did I tell you how much I love the Dick Blick catalog?).  It’s a 4” Blick brand brayer, which is about mid-price at $12.00.  You want a rubber brayer that has a firm roller that has only a slight give when you squeeze it, and is easy for you to hold.  You don’t want something that’s going to absorb and waste all of your paint, nor ooze it onto your block.  Also,  I thought I was smart and I’d save money using a dinner plate, but it wasn’t broad enough to properly load the brayer.  Next time I’ll buy  a good-sized sheet of plexi.

Carefully spread the ink/paint onto the carved linoleum.  Not too thick and not too thin.  It will take a few tests to figure out what the right amount is.  You don’t want any blobs in the uncut area because when you press it onto the fabric it could make its way onto the print. 

You can see I had some blobs in the crevices.  I simply picked it out with a wooden skewer.

 

Firmly, and steadily, press the inked linoleum onto your fabric.  Don’t wiggle it around or the image will smudge.  Simply press firmly.

And here are a few boo-boos I encountered.

 

Using a tiled table will result in . . .

Imprints from the grouting space between the tiles

And if you have a stray string/fringe on the back of the fabric . . .

It sure will show up on the print!

 

Here’s an example of the linoleum not being evenly inked

 

And this is the block after a few presses.  The moisture from the in/paint will warp the block.  It didn’t really prove to be a problem, but I think adhering the linoleum to a block the next time will be a good idea.

Let the ink/paint dry and then cover it will parchment paper and iron it with a dry iron.  This is a must do.  The heat sets the paint so that when you wash the fabric the ink won’t wash away.  All of the fabric paint manufacturers also recommend that you send the printed fabric through a clothes dryer for about 10-15 minutes to further set the ink/paint.

I hope you've enjoyed this linocut printing tutorial.  Come back next week and we'll explore another fun topic.