What did Henry Juszkiewicz, the CEO of Gibson Guitars say about Les Paul today?
When news broke of guitar legend Les Paul’s passing, Henry Juszkiewicz, the CEO of Gibson Guitars (which has been associated with the Les Paul model guitar since 1952), offered to reflect upon the man who was a groundbreaker in creating the electric guitar. “Most people, when they think of Les Paul, they think about the guitar. Which is the most popular guitar — certainly in the Gibson line, and probably in the world. But very few people know the inventive genius behind the scenes,” Juszkiewicz says. “I think an appropriate title for Les would be ‘the father of modern guitar.’ Before Les Paul, the guitar was being used with amplifiers, but it was still just a loud acoustic guitar. Les really brought the guitar into the modern age, and created the modern sound.” And with that modern sound, the Gibson Les Paul became synonymous with rock & roll, as such renowned players as Jimmy Page, Ace Frehley, and Slash have all played Les Paul guitars throughout their careers. “As a guitar player, h
Les Paul never stopped tinkering, said Henry Juszkiewicz. Juszkiewicz, the chairman and CEO of Gibson Guitars, remembers getting calls from his company’s partner (and famed client), offering recommendations on how to change or market his eponymous Gibson guitars. Sometimes, Juszkiewicz recalls, the two would go out for Chinese food. Paul was very particular, desiring a dish called Chicken Subgum. The two would have to search Chinatown for a restaurant that knew how to cook it, he says with a chuckle. Les Paul died Thursday of pneumonia. He was 94. Juszkiewicz talked about his friend and colleague Thursday afternoon. The following is an edited version of the interview. Sources: http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Music/08/13/gibson.les.paul/index.html?
When news broke of guitar legend Les Paul’s passing, Henry Juszkiewicz, the CEO of Gibson Guitars (which has been associated with the Les Paul model guitar since 1952), offered to reflect upon the man who was a groundbreaker in creating the electric guitar. “Most people, when they think of Les Paul, they think about the guitar. Which is the most popular guitar — certainly in the Gibson line, and probably in the world. But very few people know the inventive genius behind the scenes,” Juszkiewicz says. “I think an appropriate title for Les would be ‘the father of modern guitar.’ Before Les Paul, the guitar was being used with amplifiers, but it was still just a loud acoustic guitar. Les really brought the guitar into the modern age, and created the modern sound.” Sources: http://www.ticketnews.com/AC-DC-Celtic-Woman-So
