Tell Your First Experience/Exposure to a Les Paul Guitar

[scozz]

I've said it before in this thread...and I'll say it again ...

...GREAT STORIES HERE ...

... from all ages and all years!!! So many different experiences from everyone. A very interesting read.

 

[LOSTVENTURE]

I may have a few years on most of you guys. I say that because my first memories of the Les Paul go back to 1958. The pawn shop in town had a 54 Black Beauty in the window, asking $275 for it. The owner was a friend of my dad's and he let me sit down with it several times. All I knew were a few chords (I was 11 at the time) but those speed frets made playing them seem so easy.

 

[mattnapier]

First time hearing a Les Paul on a recording as kid and wondering what guitar makes that sound!? - Peter Green's playing with Fleetwood Mac.

First time actually playing a Les Paul - My friends early 90's Standard. Super thin neck. Action so low every string had fret buzz. I hated it!

 

[Metal Guru]

This. My brother bought the single Jeepster, Life’s a Gas was the B side, but this was the first time I can remember seeing a Les Paul and wanting one

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The first Les Paul I ever played belonged to the lead player in my mate’s band. I never thought he’d let me near it never mind play it but he was really cool and just handed it to me and said give a go. It was a white custom and when I played that first chord it felt and sounded like heaven.

I became a huge T. Rex fan in '71 (certain people still give me shit about that) and of course, I saw that picture too. I attended both of their performances in Detroit. Although I've loved rock since straight out of the womb, T. Rex kindled the desire to play and I had to have a Les Paul.
In the summer of '72 I was camping with my family and met a Detroit kid (white flight out of the city was a thing then so it was unusual to meet such a person) who brought along his '58 Gold Top. I was there with my dad's Airline hollowbody and amp so we jammed together all weekend. I got to try out the Gold Top and life's never been the same.
Due to finances, my first guitar was a '68 SG Special, which was a fine instrument, but not my ideal. Now I count 3 LP Classics among my meager collection and they get played the most, by far.

 

[xeizo]

Had a bandmate with a 70s Gibson Standard Tobacco burst, back in the 70s, his guitar was much superior to my Washburn Hawk in every way imaginable. It was my first encounter with a Gibson Les Paul. But when I wanted a better guitar, in the early 80s a new LP costed about twice the price of a American Strat, so I went the Strat way. Fast forward 35 years and back playing after haven't played active for 30 years I picked up a Epi Standard Ebony as I wanted humbuckers for my DAW. I liked it, and it evoked memories, just recently bought my first Gibson Les Paul and it feels just great

Not to mention all the iconic players on Les Paul, they are inspiration sure, but as I see it I'm only seeking what feels good to me and not to be like them. It was the memories of my bandmates Standard and it's perfection(apart from being rather heavy) that haunted me, no more

 

[Ides of March]

My first recollection, it was before first grade so maybe I was 5, I dont' know how I remember this but I'm 44 now so this is 78 maybe. I was sick and on the couch and Kiss was on TV performing on what show I cannot tell you. But like many others it was Ace and his Cherryburst. I just remember him having smoke come out of it. When I got my first real LP an 09 HCS Trad Plus it was because of Ace.

 

[djuul]

My first memory of a les paul would probably Slash playing. My mom had live in tokyo '92 taped on vhs iirc, i must have been 4 or 5. Fast forward 10 years and i started playing got into zeppelin and i had to have a les paul. Now rocking a 96 standard that left the factory a month after i left my moms womb.

 

[scozz]

My first memory of a les paul would probably Slash playing. My mom had live in tokyo '92 taped on vhs iirc, i must have been 4 or 5. Fast forward 10 years and i started playing got into zeppelin and i had to have a les paul. Now rocking a 96 standard that left the factory a month after i left my moms womb.

Lots of youngsters here....members of MLP Forum! Great to see!

In 1996 when you were born @djuul i was 40 years old, had two teenage children, and hadn't played live, ( to paying customers anyway), in almost 20 years!!

 

[Daytripper67]

First exposure was Thin Lizzy or Reo Speedwagon in late 70"s But The dude with the Tophat in 88 sealed the deal.

 

[scozz]

First exposure was Thin Lizzy or Reo Speedwagon in late 70"s But The dude with the Tophat in 88 sealed the deal.

When I saw your user [email protected] thought for sure your first experience would have been earlier...like in the 60s!

 

[paco1976]

The first Les Paul I ever saw/played was my neighbor's.
I was 16 and starting to learn how to play, I had a japanese Jackson and was into Metallica, Guns n' Roses etc.
All the kids like me had Jackson, Ibanez or Yamaha, it was the Floyd Rose era, we all wanted to be like Steve Vai.
So, that neighbor, who was a pro musician was going out on vacations for a couple of weeks and he came to me one day and said he was going to lend me one thing to play and I could give him back two weeks later, after holidays. So he did, he gave me the case and I waited to get home to open it.
Well, it was a Les Paul Deluxe from the early 70s, burst color. I was astonished, my reference to this guitar was Page and Slash, but no one could afford a guitar like this, it was from another planet. It played far better than anything I had played before...
These were the shortest two weeks ever...

 

[Cory Brown]

I guess I'm unusual in this thread. I didn't specifically seek out a Les Paul but I stumbled across one and got it.

I'd been playing guitar about 1.5 years and had a real POS electric. I finally convinced my father to help me buy a better guitar although new ones were out of reach. We looked in the local Trading Post paper and there was a listing for a 1972 Les Paul. Since it was 2 years old, I got it for a reasonable price - $400. It is a 1972 Les Paul Custom Black Beauty Fretless Wonder.
My oldest son has it now but it's still in the family.

 

[NotScott]

I started playing on a Sears Decca guitar that my parents bought me. After being bored by the guitar classes my parents sent me to, I started learning things on my own and eventually found a good guitar teacher. My guitar teacher had a burst and it was the first Les Paul I ever played.

I couldn't afford a Les Paul then so, I settled on a Strat for my first real guitar. However, after trying and trying for months to make that Strat sound like a LP, I eventually realized that there was no substitute for that fat, honking, LP tone.

I started working every part-time job I could find and saving all my money and after using every day possible on the local music store's layaway plan, I finally brought my black LP Custom home.

There really is no substitute.

 

[Pesh]

Had been pretty much into my original Strat and interested in SG's for a long time. When I was maybe 15 a buddy and I went to Manchester (UK) to help out with a local youth project to open a rehearsal and recording space for local young musicians. While we were in Manchester we toured a few youth centres that had done similar things in order to ascertain how to go about it, and what sort of things we should invest in. In the downtime we visited numerous music shops through the city.

My mate was heavily invested in the idea of getting a Les Paul. He'd adored them probably since he started playing, while I had always been happy with almost anything and not too fussed. I had started leaning towards the idea of an SG around that time of the trip. In one store we were doing a test drive of our weapons of choice, and did a quick swap to try the other. First Les Paul I ever held. It was so comparatively expensive at the time I was petrified I'd drop it (I knew nothing of the multi-thousand £ / € / $ LP's at this time!) but tried to noodle about regardless. It felt super heavy and the thing made my torso resonate along with it. Plugged into some huge half stack Marshall, all I was throwing out were power chords, but my oh my did it feel powerful.

I think I remained semi-interested in the SG and the idea of an LP for a while, but not long after I got a Fender Jaguar and that drew my focus for a while.

Sadly that Jag was lost to me, and I stopped playing for a few years. When my interest reignited, for some reason an LP was at the front of my mind. So I got my now 4-year-old Limited Traditional Pro II. Within a year I'd bought another - a Studio model

 

[kiko]

Peter Frampton and that Page guy.

 

[Static]

1974ish Les Paul Deluxe with mini humbuckers. Bought it new with paper route money (remember when young boys did paper routes- twice a day). I was king of the world for about a week. Then my friend whose parents had money shows up with a brand new shiny Black Beauty Les Paul Custom and I was the poor kid with the ugly red-head step-child of the Gibson clan.

Can't remember exactly what happened to that guitar, but today I regret dearly ever having parted with it. Collectors items now I hear...

 

[scozz]

1974ish Les Paul Deluxe with mini humbuckers. Bought it new with paper route money I regret dearly ever having parted with it.

I had the same guitar for my first LP...mine was a 71 Sunburst Deluxe. I also bought it new... for $378.00 (including the HSC), and I also"regret dearly ever having parted with it". Sold it for $375.00...I remember being happy and proud for having sold it for just about what I paid for it!! I was young and stupid...reminds me of an old saying...

..."Youth is wasted on the young"

So true!

 

[drkato]

My first guitar was a Sears one like so many people here seem to have had also, lol. Not an LP copy, but actually #10 from the pic below...

After that, my first "real" guitar was a 1986 Gibson SG (inspired by Angus of course). I loved that guitar. Unfortunately, one of my friends turned Motorhead broke into my house one day while I was at work and stole it. I never saw it again. In the market for another guitar, I was set on a duplicate SG, but when I went to the local shop, I picked up a 1990 Studio, which blew me away, and I was hooked. I sold that guitar quite some time ago, and wish I had kept it of course, but it was the one that got me going.

 

[Burny FLG]

To be honest I never really played a les Paul as no one could afford one so I got to play a lot of fenders over the years. A friend though, had a black custom in the 80s but never got to play it more than once. Recently my brother loaned me his gibsonstein les Paul and I fell in love with the sound so bought a 70s Burny which I ended selling as it wasn't what I was after. I then bought a 83 custom which I have now and sounds very different from my brothers - very chimy as opposed to his which is softer and warm. Although it wasn't the sound I thought I wanted I wouldn't trade it for another.

 

[alnico59]

Mine was around 1982, had only ben playing for about 1 year. Eddie Van Halen was HUGE! So at that time the super strat was all the buzz. I was in a music store trying a few guitars. Then I picked up a white LP Custom (first time) and the thing basically played itself. I'll never forget it. It just had that feel when you fretted the note that Gibson's are famous for. It wasn't until 1985 with my first real income tax return I bought my first LP, a 1974 GT Deluxe. The not so funny part of this story is, for $50 more the same store also had a 1969 GT with heavy wear that was pro routed and fitted with a set of real PAF's! Hey what did I know.