Gibson Les Paul - What well-known jazz guitar players have used one?

**Marcel_A** · 10-23-2020, 03:34 PM

Originally Posted by coolvinny

Most archtops only have a neck pickup. Most Les Pauls also have a bridge pickup which can be blended with the neck pickup for a different (brighter) tone.

i understand, but most archtops i know have two pickups.

**GaloDeBarcelos** · 10-24-2020, 06:02 PM

Well, I quite enjoy this tone

**Hammertone** · 10-24-2020, 10:00 PM

Originally Posted by coolvinny

Here's my "Les Paul" (a Slaman Pauletta) - check the "video" from 1:45 which is when the jazz player takes over:

It has a full size CC pickup and some slightly different woods (and 1.75" nut width plus slimmer neck specs than stated in the original CR guitars' description - basically feels like an archtop neck), but it still has the DNA of a Les Paul.
As you can see/hear, it sounds just great for jazz (and that video was played with 10's or 11's). I've had great results with it when playing with others. BUT I concur that my shoulder "feels it" after about an hour, and sometimes that lingers to the next day if I press on...which recently happened to me when I was called to sub for a long big band practice.
While I've always been a neck pickup guy, running both pickups can work pretty well when comping...a luxury we don't get on archtops.

I put this together as an homage to Les and Mary. Starting with a chambered Hysterical reissue, it weighed in under 8 pounds:

**L50EF15** · 10-25-2020, 06:11 PM

Originally Posted by GaloDeBarcelos

Well, I quite enjoy this tone

I have found the P90 Les Pauls (mine is a 2016) to have a wonderful jazz tone.

**wolflen** · 10-25-2020, 06:29 PM

lee retenour plays one on several YouTube clips..one with mike stern and one with larry carlton..and several more

**Danny W.** · 10-25-2020, 06:36 PM

Originally Posted by entresz

I took my Les Paul Recording out for a 3hr gig last night, the tone was great.
However, my shoulder sure is on the sore side today.
It's a very unique instrument, in my opinion a superb solid body jazz guitar, but there are certainly more comfortable instruments to play for longer gigs!

Originally Posted by sasquatch

The Les Paul Recording is a bit more comfortable because of the larger body and the rear contour
Jan Akkerman likes that size and has a custom Gibson with a Recording body but regular humbuckers
I'd like a Les Paul Personal myself, but only two ever came into Australia

Gibson Les Paul - What well-known jazz guitar players have used one?-lp-personal-front-jpg

According to my records I owned this LP Personal for a little less than three years. I liked the larger size compared to a regular LP, but it was easily the heaviest guitar I've ever owned and I hated the "fretless wonder" treatment. Lots of interesting tones available except for standard Gibson ones. I had no use for Les's mic input. Never gigged with it and never missed it after selling.

I liked what Akkerman did to his.

Danny W.

**sasquatch** · 10-25-2020, 07:35 PM

Originally Posted by Danny W.

According to my records I owned this LP Personal for a little less than three years. I liked the larger size compared to a regular LP, but it was easily the heaviest guitar I've ever owned and I hated the "fretless wonder" treatment. Lots of interesting tones available except for standard Gibson ones. I had no use for Les's mic input. Never gigged with it and never missed it after selling.

I liked what Akkerman did to his.

Danny W.

Hey Danny, nice pic! I bought one of those Kustom 100's myself this year. Pretty rare in Australia!

I still kick myself that I didn't have the $3K to buy a Les Paul Personal a few years ago.
It was one of the first few from December '69 and had a gold Bigsby.
Oh well, we can't have everything heh

Gibson Les Paul - What well-known jazz guitar players have used one?-personal2-jpg

Gibson Les Paul - What well-known jazz guitar players have used one?-personal2-jpg

**Peter C** · 10-25-2020, 08:34 PM

Seeing those pics reminded of this clip of a LP Recording model. Sounds pretty damn good to me, in these hands, at least:

**friendofjaco** · 10-25-2020, 08:42 PM

I think this fantastic guitar playing by Larry Carlton was on his Les Paul. I think Larry and his Les Paul are all over these early records by Michael Franks. Amazing band, tunes, production, and guitar tone! This is from Sleeping Gypsy.

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**myhandhurts** · 10-25-2020, 09:59 PM

Probably been seen a million times but any excuse to see Jan Akkerman with his modded LP is a good one. He had one of the guys from Hamer [maybe Joel] do the work on that guitar.

**L50EF15** · 10-25-2020, 10:41 PM

This is a good example of an LP played clean in a jazz context (Phil Lee on an LP Deluxe), albeit not on a straight ahead standard:

**entresz** · 10-25-2020, 10:45 PM

Originally Posted by Peter C

Seeing those pics reminded of this clip of a LP Recording model. Sounds pretty damn good to me, in these hands, at least:

That's me!

It's a lovely sounding instrument. The low impedance pickups have an interesting sound. More like a warm sounding single coil than a humbucker.

**myhandhurts** · 10-26-2020, 12:29 PM

Pete Banks was a long-time friend [he produced a band I was in back around 1979]. He was working on a solo project when Akkerman stopped by and contributed to some tracks. Lots of Les Paul stuff.

**jzucker** · 10-26-2020, 01:11 PM

here's master ulf wakenius playing a cheap les paul copy and sounding better than most guys don on an archtop. He told me he paid less than $100 for it.

**neatomic** · 10-26-2020, 02:02 PM

Originally Posted by myhandhurts

Pete Banks was a long-time friend [he produced a band I was in back around 1979]. He was working on a solo project when Akkerman stopped by and contributed to some tracks. Lots of Les Paul stuff.

long time fave...banks and akkerman really burn

cheers

**myhandhurts** · 10-26-2020, 02:59 PM

When I posted that link I had second thoughts about the "jazz" aspects of Pete's album. It's jazz-ish but not really top-drawer jazz. He was also concerned that he sounded a lot like Akkerman and people couldn't discern between the two. He played the black LP Custom for those sessions and then bought my sunburst Custom.

**Peter C** · 10-26-2020, 05:09 PM

Akkerman was my biggest personal influence as a teen.... but he didn't play a lot of jazz, and especially not on Hocus Pocus, which he used to mess around with a lot live.

Cool entresz, good playing and nice suit!

Fun fact: Pete Banks put together a band called Flash, then left for some reason. They auditioned and I turned up - must have been all of 17 years old - and was so nervous that I played the solo to a simple Dm chord progression in Em!! Didn't sound too good IIRC.

**neatomic** · 10-26-2020, 05:21 PM

Originally Posted by myhandhurts

When I posted that link I had second thoughts about the "jazz" aspects of Pete's album. It's jazz-ish but not really top-drawer jazz. He was also concerned that he sounded a lot like Akkerman and people couldn't discern between the two. He played the black LP Custom for those sessions and then bought my sunburst Custom.

i'd put it in a similar category as the santana & mclaughlin recordings...players familiar with some jazz vocabulary, but playing hard and distorted rock sounding guitars..very early 70's...i.e. a great time for fusion

cheers

**L50EF15** · 10-26-2020, 05:25 PM

Originally Posted by myhandhurts

Pete Banks was a long-time friend [he produced a band I was in back around 1979]. He was working on a solo project when Akkerman stopped by and contributed to some tracks. Lots of Les Paul stuff.

Banks himself is so underrated. This is a great album.

**myhandhurts** · 10-27-2020, 06:11 PM

Originally Posted by Peter C

Akkerman was my biggest personal influence as a teen.... but he didn't play a lot of jazz, and especially not on Hocus Pocus, which he used to mess around with a lot live.

Cool entresz, good playing and nice suit!

Fun fact: Pete Banks put together a band called Flash, then left for some reason. They auditioned and I turned up - must have been all of 17 years old - and was so nervous that I played the solo to a simple Dm chord progression in Em!! Didn't sound too good IIRC.

Banks and the rest of Flash broke up on a tour in New Mexico. The other 3 members kept trying to keep it afloat but to no avail. Later on there was a version of Flash with Ray Bennett [bassist] playing guitar. Banks formed Empire with his wife on vocals [soon to be ex-wife]. Pete told me that Akkerman didn't like their album [Two Sides] much.

**Kmatuhin** · 03-01-2021, 04:44 AM

Ulf Wakenius on les paul studio

**Alter** · 03-01-2021, 05:34 AM

I enjoy the small size, the feedback friendliness of the Les Paul, and these days it's easy to get a chambered, light weight model.

But they are still a solid body, and compared to a 335, even more to a hollow body, they do miss the thunk and full bass response these have. So I guess simply most players prefer the sound of a hollow guitar.

About telecasters being more popular than Les pauls in jazz, it's probably because they are cheaper, more comfortable shape, less fragile, easier to fix, lighter. You want a guitar you don't have to worry about, you get a tele!

**Stanford J17** · 03-01-2021, 06:06 AM

Former GDR-free jazz legend Helmut "Joe" Sachse:

Here he is with an original Gibson Les Paul:

His guitars are equipped with some sort of acoustic transducer to make the percussion parts audible.

**oldane** · 03-01-2021, 06:20 AM

Originally Posted by Kmatuhin

Ulf Wakenius on les paul studio

It's an old Aria LP clone.

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**guavajelly** · 03-01-2021, 07:30 AM

Originally Posted by oldane

It's an old Aria LP clone.

Don't get me wrong, I admire Ulf Wakenius. And I like that he always plays his budget friendly guitar. But with this kind of tone, with all the treble rolled off, it doesn't really matter which guitar he plays.