Jazz on a Gibson Les Paul?

[coolvinny]

They can sound great! this is mine (from 2:00 of video) but note it has a P90 in the neck...also that Julian Lage's also has P90's:

Daniel Slaman sent me a wooden saddle to replace the tune-a-matic, and that improved the sound from the B/E strings but it sounded fine with the tune-a-matic too.

[wintermoon]

[whiskey02]

Gibson paid dealers to remove the bot gears and replace with standard tuners in hopes of stimulating sales.

That is the guitar I have - the 100th anniversary Les Paul classic with the 1.79" nut. Fortunately, mine has normal Les Paul tuners rather than the Robo stuff. I don't know if these could be ordered without the Robo tuners or if the previous owner swapped it out.

Tony

[6v6ster]

a damper…on a solid body?!

[6v6ster]

A couple other things to mention that are just now coming to me:
I had a floating tailpiece on my les Paul for a while and it did contribute to more of a jazzy archtop sound. It made the attack less immediate and a little softer and more flow-y. Just like that video above.

Also a very very clear neck pickup is required or you will have too much low end mud for complex chords. I have an old PAF and also disconnected the tone control on my neck pickup. Now it’s heaven. But before that , it was was too thick and bassy.

[Sam Sherry]

Recently, I acquired a 2015 Gibson 100th Anniversary Less Paul Classic in a trade.

Tony, I may be in the minority online but I really like the "actual signature" decal on that guitar. It's a perfect little humble-brag:

I often play jazz on a 1973 Les Paul Recording model. They're a bit different to a regular Les Paul, notably the low impedance pickups. Tonally it's probably closer to something with fat sounding coils (jazzmaster, dynasonics etc). It's a nice sounding guitar for jazz. I use it when I'm in settings where my archtop guitars will likely have feed-back problems and for pit-orchestra work.

I just got the junior puppy version of that a few weeks ago, the 1998 Epiphone LP Sig (shown here with optional slipper):



This is my second spin through with the Epi LP Sig. I'm mighty happy.
An ideal jazz guitar for Maine winters: A wide variety of good clean tones in a sturdy, low-risk package.

[tbeltrans]

Tony, I may be in the minority online but I really like the "actual signature" decal on that guitar. It's a perfect little humble-brag:






I just got the junior puppy version of that a few weeks ago, the 1998 Epiphone LP Sig (shown here with optional slipper):



This is my second spin through with the Epi LP Sig. I'm mighty happy.
An ideal jazz guitar for Maine winters: A wide variety of good clean tones in a sturdy, low-risk package.

The headstock on mine looks just like yours except that mine says "Classic" instead of "Traditional" on the truss rod cover. I have no idea what the difference is. Also, I have the exact same nut as yours. It is pretty nice to be able to adjust the nut height with an Allen wrench because you can always adjust up if you go too low. Nut slot height makes a big difference in playability at those first few frets.

That Epiphone looks really nice and so does the carpet it is laying on.

Tony

[sgcim]

When Tal Farlow saw Jim Hall using a Les Paul, he insisted that Hall go out and get a hollow body guitar. Then he helped Hall get established in the jazz field.

[tbeltrans]

When Tal Farlow saw Jim Hall using a Les Paul, he insisted that Hall go out and get a hollow body guitar. Then he helped Hall get established in the jazz field.

Interesting how one thing can change the course of history. Just think, had Jim Hall continued with the Les Paul, he might have been inspired to write "Stairway To Heaven".

Seriously, interesting story. Could Jim Hall have established himself if he had stuck with the Les Paul or does the type of guitar really matter that much (or did it back then?)?

I realize that in the classical guitar world, Segovia established a strong tradition so that serious players had to be seen with a particular type and make (Ramirez) of classical guitar in order to be taken seriously. Was that true for jazz players too, though an archtop instead?

Tony

[wintermoon]

Granted he sounded better on his 175 and D'Aquistos but I doubt the type of guitar was gonna hold back a talent like Hall

[Litterick]

In an interview for Jazz Wax, Hall recalled why he played a Les Paul:

Mark Myers: Your first gig was at The Strollers in Long Beach, CA. Was it a tough house?

Jim Hall: Not that I recall. It was a great experience for me. The room's design configuration was tough. The bandstand was against the wall and people sat at the bar right in front of us. So the acoustics were bad and my hollowbody Gibson wasn’t able to resonate loud enough. So soon after we started there, I traded it in for a solid body Les Paul. Soon after I did a recording with John Lewis [Grand Encounter]. Percy Heath looked at the guitar and said, “No rhythm playing today?” [laughs] There’s a picture of me on the back holding the Les Paul.

[wintermoon]

In an interview for Jazz Wax, Hall recalled why he played a Les Paul:

Mark Myers: Your first gig was at The Strollers in Long Beach, CA. Was it a tough house?

Jim Hall: Not that I recall. It was a great experience for me. The room's design configuration was tough. The bandstand was against the wall and people sat at the bar right in front of us. So the acoustics were bad and my hollowbody Gibson wasn’t able to resonate loud enough. So soon after we started there, I traded it in for a solid body Les Paul. Soon after I did a recording with John Lewis [Grand Encounter]. Percy Heath looked at the guitar and said, “No rhythm playing today?” [laughs] There’s a picture of me on the back holding the Les Paul.

I think that was an L-5 he had but traded it because it sounded "tubby"

[Eichaan]

I've wanted a red Les Paul Custom since I saw Clint Strong do stuff like this back in the 80s:

Sure seems like jazz to me:

[KirkP]

Ulf Wakenius used a Aria Pro II for years with Oscar Peterson.

https://youtu.be/Po6FghnJyyk

[JohanAbrandt]

Ulf Wakenius uses a Aria Pro II for years with Oscar Peterson.

https://youtu.be/Po6FghnJyyk

Yes, but is it a les paul if the neck is bolt on? Nitpicking…

[tbeltrans]

Granted he sounded better on his 175 and D'Aquistos but I doubt the type of guitar was gonna hold back a talent like Hall

Yes, that was a purely speculative question on my part. I have gotten the sense that, at least for some period of time, an archtop was considered the tool for jazz guitarists until more recently, though there have always been exceptions.

Tony

[wintermoon]

Yes, that was a purely speculative question on my part. I have gotten the sense that, at least for some period of time, an archtop was considered the tool for jazz guitarists until more recently, though there have always been exceptions.

Tony

I'd never play a Paul ibut there's obviously many that do in jazz and get a nice sound. I just started out on archies from the beginning and was never even curious about experimenting.
I sat in on some sessions on solid bodies in the past and can get around on them but I'm used to having a big guitar under my arm

[Litterick]

Memorable quote:

"I got the Les Paul. It felt awfully cold, so about six months later I traded it for the ES175."

[ruger9]

I just came here to make sure someone posted Lage's "Emily"... you didn't let me down! For jazz on a LP, I'd go P90 every time. It's funny because my 2 favorite tones: Johnny Smith (mini humbucker) and Kenny Burrell Midnight Blue (regular humbucker) are not P90s. But there's just something about a P90 - especially in a SOLID body- that I think lends itself better for jazz (to my ears, of course.)

[Sam Sherry]

The headstock on mine looks just like yours

Ah, not mine. I have admired that headstock "from a distance."
You jumped right in!

That Epiphone looks really nice and so does the carpet it is laying on.

I am a lucky gearhead and a lucky advanced-beginner guitarist!

[citizenk74]

I've wanted a red Les Paul Custom since I saw Clint Strong do stuff like this back in the 80s:

Sure seems like jazz to me:

[wesmont17]

Recently, I acquired a 2015 Gibson 100th Anniversary Less Paul Classic in a trade. It has a nice short scale (24.75") and a nice wide nut (1.79", apparently unique to this particular model and year), along with the smaller body typical for a Les Paul. I don't know of many electric or hollow body guitars with that nut width, so I grabbed it. I have always preferred a wider nut.

So now I am curious as to whether anybody in the jazz guitar playing world uses a Les Paul. I know of the typical Fender Telecaster players, but have not heard much about Les Pauls. I can get a nice, round warm tone out of it, so it will do just fine (other than its weight).

Tony

[RayS]

Why not?

Not quite the typical Les Pauls but close...

Got to be the UGLIEST instrument ever made... No benedetto ! . yet he still sounded like ..Pat ....

Ray

[whiskey02]

You might like this;

I just came here to make sure someone posted Lage's "Emily"... you didn't let me down! For jazz on a LP, I'd go P90 every time. It's funny because my 2 favorite tones: Johnny Smith (mini humbucker) and Kenny Burrell Midnight Blue (regular humbucker) are not P90s. But there's just something about a P90 - especially in a SOLID body- that I think lends itself better for jazz (to my ears, of course.)

[burchyk]

You might like this;

That's great! Although suspect those P90s are the key here.