Thoughts of a Musical Nature

At the end of a long day at the office (and I've had plenty of those lately), I like to come home, change into something comfortable, and then sit down with my guitar for a little while and play while I decompress. Now, I'm not any good, but I enjoy trying to get better. I have two simple songs in my back pocket, and I'm learning more as we speak. Now, what kind of guitar do I play? Good question. I play an Ephiphone Les Paul Special II.

Now, why do I bring up what I play? Simple. The world lost Les Paul today. Here is a guy that invented many of the things that musicians (and even wanna-be guitar players like me) take for granted. First off, and probably most famous, the solid-body electric guitar. Because I have an electric guitar, I can play whenever I want just by plugging a set of headphones into my amp, that was all the sound goes to my ears and doesn't bother my neighbors. Second, he invented multi-track recording. Where would we be without that. The way that music is recorded would be considerably different, probably more expensive, and not as accessable to us. That would be undesirable, as music is what I use to decompress at the end of the day, and I know that I'm not the only one to use music as a method of relaxation, stress relief, or artistic expression. Les Paul was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame years ago, but it was about 4 years ago that he was inducted into the Inventors Hall of Fame. This is a recognition that was definately overdue.

As I drove home from work this evening, I noticed one of the local music stores already had something on their sign out front noting the passing of Les Paul and how he'd be missed by the music world. Interviews have been done, and will continue to be done I'm sure. People will talk, and think, and write (obviously, because I'm writing). But do you know what I'm going to do next? I think I'll sit down with my guitar.