June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009

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Multi-instrumentalist and inventor Lester William Polfuss, known as “Les Paul,” was born on June 9, 1915, in Waukesha, Wisconsin.

Paul began playing the harmonica at the age of eight and invented the neck-worn harmonica holder that same year, which allowed him to play hands-free while also playing the guitar.

As a teenager, Paul played country guitar and harmonica and invented his first electric guitar.

After moving to New York City in 1938, Paul invented a solid-body guitar he called “the log.” The Gibson Les Paul Guitar was modeled after this invention.

In the late 1940s, Paul helped to invent multi-track recording, which allowed musicians to create sounds they had never been able to before.

Here’s a video of Paul playing with his wife, Mary Ford, and his multi-track recording machine.

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