And it was sublime. Who was that 88 (soon to be 89) year old man? Well, if you're still reading either you are a pervert or just plain curious. The man was none other than Les Paul. Yes, he is still alive and at 88 he plays a 2 sets every Monday night at the Iridium club. He has a damn good time, as did we, and he's sharp, funny and plays a mean jazz guitar. It was very, very cool to sit just 3 feet from the guy that invented the electric guitar, reverb, overdubbing and the 4 track. His quintet is very talented and they are Lou Pallo, Nicki Parrott, Frank Vignola, and John Colianni. Lou's been playing with Les for 20 years and has a wonderful voice that is reminiscent of Chet Baker. Nicki Parrott besides being very easy on the eyes has a sultry voice (think warm honey with a pinch of cayenne) and a mischievous style of play. Watching Frank Vignola's left hand work the frets was like watching water cascade. He truly has an effortless style of play. And John Colianni plays like a race horse. All of them together was very beguiling.
After the first set we were lucky enough to have Nicki come by and sit with us for a while. She then invited us back to meet Les. We joked and cut up with Les for a while. I asked Les what he wanted for his 89th birthday and my buddy said “Short term memory“. That one caught him off guard and he got a good laugh out of it. He asked what we did for a living and we informed him that we are all professional geeks. He then started talking about about standards! He said his biggest pain is no standards. Pretty interesting that the guy who invented the electric guitar, and still is inventing at 88 is interested in technology.
If you live close to New York do yourself a favor and go see the legend, in person. Go for the 8 o'clock show and stay for the second show at 10. After the 10 o'clock show Les signs autographs, photos or guitars(Bring your Les Paul Gibson)! You are able to take photos during the show so bring your camera! We'll be there next week, so if you want to join us, contact me.
Sean