Happy 100th Birthday, Les Paul! Renaissance Man, Guitar Brand and Radio Host in Chicagoland

Les Paul, born 100 years ago on June 9, was the 20th century’s Ben Franklin—a Renaissance man and inventor—but way cooler. Inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Inventors Hall of Fame, Paul, who died in 2009, was a guitarist fascinated by technology. His experiments with solid-body guitar construction and electric amplification led to the invention of the Gibson Les Paul guitar, considered the first modern electric guitar, later versions of which remain tremendously popular today.

Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun said of Paul: “Without him, it is hard to imagine how rock and roll would be played today.” Ertegun is one of the many music industry fans of the guitarist and inventor cited in Les Paul. In this accessible biography, author Mary Alice Shaughnessy charts Paul's growth from his childhood in Waukesha, Wisconsin to his chart-topping years with singer and former wife Mary Ford to his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 and beyond.

I especially enjoyed “Jamming on the Southside,” the chapter about Paul’s stint as a Chicago radio host and performer at stations including WBBM, WIND and WGN. In the 1930s, the cagey Paul performed “hillbilly” music as Rhubarb Red and more modern music as Les Paul. He was also a prankster, and, like more recent radio hosts, was promptly fired from one station when his antics failed to amuse.

You can listen to a hokey excerpt from the Les Paul Show on The Best of the Capitol Masters, during which he and Ford banter while playing with the Paulverizer, one of his many inventions. Paul's impressive guitar work is displayed throughout on songs like "Vaya Con Dios," one of his hits with Ford, and “How High the Moon,” praised by the Rolling Stones' Bill Wyman for its “terrific verve.”

Know an aspiring guitarist or scientist ages 8 to 12? Check out Electric Guitar Man, an engaging introduction to Paul’s life, music and groundbreaking inventions.