WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) -- Les Paul, who invented the solid-body electric guitar later wielded by a legion of rock 'n' roll greats, died Thursday of complications from pneumonia. He was 94.

According to Gibson Guitar, Paul died at White Plains Hospital. His family and friends were by his side.

http://music.msn.com/music/article.aspx?news=425984&GT1=28102

A very sad day indeed. Notice how little coverage Les Paul gets compared to Michael Jackson. Les contributed far more to music than MJ. Les was sane, though.

A very sad day indeed. Notice how little coverage Les Paul gets compared to Michael Jackson. Les contributed far more to music than MJ. Les was sane, though.

But with Michael dying they can make more MONEY selling his stuff than they can with Les. How sad this country has turned into a MONEY hungry society not giving much respect for many well known, great people while promoting only those they can still capitalize upon.

This guy was in my great grandma's generation.

I am taking cosmics side with this...I'm a quitar player myself and I am sad to hear this. Heard on the afternoon radio show on my local rock station. A genius Les was if you ask me.

I am taking cosmics side with this...I'm a quitar player myself and I am sad to hear this. Heard on the afternoon radio show on my local rock station. A genius Les was if you ask me.

Genius is right, just watch this to see what he did...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foXSXOAfB4U

A very sad day indeed. Notice how little coverage Les Paul gets compared to Michael Jackson. Les contributed far more to music than MJ. Les was sane, though.

But Les was 94 and had been in failing health. Jackson was almost half that age and his death came as a surprise.

I think it should be mentioned at Les is one of the very few to have his own section in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Without Les, there would have been no rock and roll!

Seriously people, how many of us is going to make it over 90???

Without Les, there would have been no rock and roll!

Of course not true, just like without Marconi there would still have been radio...

" The earliest electric guitars were hollow bodied acoustic instruments with tungsten steel pickups made by the Rickenbacker company in 1931. While one of the first solid-body guitars was invented by Les Paul, the first commercially successful solid-body electric guitar was the Fender Esquire (1950). "

Not to mention, Chuck Berry used hollow body guitar to father rock and roll...

I don't think "surprise" is the word, when a mentally fragile pop star with obvious medical issues dies of a drug overdose.

Now if Les Paul had died so, that would have been surprising.

But the lack of hoopla around Les Paul seems more from taking his contribution for granted, because it was more significant. He changed everything, and it's difficult to see his accomplishments because it's hard to see anything outside them. We can mentally subtract Jackson from the music world, and look at what's left, and appreciate (in my case, derogate) - but subtract the electric guitar, multitrack recording, overdubbing, close miking of singers, everything from pickup windings to harmonica holders, and what exactly do we see left?