Page 86 - Guitar Classics Magazine - The Les Paul Bible 2019

SLASH

ABOVE Slash has been When it came to finally getting his hands on “And so when I actually started playing guitar
road-testing Gibson’s latest a guitar, Slash’s first experience was with the I’d have to go, ‘Okay, well I like this song, or this
Les Pauls with both The “one-string wonder” – an old Spanish guitar with solo, and there’s a picture of the guy in the band,
Conspirators and GN’R
a single string that his grandmother gave him. and he’s playing that guitar…’ and I remember
“That was my first discovery of being able to seeing the Les Paul often enough to notice it was
put fingers in different places and come up with cool. I don’t think I was ever attracted to the Strat…
something that you actually recognised,” he recalls. and the Flying V was a little bit too flashy for me.”
The most significant moment, however, was Once he’d got one in his hands, however, that
when he got himself an electric guitar with a full affection deepened and Slash discovered that the
complement of strings. “When I got a real guitar, guitar was everything he needed it to be.
I started working out chords with those top three “I just feel comfortable with it,” he shrugs. “I
strings,” he recalls. “I think the most memorable like the deepness of the tone of a Les Paul. The
moment was when I was able to do a real blues thing humbuckers have a lot to do with that. But then
– that was all, but it was an overwhelming parting of there’s also the heaviness of it – I think that lends
the sky!” itself to the richness of the sound. But then I’ve never
really known that for sure, because some very heavy
PAUL BEARER Les Pauls sound very, very thin. It’s just a warm guitar,
It’s entirely appropriate that the aforementioned and it’s great for single-note stuff, which I do a lot of.
epiphany happened on a Les Paul-shaped instrument, If you get a good Les Paul and the right Marshall and
as in the decades since that experience, Saul Hudson just dial it in right, for me, that’s just always been the
has become arguably the most iconic Les Paul ultimate rock ’n’ roll sound.”
player of all. Indeed, his affection for Gibson’s The ultimate rock ’n’ roll sound it may be, but
iconic single-cut was so inherent in Slash, he can’t when it comes to writing, Slash prefers to stick to
even recall the moment he first encountered one, one half of the equation – for reasons that are
it’s just always been the guitar for him. scarcely believable from one of the most admired
“I don’t remember when I actually first laid eyes guitarists of all time.
on a Les Paul,” he admits. “I just remember almost “My go-to guitar writing is just a non-amplified Les
subconsciously thinking, ‘That’s a cool-looking guitar’. Paul, because I don’t like anyone to hear what I’m
Because when I started, I didn’t know anything! working on – I’m very self-conscious that way!” he
With all that musical upbringing, and all those gigs explains. “The electric guitar played acoustic is great
I went to with my parents, I didn’t really know if you don’t want people to pay attention to what
anything about how a guitar worked! you’re working on. I haven’t really grown out of that.

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