Les Paul

A towering figure in the development of popular music, Les Paul was a musician and inventor who contributed greatly to the creation of the solid-body guitar, while also breaking new ground in sound recording through his experiments with multiple tracks and other electronic effects. Most importantly, Paul was an astonishingly gifted jazz guitarist who enjoyed a lengthy string of pop hits in the early 1950s with upbeat singles like "How High the Moon," "The World is Waiting for the Sunrise" and "Vaya Con Dios," which featured his wife, singer Mary Ford, singing all four parts in gorgeous harmony. Paul's work on the solid-body guitar gave the electric guitar a power and polish that would prove essential to the development of rock-n-roll, while his efforts with multi-track recorders allowed musicians to hear previously recorded tracks while recording overdubs. In doing so, Paul had immeasurable impact on the sound and scope of popular music, a status that earned him the respect of countless musicians but the highest tributes from the industry until his death in 2009.