# What did Les Paul think of Telecasters? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 24, 2018, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598 "2018-12-24T02:17:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/1 "2018-12-24T02:17:53Z")
See thread title. Did Les Paul (the person) ever play / record on / say what he though of Telecasters? This question seems impossible to google. You get zillions of comparisons / videos of the the two instruments’ pluses and minuses, nothing about Les Paul (the person) and his opinions on Teles. My guess is Les Paul thought Teles were too simple / not enough options. See the [Les Paul Recording Model](http://www.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/Les-Paul/Gibson-USA/Les-Paul-Recording.aspx) (yeesh!) for something Les thought was a proper guitar. :eek: It’d be cool if there was a video of Les Paul playing a Telecaster! ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/2 "2018-12-24T02:36:23Z")
Les Paul should do Les complaining and more working ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/3 "2018-12-24T02:46:10Z")
I have nothing to add to the actual question, but I will mention that the display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on the history of the development of the electric guitar is, in my opinion, the only reason to ever visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/4 "2018-12-24T03:20:26Z")
When his personal collection was auctioned some years ago it included: > [@](#): > > 1951 Fender Nocaster serial number 1751(Est. $40,000 - $60,000). Butterscotch with black pickguard, neck date “5-10-51 T.G.”, no body date, with original thermometer case. Guitar has replaced volume and one tone pot but originals are present. This guitar was personally gifted to Les Paul by Leo Fender who signed the back of the headstock “Leo Fender.” The guitar is uncharacteristically light weighing only 7.4 pounds. The repairs may indicate that he had played it. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/5 "2018-12-24T04:12:00Z")
**don’t ask** : nice find! ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/6 "2018-12-24T05:26:55Z")
There is a picture here @ number 38 of [The 60 most valuable guitars ever sold at auction](https://newatlas.com/most-valuable-guitars-ever-sold/38147/), not that you need one to know what it looks like. Full of great guitars though. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/7 "2018-12-24T07:02:37Z")
Wow, that is an amazing article, **don’t ask**. It took me like 30 minutes to read past the first 2 dozen entries and just skip to the LP Tele we were discussing. The top entries were predictable, but the writer had good info on almost all of them. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/8 "2018-12-25T05:18:07Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > Les Paul should do Les complaining and more working Les decomposing and more composing. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/9 "2018-12-25T05:35:54Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > Wow, that is an amazing article, **don’t ask**. It took me like 30 minutes to read past the first 2 dozen entries and just skip to the LP Tele we were discussing. The top entries were predictable, but the writer had good info on almost all of them. If you liked that I wonder do you have copies of [Strat in the Attic: Thrilling Stories of Guitar Archaeology](https://www.amazon.com/Strat-Attic-Thrilling-Stories-Archaeology/dp/0760343853) and [The Strat in the Attic 2: More Thrilling Stories of Guitar Archaeology](https://www.amazon.com/Strat-Attic-Thrilling-Stories-Archaeology/dp/0760346879). I loved both of them. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/10 "2018-12-25T05:58:02Z")
Um… Les Paul didn’t have _that_ much to do with the design of the LP guitar. He was brought in during the prototype stage with the hopes that he would let them put his name on it, help market it, and play them. I strongly suspect if Fender was willing to pay Les a royalty on every broad/no/telecaster with his name on it Les would have been elated to play a Fender guitar. ---
**Author:** ![Anamorphic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anamorphic/32/3057_2.png) [@Anamorphic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anamorphic)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2019, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-les-paul-think-of-telecasters/826598/11 "2019-01-08T17:32:41Z")
A new article on Reverb examines this question: > **[When Leo Fender Asked Les Paul to Endorse the Telecaster](https://reverb.com/news/when-leo-fender-asked-les-paul-to-endorse-the-telecaster)** > > Could we all be playing Fender Les Pauls instead? Author Ian S. Port takes us back to 1951, before the creation of the Gibson Les Paul, when Leo wanted some of Les' star power to help sell his new guitar.