The Electric Guitar — the Holy Grail of Sonic Expression: Setting Up a Gibson Les Paul Before Lessons
Before heading into the lesson studio I set up this USA Gibson Les Paul — new Ernie Ball Super Slinky strings, action lowered to a mere breeze, and pickup heights balanced. Then I told my students all about the legends who played them.
Before I start teaching guitar and ukulele lessons today at my music store in Key West, I came in early to change the strings and do an action set-up on this USA Gibson Les Paul electric guitar.
This is one of my favorite types of guitars of all time. It's as iconic and epic as the rock and blues heroes of mine who played them — Jimmy Page, Freddie King, Johnny Winter, Keith Richards, Joe Walsh (who gave Jimmy Page his first Les Paul), Jeff Beck, Slash, Joe Perry, Zakk Wylde, Billy Gibbons, Bob Marley, Peter Frampton, Duane Allman, Dickey Betts, Warren Haynes, Eric Clapton, and many more.
I put on a set of Ernie Ball Super Slinky electric guitar strings — better known as a "pack of pinks" — and tuned it to standard tuning. Lowered the action down to a mere breeze.
The pickup height needed to be adjusted. The neck pickup was much louder than the bridge pickup. Now it's set where I like it — a little hotter on the bridge pickup than at the neck or middle.
Mmmmm — time to go plug in and play it for a while, then head into the lesson studio and tell my students about these awesome guitars and the people who play them, all while learning music theory and applying it to the instrument — the holy grail of sonic expression — THE GUITAR.