History Of Guitar (Part 3) 1939-1949 (Les Paul and The Log, Leo Fender, Paul Bigsby)

This week Josh's Monday Monolog is Part 3 of the History of the Guitar. This session covers The 1940s and the gradual rise of the solid body electric that would soon be a massive for in a new music called Rock & Roll.
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#guitarhistory #lespaul #leofender #fendertelecaster #bigsby #merletravis #thelog

[@Relayer6a]

I think the Tele, Strat, and Les Paul should absolutely get their own episode. I really like how you try to give everyone due credit rather than tearing any of them down. They are all very important and they don't need to be ranked.

[@BubbleWrapPerson]

Shout out to 5 Watt World. He has basically already done this.

[@SakariKempas]

@@BubbleWrapPerson I second this. They're great episodes. There are also so many books on these wonderful solid body guitars =)

[@CurranKevin]

Another big up-vote here for historical deep-dives in PODCAST form! (Thanks so much for this content, Josh.)

[@connorangwin683]

Hey Josh, hope you see this. For the Telecaster episode, I have had the pleasure of talking with George Fullerton in person at an event at the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad, CA back in 2004. When there he gave his own narrative of the history of Fender and G&L guitars. One tid bit, the reason the Telecaster has such a thin head stock is so they could get two necks out of one blank, purely a cost saving measure. Also the Stratocaster was a refinement of the Telecaster based on the player feedback on the Telecaster. The recessed jack would eliminate jack breakage at the edge, three pickups were also requested and the trem was a new thing all in itself (though you alluded to its origins). You mentioned the telecaster referencing television as the inspiration, same with the Stratocaster, they like the idea of being able to project into the stratosphere. The later G&L products did some of the same, the ASAT is Anti Satellite, of course the Broadcaster was a trick from Dale Hyatt to get their name on the board. Another fun fact, George used to sneak into Leo's lab and tune his prototypes to a chord. Otherwise Leo would be strumming on dissonance as he had no musical ear. This especially happened at the G&L plant on Fender Ave as Leo's hearing started to fail him and it would ring throughout the factory.

[@ricklodewell6012]

I look forward to these every Monday! Thanks. I don't listen to podcasts, but I think I'm more the exception than the rule.

[@madf00bar15]

Details, details, details. Can't get enough!

[@SD_Marc]

I would be interested in deeper dives from here on out. This has been fascinating. Thanks.

[@BlareWolfgang]

I like the format of the morning show rather than a podcast. I also like going over lots of stuff, AND focusing on one thing at a time. So whatever tickles your fancy for the format is 👍

[@eriklloyd2954]

I'm literally begging to make this a podcast

[@jakobtemple1297]

YES PLEASE! A Podcast would be the best thing to happen this quarter. Haha

[@cameronbadertscher]

Looking forward to the next episode.

[@jayess9860]

Thank you Scott. This series has been outstanding.

[@rldickie]

I'm really enjoying this series and hope it continues. And the telecaster definitely deserves its own episode.

[@TravisHam]

I've noticed that Josh's video quality seems to get better every week on these Monday Monologues. Grateful to see this segment being treated with the value it deserves.

[@mcfontaine]

This is such an amazing series Josh. I’m 54 and been playing for more than 30 years … and you have taught me loads in these 3 shows. Thank you for all this amazing research.

[@limerot]

Great series. Don't forget The Nilsen guitar made from march 1950 - several hundreds were made with a patented pickup. Prototypes made from 1947 onwards.

[@cartoonvillains7080]

Yes, PLEASE make this a weekly podcast! The hour long format is perfect for commutes and it opens JHS media to a whole new audience of people that don’t use KZbin (they do exist 🤣)

[@someonesdad5986]

YAAAAAS! One episode per evolutionary step would be awesome!

[@leebuck8532]

I listen at work, phone is Bluetoothed to a speaker. So I have something to do, but I enjoy the educational value. It gets me through my day. And yeah, podcast would work.

[@FX69]

I just realized I was a terrible student in high school because there was no guitar topics thanks for attending to our attention spans with this great lecture series 😉 🎸

[@itskyyuuuu]

Jhs pedals been crushing it for years. 👍🤘

[@jadeclerc]

I’m a born and raised Wisconsin guy. Been here for 28 years, and I never knew Les Paul was from Wisconsin and his grave is in Wisconsin! Found my weekend activity this week

[@marcwinkle3054]

No Podcast needed! LUV this series!!

[@buhmanb]

I really like this series! Suggestion: Interview TK Smith in conjunction with this era. Amazing engineer / luthier true to the Bigsby history and a great player.

[@jdavies1296]

As a guitar nerd, am loving this series - enough detail, without getting ridiculous.

[@reverdiefarmgoods]

I listen to at least 3 whole podcasts every day.

[@Polarbarrywhite]

I'm so flooded I'm hung up on the Bigsby not having a Bigsby vibrato. Thank you for this, and yes, please do podcast, and, Yes, please post vids with various amps and/or rigs Again, thank you for all your contributions and adjacent possibles

[@TylerJohnstonGuitar]

Guitar history is *sometimes* cooler than the music!

[@ryangunwitch-black]

Nope. Lol

[@TylerJohnstonGuitar]

@@ryangunwitch-black Kramer has a pretty cool history if you’re into that kind of stuff (EVH, etc). But there’s also a ton of boring history too lol.

[@budgetbarista]

I love that you've got The Invisible Band back there.

[@nilsmclellan868]

Making a podcast out of this makes sense. I “watch” these videos while walking around with the phone in my pocket.

[@d3210210]

I use KZbin premium with Bluetooth headphones. That allows me to lock the phone or change apps and listen, so a popcast wouldn't help me. That said, I essentially listen to half of these as if they were a podcast.

[@a-aron3775]

Mr.Scott , podcasts would be wicked. Thank you sir.

[@okayguitarplayer]

The three guitars side by side was crazy awesome to see. Clear lines/style...

[@risteardohaodha23]

Deep dives, timelines, old gear demos - it’s all good! Really enjoying this series, it combines three things dear to my heart - guitars, music and history. I loved the story of the three innovators hanging out on the patio, alongside the photo of the Strat, Bigsby, and Les Paul. That seemed to be a real pivotal moment in guitar evolution. Looking forward to more of these, many thanks Josh.

[@riccaregio]

That Les Paul grave photo looks crisp man! Love Ilford films, my fav and go to is the HP5. Glad to hear you still like film photography

[@ericfritts5994]

I like watching/listening to these when doing guitar tech work. Could easily see them as a podcast. I may just do it myself

[@Lycanthropy54or]

I knew I should had watched this, listen to this earlier. Work, but love you all.

[@poetryofbeing]

It's not too early for me, so I'll have some bourbon as i listen. I really love this series. Cheers!

[@adiohead]

Enjoyed this series, thank you.

[@JakeGuttormsson]

I would love this as a podcast

[@stevenkoppelkam643]

Josh, i will watch whatever content you put out. It doesn't matter how nich or boring it is. I will watch it.

[@MrMont-ue8kh]

Thanks again, Josh - another great and edifying episode. The story of Les Paul, Paul Bigsby and Leo Fender being all together illustrates a corollary to the "innovation is really evolution" idea. One view is that it is a fortuitous coincidence for the history of guitar that the those three particular men were together. Another view is that it was always going to be the case that the evolution of the guitar was going to move forward - it's just that any evolution of technology is sped up when differing talents are in close contact. By the way, you are posing your question about podcasting to the wrong people. You need to pose it to the potential audience of podcast listeners who are currently unknown to you because they aren't watching this. ;)

[@dorssberube]

Yes,Podcast please! ✌🏻

[@scootb7400]

I want to watch you show off an old piece of gear on Monday mornings!

[@picksalot1]

I've been really enjoying your History of Guitar series, particularly for getting a more accurate view of when key inventions and innovations were made, and who actually made them. I'm not a fan of false histories, and how some people take or are given credit for the work and genius of others. A history of pickups, designs, single or multiple, placement, parallel or angled, etc. and their relationship to the development of electric guitar stings could be worth a video or two. Thanks

[@lancefarish4841]

Thank you for these videos. Very interesting.

[@marpymellow3805]

Thanks for that Josh, really interesting and informative. Looking forward to the next one - go deep!

[@zachstagg99925]

Great series, very informative

[@scottkidwellmusic9175]

Enjoying these history lessons! Thanks, Josh! 🙏

[@tmsglobal5848]

There focused topic items are really great. Love the candid insights about equipment history.

[@Cottonrocket]

I too would love to listen to these episodes as a podcast, but I also love watching the episodes to see the photos and support add revenue for the channel. Thank you very much for making such wonderful historical discussions! I have learned much!

[@NyMyers64]

I'm really enjoying this topic. I've enjoyed all the Monday shows, haven't missed one yet. Have a great week Josh.

[@kidawesome8665]

Yes! Podcast, please!

[@musclecarfan74]

I have a picture of myself at Les Pauls grave site, In Waukesha Wi. His boyhood home was torn down to make way for a Walgreens.

[@darrellowe4208]

Hey, totally enjoying this type of live show. I been looking forward to Monday mornings

[@matthewwatt2295]

RE: Podcast discussion - I think running the monday shows as they are now (livestreaming) is really good for the chat interaction, but it would be great if the podcast version was simply the audio from the video uploaded onto a podcast platform. I understand that would take time and money, so understandable if you guys don't want to start a whole other 'media production' which doesn't pay for itself for a long time.

[@davemenuey3800]

Great series and I would totally watch demos of old gear!

[@uhoh007]

where is next episode? Loved this one :)

[@RobertFisher1969]

I can’t find them at the moment, but I have a series of pictures that show a cello headstock, the headstock from a Martin guitar, the headstock the the Bigsby-Travis guitar, and then the Strat. The Strat headstock always seemed out of left field until I started looking at the history that led to it.

[@FAIRWEATHER_MUSIC]

Gotta save this for later. Reading "The Birth of Loud" currently. This will be nice to follow up with

[@seangrover140]

spread it out Josh, loving it!

[@santimosso]

This is great! I would really like to hear more specific stories of every model from now on. Thanks!!!!

[@someonesdad5986]

Bob Wills really was King of Texas Swing. The vibe they bring is like the Earl Scruggs and Doc Watson had a baby named Glenn Miller that grew up and married the Allman Brothers.

[@erikandressmusic]

Yes, please consider making this a podcast! These have been super cool to listen to! A humble thank you for the great and cool content

[@hoboroadie4623]

I reckon that it's Eli Whitney that gets credit for making interchangeable gun parts, I always admired the Ford assembly line in the Model T days, and whenever I think about replacing the funky neck on my Strat that picture comes to mind.

[@scottutter8262]

The Bigsby Travis guitar looks suuuuuper cool.

[@MattDTN]

A podcast would be great! I listen to podcast all day while I work. These shows would be perfect, because 90% of the content I don’t need to see anyway.

[@peglegpeete9122]

Breaking down the next series into individual segments on each guitar is fine. But I would still love a brief 20 minute year by year synopsis every 4 or 5 videos to show how the previous segments made each other better by innovation, etc.

[@codelicious6590]

I totally agree on the Merle Travis being the, "first" electric guitar looking at it as we see and think of today. Nobody will ever know who made the literal first guitar period and most likely it would still be in contention because of the way we all see things a bit differently so, yeah the Merle wins my vote, check that fretboard how it meets the body too- looks like a modern bespoke boutique acoustic in the style.

[@barthrvatin8297]

I love this Josh, I look forward to each Monday for the new episodes. You can and should absolutely do a series on demonstrating your old amps, obviously they played a huge supporting role in the development of the electric guitar. 👍🏻👍🏻 Also I want to commend you on your academic commitment to the topics you cover. You clearly enjoy these discoveries and you present them with genuine enthusiasm and passion, unsullied by any prospect to gain financially. Keep it going!! ❤

[@nilsmclellan868]

Yep, all telecaster next week would be really great! I like specific when it can be.

[@faqqusu]

Good to hear that Ilford still exists and it is used.

[@kevb044]

Yeah I've never understood Les Pauls claim with the log. Without the "wings" it's basically a lap steel with a vibrato played like a Spanish guitar and with the "wings" it's essentially a center block semi.

[@PetefromSouthOz]

Hey Josh, I watched all of the Monday Monologs and I really like the content and the format. Now maybe, for the next part of the History of Guitar episodes I like the idea of the next few focusing on each of the Guitars individually. Then return to overview/timeline format to introduce the next idea/topic. As far as podcasts, not sure about that, because I like seeing the pics and text to contextualise the content. Oh yeah gotta release an Adjacent Possible T Shirt.

[@DRChevalier]

You aren’t alone. Ilford PAN 50 was my favourite high dynamic range B&w film. Great episode thank you

[@keithclark1197]

Podcasts. I like 'em. 100% sure I'm not alone.

[@dr.s.]

Another really interesting episode, thank you very much. You know, there are o many things that I have heard about before but it's really good to see the loose ends being tied together. Putting things into perspective on the time line.

[@jasonfowble2875]

Yes singular talks in specific guitars, brands! Please include Gretsch!!!!!!!!

[@richstarboard3195]

I like the detail trivia, great series.

[@pauljohnson3317]

These are great!

[@billregan1981]

I got to see Les in NYC in 2005. He was an amazing player even in his 90s, and a great entertainer to boot!

[@sk8ergil]

loving this series !!

[@scottsempeck3422]

Thanks!

[@1935prototype]

Interesting story about the Vibro set. Unfortunately the wrong picture. That is an early K&F set. Also, Docs idea of flippin the chassis was to keep dirt out of the chassis and keep the tubes from getting broken by throwing cables and such into the back,

[@JablesII]

I would love to see an episode just on the development, introduction, and evolution of the Telecaster. This series is amazing. Thank you!

[@grandudetonesnob7107]

Josh, it's not necessarily that I have nothing to do, but that I have nothing else I'd rather do while I'm doing this. Keep doing this so I can do nothing else while this is being done. I do have other things to do while podcasts are being done. I hope this helps.

[@BillHaleyInTheComments]

Cool, lots of good info

[@owntone5]

Love these Monday episodes. On the Wondery “Business Wars” podcast about Gibson & Fender, they mention that Paul Bigsby and Leo Fender met at Les Paul’s house during some jam sessions. If true, all three of these guys were talking about the solid-body ES guitar. But Paul Bigsby was first and Wondery said he brought it over to Les Paul’s house. Leo then borrowed it from Merle Travis to make some notes.

[@tomsimms674]

There was a question in this episode about how 1/4" plugs became the standard for electric guitar connections. Even as recently as the 1980s, these connectors were commonly called "phone plugs," because AT&T had used them for decades on telephone switchboards. Those switchboards you see operators using in those black-and-white photos are patch bays. Those holes in the board are 1/4" jacks, and the plugs the operators plug into them are 1/4" plugs. With millions of these connectors available, and with the 1/4" system's proven reliability, guitar electrifiers didn't need to invent a new connector to use with their radical new instruments. Existing technology was good enough.

[@kingmobisinvisible]

Would love this as a podcast

[@omikl]

I thought you all might get a kick out of this. I was just talking to my Dad while I had watched half of this video, and we started talking about it as he was a huge Les Paul fan back in the day. Now, my Dad was born in 1935 and grew up in Hull in the U.K. He sprang a memory on me tonight that he first saw someone play an electric guitar when he went to see a pantomime at the theatre when he was 7 or 8. As he put it “There was a woman playing guitar, and it was louder than the entire orchestra had previously been. Nobody knew where the sound was coming from.” Now I have to wonder who it was 😎

[@grantandrews4826]

I would totally listen to a podcast of this.

[@sstrudeau]

- Yes on podcast-ification - Yes on deeper dives on specific models/etc - Yes on hauling out old gear, talking about it and playing with it--would be a nice contrast for the endless stream of KZbinrs showing off the latest & greatest

[@desmondmyers]

Yes yes yes yes yes to podcast form!

[@RobbieF]

I like the chronological order of these chats. If Leo and the Broadcaster / Telecaster take an entire Monday morning, then so be it. The following week you can continue the saga with subsequent subject matter.

[@slmcmorris7902]

A deep dive into the tele would be great. I really love this history series that you're doing

[@ralphdeedee-ah9149]

Just: thank you!

[@NoMorePedals]

15:56 "You get one pickup, do you want it in the bridge or the neck position?" "Yes."

[@HRJ1411]

This series is really interesting, I wrote a paper during my Masters on Future Studies - looking at the world today and modelling where we go to next, this is like the exact opposite, seeing where we are today with rock music, and tracing the branches back to the trunk. Looking forward to Tele next week Josh!

[@FabianSalomonsson]

Yes! Do a podcast Josh!

[@bsjeffrey]

i theorize the rise of increased distortion is based on people listening to their favorite music through lesser quality gear then trying to reproduce what they heard

[@onionheadguy7094]

Podcasts would be great for me because this is great driving material and it takes much less data to consume