The event will take place on what would have been Les Paul’s 109th birthday and marks the third anniversary of the Gibson Garage Nashville.
The Les Paul Foundation, whose mission is to honor and share the life, spirit and legacy of Les Paul through generations has announced the annual Les Paul Spirit Award in partnership with Gibson Gives, the philanthropic division of Gibson. The prestigious award will be presented to legendary musical artist and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Peter Frampton on Sunday, June 9, 2024 at 6:30pm CT at a private event* held at the Gibson Garage Nashville located at 209 10th Avenue S in Nashville.
The annual award is presented to an individual who exemplifies the spirit of the late, great Les Paul through innovation, engineering, technology and/or music. In addition to the award, a grant from the Les Paul Foundation will be made in the honoree’s name to the charity of his choice.
Frampton has also experimented with new technologies and music trends, apparent in his early recordings on albums Frampton and Frampton Comes Alive! and particularly his hit singles “Do You Feel Like We Do” and “Show Me the Way,” synonymous with the use of the talk box.
“I cannot think of anyone more fitting to be honored with this year’s Les Paul Spirit Award than Peter Frampton. Not only is he an extraordinary talent who has given us an amazing array of extraordinary music, but he is an innovator who understands music, technologies, and the spirit of Les Paul,” said Michael Braunstein, Executive Director of The Les Paul Foundation. “If Les were still alive today, I have absolutely no doubt that he and Peter would be experimenting together at Les’ house. I am personally thrilled to be able to present Peter with this award because I know he exemplifies everything Les was about and wanted to accomplish. I want to also thank the Gibson Gives Foundation for partnering with us on this exciting annual award and for everything they do to keep Les’ name alive.”
“At Gibson Gives, we are thrilled to celebrate the incredible contributions of Les Paul and partner with the Les Paul Foundation to bring awareness to Les Paul’s legacy as he continues to inspire musicians across generations and genres.” --Beth Heidt, Chief Marketing Officer, Gibson.
“Peter Frampton personifies the spirit of excellence through his musicianship and industry recognition. Gibson Gives is proud to partner with the Les Paul Foundation to present the prestigious Les Paul Spirit Award to this legendary artist who embodies the innovative spirit of Les Paul himself and his landmark contributions to music.” --Erica Krusen, Global Executive Director, Gibson Gives.
The exclusive, physical Les Paul Spirit Award for Peter Frampton is made from actual hand-carved acoustic boards built by Les Paul that he used in his home studio. Les Paul designed and created this now historical memorabilia during his life. The acoustic wood piece is a unique presentation and supported by Les’ personal story. No two Les Paul Spirit Awards are exactly the same, given the unique nature of the studio pieces which are being used to create them and their intrinsic value as authentic Les Paul memorabilia.
ABOUT THE LES PAUL FOUNDATION
The Les Paul Foundation inspires innovative and creative thinking by sharing the legacy of Les Paul through the support of music education, recording, innovation, exhibits about Les Paul and medical research related to hearing. The Les Paul Foundation is an approved IRC 501(c)3 organization that awards grants to organizations that share Les Paul’s legacy. The Foundation supports public exhibits which display Les Paul’s life achievements and that engage fans and students and periodically produce events to celebrate his achievements. For more information go to the official Les Paul website at www.les-paul.com
Jared James Nichols performs with John Bohlinger at the “Rock to Remember” concert live at Nashville’s Gibson Garage in February 2023.
I was hired to lead the house band for a benefit to raise funds for veterans battling PTSD. Jared James Nichols, Kirk Fletcher, Dave Mustaine, and others joined the cause, and here’s how it went.
Often with multi-act shows, limited budget, space, and inputs on the mix necessitate that some acts share a house band. Because I’ve been slugging it out for 30-plus years in Nashville, I occasionally get hired to lead it. A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to get the call to lead for “Rock to Remember,” a concert/live auction collab between Guitars for Vets (an organization that provides guitars to veterans struggling with PTSD) and Gibson Gives.
We had a killer lineup, including Jared James Nichols, Dave Mustaine of Megadeth, Kirk Fletcher, and Tonic frontman Emerson Hart. In addition to supporting those acts, I was asked to do one of my songs. There was only room for a three-piece band, and I needed a rhythm section who were intuitive enough to nail a pressure gig with limited or no rehearsal, diverse enough to cover pop, blues, rock, and metal, and could sing harmony. I called drummer Duran Crone and bassist Logan Hatcher, with whom I’ve played enough jam-type gigs that I knew they could hit the curve. As an added bonus, Hatcher served six years in the Marines, which might inspire some vets to see one of their own making it in the music industry.
It’s a bit unnerving playing with talented celebrity musicians you don’t know. But when you’re performing in front of a live audience, it's filmed for broadcast, and it's a no-rehearsal-plug-and-pray, that takes it up a notch. I wasn’t worried about Jared James Nichols and Kirk Fletcher. I knew they would both do something blues-based. Put four good to great players who haven’t played together onstage and tell them to play blues: it’s going to be interesting.
"The idea of trying to cover Marty Friedman’s solo on “Symphony of Destruction” in front of a very intimidating Dave Mustaine was terrifying. Although the internet is full of children who can nail that solo, I cannot."
Nichols walked into the crowded greenroom at the Gibson Garage with just his ’52 Les Paul. I introduced him to Crone and Hatcher, who hadn’t heard Nichols’ song yet. We walked to the only quiet place we could find—a large, tiled bathroom. Nichols played “Baby Can You Feel It”on his phone while I wrote a chart and the guys tried to discern their parts. Then we went onstage, Nichols told us about the form, and we ran it once during soundcheck. Nichols gave us a little more direction, then we went back about an hour later and nailed it live. Nichols is such a driving force that you really can’t get lost playing with him.
Kirk Fletcher was even easier. It was a hectic day, so the details are fuzzy, but I don’t think Fletcher made it to soundcheck. He just texted me saying something like, “Let’s do a blues shuffle in A.” Fletcher met Crone and Hatcher as we walked onstage to perform. Fletcher plugged in, turned up, counted it off, and played his ass off. It couldn’t have been less stressful nor more fun.
Tonic’s Emerson Hart was like dessert. He was playing “If You Could Only See” and “You Wanted More,” two songs I genuinely loved back when there was music on MTV. In gigs like this, I rarely learn a solo note for note. Not that I don’t want to, it’s just that I’m not a particularly good mimic. Even if I get the notes right, it usually feels stiff and inauthentic. I usually start where the recording started but let it go where it goes. Some artists don’t like that, some do. Hart seemed cool with my improv and the performance went well. He has an iconic voice that has grown richer with time. He played and sang great, was fun, funny, and all about helping the cause.
The idea of trying to cover Marty Friedman’s solo on “Symphony of Destruction” in front of a very intimidating Dave Mustaine was terrifying. Although the internet is full of children who can nail that solo, I cannot. Maybe if I dedicated the next 10,000 hours of my life to it, I could get close, but it would still be like bad karaoke. So, I was hugely relieved when Gibson’s brand president Cesar Gueikian volunteered to cover it. He only had a weekend to prep but covered it with ease. Thanks Cesar.
The best part of this gig is that it raised funds for veterans battling PTSD. Studies prove what guitarists already know: playing music is a powerful therapy tool.
Two of my beloved nephews, Joe and John Bohlinger, were teenagers when they joined the Marines and went from hunting and fishing in Wyoming and Montana to heavy combat in Afghanistan. They voluntarily put themselves through years of a truly hellish, life-changing war because they wanted to keep us safe. That kind of trauma leaves an indelible mark. I’m grateful to be part of an organization that does something to try and help them.