"WHEN I WANT THAT BIG, HEAVY SOUND, I GRAB A LES PAUL"

Joe Bonamassa has a dazzling array of guitars – but he always goes back to the ’59 LP he describes as “perfect” for him...

- Amit Sharma

If you look through Joe Bonamassa’s guitar rack at the side of the stage on any given night, chances are you’ll find all kinds of vintage instruments – from mouth-watering Fenders like mid-50s Strats and B-bender Teles to rare Gibson originals including Korina Flying Vs, 70s Firebirds and cherry red semi-hollows. But if there’s one guitar he’s going to play live or use in the studio more than any other, it’s the Gibson Les Paul.

It was a decision made early on in his career which, much like Slash explains in this month’s cover story, came down to the design as well as the 60s and 70s masters who took the sound of American blues to new expressive heights...

“I play Les Paul Standards for the simplicity,” Bonamassa tells TG, in between the studio sessions for his next album and preparations ahead of his North American Spring tour. “I also like rosewood fingerboards, so that helps narrow it down. And my heroes played Les Pauls, too. Pretty much all of the English guitar legends of the 1960s – everyone from Eric Clapton to Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page to Peter Green and later influences like Gary Moore – that’s what they were holding.”