Musical pioneer invented world-famous electric guitar

LES PAUL 1915-2009

The sound of today's music world has been stilled. Les Paul has died.

The visionary guitar player and inventor died Thursday from complications of pneumonia at a hospital in White Plains, N.Y. He was 94. He was surrounded by family and loved ones, just as he was during his amazing life.

Mr. Paul invented the world's most famous guitar -- and it was named after him. The muscled sound of the solid-body guitar brought the instrument from the back of the band to the front of the stage. It became the template for Gibson Guitars' best-selling electric, the Les Paul model, introduced in 1952.

Les Paul guitars became cornerstones of rock 'n' …