The making of Chester and Lester

[DWolfram]

Anyone know the story about how Chet and Les got together to record their albums?

I was under the impression Chet approached Les. That Les' manager cautioned Les about Chet choosing the songs because Chet would be extra prepared and show him up.

Now I hear it was Les who approached Chet who really did not want to do it. Hard to believe considering how Chet admired Les so much.

David

[Norm]

According to Mary Shaugnessey's book "Les Paul, An American Original" the idea actually was sparked by a music publisher, Roy Horton had the idea and "pestered Chet for months." She wrote that Chet was anxious about going nose to nose with Les, something I don't find surprising since Chet always had a deep respect for any fine musician and, after all, Les was one of his early idols.

According to Shaugnessey Horton somehow got the two men to a jam session at Warwick Hotel in Manhattan. It went well so the session was booked. According to Mary, Studio A records show the room was booked for two days, May 6 and 7 with all of the cuts done live except "Caravan" and "Lover Come Back To Me"


The Chester and Lester and Guitar Monsters albums were done at RCA’s Studio A.
They did all those Chester and Lester cuts in two sessions, a 10 am and a 2 pm session.
__Paul Yandell CGP

This explains the anecdote circulating where Les said he was leaving right after the second (May 6th) session and Chet said something like "What about those clams?" possibly figuring to do more recording on the second booked day. The studio was available for the second day but Les was not.

[Mike Detlefsen]

In the Cochran's book In His Own Words, Les claims it was Chet who approached him. In the Me and My Guitars book, Chet says that it was the idea of Roy Horton, but doesn't specify who approached whom about it, just that they got together when Chet was in New York and decided to do it.

Mike

[bill raymond]

Though I can't cite a source, I do remember that Chet said in an interview published somewhere that Les had caught a cold and was not in the best of moods at the time. Apparently, he had dined at Chet's house the night before and (perhaps jokingly) blamed Leona for his illness, as she had had a cold at the time. Chet also said in an interview that he had a somewhat heated telephone conversation with Les after the fact wherein Les accused Chet of getting paid extra to be producer of the album; Chet had to try to explain to him that he produced the album as part of hi regular job duties at RCA, and received no special producer's income from the project.

[David Elliott]

According to Shaugnessey Horton somehow got the two men to a jam session at Warwick Hotel in Manhattan. It went well so the session was booked. According to Mary, Studio A records show the room was booked for two days, May 6 and 7 with all of the cuts done live except "Caravan" and "Lover Come Back To Me"


The Chester and Lester and Guitar Monsters albums were done at RCA’s Studio A.
They did all those Chester and Lester cuts in two sessions, a 10 am and a 2 pm session.
__Paul Yandell CGP

This explains the anecdote circulating where Les said he was leaving right after the second (May 6th) session and Chet said something like "What about those clams?" possibly figuring to do more recording on the second booked day. The studio was available for the second day but Les was not.

If memory serves me right, Paul said that during this meeting at the Warwick Hotel, Les had "borrowed" his Haile guitar, and in his joking around, had scratched it pretty bad! These things happen of course, but I could tell that Paul was still pretty upset about it, (even years after the fact) and probably more so because Les didn't even apologize to him about it!

David

[Norm]

Les having a cold happened when they did the second album

RCA Victor APL1-2786 Chester & Lester, Guitar Monsters

Les was in a foul mood and did blame catching it from Leona even though Chet explained to him that the incubation period required for a cold to take hold took longer than an overnight visit.

"...The Guitar Monsters album wasn’t quite as good in my opinion(compared to 'Chester and Lester') Les had a bad cold
and didn’t feel like playing..."
__Paul Yandell CGP

[DagerRande]

One thing I'll never understand is why Chet would ever feel intimidated or "anxious" to record with Les? I can understand that Les was Chet's idol in Chet's early years but after awhile Chet took everything to such a high level of refinement, comparatively speaking, that in my estimation Chet was far ahead of Les in his ability and articulation!

[DWolfram]

"Chet also said in an interview that he had a somewhat heated telephone conversation with Les after the fact wherein Les accused Chet of getting paid extra to be producer of the album"

Thanks guys for all the info.

In conversation over lunch Chet said Les called him and accused Chet of getting more royalty per album then Les. Chet denied it and chuckled over the incident. A minor contradiction in detail but collaborates some kind of accusation by the sometimes cantankerous Paul. Although he went thru a bitter divorce with Mary Ford he later spoke of her in glowing terms. And on a Chet video you can hear him complement Chet at the highest level when he said Chet could copy what he(Les) did but Les could not copy what Chet did.

David

[DagerRande]

I'm not at all surprised by your final sentence! First of all compare the difference in possibilities with finger style
vs. using a flat pick. That alone is enough to rest my case!

[Joe Diamond]

In a conversation that lasted about an hour with Les doing all the talking or complaining, he told me that Chet had sent him the 16 track master for Les to listen to and change any of his parts that he wanted to. Les told me that in listening to the tape, it appeared that Chet had erased some of Les' parts. I've known Les since the early 60's when he played 2 clubs near me, I even wound up with one of his LP Recording guitars that he gave me, I stayed at his house on a few occassions and you never knew if he was telling the truth or not. If I had a problem in my studio late at night, I could always call him to help me figure something out because I knew that he was always up late. One night we talked for over 5 hours. I hate to say this but, someone once told me that Les had a million admirers but very few friends. I always admired the guy, but had a hard time figuring him out.