Tribute to Les Paul and Mary Ford
Florida, N.Y. Tom Doyle and Sandy Cory will perform a tribute to the music of Les Paul and Mary Ford on Saturday, Oct. 22 at Temple Beth Shalom in Florida, N.Y. Master guitarist John Sheehan will open the show at 8 p.m. Sheehan is recognized as one of the most skilled fingerstyle guitarists and composers in the region. He will perform original compositions. Tom Doyle is an extraordinary guitarist who for more than 40 years was friends with Les Paul, who passed away in 2009. Tom is a luthier and, like Les Paul, an innovator in the design of electric guitars. Since the passing of Les Paul, Tom and his wife Sandy have been the opening act for the Les Paul Tribute at the Les Paul room in the NYC Iridium on Monday nights. They have also received rave reviews of their performances at the Chet Atkins Convention in Nashville. Tom met Les Paul in the early 1960s when Les came to see Tom and his sister Susan emulate the Les Paul and Mary Ford act. Tom and Les became close friends, sharing their mutual passion, not only for music but also for the design and building of electric guitars. Through the years Tom did lots of work on Les’s guitars and was Les’s sound engineer in more recent years. All of this gave Tom a deep understanding of how Les Paul created his sound but not until he met Sandy did Tom find a vocalist he thought could do justice to Mary Ford’s sound. Temple Beth Shalom is located at 13 Roosevelt Ave. Florida, New York. Admission is $15 at the door. Proceeds will benefit Temple Beth Shalom and the artists.