“I always wanted a Les Paul but I couldn’t play them”: Tony Iommi on why he never became a Les Paul player – despite wanting to become one

As the godfather of heavy metal, Tony Iommi has become one of the most iconic Gibson SG players of all time. However, the Black Sabbath riff lord recently admitted that, at one point, it was another Gibson guitar that he wanted to play.

“I always wanted a Les Paul,” he confessed at a Q&A event at the Gibson Garage, London, during which his signature Gibson humbuckers were relaunched. “But I couldn't play the Les Paul because of my accident.”

A teenage Iommi fell foul of sheet metal factory machinery, with the famous accident costing him the tips of the middle and ring fingers on his fretting hand. Inspired by Django Reinhardt, he'd add thimbles to the affected fingers, which in turn helped forge the sound of his iconic guitar tone in the process.

“I couldn't get up to the top frets, but the SG suited me perfectly,” he explains. “The SG for me was comfortable. I liked the shape, the weight, and, eventually, a ton of people started using it. Everybody wanted a Les Paul in the early days; that was always the best.

“As I said, I couldn't have a Les Paul. I didn't feel comfortable, [it was] too heavy, and I couldn't get to the top frets. So the SG has been perfect for me, and that's why I always stuck with it.”

Iommi had started his Black Sabbath career with a Fender Stratocaster. However, the guitar broke down during the recording of Sabbath’s change-making self-titled LP, and one “dodgy” car park guitar swap later, he became the owner of his first Gibson SG, which has defined his career since.

Owing to his association with the SG, Gibson has bestowed the guitarist with some special models over the years. Incredibly, one of his most prized early SGs was stolen from a hotel while Sabbath were on tour, and its replacement suffered a similar fate.

Tragically, he managed to track one of the guitars down, but never got it back.

Iommi's latest guitar project with Gibson prior to the relaunch of his flagship humbucker came in 2021, with the release of a signature SG Special based on the rifflord's iconic Vintage Cherry original. He also launched a new signature Laney amp earlier this year.

After bowing out with Black Sabbath at Back to the Beginning, Iommi is expected to finally finish his next solo album, which he says will feature orchestral arrangements and some Kemper modeling.