Damian Fanelli at Guitar World has published an interview with rock legend TED NUGENT, conducted back in May following Nugents performance with the LES PAUL TRIO in New York City. An excerpt is available below:

Q: You said you pay tribute to LES PAUL every night, so I assume he was a major influence. How and when did you absorb his music, and who were some of your other early influences?

Nugent: "I started playing when I was 6 or 7 and took lessons when I was 8 or 9. But it was all the eruption of what Les Paul had electrified three years before I was born. I was in the eye of the storm. Then we saw what CHUCK BERRY and BO DIDDLEY showed us, and we white snotty-nosed kids in Detroit were gloriously bombarded by guys like LITTLE RICHARD, DUANE EDDY, THE VENTURES, DICK DALE and ELVIS with JAMES BURTON. How could you escape that? What young person doesn't crave that defiant soundtrack? So I just swan-dived into it -- and here I am, swan-diving into it!"

Q: Did you know Les?

Nugent: "We tinkled a little bit at NAMM one time and played a couple of licks at the Gibson booth, and that was inspiring, but we really never got the chance to chat."

Q: Guitar players are lining up to play the Les Paul Mondays at the Iridium. Why is it so popular with the guitar community?

Nugent: "It's all about the guitar adventure and the musical interplay. The Iridium is admitting there's a huge audience for that. The people in charge at the Iridium are music maniacs; they love musical warriors, which that stage was wall-to-wall with last night. It's not about hits, it's not about popular genres or ever-changing musical styles. It's about heart and soul. JEFF BECK is an unmovable landmark of that, Les Paul was an unmovable landmark of that, I'm a fucking unmovable landmark of that, ANTON FIG is, Lou is, John is, Neil is, CARMINE APPICE, ERIC JOHNSON -- all my buddies. We love that there's a place where you can let your hair down. I walked onto that stage with my street clothes and I let it rip. I think letting it rip is why my music is still relevant to so many people. They love that shit kicker. "

Go to this location for the complete interview.