Les Paul’s son says he wants answers about the circumstances surrounding the destruction of his father’s longtime home, workshop and recording studio in Mahwah, New Jersey.
The property at 78 Deerhaven Road was recently demolished following a reported $990,000 sale to private developers. For music historians, the site was far more than a family residence: It was the working laboratory where Paul developed groundbreaking recording technology and experimented with innovations that helped shape the modern electric guitar.
The demolition has sparked further controversy following statements from the Les Paul Foundation’s official channels. Executive director Michael Braunstein described the historic property as merely “four walls” while promoting a new commercial studio in Los Angeles. The remark has drawn criticism from members of the music community, guitar historians and Paul’s family, who argue that the Mahwah property represented an important piece of music history.
Gene Paul, Les Paul’s son, has now publicly challenged the foundation’s account, describing the loss of the family home as deeply painful and questioning how the property was handled.
“I’m not an attorney. I’m a son,” Gene Paul says. “And right now, I’m a heartbroken son. A few days ago, I saw my father’s home, our family home, gutted. It made me sick. That house was not just where Les Paul lived. It was his workshop. It was his laboratory. It was his journey of dreams.”
The Mahwah property was the setting for some of Paul’s most consequential experiments. He developed his pioneering multitrack recording techniques there, worked on pickup designs and recorded television appearances with Mary Ford. Over the years, the workshop also attracted some of the biggest names in guitar, including Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck and Eddie Van Halen, who visited Paul to discuss music and technology.
In a Facebook post made August 25, Gene Paul explained how the property came to pass from his family to the Les Paul Foundation.
“When my dad died, control of the Les Paul Foundation and ALL things connected to his estate, his money, his royalties and his legacy did not pass to me or our family. The entire family found ourselves on the outside looking in,” he writes.
“Michael Braunstein, who controls the Foundation, took control of everything, and the family was never invited in, or invited to sit on the board of directors, and we are seldom consulted about anything regarding my father’s estate, his money or his legacy.
“Suffice it to say, we have never been happy about this arrangement.”
Gene Paul says the family was given no advance warning of the demolition and was not given an opportunity to enter the house before it was destroyed. A statement from the Les Paul Legacy Group says that people close to Paul made a last-minute effort to save historically significant material, including handwritten research notes and Paul’s workbenches. According to the group, some of those items were found in rooms that had suffered water damage and mold after years of alleged neglect by the foundation.
Paul is also questioning what became of the reported $990,000 proceeds from the property sale.
“What happens to that money?” he asked.
“My father had children and a family. Was that ever considered? Nobody talked to us about it. And now that the house is gone, where is the historical marker at the entrance to Deerhaven Road telling future generations that Les Paul lived here? I think my father’s family, his friends, his fans and everyone whose life has been touched by his work deserve some answers.”
