The Les Paul vs. Strat thing haunts me! The guitar player in my 1st "Garage Band" played a SG and I loved the tone he got...no effects, just cranked through a Twin Reverb. I played with a lot of different Gibson guys in those days and always preferred that fat warm tone. I also played with some Fender guys but the sound always felt empty in comparison.
Years later I stumble across Joe and became a Strat convet! There seemed to be so many more personalities to a Strat, and the music (to me) felt more three-dimensional and textured. It was the first time I heard someone with a "Full" Strat tone, and I loved it.
So now, after Joe converted me from a Les Paul tone lover to a Strat tone lover, he's jumped ship on me and is favoring his Gibsons. It's funny. Oh well...it's all good!