History of Gibson Guitars

By the time Gibson began work on its first electric guitar, the company had a 40-year tradition of quality and innovation to uphold. The first Gibson electric had to be nothing less than the best electric guitar the world had ever seen.

In the spring of 1935, Gibson enlisted musician Alvino Rey to help develop a prototype pickup with engineers at the Lyon & Healy company in Chicago. Later that year, research was moved in-house, where Gibson employee Walter Fuller came up with the final design.

Gibson introduced the distinctive hexagonal pickup on a lap steel model in late 1935. The pickup was installed on an F-hole archtop guitar, dubbed the ES-150 (ES for Electric Spanish), and the first one shipped from the Gibson factory in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on May 20, 1936.

Was the ES-150 the best electric guitar that guitarists in 1936 had ever seen? Jazz musician Charlie Christian, who would establish the electric guitar as an instrument with its own unique voice, thought so. Sixty years later, the Gibson ES-150 is still known as the Charlie Christian model, and some jazz players consider the ES-150's "Charlie Christian" pickup to be the best jazz pickup ever made.

The ES-150's success was a double-edged sword, establishing Gibson as the foremost maker of electric guitars but at the same time challenging Gibson to top this monumental achievement. After a production break for World War II, Gibson did just that.

In the years after World War II, the electric guitar came of age and Gibson entered a golden of age of innovation. The P-90 pickup, introduced in 1946, gave guitarists new power and versatility. Under the aggressive leadership of company president Ted McCarty, Gibson debuted two new concepts in 1949 with the ES-5, the first three-pickup guitar, and the ES-175, the first guitar with a sharply pointed cutaway bout.

The advent of the solidbody electric guitar posed a new challenge for Gibson. Like the ES-150 in 1936, Gibson's first solidbody electric had to uphold Gibson tradition while going a step beyond all other guitars of its kind. A carved contoured top harkened back to the very first Orville Gibson instruments of the late 1800s, and a gold finish signified a value above all others. With the endorsement of the most popular guitarist of the time, Gibson introduced the Les Paul Model in 1952. The Les Paul quickly grew into a family of four models-the Junior, Special, Standard and Custom-all of which would become Gibson classics. Gibson's top models sported McCarty's new tune-o-matic bridge, which was introduced on the Les Paul Custom in 1954 and is still the standard Gibson electric guitar bridge. In 1958 McCarty debuted not one, but two radical new ideas-a semi-hollowbody electric and a group of exotic, futuristic solidbodies. The ES-335 was an instant success, combining traditional archtop styling with modern, solidbody construction. The Flying V, Explorer and Moderne proved to be decades ahead of their time.

Gibson pushed on into the 1960s with two more bold, modern solidbody lines-the double-cutaway SG models of '61 and the reverse-body Firebirds of '63. By the time the McCarty era ended in 1965, a foundation of classic models had been laid that would carry Gibson through the rest of the century.



The home of Gibson electric guitars today is "Gibson USA," built in 1974 in Nashville specifically for the production of Gibson's Les Paul guitars. Although the entire guitar industry went through a slump in the late '70s, the spirit of innovation remained strong at Gibson. In response to a growing demand for vintage stylings, Gibson tapped its rich history and reissued the dot-neck version of the ES-335 in 1981 and the flametop sunburst Les Paul in 1982. At the same time, two legendary guitarists joined Gibson- B.B. King in 1980 with the Lucille model and Chet Atkins in 1982 with his new concept of a solidbody acoustic guitar.

Gibson world headquarters moved to Nashville in 1984 with the closing of the Kalamazoo plant. The financially troubled company was rescued in January 1986 by Henry Juszkiewicz and David Berryman, and the new owners quickly restored Gibson's reputation for quality as well as its profitability.

Today's Gibson electric guitars represent the history as well as the future of the electric guitar. The models whose designs have become classics-the ES-175, ES-335, Flying V, Explorer, Firebird, SGs and Les Pauls-are a testament to Gibson's wide appeal, spanning more than four decades of music styles. Gibson's close relationship with musicians is manifest in endorsement models from King, Atkins and jazz greats Howard Roberts and Herb Ellis, plus new Les Pauls made to the personal specifications of rock stars Jimmy Page and Joe Perry. In 1994, Gibson's Centennial year, the new Nighthawk model won an industry award for design, setting the stage for a second hundred years of Gibson quality and innovation.

Brought to you by Gibson Musical Instruments and the Gibson Internet Services Department. Copyright 1997 Gibson Guitar Corp. 1818 Elm Hill Pike, Nashville, Tennessee 37210 USA. All rights reserved.

Fender Telecaster

Telecaster

The Fender Telecaster was developed by Leo Fender in Fullerton, California in the 1940s. Prior to its creation, the solid-body electric guitar had been created independently by several craftsman and companies, in the period roughly between 1932–1949, but none of these guitars had made a significant impact on the market. Leo Fender's Telecaster was the design that finally put the solid-body guitar on the map. Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith was one of the first musicians to use the Telecaster (then named the Broadcaster) to record "Guitar Boogie" in 1947.

Fender had an electronics repair shop called Fender's Radio Service where he first repaired, then designed, amplifiers and electromagnetic pickups for musicians -- chiefly players of electric semi-acoustic guitars, electric Hawaiian (lap steel) guitars, and mandolins. Players had been 'wiring up' their instruments in search of greater volume and projection since the late 1920s, and electric semi-acoustics (such as the Gibson ES-150) had long been widely available. Tone had never, until then, been the primary reason for a guitarist to go electric, but in 1943, when Fender and his partner, Doc Kauffman, built a crude wooden guitar as a pickup test rig, local country players started asking to borrow it for gigs. It sounded shiny and sustaining. Fender got curious, and in 1949, when it was long-understood that solid construction offered great advantages in electric instruments, but before any commercial solidbody Spanish guitars had caught on (the small Audiovox company apparently offered a modern, solidbody electric guitar as early as the mid-1930s), he built a better prototype.

That hand-built prototype, an anomalous white guitar, had most of the features of what would become the Telecaster. It was designed in the spirit of the solid-body Hawaiian guitars manufactured by Rickenbacker -- small, simple units made of Bakelite and aluminum with the parts bolted together -- but with wooden construction. (Rickenbacker, then spelled 'Rickenbacher,' had also offered a solid Bakelite-bodied electric Spanish guitar in 1935, many details of which seem echoed in Fender's design.)

The initial production model appeared in 1950, and was called the Esquire. Fewer than fifty guitars were originally produced under that name, and most were replaced under warranty because of early manufacturing problems. In particular, the Esquire necks had no truss rod and many were replaced due to bent necks. Later in 1950, this single-pickup model was discontinued, and a two-pickup model was renamed the Broadcaster. From this point onwards all Fender necks incorporated truss rods. The Gretsch company, itself a manufacturer of hollowbody electric guitars (and now owned by Fender), claimed that "Broadcaster" violated the trademark for its Broadkaster line of drums, and as a newcomer to the industry, Fender decided to bend and changed the name to Telecaster, after the newly popular medium of television. (The guitars manufactured in the interim bore no name, and are now popularly called 'Nocasters.') The Esquire was reintroduced as a one-pickup Telecaster, at a lower price.

[edit] Construction

Leo Fender's simple and modular design was geared to mass production, and made servicing broken guitars easier. Guitars were not constructed individually, as in traditional luthiery. Rather, components were produced quickly and inexpensively in quantity and assembled into a guitar on an assembly line. The bodies were band-sawed and routed from slabs, rather than hand-carved individually, as with other guitars made at the time, such as Gibsons. Fender did not use the traditional glued-in neck, but rather a bolt-on. This not only made production easier, but allowed the neck to be quickly removed and serviced, or replaced entirely. In addition, the classic Telecaster neck was fashioned from a single piece of maple without a separate fingerboard, and the frets were pressed directly into the maple surface--a highly unorthodox approach in its day (guitars traditionally featured rosewood or ebony fingerboards glued onto mahogany necks). The electronics were easily accessed for repair or replacement through a removable control plate, a great advantage over typical construction, in which the electronics could only be accessed through the soundholes in the case of hollow-body instruments, or later by taking off the pickguard after removing the strings (as in Fender's own later design, the Stratocaster).

In its classic form, the guitar is extremely simply constructed, with the neck and fingerboard comprising a single piece of maple, bolted to an ash or alder body inexpensively jigged with flat surfaces on the front and back. The hardware includes two single coil pickups controlled by a three-way selector switch, and one each of volume and tone controls. The pickguard is Celluloid (later plastic), screwed directly onto the body with five (later eight) screws. The bridge has three adjustable saddles, with strings doubled up on each. The guitar quickly gained a following, and soon other, more established guitar companies (such as Gibson, whose Les Paul model was introduced in 1952; and later Gretsch, Rickenbacker, and others) began working on wooden solid-body production models of their own. A large chromed cover, often called the "ashtray", was fitted over the bridge for improved grounding, but this is rarely seen as most players find it impedes their style.

The original switch configuration used from 1950 to 1952 allowed selection of neck pickup with treble tone cut in the first position (for a bassier sound), and neck pickup with normal tone in the second position. The third switch position selected the bridge pickup with neck pickup blended in, depending on the position of the second "tone" knob. The first knob functioned normally as a master volume control. This configuration did not have a true tone control knob.^[1]

Typical modern Telecasters (such as the American Series version) incorporate several details different from the classic form. They typically feature 22 frets (rather than 21) and truss rod adjustment is made at the headstock end, rather than the body end, which had required removal of the neck on the original (the Custom Shop Bajo Sexto Baritone Tele was the only Telecaster featuring a two-octave 24-fret neck). The 3-saddle bridge of the original has been replaced with a 6-saddle version, allowing independent length and height adjustment for each string. The stamped metal bridge plate has been replaced with a plain, flat plate, and the bridge grounding cover (which, while helping with the grounding, impedes players who like to mute strings at the bridge with the side of the palm, and makes it impossible to pick near the saddles to produce the characteristic Telecaster 'twang') has been discontinued for most models. Also different from the original is the wiring: The 3-way toggle switch selects neck pickup only in the first position, neck and bridge pickups together in the second position, and bridge pickup only in the third position. The first knob adjusts the master volume; the second is a master tone control affecting all the pickups.

During the CBS era in the 1970s, the Telecaster body style was changed to a new "notchless" shape, having a less pronounced notch in the crook where the upper bout meets the neck. The notchless body style was discontinued in 1982.

The shortlived Elite Telecaster of 1983 incorporated two specially designed humbucking pickups powered by an active circuitry featuring a TBX guitar expander and a MDX midrange booster with 12dB of gain. Other features included a Freeflyte hardtail bridge and die-cast tuning machines with pearloid buttons. This guitar was among the latest CBS-era Fenders to feature a BiFlex truss-rod system, low-friction EasyGlider string trees and active electronics. After CBS sold Fender to a group of employees led by Bill C. Schultz in 1985, the Elite Telecaster, as well as the other Elite models, has no longer been produced. Fender Japan made its own version of the Elite Telecaster in late 1984, featuring a 22-fret neck with medium-jumbo fretwire and a modern 9.5" radius.

Higher-end models such as the American Deluxe and Plus Series Telecasters usually come with a Stratocaster-like contoured body for playing comfort.

[edit] The Telecaster sound

The Telecaster is known for its bright, cutting tone. One of the secrets to the Telecaster's sound centers on the bridge pickup, which has more windings than the neck pickup and hence has a much higher output, sometimes having twice the inductance of the neck pickup. At the same time, a capacitor is fitted between the slider of the volume control and the output, allowing treble sounds to bleed through while the mid and lower ranges are dampened. ^[2] A slanting bridge pickup enhances the guitar's treble tone. The solid body allows the guitar to deliver a clean amplified version of the strings' tone. This was an improvement on previous electric guitar designs, whose hollow bodies made them prone to unwanted feedback, and which sometimes suffered from a muddy, indistinct sound. These design elements allowed musicians to emulate steel guitar sounds, making it particularly useful in country music. Such emulation can be enhanced by use of a B-Bender (B-string bending device co-introduced by country picker Clarence White), enabling a smooth, precise change of pitch for a single string within a chord.

[edit] Variants

The Telecaster has also been a long-time favorite guitar for hot-rod customizing. Several variants of the guitar appeared throughout the years with a wide assortment of pickup configurations, such as a humbucker in the neck position, three single-coil pickups and even dual humbuckers with special wiring schemes. Fender offered hot-rodded Teles with such pickup configurations, the US Fat and Nashville B-Bender Telecasters around 1998. The Deluxe Blackout Tele was also equipped with 3 single-coil pickups, a "Strat-o-Tele" selector switch and a smaller headstock than a standard Telecaster. The most common variants of the standard two-pickup solid body Telecaster are the semi-hollow Thinline, the twin-humbucker Deluxe and the Custom which replaced the neck single coil-pickup with a humbucking pickup. The Custom and Deluxe were introduced during the CBS period and are offered to this day.

[edit] Thinline

Main article: Fender Telecaster Thinline

A semi-hollow thinline version appeared in 1968/69, designed by German guitar maker Roger Rossmeisl. Fender Wide Range humbucking pickups, Bullet truss-rod and 3-bolt neck fixing were added around 1972.

[edit] Deluxe

Main article: Fender Telecaster Deluxe

This model includes two Fender Wide Range humbucking pickups. The Tele Deluxe sported a large headstock similar to the Stratocaster maple neck and a contoured body, as well as a tremolo bridge on models manufactured after 1973/74.

[edit] Custom

Main article: Fender Telecaster Custom

The Tele Custom was popularized by Rolling Stones' guitarist and composer Keith Richards since its introduction in the early '70s, featuring a Fender Wide Range humbucker in the neck position and a single-coil pickup in the bridge.

[edit] Plus

Main article: Fender Telecaster Plus

Designed to restore Fender's reputation after a group of employees led by William C. Schultz took over ownership from CBS in the early 1980s, the Plus series of Telecasters (and Stratocasters) featured Lace Sensor pickups, low-friction roller nuts, locking synchronized vibrato bridge and tuners. Early models used a humbucking Dually Red Lace Sensor bridge pickup and a single Blue Lace Sensor neck pickup. Later models (post 1994 or so) used three Gold Lace Sensors or a Red/Silver/Blue set in a Strat-like configuration, as well as a bound contoured alder body with ash veneers. These Telecasters are also notable for their 24.75 inch scale, more common to Gibsons than to Fender-style instruments. These instruments were discontinued in 1998 with the advent of the American Deluxe series; there have been no reissues.

[edit] Models

In keeping with other models Fender distinguishes product lines manufactured in different locations. Standard and Classic models are manufactured outside of the United States while model lines manufactured in the United States are named American and well as Special edition and Highway One models.

The top-of-the-line American Deluxe Telecaster (introduced in 1998 and upgraded in 2004) features a pair of Samarium Cobalt Noiseless pickups and the S-1 switching system. Models made prior to 2004 featured two Fender Vintage Noiseless Tele single-coils and 4-bolt neck fixing. Other refinements include a bound contoured alder or ash body and an abalone dot-inlaid maple neck with rosewood or maple fingerboard, 22 medium-jumbo frets, rolled fingerboard edges, highly detailed nut and fret work. The American Deluxe Telecaster HH sports an ebony fingerboard, quilted or flamed maple top and a pair of Enforcer humbuckers with S-1 switching. A Fishman Powerbridge was briefly offered on the American Deluxe Telecasters made from 2000 to 2001. Fender currently offers the Fishman bridge on the Mexican-made Deluxe Series Nashville Tele guitar.

The American Series model uses two single-coil pickups with DeltaTone system (featuring a high output bridge pickup and a reverse-wound neck pickup). Other features include a parchment pickguard, non-veneered alder or ash bodies and rolled fingerboard edges. There were also HS and HH guitars with Enforcer humbucking pickups and S-1 switching which debuted in 2003; they have been discontinued in 2007. As of 2008, all American Standard Telecasters came with a redesigned Tele bridge with vintage-style bent steel saddles.

The American Nashville B-Bender guitar is modeled after the personally customized instruments of some of Nashville's top players, featuring a Fender/Parsons B-Bender system, two American Tele single-coils (neck, bridge), a Texas Special Strat single-coil (middle) and a five-way "Strat-O-Tele" pickup switching. Ideal for country bends and steel guitar glisses, this Tele is available only with a maple fingerboard.

The American Series Ash Telecaster is based on the '52 vintage reissue. It features an ash body, one-piece maple neck/fingerboard with 22 frets and two Modern Vintage Tele single-coil pickups.

The Custom Classic Telecaster is the Custom Shop version of the American Tele guitar, featuring a pair of Classic and Twisted single-coils in the bridge and neck positions, as well as a reverse control plate. Earlier versions made before 2003 featured an American Tele single-coil paired with two Texas Special Strat pickups and 5-way switching.

The Highway One Telecaster (introduced in 2003) features a pair of distortion-friendly Alnico III single-coils, super-sized frets, Greasebucket circuit and '70s styling (since 2006). The Texas Telecaster sports a 1-piece maple neck/fretboard with a modern 12” radius and 21 jumbo frets, solid ash body and a pair of Hot Vintage pickups.

The moderately-priced Standard, Classic and Deluxe Tele guitars are made in Mexico, Japan and Korea. Each of these instruments has a feature set which makes them an affordable value for any budget.

Artist Series Telecasters share features favored by world famous Fender endorsees: James Burton, John 5, Muddy Waters, Albert Collins, Andy Summers and many others. Custom Artist models are made at the Fender Custom Shop, differing slightly quality and construction-wise; their prices are much higher than the standard production versions.

[edit] Significance

The Telecaster was important in the evolution of country, electric blues, funk, rock and roll and other forms of popular music, because its solid construction allowed the guitar to be played loudly as a lead instrument, with long sustain if desired, and with less of the whistling 'hard' feedback (known in sound reinforcement circles as 'microphonic feedback') that hollowbodied instruments tend to produce at volume (a different kind to the controllable feedback later explored by Jimi Hendrix and countless other players). Even though the Telecaster is more than half a century old, and more sophisticated designs have been coming out since the early 1950s (including Fender's own Stratocaster), the Telecaster has remained in constant production. There have been numerous variations and modifications, but a model with something close to the original features has always been available.

[edit] Signature Telecaster players

Further information: List of Telecaster players

Over the years, many famous guitarists have made the Telecaster their signature instrument. In the early days, country session musicians were drawn to this instrument designed for the "working musician." These included Buck Owens, Waylon Jennings, James Burton, who played with such stars as Ricky Nelson, Elvis Presley, and Merle Haggard (a Signature Telecaster model player himself). Burton's favorite guitar was his famous Pink Paisley model Telecaster. Later, Danny Gatton blended diverse musical styles (including blues, rockabilly and bebop) with such great proficiency and clarity that he became known as the "telemaster." Eric Clapton used a Telecaster during his stint with The Yardbirds, and also played a Custom Telecaster fitted with Brownie's neck while with Blind Faith. Roy Buchanan and Albert Collins proved the Telecaster equally suited for playing the blues. Muddy Waters also consistently used the Telecaster and Mike Bloomfield also used the guitar on his earlier works. Soul sessionist Steve Cropper used a crisp, spare Tele sound to perfect effect with Booker T. and the M.G.'s. Additionally, George Harrison used a Rosewood Telecaster during the recording sessions for The Beatles' Let It Be album, on which the sound of the Telecaster was modified by being amplified through a revolving Leslie cabinet speaker.

With the development of rock, the Tele inspired and sustained yet another genre. Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones has composed many classic riffs on his battered "Micawber" Tele. With endurance to match that of his guitar, Bruce Springsteen has given many energetic performances with his Esquire. Another remarkable Telecaster player is Andy Summers of The Police. Summers's guitar playing defined much of the Police sound. Jimmy Page used a psychedelic-colored 1958 Tele, (painted by Page himself, and also known as the "Dragon Telecaster") on the first Led Zeppelin albums, and also for the lead solo in the iconic 1971 song "Stairway to Heaven". The guitar had been given to Page by his friend Jeff Beck.^[3] Albert Lee's extensive use of the Telecaster earned him the nickname of "Mr. Telecaster." Joe Strummer (frontman of the legendary punk band The Clash) used his worn and battered 1966 Telecaster (originally Sunburst but spraypainted black) with its distinctive "Ignore Alien Orders" sticker from the beginning of his musical career until the day he died. In January 2007, Fender issued the G. E. Smith signature Telecaster in honour of Smith's reputation as a modern master of the Telecaster. G.E. Smith was the lead guitarist in the band Hall and Oates and the musical director of Saturday Night Live. James Root of Slipknot and Stone Sour fame also plays Telecaster guitars. Through 2003 until 2006, on the first leg of Stone Sour's tour in support of their album Come What(ever) May, he used Fender Custom Shop Flat-head models. In the summer of 2007 he officially released his new Artist Series Telecaster guitar sporting black hardware and EMG 60/81 humbuckers and in two color choices: Black/white pickguard/maple fretboard and vintage white/black pickguard and ebony fretboard. Additionally, Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead uses his battered Telecaster Plus for most songs, including Creep.

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Duchossoir, 1991, 15
2. ^ The Telecaster Sound
3. ^ 1977 Jimmy Page Interview (Audio/Text)

[edit] References

• Bacon, Tony (1991). The Ultimate Guitar Book. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. ISBN 0-375-70090-0.
• Bacon, Tony & Day, Paul (1998). The Fender Book: A complete history of Fender electric guitars (2nd ed.). London: Balafon Books. ISBN 0-87930-554-1.
• Burrows, Terry (general editor) (1998). The Complete Encyclopedia of the Guitar: The definitive guide to the world's most popular instrument. New York: Schirmer Books. ISBN 0-02-865027-1.
• Denyer, Ralph (1992). The Guitar Handbook. London: Dorling Kindersley Ltd. ISBN 0-679-74275-1.
• Duchossoir, A. R. (1991). The Fender Telecaster: The detailed story of America's senior solid body electric guitar. Milwaukee: Hal Leonard Publishing Co. ISBN 0-7935-0860-6.
• Freeth, Nick & Alexander, Charles (1999). The Electric Guitar. Philadelphia: Courage Books. ISBN 0-7624-0522-8.

The history of the Fender Stratocaster

The History Of The Stratocaster

Strangely enough for a company synonymous with electric guitars, Fender's reason for being owes much to the elimination of feedback. Before Leo Fender, a onetime accountant and radio repairman, took up musical instrument manufacturing near the end of World War II, many players had tried to amplify the guitar. The problem was that no one was able to make feedback the servant, rather than the master. Leo fixed the problem, then rode two waves: postwar prosperity and guitar popularity. Add to the mix novel designs, close with perfect timing. The end result was a guitar, the Stratocaster, that redefined music as we know it.

Leo was successful before the Strat, as the Telecaster is the older sibling. (Extra trivia points if you know the Tele's original name... the Broadcaster. Nice edit, Leo.) But whereas the Tele has never gone far beyond an extremely large and loyal niche audience, the Strat ruled the world. Why? Simply put, the Tele let the Strat be better. Since Fender wasn't looking to pay the bills right away with his new baby, he was able to experiment with design elements without a stringent deadline. And once that moment of freedom had sunk in, he wound up creating a guitar that seems eternally modern and streamlined. There is just something timeless about a Strat.

Like most 50s designs, there is something about them; an excitement, a technology that could never be obsolete. From a more practical standpoint, the deep cutaway body gave improved balance, better access to the high frets, and less weight. But all of that could be put to one side for this simple point: the Strat made the guitar player, for lack of a better word, sexy. Hendrix made it clear to all, but the tools were already in place. Since the Strat was lighter, it allowed for more showmanship. Since the high frets were accessible, emotive playing was welcomed, rather than restrained. And since the entire guitar hugged the body without overwhelming it, the guitar *always* made the player look great. The next time someone gives you an extra look on stage, thank Leo.

Getting back to the sound the advanced built-in vibrato gave the player shimmering and sustaining sound (ah, the sustain). The headstock let the strings pull straight over the but, cutting down on returning. Leo even made each bridge adjustable for length and height, then tested a number of pickup coils and pole pieces. Once the Strat got into the hands of the public, musicians soon began to find unintended uses for it. By carefully positioning the switch between settings, the signals from both pickups mixed, kicking out a snarling nasality. Imagine a muted trombone hooked up to a power generator, and you get the picture: pure unbridled won't-you-turn-that-thing-down mayhem. No wonder Strats caught on as well as they did.

The first Strats shipped in 1954, a product purely for rebellious teens. While the guitar sold well at first, it didn't dominate the market until later. One of the first to put it to use was Dick Dale, who pioneered surf music on Strats in the early 60s. But it was a couple of unruly Brits with bad hair. Lennon and Harrison, otherwise known as John & George to make the guitar mainstream, and a budding pyromaniac named Hendrix to make it dominant.

The biggest threat that Fender has ever faced came from, well, Fender. Leo and original partner Don Randall sold the company to CBS in the mid-60s, and the conglomerate eventually did what no one else could: make the Strat less powerful. As time went buy, new players bought Fender while experienced players turned to vintage Strats for the eternal brilliance of its design, combined with the understated remarkable versatility. After all, if the guitar is easy and fun to play, and produces a wonderful clean tone, why not use it for everything and just work out effects later?

By 1985, the Strat had been copied, stripped, doctored, and otherwise abused. It needed an overhaul, and the sale of the company away from CBS provided it. (Who bought it? Investors and employees and the latter probably has more to do with the renaissance than any other factor.) First, Fender improved production from its foreign plants, giving a much-needed shot in the arm to the low end of its line. Eventually, this lead to the company building its own factory in Corona, CA, and another in Ensenada, Mexico for the lower-priced models. Then, the luthiers got the green light to give the player more choices in new guitars, rather than making the pursuit of the perfect tone entirely dependent on the player. In five short years, the company rolled out dozens of new and different Strats, and gave the very well-to-do a chance to build their own with the Fender Custom Shop. (Previously, the company had done custom work only for the rich and famous, on a one-to-one basis... and you can even order your own custom amp now, too.) Everything had changed, and yet nothing had, really: the tone said more than any words could.

Since the rebirth, Fender has maintained its hold on the hearts, minds, and fingers of guitarists everywhere with relentless quality, as well as some of the highest research and development commitments in the industry. It also doesn't hurt the companies success has allowed it to buy out Sunn, Trace Eliot and Guild, joining the house brands of Squier and DeArmond. At every turn, Fender acquired more expertise. Fender became the world leader by defining the sounds we hear, meeting the needs of musicians, creating quality products, and backing them up with service and stability. This history and quality is why this site came to be.

Fender History

History of Fender

For more than four decades, Fender electric guitars and amplifiers have had a tremendous influence on the way the world composes, plays and listens to music. While guitarists in the early part of this century played country, folk or blues on acoustic guitars, in the 1930's, jazz musicians experimented with amplifying traditional hollow-body guitars so they could play with other instruments at the same sound level. One problem was that the speakers and pickups tended to generate feedback when played at a high level.

In the 1940's, a California inventor named Leo Fender had made some custom guitars and amplifiers in his radio shop. Eventually, Leo would create the world's very first instrument amplifiers with built-in tone controls. More importantly, though, was Leo's vision of better guitar. With his knowledge of existing technologies, he knew he could improve on contemporary amplified hollow-body instruments . . . and improve upon them, he did. In 1951, he introduced the Broadcaster, the prototype solid-body guitar that would eventually become the legendary Telecaster®. The Tele®, as it became affectionately known, was the first solid-body electric Spanish-style guitar ever to go into commercial production. Soon to follow the Tele were the revolutionary Precision Bass® guitar in 1951, and the Stratocaster® in 1954.

In 1965, because of poor health, Leo Fender sold his company to corporate giant CBS. Over the next two decades, Fender Musical Instruments experienced some tremendous growth. But as time wore on, CBS's lack of commitment and real understanding of music and musicians was becoming apparent.

In 1981, CBS recruited a new management team to "re-invent" Fender. William Schultz was soon named President, and was supported by associates William Mendello and Kurt Hemrich. They had developed a five-year business plan based on the idea of increasing Fender's presence in the marketplace by dramatically improving quality and making a significant commitment to research and development. This association continued until CBS decided to divest itself from the non-broadcast media business.

So, in 1985, a group of employees and investors led by William Schultz purchased the company from CBS. This sale put Fender in the hands of a small group of musically dedicated people who have committed their lives to creating the world's best guitars and amplifiers.

The team had to start from scratch - there were no buildings or machines included in the deal. They owned only the name, the patents, and the parts that were left over in stock. Supported by a core group of loyal employees, dealers and suppliers - some of whom had been with the company since Leo Fender began making guitars and amplifiers - Bill Schultz and his colleagues set out to re-build an American icon.

Initially, Fender imported their guitars from offshore manufacturers who had proven their ability to produce affordable, viable instruments. But the quest for even more control over quality soon led to the construction of Fender's flagship domestic factory in Corona, California. Eventually, Fender would build a second modern manufacturing facility in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico, with the goal of being able to build quality instruments and offer them at more budget-oriented prices.

In 1987, Fender acquired Sunn, a storied line of amplifiers whose past endorsees have included The Who, Jimi Hendrix and The Rolling Stones. This jump-started Fender's re-entry into the amplifier business by making accessible Sunn's manufacturing facilities in Lake Oswego, Oregon. But this was still an early stage of the "new" Fender, so Schultz put the Sunn line of amps on the shelf until the Fender name had been re-established as the world's leading amplifier.

Fender has always recognized the importance of an open-door policy for the professional musician. When artists first started requesting specific features for their guitars, they were accommodated on an individual basis. These relationships led to the formalizing of Fender's custom operation in 1987. Today, the world's greatest guitarists work with the renowned Fender Custom Shop in Corona, California, to create their dream instruments. Recently, Fender has added amplifiers to the list of custom-made instruments that can be produced at the Custom Shop in Corona.

In 1991, Fender moved its corporate headquarters from Corona to Scottsdale, Arizona. From here, administration, marketing, advertising, sales and export teams oversee the operations of Fender's satellite facilities around the world, which now include the locations in the United States (California, Tennessee, New York and Rhode Island), as well as international operations in: Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico London, England Dusseldorf, Germany Suresnes, France Brussels Japan Korea and China.

Also brought to Scottsdale at this time was Fender's Amplifier and Pro Audio Research & Development. With guitar amplifiers, Fender sets the standard for sound and value. Its R & D staff has pioneered many technological advancements in developing amplifiers that meet the needs of the performing musician. In late 1992, the Amp Custom Shop was opened in Scottsdale, Arizona, to offer custom and limited editions of professional amplifiers for working musicians.

Recognizing that country music and acoustic guitars were increasing in popularity, Fender expanded upon its acoustic guitar line. In addition to working with respected manufacturers in Japan, Korea and China to produce quality acoustic guitars, the company has become the exclusive North American distributor of the prestigious Manuel Rodriguez line of nylon-stringed guitars, which have been hand-crafted in Spain by the Rodriguez family since 1905. These additions have put the company in an excellent position for growth within the acoustic guitar market.

Founded in a loft in New York City in 1952, Guild Guitar Company continues to be known for its quality instruments and exceptional value. Faced with internal financial troubles in the early 1990's, Guild management had decided to sell the company. Fender acquired Guild in 1995, signaling a return to ownership by a group of people dedicated to producing the finest value in American-made acoustic and electric guitars. Today, Guilds are still being produced at its historic, 60,000 square-foot facility in Westerly, Rhode Island.

1998 would prove to be a banner year for Fender and its subsidiaries. With Fender amplifiers once again enjoying a very strong presence in the market place, it was now time to dust off the Sunn line of amps. R&D had spent the previous three years studying the original Sunn products and developing prototype models that faithfully replicated the trademark Sunn sound. The timing was right, and Fender introduced the new Sunn line of amplifiers to an immediate industry acclaim.

And for Guild, 1998 brought the expansion of its Custom Shop in Nashville, Tennessee. First opened in 1996, the new Guild Custom Shop boasts an 8,000 square-foot , climate controlled facility near downtown Nashville that allows a great deal of extra space for production and storage of raw materials.

Guild had also introduced DeArmond guitars in 1998. Fender had purchased the DeArmond brand of musical instrument pickups in 1997, and then combined the company with Guild to produce an alternative line of high quality, affordable guitars and basses that are modeled after Guild designs. The guitars themselves are built and assembled in Korea before being sent back to Corona, where they are fitted with American-made DeArmond pickups. Following their successful test runs in European and Asian markets, DeArmond guitars were introduced to American and Canadian consumers and received instant acclaim as an exceptional value.

But the biggest event for Fender in 1998 was the opening of its new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Corona. The 177,000 square-foot facility was built on a nineteen acre site, with over half of that space set aside for future growth, and is the culmination of a vision that at times seemed almost impossible. The entire line of American-made Fender guitars are built at the Corona factory, which is capable of making over 350 guitars each day. In addition, the Corona facility utilizes the innovative UVOXÔ system, which combines ultraviolet light, a special scrubber process, and a carbon bed absorption system to help ensure that the air emitted from the factory is 95% clean. The new factory is not only a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, but a tribute to how a group of dedicated individuals, when they set their minds to it, can create the "impossible".

The Fender Custom Shop also shares space at the new facility. Over fifty artisans now work at the Custom Shop, offering the world's finest custom made instruments to professional musicians, as well as a complete line of hand-crafted replications of classic Fender models. And to complete the Corona operation, the amplifier Custom Shop was brought back from Scottsdale and folded into the guitar Custom Shop.

Simultaneously, a new 70,000 square-foot addition was completed at the Ensenada facility. The extra space was added to bring amplifier production, aside from those produced at the Custom Shop, into one main facility.

During the past decade, Fender has grown dramatically in sales and stature. The company manufactures and distributes virtually everything that a guitarist needs to perform, from the guitar, strings and accessories, to the pro audio products including amplifiers and mixing boards. Today, under Schultz's direction, Fender Musical Instruments Corporation is a world leader in the manufacturing and distribution of electric guitars and amplifiers.

Fender became the world leader by defining the sounds we hear, meeting the needs of musicians, creating quality products and backing them up with service and stability. As Fender Musical Instruments Corporation forges through the 1990's and into the 21st century, its management team will maintain Fender's number-one status through a winning combination of business acumen and a love of music.

Fender Guitar

The American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster guitar is for players looking for a traditional ash-body Fender guitar that “does it all.” The S-1™ switching system and three Samarium Cobalt Noiseless™ Strat pickups make this guitar extremely versatile and provide endless tonal variety. It also features a two-point synchronized tremolo with stainless steel saddles, modern C-shaped maple neck with a maple or rosewood fingerboard, abalone inlays and 22 medium jumbo frets.