Telecasters!
My Telecaster collection is pretty meager in comparision with my wide variety of Strats, Jaguars, and other Fender shortscales.. but its not because I don't have a fondness for them. In fact, the sheer simplicity of a Tele is a major plus for me, and they represent Leo Fender's original concept for the solid bodied electric guitar. At one point in the late 1950's the Telecaster was intended to be phased out of Fender production, being replaced with the more advanced Stratocaster, but legions of players demanded the Tele be left in the Fender product lineup. Due to its everlasting popularity, the Telecaster has remained in production for well over 50 years! Below are a few examples from my personal collection. Enjoy! -JB
1969 Maple Capped Tele
1969 'Sonic Blue' Telecaster
I saw this guitar for sale awhile ago and was considering a trade for it that involved my Coral Pink '64 Jaguar... It was admittedly a good trade on my end, but I really love my Jag, it was my first vintage guitar and hadn't really thought about ever not owning it. Sooo...after stewing about the deal for a couple weeks, I decided I loved my Jag way too much to go through with it. I still couldn't get the Tele out of my mind though, and finally decided to go ahead and pull the trigger to buy it outright.
I was admittedly a bit nervous, as this was my most expensive single guitar purchase to date. The seller was very cool though, and assured me I'd be happy with it, and indeed I am! The neck is dated JAN69, and is a "maple capped" version with it's original finish. It's an ash body and rather light. ( 7.2 lbs total) While the guitar is admittedly not 100% original it certainly looks the part, and plays/sounds fantastic! I've always been a sucker for a cool Fender Custom Color, and this one was finished by RS Guitarworks in 2008 with a killer shade of Sonic Blue nitro. She looks even better in person than the pictures depict, with a bit of play wear, and a bit of finish checking. It feels SOOO nice to play! I'm really happy with it so far. Hope you like it!
I was admittedly a bit nervous, as this was my most expensive single guitar purchase to date. The seller was very cool though, and assured me I'd be happy with it, and indeed I am! The neck is dated JAN69, and is a "maple capped" version with it's original finish. It's an ash body and rather light. ( 7.2 lbs total) While the guitar is admittedly not 100% original it certainly looks the part, and plays/sounds fantastic! I've always been a sucker for a cool Fender Custom Color, and this one was finished by RS Guitarworks in 2008 with a killer shade of Sonic Blue nitro. She looks even better in person than the pictures depict, with a bit of play wear, and a bit of finish checking. It feels SOOO nice to play! I'm really happy with it so far. Hope you like it!
1977/78 Olympic White Telecaster
This is one of my favorite Teles. I believe it is a 1977, but may be a 1978, as I haven't had the neck off of it to check the heel date. Regardless, it is in very clean and original condition with only a few small marks. I love the color, a yellowed/aged Olympic White, which is
personally one of my favorite Fender custom colors. The rosewood is nice and dark, and while it isn't feather light... it's not too heavy for a mid 70's Tele. Overall a very clean and original example, with a great playing neck and a rock solid feel. It's still got the factory installed pickups and 1meg pots in it, and sounds great to my ears... I have been looking for a nice 70's Tele to add to my collection for awhile now, and think I found a good one. Hope you enjoy!
personally one of my favorite Fender custom colors. The rosewood is nice and dark, and while it isn't feather light... it's not too heavy for a mid 70's Tele. Overall a very clean and original example, with a great playing neck and a rock solid feel. It's still got the factory installed pickups and 1meg pots in it, and sounds great to my ears... I have been looking for a nice 70's Tele to add to my collection for awhile now, and think I found a good one. Hope you enjoy!
1958 "Danocaster" Tele whiteguard
Another one found elsewhere on this site, is this Danocaster Tele I foolishly sold. I had a long list of people who regularly hounded me to sell it, and the answer was always the same... "no way". Well one afternoon I sat and played this one back to back against my Danocaster Esquire (seen below), and was so impressed by how the single-pickup guitar could do as much or more than the Tele... Now don't get me wrong, this is an amazing guitar, and the best Telecaster I ever owned, but I decided in my head that day that if I ever had to choose between my blackguard Esquire or this blonde Tele, The Esquire would get the nod. Well, it wasn't 2 days later someone inquired about this, and in a weak moment I agreed to sell it. I had seller's remorse almost instantly, but I kept my end of the bargain and shipped it off to a thrilled new owner. I hope to own another one of these someday, but I would buy this one back in a heartbeat.
1950's Danocaster Esquire
Early 50's Danocaster 'blackguard' Esquire
I have this one featured in my "Danocaster Vintage Replicas" section, but thought it deserved a spot here too. This is definitely the "oddball" in my already diverse collection of Fender-based guitars. Whenever you open up a book about the history of Fender Musical Instruments, odds are good one of the first pictures you'll encounter will be of a guitar that looks very similar to this one. Long before Leo Fender developed the Jazzmaster, Jaguar, Stratocaster, or even the Telecaster, THIS was the guitar that put him on the map. Just a flat slab of butterscotch finished ash, a bakelite pickguard, a couple of control knobs and a single pickup incorporated into a simple bridge plate with 3 brass saddles. The Esquire first went into full production in 1951, and turned the electric guitar world on its ear. This is a very faithful rendition, and is outfitted with a hand-wound Peter Florance "Voodoo" pickup in the bridge that sounds like nothing else I've ever heard. This guitar can do everything from Country twang to SRV, and is one of those guitars that you can't seem to put down once you plug it in. At under 7lbs, It's an lightweight screamer, and the "baseball bat" neck measures a full inch thick from top to bottom. It plays every bit as good as it looks... maybe better!
Fender "Road Worn" 50's Telecaster
Although I no longer own this, I decided it deserved a spot in my Telecaster section, because it was just such an amazing guitar for te relatively low price. I bought this used, and the previous owner had already upgraded it with brass compensated saddles, and a black "bakelite" pickguard. I liked it so much I bought a G&G tweed case for it to replace the cheap gig bag they come with. Until I had the opportunity to buy my Danocaster I really had no intentions of ever selling this, as it did everything a Telecaster is supposed to do, and I really felt this particular one had better relic work than many others I had seen. It's crazy to think these can be had now for less than 500.00 if you shop around, and I highly recommend one to anyone wanting a Telecaster with vintage appointments and a classic sound and feel.
2010 American Special Telecaster
I have never owned an American Standard Telecaster mainly because I never liked the strat-like 6 saddle bridges and narrower string spacing. When Fender introduced the American Special I was intrigued, and especially liked the fact that many of the specs were more traditional, such as a maple neck and "Pat. Pend" bridge with 3 brass barrel saddles. The Texas Special pickups and jumbo frets make this a screamer. I really like the subtle shade of Olympic White on this, as well as the late 60's/70's style headstock logo. I added the Fender tortoise shell pickguard for a classic look. These are sold new with nylon gig bags, which are hardly appropriate for a USA made Tele, so this one resides in a blonde G&G tolex case I purchased separately.