Fender Electric Guitar Retrospective

One of the most popular guitar companies and definitely one of the most influential contributions ever in modern music was the Fender guitar. With the introduction of these solid body electric guitars, basses and amplifiers, Fender helped the smaller bands be heard in bigger venues a lot better than using acoustic instruments. They also helped change the sound of the music and would heavily influence a broad area of genres including Rock, Jazz, Blues and many more.

The inventor of the Fender guitar, Leo Fender, developed a solid-body guitar in 1951 called the Broadcaster. The name was later changed to Telecaster (Tele) and became the first solid-body Spanish style electric guitar to be mass-produced.

Another first in guitar history happened later that same year when Fender introduced the Precision Bass. The Precision Bass was different from the usual basses at the time because they were portable, you can play them like a guitar and they could be amplified. The usual Double Basses (Upright Bass) that were used at this time were hard to transport and often hard to hear over top of other instruments.

A few years later in 1954, Fender came out with the Stratocaster (Strat). Fender went out and asked professional guitarists and Fender staff what they wanted in a guitar so he could improve the Telecaster. Instead, they ended up creating an upscale model to go along with the Tele. Some of the main characteristics of the Strat were the addition of another single coil pickup and a double cutaway body design to make it easier to play notes higher down the neck. Another important addition to the Strat was the tremolo bridge, which was originally made to bend the strings to duplicate the sound of the pedal steel guitar.

Fender also introduced many other models to their lineup over the next decade including the Jaguar, Jazzmaster, and Jazz Bass. Guitars and Basses were not all that Fender produced during this time. They also released the Twin Reverb amp.

Due mainly to Leo Fender's poor health, the company was sold to CBS in 1965. Even though Fender continued to grow with the new owners over the following years, the company realized the importance for management that understood music and musicians. This led to the hiring of William Schultz in 1981.

In 1985, CBS decided to sell off all of their non-broadcast media businesses including Fender. A group of investors and Fender employees purchased the Fender Company and put William Schultz in charge. With the ownership including people that have such a passion for guitars, like the Fender employees, Fender got even better.

1987 marked the year that the Fender Custom Shop opened for the first time. The Fender Custom Shop is located in Corona, California where they make custom guitars for professional guitar players and guitar enthusiasts. This Custom Shop was an obvious move for Fender because they have always understood the importance of listing to their customers and giving them exactly what they want.

Fender still thinks like this today and continue to give their customers the best Fender guitar that they can make. This is why I think that Fender is one of the most famous guitars ever made. Some of the great guitar players that love their Fender guitars are Buddy Guy, Eric Clapton, Eric Johnson, George Harrison, Jeff Beck, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, John 5, John Lennon, Keith Richards, Pete Townshend, Richie Kotzen, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Yngwie Malmsteen.

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