50’s Telecaster is a Superb, Gutsy Guitar
Written: Oct 17 '04 (Updated Sep 22 '07)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great sound and playability, reasonably affordable
Cons: None really, it's a great guitar
The Bottom Line: The Fender Tele is an essential rock and blues guitar and this is a fine version of it.
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| buffoonery's Full Review: Fender 50s Telecaster |
Raised as a Gibson man, I was converted to Fenders when I finally broke down and bought a 1999 American Standard Strat (with the natural ash body, very cool) and have been hooked ever since. I still believe it is one of the best designed guitars in history due to its contoured body, which beats the hell out of the the flat Gibsons I’ve been playing all my life (not that I don’t love Gibsons, I do! I do!).
But for some of the music I've been playing recently, notably some Stones, I wanted a guitar that would duplicate that Keith Richards sound. Obviously, I had to shop around for a Tele, and so I did, picking up a 50s Tele on Ebay some months ago. I use this guitar exclusively for Stones tunes, and have it tuned just like Richards: open G tuning with the top (low E) string removed. This lets you play great Stones tunes like “Tumblin’ Dice” and “Brown Sugar” using barre chords, and then flicking into a simple fifth position Dm7 shape when necessary, instead of going through all these ridiculous gyrations if you’re in standard tuning. Plus, it looks cooler.
Too bad I can’t play like Richards, though.
Getting back to basics, the Fender Telecaster is one of the most important rock/blues/country guitars ever made. First issued around 1952, and followed quickly by its big brother, the 3 pick-up Stratocaster, it gained immense popularity across the country, used by greats like Carl Perkins in the early 50’s and into today with rhythm maestros like Chrissy Hynde and a host of others. Here are the technical particulars on this particular model, the 50s Tele:
BODY: Ash
NECK: 1-Piece Maple, “C” Shape,
MACHINE HEADS: Fender/Ping Vintage Style Tuning Machines
FINGERBOARD: Maple, 7.25” Radius (184 mm)
FRETS: 21 Vintage Style Frets
PICKUPS: 2 Vintage Style Single-Coil Tele Pickups with Alnico Magnets (Neck & Bridge)
CONTROLS: Master Volume, Master Tone
BRIDGE : Vintage Style 3-Saddle Strings-Thru-Body Tele Bridge
PICKUP SWITCHING 3-Position Blade:
Position 1. Bridge Pickup
Position 2. Bridge and Neck Pickups
Position 3. Neck Pickup
HARDWARE: Chrome
CASE: Deluxe Gig Bag
PICKGUARD: 1-Ply White
SCALE LENGTH: 25.5” (648 mm)
WIDTH AT NUT: 1.625” (41.2 mm)
Construction quality is very high. A close examination reveals no notable defects at all. You get your money’s worth here.
The neck is fast and you can play easily into the 17th position. The single cutaway provides reasonable access all the way to the 21st fret. You can keep the action nice and low if that’s how you like it without getting any buzz (unlike some problems I’ve had with Les Pauls). It’s light enough to twirl around your head or play behind your back, if you’re into that sort of thing, and you won’t get too tired standing around for two or three hours with it. You can buy it in three colors: white blonde, 2-color sunburst, and black (my model).
The sound, of course, is classic Tele, with two single coil pickups and the 3-position blade selector. The neck pick up delivers smooth rhythm sounds, the neck sweet country and ringing rock, the combination a host of tones. The sustain is nice (though never as long as you want it). You only get one volume control and one tone control, though, , and I’ve always preferred Gibson’s delivery of separate volume and tone controls for each pick up, which confers a substantially larger tonal palette. Nor does it have the greater pick up selection that the new American Standard Teles possess.
Nonetheless, this guitar is eminently suitable for country, rockabilly, blues, and straightahead rock and roll. It isn’t designed for jazz (look for a Gibson hollow body for the best jazz guitars ever made, see my ES-175, ES-5, and Herb Ellis reviews), and hard rock and metal heads will of course turn to a variety of Les Pauls and other solid body guitars.
Serious guitarists need to own a Tele in order to fill out their suite of guitar tones—to go with the mandatory Strat and Les Paul, and preferably an SG, an acoustic Martin, and a nice Gibson or Gretsch hollow body. But even if you can afford those other machines, or your wife won’t let you afford it, you can get by with just one single Tele. Played through a nice 65 Fender Reverb, or even any reasonable modeling amp (I use a Line 6 Vetta II, with a combination of a Fender amps played through it like Keef), you can get a host of superb sounds. Very reasonably priced on Ebay, this 50’s box delivers great value.
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Recommended:
Yes
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