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Utmost respect for Leo Fender and all of his accomplishments. All of the various guitar models, pickups, tremolo and bridge systems and amplifiers came from the heart & soul of one man. He was a humble genius that accomplished more in his lifetime than many others combined. We reap the benefits of his career everyday even if we don’t play a Fender, Music Man or G&L guitar or use a Fender or Music Man amp.
He came home from the G&L factory on March 21 1991 and told his wife that he had given everything to the music world – he passed peacefully that night in his sleep. Great testament of a great man.
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A very interesting article, Keith, thanks for posting it. I would guess that it pained Leo to see the gradual decline in quality standards that some saw in the Fender product in the later years of CBS’ ownership. I have a 1977 Strat which developed a horrible warp in the neck early on, corrected very well by a reshaping of the fingerboard and refret.
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Yes thank you Keith, good article. Looking back at those earlier years, in 1960 my pal bought a Fender Stratocaster and I bought a Gibson 335. It’s extraordinary that in nearly 60 years those two guitars have not really changed …..complacency or superlative design?
Richard
Leo made some changes to his S style & T style guitars when he founded G&L but for the most part, the original design has stood the test of time for both of those guitars
The ES-335 is the same way: Alvin Lee, Chuck Berry, BB King, Larry Carlton and many others have used either a 335 or a model based on the 335 for years without any major issuesLeo’s contribution to the electric guitar is nothing short of amazing. For one man to develop all that he did is quite remarkable, considering that he was designing some of the first solid body guitars ever Paul Reed Smith is a great engineer & designer but he is very much building on the foundation that Leo Fender & Les Paul laid in the 20th century.
Paul’s design that really stands out to me is his USA acoustic guitars. He developed a bracing system that is a hybrid mix of the typical bracing of flat top acoustics blended with the fan style bracing of a classical guitar. He also decided to lock the back of the guitar down so that it didn’t vibrate like other acoustics but as he explained it, its like sound hitting a hard wall and reflecting out. The result is an acoustic guitar that very loud and tone that amazing. Craftsmanship is flawless – but for the prices starting @ $8,500, it had better be really great
https://www.prsguitars.com/index.php/acoustics/model/private_stock_tony_mcmanus_acoustic_2019
https://www.prsguitars.com/index.php/acoustics/model/private_stock_martin_simpson_acoustic_2019 -
Everyone loves Leo Fender and his accomplishments, and as we know, he also inspired the development of a number of other guitar manufacturing shops. I just watched an interesting documentary movie called Carmine Street Guitars (on the plane as I was flying home from Hawaii) about a hand-made guitar shop located in Greenwich Village. The owner Rick Kelly mentioned that he knew Leo Fender. Rick makes his guitars out of 200-year old wood from famous old New York buildings – pubs, brothels, hotels, etc. If you ever get a chance to see the movie, you should check it out.
Sunjamr Steve
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