A DECADE OF BEGINNINGS: FENDER IN THE 1950S

With post-war prosperity on the rise, the introduction of the television into many American homes, a burgeoning counterculture making its presence known and the steady rise of rock ‘n’ roll, the ’50s were an ideal time for creativity to run wild, especially in the realm of musical instruments. It should perhaps come as no surprise that Leo Fender and his team – always at the vanguard of innovation – did some of their most exciting and imaginative work during this decade. In fact, it could be argued that over the course of ten short years, we helped to completely change the popular culture with our invention of four revolutionary guitars that became staples for artists in nearly every genre and continue to inspire players to this day. Let’s roll back the tape and review the highlights:    

1950: THE BROADCASTER LAUNCHES

Prior to 1950, we had trained our focus on providing the music community with quality lap steel guitars and amps – and did quite well in this arena. But with early jazz and blues artists like Django Reinhardt, Charlie Christian, T-Bone Walker, Muddy Waters and Big Bill Broonzy pushing sonic boundaries and increasingly incorporating electric guitars into their playing, it made perfect sense for us to want to have our own version of a “Spanish style” (i.e. made to be played upright) model on the market. And from this necessity, the Broadcaster was born – one of the very first solid-body electric guitars that was built to meet the needs of modern musicians. It looked great, sounded even better, was affordable and rugged enough to be handled by any player. 

The only problem with it was calling it the “Broadcaster,” which had already been trademarked by Gretsch.

So rather than capitulating and pulling this line of ingenious instruments out of stores and catalogs, we did a quick bit of rebranding. We simply took the “Broadcaster” label off of the headstock and continued to get our new model into the hands of players who would use it to radically transform recorded and live music in every way. These guitars got nicknamed Nocasters and today are coveted by collectors, completists and enthusiasts. But throughout all of the minor tumult at the time, the instrument’s design remained the same: an efficient, solid-body workhorse with a single cutaway, an intuitive two-pickup configuration, elegant two-knob, three-position switch controls, plus a striking Blonde finish with a black pickguard for contrast.

All it needed was a new name. 

1951: THE TELECASTER NAME GETS ADOPTED

The decision to christen the erstwhile Broadcaster/Nocaster as the Telecaster was easy: Televisions were becoming increasingly popular and ubiquitous and so it made all the sense in the world for us to attach ourselves to this vital form of entertainment. As such, in 1951, Don Randall – one of Leo Fender’s first collaborators – suggested the name  “Telecaster” and it’s stuck ever since.

This rebrand did not result in nor require any significant changes to the instrument, either. It retained its unfussy construction and while this was widely considered a relatively “simple” design, the results were anything but. The Tele soon became the go-to for many players for its ironclad reliability and incredible tonal versatility. It wasn’t long before it started to show up in the hands of some of the best players and be featured on some of the most revolutionary performances of all time. 

1951: THE PRECISION BASS IS INTRODUCED

As musical innovations go, the argument could be made that our most important was the launch of the Precision Bass. Why? Nothing like it had existed before.

Prior to the P Bass, the instrument holding down the low end in any rhythm section was the acoustic, upright bass – a striking presence in any configuration, but one that increasingly found itself drowned out by the bands it was supporting owing to better amplification of electric guitars, louder horn sections and more aggressive drummers. It didn’t help that the upright was large and unwieldy – truly a liability to transport across the country on a tour bus or just across town in a car or on foot.

The P Bass, meanwhile, had an elegant ash body with two “horns” (which would later be incorporated into the Stratocaster’s design), a one-piece 20-fret maple neck, 34” scale length, a single pickup, Kluson tuners, a string-through body bridge with a cover and two pressed fiber bridge saddles. It also adopted some of its details from the Telecaster, including the headstock shape, neck plate, truss rod nut, potentiometers, domed control knobs, output jack ferrule and strap buttons. Most importantly, it sounded great and it could be played at a high volume.

Leo Fender assiduously put Precision Basses in the hands of a few high-profile players at the time, including John “Shifty” Henry, Bob Manners, William “Monk” Montgomery and Roy Johson, who helped bring the instrument into the mainstream and it soon became the go-to for rock, soul, R&B and funk players. 

1953: THE TELE BECOMES A WESTERN SWING AND HONKY-TONK STAPLE

It bears mentioning that when we first introduced the Telecaster to the world, their target market was western swing players, whose music was still one of the predominant forms of entertainment in the late ’40s and early ’50s. These bands were often large and the use of electric guitars – including our lap steel models – was not uncommon.

The legend goes that Leo Fender and his partner George Fullerton used to take the Telecaster out to clubs during its earliest phases to let the western swing band players give them a try and, ideally, include them as a part of their stage performances. This strategy worked out great, particularly when Fender and Fullerton presented the guitar to Jimmy Bryant, a western swing titan, who took the guitar for a spin during his break and proceeded to play it for the rest of the set. For many, Bryant is considered the original Telecaster adopter.

Other musicians in the genre were equally impressed of course, including Jimmy Wyble, Charlie Aldrich, Roy Watkins and Bill Carson. Similarly, honky-tonk bands – who relied on steel guitar and required instruments that cut through the mix – took a shine to the Tele’s singular sound and started using it on stage and in the studio. Perhaps the most famous example of an early honky-tonk Tele player is Buck Owens, who made the guitar his own in every possible respect, but other iconic examples include Luther Perkins and, of course, James Burton.

So, with the Telecaster in the hands of so many gifted stars, it goes without saying that its signature twang started to become more and more present during live performances and the ebullient, biting, double-tough tone is nearly inescapable on honky-tonk and western swing LPs and 45s from the era.

1954: THE STRATOCASTER DEBUTS

Never one to let the moss grow under his feet, Leo Fender’s imagination and ambitions went into overdrive after the release of the Telecaster. While it was difficult to deny the Tele’s great sound and simple efficiency, it was considered by some to be a bit plain. There was also an imperative to keep up with the competition, who was offering flashier, more high-end models, so we went to work on building something more stylish, powerful and with even more sonic options. The result, of course, was the Stratocaster.

One of the most notable differences between the Strat and the Tele was its shape, which featured the dual-horn design of the P Bass, as opposed to just one cutaway. We also contoured the body, making it considerably more comfortable to play. The guitar also came in a stunning sunburst finish, giving it an upscale, luxurious look.

The Strat also had three pickups (as opposed to the Esquire’s one or the Tele’s two) and a more advanced switching and control system that allowed for greater tonal versatility. But the Strat’s most exciting upgrade was its bridge, an intricate system that involved a detachable tremolo arm that was capable of raising and lowering pitch and providing expressive vibrato while keeping the guitar’s intonation stable. It was an innovation that was a defining feature of the instrument at the time and one that would be put to visionary use in the future as bands became more pyrotechnic with their playing.

Like the Telecaster, the Stratocaster originally was employed by western swing musicians, but it was only a matter of time before it became the guitar of choice for some of the most daring artists in the ’60s, including Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimi Hendrix and Ritchie Blackmore – and needless to say, to this day, it remains one of our most beloved instruments for any genre.  

1956: THE TELECASTER SHAPES EARLY ROCK ‘N’ ROLL

In the ’50s, artists like Little Richard, Buddy Holly, the Everly Brothers and Chuck Berry were writing and performing songs that would become the sonic template for rock ‘n’ roll as we know it, from chord progressions to singing styles to on-stage flair.

It could be argued that one of rock ‘n’ roll’s most important cultural moments occurred in 1956, when Elvis Presley made his first television appearance on January 28th on a program called Stage Show. He played a medley of his hits: “Shake, Rattle and Roll,” “Flip, Flop and Fly” and “I Got a Woman.” He was an instant sensation and appeared on TV many more times that year, including his iconic performances on The Ed Sullivan show. But prior to becoming an on-screen phenomenon, Elvis was a prolific recording artist whose work at Sun Studios in the 1950s produced some of his most legendary albums. And during those sessions, Presley’s lead guitarist Scotty Moore frequently played a Telecaster, which helped introduce the guitar’s signature twang to an entirely new audience of listeners.

It wasn’t just Sun and Elvis though – session players like Tommy Tedesco from the Wrecking Crew often chose the Tele to play on rock recordings and Buck Owens was inventing the “Bakersfield Sound” in the ’50s, a sound that would later be adopted by rock bands like the Eagles and the Flying Burrito Brothers.

It should come as no surprise that rock ‘n’ roll guitarists who were influenced by these ’50s recordings selected the Telecaster as their weapon of choice, including Keith Richards, Steve Cropper, Jimmy Page, Chrissie Hynde and Joe Strummer. And in turn, these artists introduced the Tele’s unmistakable tone to future generations of players who have found enduring inspiration in the one that started it all. 

1958: THE JAZZMASTER LAUNCHES

While the Telecaster and the Stratocaster were generally huge hits with artists in nearly every style of music – country, rock, R&B, soul, blues – there was one genre that we struggled to break into: jazz. So, it became our mission to capture these artists with a guitar built specifically for their needs. It featured a sleekly contoured offset body, making it easier to handle while sitting down, as well as more advanced electronics and controls for greater tonal versatility and enhanced playability. Some of the highlights included a floating bridge/anchored tailpiece design with a floating vibrato and single-coil pickups that were wired into an entirely new control layout that featured two separate tone circuits. This distinctive element gave players a wider range of options for greater expression and mellower, “jazzier” sounds. This new guitar was beautiful, elaborate and our highest-end option available at the time. It made its debut in 1958 and sensibly enough, it was called the Jazzmaster.

But even with all of the bells and whistles and a name that should have done a lot of heavy lifting, the Jazzmaster failed to take off with jazz artists, who preferred semi-hollow body guitars and didn’t seem all that interested in fixing something that they didn’t perceive as broken. However, we were able to pivot our  target audience and began to appeal to the youth market, who did gravitate towards the exciting new instrument. In 1960, when the Ventures played a Jazzmaster on their hit single “Walk Don’t Run” the guitar became a consummate favorite in surf groups. And when the surf craze waned and the Jazzmaster’s popularity declined as a result, it had a renaissance in the ’70s when punk and new wave bands would find them in second-hand shops at affordable prices. Nowadays, you’ll frequently see and hear our original offset played by indie acts like My Bloody Valentine, the Cure, Dinosaur Jr. and Queens of the Stone Age.

Our rich history goes back over 80 years, but the ’50s were the decade when the revolution began and we changed music forever. Learn more about this incredible era and see how all of the guitars that were introduced in the ’50s have evolved over the years here.