The perfect solidbody electric guitar:

[Red Baron]

I always thought that was a Strat. Blue Jean Blues to me sounds like a Tele neck pickup.

I'm positive that Stockings is a Tele (like just about every track on Deguello), and Billy claims that Blue Jean Blues was played on a 50's hardtail Strat straight into the board... but I swear it's also a Tele. :hmm

 

[Ad_02Std]

I'm positive that Stockings is a Tele (like just about every track on Deguello), and Billy claims that Blue Jean Blues was played on a 50's hardtail Strat straight into the board... but I swear it's also a Tele. :hmm

Well, there you go. For some reason I always pictured that clean Fender sound all over Deguello as a Strat. Listening back to it now, yes, it could quite easily be a Tele.

The Tele neck pickup is one of my favourite guitar sounds.

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[yeti]

I'm positive that Stockings is a Tele (like just about every track on Deguello), and Billy claims that Blue Jean Blues was played on a 50's hardtail Strat straight into the board... but I swear it's also a Tele. :hmm

A 50's hardtail strat is not going to sound very different from a tele in the neckposition, especially if you removed the cover from the Tele PU.

 

[S. Cane]

I like a nice tele as much as the next guy... unless the next guy is into PRS that is... :spabout

Two true things of beauty you got there

 

[Melody]

Some nice guitar's in this thread... Thanks for sharing.

 

[tdarian]

Couple of Strats here...
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[dafack01]

I have almost zero playing experience of a Fender, but if/when I try that route I imagine it's a Tele I'd grab first.

But then again, when I hear some Jimi Hendrix, Rory Gallagher, Jeff Beck, Mark Knopfler or Robert Cray, Strats sound appealing too.........

Beck played a Tele too! Esquire, actually. Listen to Beck's stuff from The Yardbirds; that's all Esquire. I love his stuff with the Yardbirds.

 

[Cogswell]

Couple of Strats here...
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Oh yeah, just a couple of guys playing a couple of Strats
lol

 

[DanMan]

IMO a tele is just so versatile. It's the one and only guitar that can be played and lead me to believe it is another guitar being played. But no other guitar can make me think it's a tele. The design IMO is perfect, rock solid, stays in tune, and the controls where you need em. I love my 335's and LP. But if I could only have one it'd be a tele.

 

[sonar]

What I don't get is when people say you have to fight a Tele and that it is harder to play than other electrics. Personally, Strats are much tougher to deal with...

This.

Another cool thing is you really can get a lot out of a cheap Tele or Partscaster. I've got a MIM alder body, maple neck, three saddle ashtray bridge and off the shelf replacement pu's. I've paid more for an effect pedal than this guitar and it (guitar) just kills for both twang and rock.

 

[tooold]

The really cool thing about Telecasters is that, aside from the Bigsby guitars, they were designed in a vacuum - there were no other electric solid body guitars, and they came with an incredibly simple, close-to-perfect design.

 

[roadrunner]

The Tele's close to being the perfect guitar, it's got one sort of useless part on it though and that makes the... Esquire... the perfect guitar.

 

[J.D.]

That would then suggest the LP Jr. is also a contender?

The Jr. will never get as clean and "chicken pickin" chimey as the Esquire but then again the Esquire doesn't quite rock like a Jr.

 

[sonar]

That would then suggest the LP Jr. is also a contender?

The Jr. will never get as clean and "chicken pickin" chimey as the Esquire but then again the Esquire doesn't quite rock like a Jr.

Good point.

It's hard to argue.

 

[roadrunner]

but then again the Esquire doesn't quite rock like a Jr.

Wanna bet?? I had an early '51 Esquire, beat to death but all original, with enough wire on the pickup to wind a couple of humbuckers. That thing absolutely screamed... a totally un-country sounding guitar. The pickup's output was like something over 10 ohms.

I agree, the Jr. may be the other "perfect" guitar. Nothing like a killer Jr.

 

[yeti]

Wanna bet?? I had an early '51 Esquire, beat to death but all original, with enough wire on the pickup to wind a couple of humbuckers. That thing absolutely screamed... a totally un-country sounding guitar. The pickup's output was like something over 10 ohms.

I agree, the Jr. may be the other "perfect" guitar. Nothing like a killer Jr.

Interesting, I played a mint 100% stock '51 Tele about 18 years ago that had a lead PU like that, VERY POWERFUL but still articulate and clear, really amazing output, enough to beat any amp into submission, yet a slight adjustment on the volume control and voila, the greatest fat clean tones, very reminiscent of a certain lapsteel. By far the best Tele i've ever played. The only one that came close was a Broadcaster.

 

[Minibucker]

What I don't get is when people say you have to fight a Tele and that it is harder to play than other electrics. Personally, Strats are much tougher to deal with. But that fight goes away when I block the trem up. I find a great Tele, set up right, almost plays itself. Blackguards are great too, but I like the different eras just as much. White guards have their nuances. I played a early 60's Custom at the show last year that sounded great. Late 60's w/ maplecap necks have their own thing, and its just as inspiring for me to play one of those as any blackguard I've played on. I really love playing gigs with my '68 Paisley. For the last 5 years, it been my favorite guitar out of all that I own right now. Teles to me are the most expressive electric ever made. More so than any burst I think, which I also love to play. But I play a burst for the fat Gibson sound. I play the Tele for everything else......except for 12 string sounds :teeth

I can kinda' see why one would say without as much familiarity. I never saw it as 'fight' so much, as 'milking' it more….like there's more range of sounds/feels to be gotten from it depending on attack/technique, but also it can go off the ragged edge more easily if just banged away on.

I used to be primarily a Strat player, mistakenly thinking that the Tele was a more limited palette. When I got more into Teles (and eventually adopting it primarily) I realized the opposite was true, and how much more it had to offer the player if they put in the time.

 

[roadrunner]

Interesting, I played a mint 100% stock '51 Tele about 18 years ago that had a lead PU like that, VERY POWERFUL but still articulate and clear, really amazing output, enough to beat any amp into submission, yet a slight adjustment on the volume control and voila, the greatest fat clean tones, very reminiscent of a certain lapsteel. By far the best Tele i've ever played. The only one that came close was a Broadcaster.

Those early Tele pickups, and the ones that come in the Champ lap steels were all over the place, output wise. I had a Broadcaster with one that was like the Esquire, really overwound. A friend of mine also had a Broadcaster, really country sounding guitar and it had a pretty weak pickup in it... still sounded great, just had a real twang to the tone.

 

[tooold]

That would then suggest the LP Jr. is also a contender?

The Jr. will never get as clean and "chicken pickin" chimey as the Esquire but then again the Esquire doesn't quite rock like a Jr.

That's sort of like saying the Rockies aren't as high as the Himalayas...

Here's a completely gratuitous photo of my mongrel '60 Tele:

 

[MWR]

IMHO a Blackguard Tele = perfection. You can do anything on it from chicken-pickin to full balls power chords. I agree it is perfection. :dude: