Telecaster or Stratocaster?

The modern music market offers countless models of electric guitars. Manufacturers compete in creating newer and newer designs with a whole range of innovations that allow you to create an unlimited number of sounds. No wonder, the world is moving forward, technology is evolving and new products are also entering the market of musical instruments. However, it is worth remembering about the roots, it is also worth considering whether we really need all these modern gimmicks and countless possibilities that modern electric guitars offer. How is it that solutions from several decades ago are still appreciated by professional musicians? So let’s take a closer look at the classics that started the guitar revolution, which began in the XNUMXs thanks to an accountant who lost his job in his industry.

The accountant in question is Clarence Leonidas Fender, commonly known as Leo Fender, the founder of the company that revolutionized the music world and to this day remains one of the leaders in the production of the best quality electric guitars, bass guitars and guitar amplifiers. Leo was born on August 10, 1909. In the 1951s, he founded a company bearing his name. He started by repairing radios, meanwhile experimenting, trying to help local musicians to create an appropriate sound system for their instruments. This is how the first amplifiers were created. A few years later, he went one step further by creating the first electric guitar made of a solid piece of wood – the Broadcaster model (after changing its name to Telecaster) saw the light of day in 1954. Listening to the musicians’ needs, he started working on a new melt, which was to offer more sonic possibilities and a more ergonomic shape of the body. This is how the Stratocaster was born in XNUMX. It is worth noting that both models are produced to this day in practically unchanged form, which proves the timelessness of these structures.

Let’s reverse the chronology and start the description with the model that has become more popular, the Stratocaster. The basic version includes three single-coil pickups, a single-sided tremolo bridge and a five-position pickup selector. The body is made of alder, ash or linden, a maple or rosewood fingerboard is glued to a maple neck. The main advantage of the Stratocaster is the comfort of playing and the ergonomics of the body, incomparable to other guitars. The list of musicians for whom the Strat has become the basic instrument is very long and the number of albums with its characteristic sound is countless. It is enough to mention such names as Jimi Hendrix, Jeff Beck, David Gilmour or Eric Clapton to realize what a unique structure we are dealing with. But the Stratocaster is also a great field to create your own unique sound. Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins once said – if you want to create your own unique sound then this guitar is for you.

The older brother of the Stratocaster is a completely different story. To this day, the telecaster is considered a model of raw and somewhat crude sound, which was first loved by bluesmen and then musicians who turned in alternative varieties of rock music. Tele seduces with its simple design, ease of play and, most of all, with a sound that cannot be imitated and cannot be created by any modern technology. As with the Strata, the body is typically alder or ash, the neck is maple and the fingerboard is either rosewood or maple. The guitar is equipped with two single-coil pickups and a 3-position pickup selector. The fixed bridge guarantees stability even during very aggressive games. The sound of “Telek” is clear and aggressive. The guitar has become a favorite working tool of such guitar giants as Jimi Page, Keith Richards and Tom Morello.

Both guitars have made an invaluable impact on the history of music and many iconic albums would not sound so fantastic if it were not for these guitars, but if it were not for Leo, would we even deal with an electric guitar in today’s sense of the word?