I can tell you why it never has or never will be that, unless they widen the fretboard! The narrow ass fretboard width is why Telecasters have always sucked!
? Darrell, when you say you play a guitar for a while before you review it, Does that mean you gig or with it, play it as you wood your faves? Just curious is all.
imo, the simplicity is what makes it so versatile so it's no surprise that such a simple guitar can do so many things the more complicated a guitar is, the more it drifts towards being better at specific things rather than being good at everything
My dad bought me a Mexican Telecaster for my birthday when I was 12. I loved the way they looked and I coveted it for a while before I got it, and it felt like heaven to play it when I finally did. I’m 26 now and still have the guitar after putting a lot of upgrades in it and I still adore it. Teles are definitely my favorite guitars ever.
@Ron Shlomi IDK, depends on the strat pickup. It also depends on what style of music. I actually like them both equally. Although yes, that tele neck pick up is a phenomenal pickup.
I have been playing guitar for over 30 years and have quite a few guitars in my collection. Ibanez Jem, Jackson Randy Rhoads, Gibson SG etc. I play rock and metal music, it belongs to the good tone at that time to own a real "metal axe". Oneday my dad came home with a Fender USA Telecaster build in 96, and I thought it was ugly.... But after a short time I fell in love with this guitar, the neck, the direct tone response (strings through the body) and so simple but effectively built. I only changed the bridge pickup to a Hot Rails. And what can I say ? Whenever we went to concerts with the band, people laughed and asked me if i play country music. Only to be totally impressed later by my Telecaster, which I played through a Peavey 5150. This guitar can do everything and it stays in tune for days ;)
I've been playing for 15 years now and I've come to the same conclusion. Still love my Ibanezs, Schecters, etc... but if I had to pick one and only one out of my collection, it would be my Telecaster. I like to call it my work truck for guitars because it's rock solid, does everything I need it to do, and if anything goes wrong its super simple to fix. People love their Les Pauls to death, but it's just an imitation of the Telecaster. Same massive tones with an HH config and Fender's superior fingerboard scale length. (Being a little sarcastic with the last one because it's just personal preference. Most of my guits use Fender's scale, so don't like switching to Gibson's. Wasn't playing my Gibson for this reason and sold it because of it.) Also Telecasters are a beginner guitar builder's dream. So easy to make a Partscaster with HH config with split coil wiring. Kind of got best of both worlds when you have the right ashtray style bridge to match with it. Split coil still doesn't scream like a pure single coil Tele, but it comes close enough.
“When civilization is wiped out by nuclear war, all that will be left are cockroaches and Telecasters with straight necks, perfectly in tune.”- Greg Koch
A legendary guitar indeed. Don't forget the often overlooked wonderful neck pick up, which if your guitar is set up right, can give you a warm, rich jazz tone exemplified by legendary players such as Ted Greene, Ed Bickert, and Mike Stern. Amazing versatility.
Historical footnote: at roughly the same time here in New Zealand , a garage ‘luthier’ was making Hawai’an electric laptop guitars - and moved on to create a solid body electric guitar which an electrical tradesman turned into a workshop cottage industry, selling the product to local musos. Once they became aware of the Fender Telecaster and other …Casters, they realised the solid body shape was very similar to the Fender ones. Fender became aware of them eventually and threatened legal action. So began the practice of other guitar making companies make their guitar body shapes similar to Fender but not similar enough to get sued.
Leo's genius shines through the Tele & Strat. The Tele is his masterpiece. He got it so right right out of the box. Widely acknowledged as the best electric guitar ever made.
As an engineering student I always tells my fellows who doesn't plays guitar how Leo Fender was such a legendary engineer. The concept of bolt-on neck, truss rod, bridge saddle, and later the tremolo system, you simply can't think of any of these incredible idea if you were someone else in that era with only conventional instrument luthier experience... These concepts are created by Leo's great engineering aesthetics: keep simplicity at whereaver it could and add degree of freedom at where it might cause stability problems... I heard that Leo Fender himself is not such a guitar player (Mr. Dan Electro was said as well) but he really deserve the respect from all guitar musicians.
Leo approached his design as an engineer and came up with brilliant, simple solutions to what everyone else was attempting to do for a solid body guitar. Pure genius that has stood the test of time. People will likely be playing his design far into the future.
Out of all the guitars with such a simple layout, the Tele is perhaps the most sonically unique and versatile. The bridge pickup is already legendary for its raunchy bite and twang, but switch the center position and you can achieve glassy math rock tones, switch to the neck position and you have a warm and woody sound that is perfect for jazz. There's nothing to hide behind on a Tele, and it will force you to become the best player you can possibly be.
I've had a Strat since 1978, but eventually I found that I HAD to have a Telecaster. I fell in love with the neck pick-up. Nothing else sounds like it. The bridge pick-up is bright, and great. The neck one has a fuller sound, with some amazing upper-frequency highlights. Sheer beauty. I might well say it's the best.
Most people seem to prefer the strat neck pickup, but not its bridge pickup. I love a good telecaster neck pickup too, like my Shijie has, and its bridge pickup is wonderful sounding too. Fender versions of the Telecaster and Stratocaster aren't as good for twice the money, so wtf.....?
I have long believed that the Telecaster is certainly the most versatile guitar ever invented. I’ve seen it used in everything from country to funk to bebop jazz to metal to reggae and many other genres. I must concur that it is the best electric guitar ever for all the reasons he mentions.
Nice vid Darrell and I couldnt agree more! My first '72 Tele got unplayable (trussrod ran out of range...) and I bought a new one. The old one got heavier strings and an open tuning so I can still use it for slide. I read a great quote somewhere: When you play a Stratocaster, you sound like you're playing a Stratocaster. When you play a Telecaster, you sound like you.
I used to think they were so simply ugly. 20 years later someone put one in my hands. By far, my favorite guitar now. I love the way it looks. It's beautifully simple. The tones are the best part though.
I’ve bought and sold many guitars, but the one I won’t get rid of, and always comes back to is my telecaster. It’s the one guitar I’ll grab if the house ever caught fire. I have more expensive guitars, but none better. You forgot to mention the neck pickup with the tone slightly rolled off. So smooth.
My Shijie telecaster (~$800USD shipped w/best soft case ever) is the only guitar I play now, out of about 20 beautiful guitars of all styles. The Shijie telecaster was so awesome I got a second one with P-90 pickups, and its awesome too. I'm about to buy a third Shijie telecaster, another one with P-90 pickups, which will be changed to TV Jones "T'Armond" pickups in a P-90 size!!
Man, this video made me fall in love with Teles. I was always a Strat or LP guy and thought of Teles as museum artefacts. Guess what? At age 52 (!), I bought my first Tele! Beauty, tone, versatility, class. This was one of the most heartfelt guitar videos I ever watched. Cheers mate!
Just bought my first at 72, having played guitar for sixty years! An absolutely gorgeous, and playable guitar. Instant favourite - and love that its just a big (but very beautiful) chunk of wood!!
My first guitar in the 70s was a Tele because I was a Status Quo fan and both Rossi and Parfitt used Telecasters. I still have it. Worth a fortune apparently.
I have played a TON of electric guitars in my 30+ years of playing but that Tele tone is probably my favorite. While Teles are best known for that twang, my all time favorite tone is the neck pickup with the tone dialed down a little and just a touch of overdrive. Pure magic!
Such a wonderful guitar. I think, when I boil it all down, I just love the simplicity, both in styling and function. Simple, but still so much more versatile than most people realize. Country music has rightly become associated with the Tele, but one would be seriously mistaken to think Telecasters are only for country music. People from virtually every genre of music are using Teles effectively. Great video!
While I am primarily a Strat player, I love Telecasters for all the reasons you mentioned. Leo built a damn fine guitar, not to mention some pretty damn good amplifiers. You should also talk about the P bass in one of your videos, that was another absolute game changer.
Got a Telecaster recently and have highly considered selling my Les Paul. I used to write them off as only for chicken pickers, but boy was I gravely mistaken, a fact I learned after curiosity got the best of me and I tried one out through a high gain amp. Of course it also sounded fantastic through clean amps. But what I absolutely love about the Telecaster is the insane amount of tonal control with the volume and tone knobs. I use amp sims to play and record, and everything I put my Tele through lets me get every single sound I’m trying to dial in. Everyone seriously needs to consider getting a Tele.
I never really looked at how simple and rugged the telecaster is. I just got my first Tele about two weeks ago (Eart) and I love it. Thanks for the Video Darrell and im looking forward to the Strat video coming soon :-} great video
Tele’s are fantastic! My first “Brand name” guitar was a 1975 Fender Telecaster Thinline(thanks again Mom!) I’ve owned a few more since then, including a mint condition ‘69, a ‘77 Custom, and a super nice 2000 Mexican Standard that I restomodded with an ashtray bridge, Fender OV pickups, and Kluson tuners. Wish I would have kept them all…. But youth and stupidity sometimes go a little too well together. I now play an ‘017 American Professional, and this one is staying put! 😁👍
so, years ago, i bought an MIM stratocaster,, but i always regretted getting it instead of the telecaster. it was 50 dollars cheaper than the tele and i figured 3 pickups are worth more than 2 anyway. i rectified this two decades later with the squier affinity tele and am just thrilled with it
while there have been a ton of attempts to make a new body style, there are essentially the three classics of T-Style, S-Style and Single cutaway LP style. Every manufacturer seems to make some iteration of these three
I love my USA Tele, such a wide variety of sounds from 2 pickups and great clarity. There's just no gimmicks, distractions or anywhere to hide. If you can't get a great sound out of a Tele for any genre of music it's not the guitar.
Great video Darrell! I could listen to you talk about Teles all day. My guitar (of course) is a Tele - it's got a humbucker in the neck position. To me, that IS classic - Andy Summers, Pete Townshend, Keith Richards, etc. LOVE IT!
Excellent video Darrell ! Love the historical tribute to the man, the myth, the legend Mr. Leo Fender. Who used the K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid) method to create the iconic Telecaster. What a man and his idea that's still going strong today. Appreciate your take on the my favorite guitar. Thanks!
Started on a strat, it was great. Added an SG and really liked it but still kept trying other guitars. Always ignored the Telecaster, just never saw the draw after all it was just for country music. Finally decided what the heck and decided to play one just for grins. Things changed that day. Still play my strat pretty regular and sometimes my SG but by far, my Tele is number one. If I could only have one it would be a Telecaster first, Strat second, SG third. Cheers!
I’ve been playing guitar for 15 years now and I always loved Les Pauls because I was a huge fan of Slash growing up. So I was always looking for a great biting and great sounding rock tone for my guitar playing. I recently bought a new American professional telecaster and let me tell you this thing instantly became my go to guitar over my other 7 guitars. The only time I will put that thing down is to play my Schecter C1 Apocalypse which is also an amazing instrument and very well made. Also I’d point out that I bought both guitars because of your channel Darrell. Awesome content and awesome guitar playing. 👍🏻
Great stuff. My favorite electric guitars are definitely Telecasters; I’ve owned 5 and still have 3 of them. The best of the bunch is my 1994 American ‘52 Reissue (black guard on butterscotch). I bought it, along with a vintage reissue Fender tweed case, brand new 28 years ago. Still in mint condition and plays fantastic.
Nice, I'd love to have one of those '52 reissues. For now my Shijie telecasters, one classic the other w/P-90 pickups, are far better guitars than anything Fender makes for under $1K.
I wanted to watch some history on guitars, opened RUclips and this was in front of my face. Google can now read minds. My Tele is my go to... thank you Leo Fender.
My first guitar was a Tele in 1981. I still have that one but many others in addition. Had Strats, LPs, Gretsches, etc. still have lots of Teles and one Eastman jazz box.
I got a Squier Telecaster to use as a project guitar. I put in Seymour Duncan Jerry Donohue Lead Tele in the bridge and an Alnico II Pro Tele in the neck. I upgraded the electronics to Mojo Tone tele 4-way kit. Sounds great.
Darrell , I never thought i'd want a Tele guitar until I started watching your channel and saw how many Teles you played and/or reviewed .So after a couple years of watching Tele guitars being played , i picked up the Monoprice Indio Tele for like $89 last year , which came with a really good set up , then I picked up a set of Fender Texas special pickups for it and Oh My God this baby is a total players guitar , it really plays and sounds like a high end Tele style guitar , it is now my Go -To blues machine , but that's not to say it can't rock , because this baby does .Thank you Darrell for turning me on to the Tele style ! The Monoprice Idio was my choice because , if I didn't care for it , I wouldn't be out very much dough .
Hi Darrell, I just bought a Fender Ultra Luxe Stratocaster Floyd Rose HSS Mystic Black, I'm a terrible guitar player but I hope this guitar will help me on the path to playing a guitar well. I don't know if I can ever play that well, I watch you and it just depresses me seeing how great you are and how totally inept I am. Maybe some people like yourself just have that coordination and intelligence to play well and others are destined to never get there, I wish I knew the answer, I've been in the same place forever and it is seriously depressing... ☹
After my kid had a year of playing guitar under her belt, I bought her dream guitar for her 14th birthday this recent January. A Fender Player Telecaster in Lake Placid Blue. That telecaster bridge pickup….man! There is NOTHING….I mean NOTHING like it at all! Stuff of legends.
Hi Darrell, I love your site and have been watching/reading it for years. Here’s my question…I lived several years in Nashville, and I noticed several of the excellent telecaster players had modified their guitars to add either a B string or G string bender, some have both… they are activated by pushing down on either the front or back strap connections. Please do a show or two explaining how these are installed and played…I can’t wait to hear you play on one. Thx
The professional II series with the newly designed pickups and series mode switch is the perfect version of a tele IMO. You can play damn near anything on it. Leo’s first electric guitar and it remains to this day the best electric guitar design, with the strat being a close second.
When I first learn guitar, back in the 90's, my teacher had a worn, blonde telecaster (much like yours) which I though was old & boring.. Strats were where it was at, as far as I was concerned. Only a few months ago I bought a G&L ASAT (telecaster) and couldn't be more pleased with it! Plays great, great tones...Love it!!
What a great story Darrel, i loved it. Specialy the story of the lap-steel by Leo Fender. I mentioned before i’m building lap-steels as an hoby. A few weeks ago i finished my third lap-steel. I had to make one with the ashtray bridge, the reason is it makes contact with the aluminium neck. That gives a lot of sustain, what was the reason for using the bridge. It also brings back the steel(ish) sound, witch i like. So… loved the vlog and hope there are very more to come. Cheers
Darrell, I am not sure how many videos you've done, but the fact that you're still this enthusiastic just shows how authentic your love for guitar truly is - here's to many more views, subscriptions -- and of course, guitars!
Telecasters looked upon like a “relic from an earlier time”; probably why I love my antique white American Tele so much because I too am a relic from an earlier time . Great video Darrell, keep ‘em coming.😎🇨🇦🎸
JUST GOT THE DONNER TELECASTER I LOVE THAT FIRST PICK UP SOUND ,CHEAP IN COST BUT WELL MADE FOR MODDING WHICH I GOING TO DO IT WILL BE JUST AS GOOD AS A SQUIER OR BETTER
Your enthusiasm is contagious. I have a Telecaster but now I want another one. I have to give 9 out of 10 only because you did'nt even mention the "Bridge cover" which was an important part if the design..but you could do a quick viddy on that? You have a mighty talent for getting a message across. Nice job👍
I had an American Series Tele from 2005, and I recently sold it because I seldom took it out of the case. I sold my SG, too, and now I’m down to a couple of Strats and I couldn’t be happier.
Great video! The ability to take the telecaster - which is nearly an open canvass - and apply almost any pickup configuration, is truly great. On the long list of modded teles, I took a dirt cheap glarry and put a chrome covered p90 in the neck, with a tex mex in the bridge. A base bottom guitar, turned into something really great sounding - such is the magic of a telecaster!
I was almost exclusively Ibanez. I bought a squier tele for about 250 just because I’d never played one. Now I own 3. The thing about the tele is that it reveals who you are as a player.
My Mexican made Telecaster is my forever guitar, I've never found anything else so comfortable and versatile. I never have to worry about complications or unreliability, it's does what it does every time, and does it so well.
It is also the perfect guitar to experiment with: take off the scratch plate, route it as you wish, and put all kinds of pickups in it with minimal work. After routing you don't even have to take the string off to swap pickups.
I got an American tele pro 4-5 years ago. Specifically for the neck pickup I’ll add since it was overlooked in this vid. It has pretty much shelved my LP 82’ standard, 79’ hotrodded strat and the gretsch archtop. Have been having a passionate love affair with my tele ever since and my wife is totally into it!
I have been playing for 63 years and have owned them all, currently a G and L asat, a guitar as good as any. Darrell, so much knowledge to pass on to those that don't get it. your friend in tone, Norman Mozley
Nice video Darrell but you didn't talk about the headstock shape. For me it is so beautiful a headstock, the best looking on any guitar. When I bought my Tele in 1972 I chose it over the SG, the only other American guitar in the store, because of that graceful shape.
Darrell, your enthusiasm for this guitar is infectious! My son just picked up a Tele for his birthday after all of us playing Strats. I have been tempted to breakdown and get a Tele with an eye on some of the new Mexican Player Plus Nashville (I do like the middle pickup and the feature to get pop the tone pot to get that middle and bridge option). Just so many tone possibilities. Of course, the irony is that so much of that runs completely counter to your glowing accolades about Tele simplicity. I will have to see if you have reviewed the Player Plus Nashville Tele, just to get your take. If not, please do.
I really enjoy my Telecaster. When play a gig, I generally just it and have a back up guitar just in case. My band does a wide range of music from the Police and Cream to Stone Sour and Three Days Down.
The between position on a good tele with a single coil bridge and a neck humbucker is one of the most sublime tones I've ever played around with. You can dial in full on heavy overdrive on the bridge but you switch to that between position and roll the volume back to like 60% and it cleans up and rounds itself off so well while keeping the top end detailed. So much you can do with those two pickups and 3 positions. Not to knock the typical tele neck pickup, I think it's overhated due to the original tele wiring, and the newer teles have fantastic sounding neck pickup tones.
The ash tray bridge is what I first noticed about the telecaster thought it looked to industrial almost like an afterthought, but damn! it just works having owned one for years now can do everything with it, what is more interesting that Leo Fender didn’t even play guitar, amazing
I like the look of old Telecasters. When the Crossroads movie came out, I had to have one. I’ve had a few since then. But I always go back to my humbucker loaded guitars for gigs. Plus my right forearm hurts with a Tele compare to a Strat.
Many references to "ashtray bridge." But, unless I missed it, no mention of why it was referred to as an "ashtray" bridge. Early models had a metal cover over the bridge pickup. When you unsnap it, like many did, and turn it over, voila! There's s a handy ashtray when many musicians smoked.
Of all my guitars it’s still my go to guitar. Can’t beat the tone sometimes I hate that I don’t use some of the other ones but can’t help it lol I love it
The Telecaster changed absolutely everything...well until 1954 :)
Enjoy!
I can tell you why it never has or never will be that, unless they widen the fretboard! The narrow ass fretboard width is why Telecasters have always sucked!
? Darrell, when you say you play a guitar for a while before you review it, Does that mean you gig or with it, play it as you wood your faves? Just curious is all.
My American Standard is the one guitar I would never consider selling. And you're right, it does something no other guitar can do.
@@12xenn45 Don't own either, but the strat has a wider width fretboard.
The Telecaster is like Henry Ford's model T: simple and durable.
Between the legendary guitars and equally legendary amps, the world of music owes so much to Mr. Fender.
Amps more than guitars...........?
It’s unreal how such a simple guitar is so versatile. Over 70 years later and it’s still being produced by Fender and copied by everyone else.
And improved by Suhr
Guitarist is just so terrible conservative
@@richardjones2811 yep but they're the ultimate Copycats
imo, the simplicity is what makes it so versatile so it's no surprise that such a simple guitar can do so many things
the more complicated a guitar is, the more it drifts towards being better at specific things rather than being good at everything
That's what happens when you get a design right in the first place. It goes on and on eventually being a Classic
My dad bought me a Mexican Telecaster for my birthday when I was 12. I loved the way they looked and I coveted it for a while before I got it, and it felt like heaven to play it when I finally did. I’m 26 now and still have the guitar after putting a lot of upgrades in it and I still adore it. Teles are definitely my favorite guitars ever.
Mexican Fenders are some of the best value guitars out there.
I've ONLY got 7 Tele's...
@@sclinchy I REALLY need one!
Yes, it is a great guitar. Although the neck pickup is extremely underrated. The warmth tones you can get out of that pickup has to be my favorite.
HOT TAKE: Tele neck pickup > Strat neck pickup
@Ron Shlomi IDK, depends on the strat pickup. It also depends on what style of music. I actually like them both equally. Although yes, that tele neck pick up is a phenomenal pickup.
been at it since 1959, Vox, Fender, vibrolux reverb, Marshall, Gibson, lots of pictures, carry on my friend!
your friend in tone, Norman Mozley
Love it more than my Strat neck pickup for sure. Absolutely gorgeous
Tele neck pickup for expressive blues solos ALL DAY.
I have been playing guitar for over 30 years and have quite a few guitars in my collection. Ibanez Jem, Jackson Randy Rhoads, Gibson SG etc. I play rock and metal music, it belongs to the good tone at that time to own a real "metal axe". Oneday my dad came home with a Fender USA Telecaster build in 96, and I thought it was ugly.... But after a short time I fell in love with this guitar, the neck, the direct tone response (strings through the body) and so simple but effectively built. I only changed the bridge pickup to a Hot Rails. And what can I say ? Whenever we went to concerts with the band, people laughed and asked me if i play country music. Only to be totally impressed later by my Telecaster, which I played through a Peavey 5150. This guitar can do everything and it stays in tune for days ;)
I've been playing for 15 years now and I've come to the same conclusion. Still love my Ibanezs, Schecters, etc... but if I had to pick one and only one out of my collection, it would be my Telecaster. I like to call it my work truck for guitars because it's rock solid, does everything I need it to do, and if anything goes wrong its super simple to fix. People love their Les Pauls to death, but it's just an imitation of the Telecaster. Same massive tones with an HH config and Fender's superior fingerboard scale length. (Being a little sarcastic with the last one because it's just personal preference. Most of my guits use Fender's scale, so don't like switching to Gibson's. Wasn't playing my Gibson for this reason and sold it because of it.)
Also Telecasters are a beginner guitar builder's dream. So easy to make a Partscaster with HH config with split coil wiring. Kind of got best of both worlds when you have the right ashtray style bridge to match with it. Split coil still doesn't scream like a pure single coil Tele, but it comes close enough.
“When civilization is wiped out by nuclear war, all that will be left are cockroaches and Telecasters with straight necks, perfectly in tune.”- Greg Koch
A legendary guitar indeed. Don't forget the often overlooked wonderful neck pick up, which if your guitar is set up right, can give you a warm, rich jazz tone exemplified by legendary players such as Ted Greene, Ed Bickert, and Mike Stern. Amazing versatility.
Historical footnote: at roughly the same time here in New Zealand
, a garage ‘luthier’ was making Hawai’an electric laptop guitars - and moved on to create a solid body electric guitar which an electrical tradesman turned into a workshop cottage industry, selling the product to local musos. Once they became aware of the Fender Telecaster and other …Casters, they realised the solid body shape was very similar to the Fender ones. Fender became aware of them eventually and threatened legal action. So began the practice of other guitar making companies make their guitar body shapes similar to Fender but not similar enough to get sued.
Steppenwolf "Born To Be Wild" Michael Monarch. A Telecaster through a '62 Fender Concert amp. Heavenly sound, raw power chords. Listen to it now.
Leo's genius shines through the Tele & Strat. The Tele is his masterpiece. He got it so right right out of the box. Widely acknowledged as the best electric guitar ever made.
As an engineering student I always tells my fellows who doesn't plays guitar how Leo Fender was such a legendary engineer. The concept of bolt-on neck, truss rod, bridge saddle, and later the tremolo system, you simply can't think of any of these incredible idea if you were someone else in that era with only conventional instrument luthier experience... These concepts are created by Leo's great engineering aesthetics: keep simplicity at whereaver it could and add degree of freedom at where it might cause stability problems... I heard that Leo Fender himself is not such a guitar player (Mr. Dan Electro was said as well) but he really deserve the respect from all guitar musicians.
I finally now own my 4 dream guitars: A Tele, a Strat, an ES-335 and a Les Paul Special equipped with P-90s...
Leo approached his design as an engineer and came up with brilliant, simple solutions to what everyone else was attempting to do for a solid body guitar. Pure genius that has stood the test of time. People will likely be playing his design far into the future.
Out of all the guitars with such a simple layout, the Tele is perhaps the most sonically unique and versatile. The bridge pickup is already legendary for its raunchy bite and twang, but switch the center position and you can achieve glassy math rock tones, switch to the neck position and you have a warm and woody sound that is perfect for jazz. There's nothing to hide behind on a Tele, and it will force you to become the best player you can possibly be.
I've had a Strat since 1978, but eventually I found that I HAD to have a Telecaster. I fell in love with the neck pick-up. Nothing else sounds like it. The bridge pick-up is bright, and great. The neck one has a fuller sound, with some amazing upper-frequency highlights. Sheer beauty.
I might well say it's the best.
Most people seem to prefer the strat neck pickup, but not its bridge pickup. I love a good telecaster neck pickup too, like my Shijie has, and its bridge pickup is wonderful sounding too. Fender versions of the Telecaster and Stratocaster aren't as good for twice the money, so wtf.....?
I have long believed that the Telecaster is certainly the most versatile guitar ever invented. I’ve seen it used in everything from country to funk to bebop jazz to metal to reggae and many other genres. I must concur that it is the best electric guitar ever for all the reasons he mentions.
I had no interest in Tele's for a long time, then I assembled one for myself and discovered what I was missing. Love them now.
Ditto Darrell, the Tele is a Masterpiece !!! A design of genius that changed music forever !!!
Nice vid Darrell and I couldnt agree more! My first '72 Tele got unplayable (trussrod ran out of range...) and I bought a new one. The old one got heavier strings and an open tuning so I can still use it for slide. I read a great quote somewhere:
When you play a Stratocaster, you sound like you're playing a Stratocaster.
When you play a Telecaster, you sound like you.
Great quote!!
I used to think they were so simply ugly. 20 years later someone put one in my hands. By far, my favorite guitar now. I love the way it looks. It's beautifully simple. The tones are the best part though.
I’ve bought and sold many guitars, but the one I won’t get rid of, and always comes back to is my telecaster. It’s the one guitar I’ll grab if the house ever caught fire. I have more expensive guitars, but none better. You forgot to mention the neck pickup with the tone slightly rolled off. So smooth.
My Shijie telecaster (~$800USD shipped w/best soft case ever) is the only guitar I play now, out of about 20 beautiful guitars of all styles. The Shijie telecaster was so awesome I got a second one with P-90 pickups, and its awesome too. I'm about to buy a third Shijie telecaster, another one with P-90 pickups, which will be changed to TV Jones "T'Armond" pickups in a P-90 size!!
I love your presentation style. Very natural, casual and down to earth. Great info too! 👍
This might be the best telecaster video ever made. Super well done and completely loaded with every important tid bit on telecasters. Love it
Man, this video made me fall in love with Teles. I was always a Strat or LP guy and thought of Teles as museum artefacts. Guess what? At age 52 (!), I bought my first Tele! Beauty, tone, versatility, class. This was one of the most heartfelt guitar videos I ever watched. Cheers mate!
Get a Shijie telecaster, much better than Fender Professional II or Vintage II models, and for HALF THE PRICE.
Just bought my first at 72, having played guitar for sixty years! An absolutely gorgeous, and playable guitar. Instant favourite - and love that its just a big (but very beautiful) chunk of wood!!
My first guitar in the 70s was a Tele because I was a Status Quo fan and both Rossi and Parfitt used Telecasters.
I still have it. Worth a fortune apparently.
I have played a TON of electric guitars in my 30+ years of playing but that Tele tone is probably my favorite. While Teles are best known for that twang, my all time favorite tone is the neck pickup with the tone dialed down a little and just a touch of overdrive. Pure magic!
Such a wonderful guitar. I think, when I boil it all down, I just love the simplicity, both in styling and function. Simple, but still so much more versatile than most people realize. Country music has rightly become associated with the Tele, but one would be seriously mistaken to think Telecasters are only for country music. People from virtually every genre of music are using Teles effectively. Great video!
While I am primarily a Strat player, I love Telecasters for all the reasons you mentioned. Leo built a damn fine guitar, not to mention some pretty damn good amplifiers. You should also talk about the P bass in one of your videos, that was another absolute game changer.
Got a Telecaster recently and have highly considered selling my Les Paul. I used to write them off as only for chicken pickers, but boy was I gravely mistaken, a fact I learned after curiosity got the best of me and I tried one out through a high gain amp. Of course it also sounded fantastic through clean amps.
But what I absolutely love about the Telecaster is the insane amount of tonal control with the volume and tone knobs. I use amp sims to play and record, and everything I put my Tele through lets me get every single sound I’m trying to dial in.
Everyone seriously needs to consider getting a Tele.
I never really looked at how simple and rugged the telecaster is. I just got my first Tele about two weeks ago (Eart) and I love it. Thanks for the Video Darrell and im looking forward to the Strat video coming soon :-} great video
Why do people always say how rugged a telecaster is, when a strat is the same in that regard....>?
The Tele always looks so nice 😍
Tele’s are fantastic! My first “Brand name” guitar was a 1975 Fender Telecaster Thinline(thanks again Mom!) I’ve owned a few more since then, including a mint condition ‘69, a ‘77 Custom, and a super nice 2000 Mexican Standard that I restomodded with an ashtray bridge, Fender OV pickups, and Kluson tuners.
Wish I would have kept them all…. But youth and stupidity sometimes go a little too well together.
I now play an ‘017 American Professional, and this one is staying put! 😁👍
so, years ago, i bought an MIM stratocaster,, but i always regretted getting it instead of the telecaster. it was 50 dollars cheaper than the tele and i figured 3 pickups are worth more than 2 anyway. i rectified this two decades later with the squier affinity tele and am just thrilled with it
I got Mexican Telecaster ( lake placid blue). I love this guitar. Sounds great! And I'm happy with this beautiful instrument.
It took me decades but I came around to the Tele sound. As a Gibson HB guy I can fully recomend it to a ibsonuy who never had or wanted any Fender.
while there have been a ton of attempts to make a new body style, there are essentially the three classics of T-Style, S-Style and Single cutaway LP style. Every manufacturer seems to make some iteration of these three
My favorite guitar of all time. It’s just fun to play.
I love my USA Tele, such a wide variety of sounds from 2 pickups and great clarity. There's just no gimmicks, distractions or anywhere to hide. If you can't get a great sound out of a Tele for any genre of music it's not the guitar.
Great video Darrell! I could listen to you talk about Teles all day. My guitar (of course) is a Tele - it's got a humbucker in the neck position. To me, that IS classic - Andy Summers, Pete Townshend, Keith Richards, etc. LOVE IT!
?The telecaster neck pickup, single coil, if designed right, is the best sounding pickup I ever heard (Shijie did it right)!
Great neck, versatile sound and the price was right...I got mine in 1967 for $150.00 w/ case....AND Freddy King played one.
Got a avi 52 tele on Black Friday in November last year . Still can’t put it down so fun to play and can cover everything!
Excellent video Darrell ! Love the historical tribute to the man, the myth, the legend Mr. Leo Fender. Who used the K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid) method to create the iconic Telecaster. What a man and his idea that's still going strong today.
Appreciate your take on the my favorite guitar. Thanks!
Leo was a great amplifier designer, but his guitars were designed by other people who worked with him.
Darrell, your excitement is contagious. BTW your ashtray bridge is missing the other half of its ashtray!
Started on a strat, it was great. Added an SG and really liked it but still kept trying other guitars. Always ignored the Telecaster, just never saw the draw after all it was just for country music. Finally decided what the heck and decided to play one just for grins. Things changed that day. Still play my strat pretty regular and sometimes my SG but by far, my Tele is number one. If I could only have one it would be a Telecaster first, Strat second, SG third. Cheers!
I’ve been playing guitar for 15 years now and I always loved Les Pauls because I was a huge fan of Slash growing up. So I was always looking for a great biting and great sounding rock tone for my guitar playing. I recently bought a new American professional telecaster and let me tell you this thing instantly became my go to guitar over my other 7 guitars. The only time I will put that thing down is to play my Schecter C1 Apocalypse which is also an amazing instrument and very well made. Also I’d point out that I bought both guitars because of your channel Darrell. Awesome content and awesome guitar playing. 👍🏻
Great stuff. My favorite electric guitars are definitely Telecasters; I’ve owned 5 and still have 3 of them. The best of the bunch is my 1994 American ‘52 Reissue (black guard on butterscotch). I bought it, along with a vintage reissue Fender tweed case, brand new 28 years ago. Still in mint condition and plays fantastic.
Nice, I'd love to have one of those '52 reissues. For now my Shijie telecasters, one classic the other w/P-90 pickups, are far better guitars than anything Fender makes for under $1K.
I wanted to watch some history on guitars, opened RUclips and this was in front of my face. Google can now read minds. My Tele is my go to... thank you Leo Fender.
I have a Squier Classic Vibe 50's Tele looks just like that one. It's my first electric and I absolutely love it!
Beautiful guitar!! I'm loving my American Original 50's telecaster. The vintage 52 pu's are something else.
As always no wasted time, informative! Bravo Mr Braun!
My first guitar was a Tele in 1981. I still have that one but many others in addition. Had Strats, LPs, Gretsches, etc. still have lots of Teles and one Eastman jazz box.
I got a Squier Telecaster to use as a project guitar. I put in Seymour Duncan Jerry Donohue Lead Tele in the bridge and an Alnico II Pro Tele in the neck. I upgraded the electronics to Mojo Tone tele 4-way kit. Sounds great.
I love my vintage Tele , it can handle every style of music , plays well , is simple and very very stable.
Darrell , I never thought i'd want a Tele guitar until I started watching your channel and saw how many Teles you played and/or reviewed .So after a couple years of watching Tele guitars being played , i picked up the Monoprice Indio Tele for like $89 last year , which came with a really good set up , then I picked up a set of Fender Texas special pickups for it and Oh My God this baby is a total players guitar , it really plays and sounds like a high end Tele style guitar , it is now my Go -To blues machine , but that's not to say it can't rock , because this baby does .Thank you Darrell for turning me on to the Tele style ! The Monoprice Idio was my choice because , if I didn't care for it , I wouldn't be out very much dough .
Hi Darrell, I just bought a Fender Ultra Luxe Stratocaster Floyd Rose HSS Mystic Black, I'm a terrible guitar player but I hope this guitar will help me on the path to playing a guitar well. I don't know if I can ever play that well, I watch you and it just depresses me seeing how great you are and how totally inept I am. Maybe some people like yourself just have that coordination and intelligence to play well and others are destined to never get there, I wish I knew the answer, I've been in the same place forever and it is seriously depressing... ☹
After my kid had a year of playing guitar under her belt, I bought her dream guitar for her 14th birthday this recent January. A Fender Player Telecaster in Lake Placid Blue.
That telecaster bridge pickup….man! There is NOTHING….I mean NOTHING like it at all! Stuff of legends.
Hi Darrell, I love your site and have been watching/reading it for years. Here’s my question…I lived several years in Nashville, and I noticed several of the excellent telecaster players had modified their guitars to add either a B string or G string bender, some have both… they are activated by pushing down on either the front or back strap connections.
Please do a show or two explaining how these are installed and played…I can’t wait to hear you play on one. Thx
The professional II series with the newly designed pickups and series mode switch is the perfect version of a tele IMO. You can play damn near anything on it. Leo’s first electric guitar and it remains to this day the best electric guitar design, with the strat being a close second.
I agree with everything you say, Darrell, it just bugs me it took 50 odd years and very many guitars to find, and fall in love with, my American Tele…
Like you I also wanted to broaden my range of sounds so I recently bought a Tele. It is a Mexican '52. I love it.
When I first learn guitar, back in the 90's, my teacher had a worn, blonde telecaster (much like yours) which I though was old & boring.. Strats were where it was at, as far as I was concerned. Only a few months ago I bought a G&L ASAT (telecaster) and couldn't be more pleased with it! Plays great, great tones...Love it!!
Teles for life!! I'd love to see this about Strats, LPs, ect ect
?
What a great story Darrel, i loved it. Specialy the story of the lap-steel by Leo Fender. I mentioned before i’m building lap-steels as an hoby. A few weeks ago i finished my third lap-steel. I had to make one with the ashtray bridge, the reason is it makes contact with the aluminium neck. That gives a lot of sustain, what was the reason for using the bridge. It also brings back the steel(ish) sound, witch i like. So… loved the vlog and hope there are very more to come. Cheers
Darrell, I am not sure how many videos you've done, but the fact that you're still this enthusiastic just shows how authentic your love for guitar truly is - here's to many more views, subscriptions -- and of course, guitars!
I have a Nashville telecaster with three pickups and five way switch I love it
My favorite guitar. I have 5 T-style guitars. Still want another. 😁 Yes, I have Strats, etc.
Wondering why my face cheeks were hurting then realized the silly grin on while listening to this. Thanks Darrell!
Telecasters looked upon like a “relic from an earlier time”; probably why I love my antique white American Tele so much because I too am a relic from an earlier time . Great video Darrell, keep ‘em coming.😎🇨🇦🎸
JUST GOT THE DONNER TELECASTER I LOVE THAT FIRST PICK UP SOUND ,CHEAP IN COST BUT WELL MADE FOR MODDING WHICH I GOING TO DO IT WILL BE JUST AS GOOD AS A SQUIER OR BETTER
Your enthusiasm is contagious. I have a Telecaster but now I want another one. I have to give 9 out of 10 only because you did'nt even mention the "Bridge cover" which was an important part if the design..but you could do a quick viddy on that? You have a mighty talent for getting a message across. Nice job👍
I had an American Series Tele from 2005, and I recently sold it because I seldom took it out of the case. I sold my SG, too, and now I’m down to a couple of Strats and I couldn’t be happier.
Distilled goodness, love my Telecaster!🎸🎸🎸
I enjoyed learning about the Tele in the context of when it was first created and how different it was from existing guitars.
Great video! The ability to take the telecaster - which is nearly an open canvass - and apply almost any pickup configuration, is truly great. On the long list of modded teles, I took a dirt cheap glarry and put a chrome covered p90 in the neck, with a tex mex in the bridge. A base bottom guitar, turned into something really great sounding - such is the magic of a telecaster!
Love mine, although I did carve the back to make it more comfortable and added a humbucker between the other 2 pick ups and a 5 way switch.
I was almost exclusively Ibanez. I bought a squier tele for about 250 just because I’d never played one. Now I own 3. The thing about the tele is that it reveals who you are as a player.
I've got a Fender Baja Telecaster in Butterscotch. It's the guitar I always wanted. Love it!
My Mexican made Telecaster is my forever guitar, I've never found anything else so comfortable and versatile. I never have to worry about complications or unreliability, it's does what it does every time, and does it so well.
Thanks for another great video. Your enthusiasm is contageous.
Thanks for the history - very interesting. I have an American Standard Tele and just love it. I seek out tele artists to listen to.
Very reliable yet versatile guitar. A true workhorse. I am glad to own a Mex Tele.
Thanks for the nice review Darrell!
Darrell Great history lesson, Love the show.
It is also the perfect guitar to experiment with: take off the scratch plate, route it as you wish, and put all kinds of pickups in it with minimal work. After routing you don't even have to take the string off to swap pickups.
I got an American tele pro 4-5 years ago. Specifically for the neck pickup I’ll add since it was overlooked in this vid. It has pretty much shelved my LP 82’ standard, 79’ hotrodded strat and the gretsch archtop. Have been having a passionate love affair with my tele ever since and my wife is totally into it!
I have been playing for 63 years and have owned them all, currently a G and L asat, a guitar as good as any. Darrell, so much knowledge to pass on to those that don't get it. your friend in tone, Norman Mozley
Nice video Darrell but you didn't talk about the headstock shape. For me it is so beautiful a headstock, the best looking on any guitar. When I bought my Tele in 1972 I chose it over the SG, the only other American guitar in the store, because of that graceful shape.
I agree - the headstock shape is one of the things I love about the Tele. I've had mine now for 42 years.
Darrell, your enthusiasm for this guitar is infectious! My son just picked up a Tele for his birthday after all of us playing Strats. I have been tempted to breakdown and get a Tele with an eye on some of the new Mexican Player Plus Nashville (I do like the middle pickup and the feature to get pop the tone pot to get that middle and bridge option). Just so many tone possibilities. Of course, the irony is that so much of that runs completely counter to your glowing accolades about Tele simplicity. I will have to see if you have reviewed the Player Plus Nashville Tele, just to get your take. If not, please do.
Well Done DARRELL!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🎸⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Buck Owens and Don Rich with the twin Telecaster attack, Bakersfield. the home of Rockabilly: Nuff said!
Your face expressions say it all! I have four of them, but not a traditional design that I feel I should have it in the near future.
I really enjoy my Telecaster. When play a gig, I generally just it and have a back up guitar just in case. My band does a wide range of music from the Police and Cream to Stone Sour and Three Days Down.
I have always my US Tele 95'. It's a rock. Indestructible.
The between position on a good tele with a single coil bridge and a neck humbucker is one of the most sublime tones I've ever played around with. You can dial in full on heavy overdrive on the bridge but you switch to that between position and roll the volume back to like 60% and it cleans up and rounds itself off so well while keeping the top end detailed. So much you can do with those two pickups and 3 positions. Not to knock the typical tele neck pickup, I think it's overhated due to the original tele wiring, and the newer teles have fantastic sounding neck pickup tones.
The ash tray bridge is what I first noticed about the telecaster thought it looked to industrial almost like an afterthought, but damn! it just works having owned one for years now can do everything with it, what is more interesting that Leo Fender didn’t even play guitar, amazing
The always perfect Darell Braun, Great show!
I like the look of old Telecasters. When the Crossroads movie came out, I had to have one. I’ve had a few since then.
But I always go back to my humbucker loaded guitars for gigs. Plus my right forearm hurts with a Tele compare to a Strat.
I got two of the 70s model. But I gotta buy some more.
Very versatile and very simple. I love it
Many references to "ashtray bridge." But, unless I missed it, no mention of why it was referred to as an "ashtray" bridge. Early models had a metal cover over the bridge pickup. When you unsnap it, like many did, and turn it over, voila! There's s a handy ashtray when many musicians smoked.
Of all my guitars it’s still my go to guitar. Can’t beat the tone sometimes I hate that I don’t use some of the other ones but can’t help it lol I love it