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The Latest Breaking News from Leo Fender

‘With a Strat you can rule the world!’ Nile Rodgers, Bonnie Raitt and John Squire on the electric guitar that changed everything

How did a radio repair man make an instrument so sublime that it makes giants of music weep with reverence? As the Fender Stratocaster turns 70, we explore its extraordinary life

The Guardian - UK

“A true unicorn”: Joe Bonamassa has just acquired one of the rarest Fenders ever made – a 1954 Blackguard Tele with a huge factory-installed Paul Bigsby pickup

The model is thought to be a complete one-off and is a rare example of a factory-made modification on one of Fender’s most sought-after historic builds

Guitar World

“John was constantly seeking better solutions, which manifested as astonishing woodwork and innovative electronics”: Remembering John Diggins – the luthier who built guitars for Tony Iommi and the first Red Special replica

Diggins was the mastermind behind Jaydee Custom Guitars and had over five decades of experience in making top-quality instruments

Guitar World

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“People think Seventies Fenders are bad, but that’s not correct”: Yngwie Malmsteen explains why players shouldn’t be quick to disregard early '70s-era CBS Strats

The Stratocaster’s CBS era may be remembered as one of the instrument's lowest points, but the Swedish virtuoso has pinpointed a key fact regarding the first decade of CBS's ownership of Fender

Guitar World

Floyd Rose: "Many people ask if this would have happened without Eddie Van Halen and I think it would have, but certainly not as quickly"

A rare 2010 interview with the locking tremolo innovator

MusicRadar

“My tone is already destroyed by the time it gets to the amp”: Yard Act are redefining post-punk guitar with plugins and ‘cheapo’ gear – and they reckon a Squier Bullet Tele sounds great DI’d

In a radical new album, Yard Act are blurring the lines between post-punk and hip-hop. Guitarist Sam Shipstone reveals how it was made – with sampling, budget gear and an experimental approach to tone

Guitar World

“It delivers a lot of the classic Stingray sound and it plays like a dream”: Sterling By Music Man SUB Series Stingray Ray4 review

The most affordable take on the Stingray might just be one of the greatest budget basses money can buy

Guitar World

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Fender 70th Anniversary Stratocaster editions celebrate the enduring icon

New Fender 70th Anniversary Stratocaster editions celebrate the enduring appeal of an icon of both modern music and industrial design. Here’s the new line-up

Wallpaper

These special 70th anniversary Fender Strats look as good as they sound

Fender Stratocaster celebrates 70 years in style with special edition guitars

“Am I a good bassist? I’m a f**king good bassist!” Sting on bass playing, Cream and his “battered looking” P-Bass

From the Bass Player Archive: An interview with Sting

Guitar World

“He is the fastest and cleanest and has more technique than any other”: Jimmy Bryant was one of the very first Telecaster heroes. Learn how his trailblazing playing shaped the guitarists who followed

Effortlessly mixing jazz, country and blues, Bryant was one of Albert Lee’s great influences, and his style remains a white-knuckle ride of technique and imagination

Guitar World

"All of that other stuff – the outboard gear, the electronics – can continue to evolve but the thing that you hold close to your body, that becomes part of you… you don’t have to keep evolving that" – Fender's Justin on heritage and progression

The Big F’s executive VP of product says eyes peeled for more Road Worn finishes, artist signature Acoustasonics, and more special releases to celebrate 70 years of the Stratocaster

MusicRadar

“Steve Vai and Joe Satriani’s setups are amazing examples of streamlined innovation. But with my maple neck Strat, it would be hard to do what they’re doing”: Eric Johnson on G3, profilers, and the custom pedal he “might actually put on the market”

Reunited with old friends for a new run of shows, Johnson still swears by his custom Strat and pedal – and rejects the idea that Joe Bonamassa owes him an apology

Guitar World

“90 percent of my guitars are in mint condition – untouched and unmolested... The last 10 percent – those are the ones I play on the road”: Joe Bonamassa on his legendary collection, perseverance, and how he picks his touring guitars

The blues guitar titan looks back on the 2003 album that saved his career, explains why – 20 years later – he's recorded a sequel, and reveals how his legendary guitar collection gave a new voice to slept-on blues tracks

Guitar World

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Guitar World

“The message for tube nostalgists is clear: enjoy today what may not be here tomorrow”: Can the tube amp survive in the digital era?

As digital guitar amplification continues to wow the market and guitar players alike, is it realistic to assume that it will be business as usual for the tube amp?

Guitar World

Short-scale vs long-scale bass: what's the difference?

Get the lowdown on the low-end - we look at the differences between short-scale and long-scale basses

Guitar World

“When someone wants to rehearse before the session, that’s the kiss of death”: Watch Lee Sklar’s YouTube playthrough of Steve Lukather’s Stab in the Back

Bass legend Lee Sklar used his “Frankenstein 4-string” on Lukather’s 2008 nod to Donald Fagen

Guitar World

The world’s most influential guitar gear designers: meet the pioneers behind the innovations that changed the electric guitar forever

It’s not just star guitarists who have changed the way we play – these are the innovators whose inventions forever altered the course of the guitar itself

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Guitar World

The history of Gretsch electric guitars: how guitarist, demonstrator and designer Jimmie Webster’s innovations of the ’50s and ’60s shape That Great Gretsch Sound to this day

Jazz Age razzmatazz, pickup experiments and Jimmie Webster’s wonders – we celebrate 140 years of That Great Gretsch Sound with a look at its key electric milestones

Guitar World

Without a truss rod, your guitar would be a lot harder to play – here's everything you need to know, from the history of the truss rod to how to adjust it safely

We have Gibson's Thaddeus "Ted" McHugh to thank for truss rods, and a lot to be thankful for. They made the instrument ready for the steel-string era, more playable and more durable – and adjusting them isn't as scary as you might think

Guitar World

Not changing your amp settings when you leave your rehearsal space for the stage? You're doing EQ wrong

It's called equalization for a reason: adjustments keep your sound consistent from venue to venue. These are the tweaks you need to keep in mind for top-quality guitar tone

Guitar World

“I wanted to be Paul Kossoff – a Les Paul with a wah into a Marshall and nothing else. I’d be telling myself off for dialing too much gain!” Black Stone Cherry share their gear epiphanies – and why we’re hearing Misha Mansoor’s Peavey on their new album

Ben Wells and Chris Robertson on the gear and the tones behind one of hard rock's most engaging guitar double acts – and why it all goes back to Leo Fender

Guitar World

“It’s the most money I’ve ever paid for a guitar in my life: over $400,000. But what’s a Flying V worth? It’s worth what someone’s willing to pay for it”: Joe Bonamassa opens the gates to Nerdville and shows off the most prized guitars in his collection

Bonamassa welcomes us to Nerdville to share the stories behind some of his favorite guitars, including a mint ’58 Flying V, Tommy Bolin’s mythical 1960 Gibson Les Paul Standard and a tuxedo ES-355 that might, just might, be the only one in existence

Guitar World

“His designs are some of the most identifiable in history, the tones some of the most iconic”: Leo Fender called G&L Guitars the best instruments he ever made – this is the story of the company that became his swan song

After he sold his namesake firm and exited his collaboration with Music Man, Leo Fender founded a bold new company that would play host to his final electric guitar innovations

Guitar World

Fender harks back to the ‘60s and ‘70s with overhauled and upgraded California Series acoustics – complete with period-accurate specs and aesthetics

New Standard, Special, Player and Vintage models make up the 12-strong drop – which also draws on the models made by Leo Fender and Roger Rossmeisl in the early ‘60s

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