Fender Telecaster

Fender Telecaster
Manufacturer	Fender
Period	1950–present
Construction
Body type	Solid
Neck joint	Bolt-on
Scale	25.5 in (650 mm)
Woods
Body	Alder Ash Poplar Pine Basswood
Neck	Maple
Fretboard	Maple Rosewood Pau ferro
Hardware
Bridge	Proprietary "Ashtray" or modern style with string through or top load strings.Since 2017 the Professional Series Teles feature a clip- on partial bridge cover.
Pickup(s)	Traditionally two single-coils Other pickup configurations are available
Colors available
2 or 3-or maple color sunbursts Shades of blonde (translucent earth tones) sonic blue, red, surf green, yellow, wine red.

The Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele /ˈtɛli/, is the world's first commercially successful solid-body electric guitar. Its simple yet effective design and revolutionary sound broke ground and set trends in electric guitar manufacturing and popular music. Introduced for national distribution as the Broadcaster in the autumn of 1950 as a two-pickup version of its sister model, the single-pickup Esquire, the pair were the first guitars of their kind manufactured on a substantial scale. A trademark conflict with a rival manufacturer's (Gretsch Broadkaster) led to the guitar being renamed in 1951. Initially, the Broadcaster name was simply cut off of the labels placed on the guitars (leading to a limited run of nameless guitars known as "No-casters") and later in 1951, the final name of Telecaster was applied to the guitar. The Telecaster quickly became a popular model, and has remained in continuous production since its first incarnation.

Just like the Fender Stratocaster, the Telecaster is also a versatile guitar, usable for most styles of music and has been used in many genres, including country, reggae, rock, pop, folk, soul, blues, jazz, punk, metal, alternative, indie rock, and R&B. The base model has always been available, and other than a change to the pickup selector switch configuration, a thinning of the neck, and a few variations on the bridge design, it has remained recognizable and mostly unchanged from the 1950s. Several variant models have been produced over the years including those with different pickup configurations and electronics, semi-hollow body designs, and even a twelve string model.

Overall design

The archetypical Fender Telecaster is a solid-body electric guitar with a flat asymmetric single-cutaway body; the body is usually made from alder or ash. The neck is usually made from maple and attached to the body with screws (often referred to as "bolts") and has a distinctive small headstock with six tuning pegs mounted inline along a single side; the fingerboard may be maple or another wood, e.g. rosewood, and has at least twenty-one frets. The Telecaster's body is front-routed for electronics; the bridge pickup is mounted in a metal plate attached to the guitar's bridge, other pickups are mounted in a plastic pickguard, and the controls are mounted in a metal plate on the lower bout of the guitar. Most Telecasters have two single-coil pickups, a pickup selector switch, a single volume control and a single tone control. Fixed bridges are almost universal, and the original design has three individually adjustable dual-string saddles whose height and intonation can be set independently. (Many newer models have six saddles.) The output jack is mounted on the edge of the lower bout of the guitar. Many different colours have been available. The Telecaster's scale length is 25.5 inches (648 mm).

There have been minor changes to the design over the years and models with features that differ from the archetypical design. However, the essential character of the design has remained constant.

Body and electronics

Headstock

Bridge

Origins

The Fender Telecaster was developed by Leo Fender in Fullerton, California, in 1950. In the period roughly between 1932 and 1949, several craftsmen and companies experimented with solid-body electric guitars, but none had made a significant impact on the market. Leo Fender's Telecaster was the design that made bolt-on neck, solid body guitars viable in the marketplace.

Fender had an electronics repair shop called Fender's Radio Service where he first repaired, then designed, amplifiers and electromagnetic pickups for musicians — chiefly players of electric semi-acoustic guitars, electric Hawaiian lap steel guitars, and mandolins. Players had been "wiring up" their instruments in search of greater volume and projection since the late 1920s, and electric semi-acoustics (such as the Gibson ES-150) had long been widely available. Tone had never, until then, been the primary reason for a guitarist to go electric, but in 1943, when Fender and his partner, Clayton Orr "Doc" Kauffman, built a crude wooden guitar as a pickup test rig, local country players started asking to borrow it for gigs. It sounded bright and sustaining. Fender was intrigued and so, in 1949, he built a better prototype. Though it was long understood that solid construction offered great advantages in electric instruments and the then-small Audiovox company had apparently offered a modern, solid-body electric guitar as early as the mid-1930s, no commercial solid-body Spanish guitars had ever caught on. Fender sought to change that.

That hand-built prototype, an unbranded white guitar with no model name, had most of the features of what would become the Telecaster. It was designed in the spirit of the solid-body Hawaiian guitars manufactured by Rickenbacker — small, simple units made of Bakelite and aluminum with the parts bolted together — but with wooden construction. (Rickenbacker, then spelled "Rickenbacher", also offered a solid Bakelite-bodied electric Spanish guitar in 1935 that seemed to presage details of Fender's design.)

Telecaster evolution

1st prototype (1949)

Broadcaster (1950)

"Nocaster" (1951)

Precision Bass (1951, replica)

Telecaster replica (1952)

Esquire (1954)

1950

The initial single-pickup production model appeared in 1950, and was called the Fender Esquire. Ash and maple were used to construct the body and neck respectively and the guitar came in one color - blond. Fewer than fifty guitars were originally produced under that name, and most were replaced under warranty because of early manufacturing problems. In particular, the Esquire necks had no truss rod and many were replaced due to bent necks. Later in 1950, this single-pickup model was discontinued, and a two-pickup model was renamed the Broadcaster. From this point onward all Fender necks incorporated truss rods. The Esquire was reintroduced in 1951 as a single pickup variant, at a lower price.

1951

As a result of legal action from the Gretsch company over the guitar's name, the Broadcaster (Gretsch already had the "Broadkaster" name registered for a line of drums), factory workers simply snipped the "Broadcaster" name from its existing stock of decals, so guitars with these decals are identified simply as "Fender", without any model name.

The term Nocaster was later coined by collectors to denote these transitional guitars that appeared without a model name on the headstock. Since they were manufactured in this form for 8-9 months in 1951, original Nocasters are highly prized by collectors. There are no official production numbers, but experts estimate that fewer than 500 Nocasters were produced. Fender has since registered Nocaster as a trademark to denote its modern replicas of this famous rarity.

In around September 1951, Fender renamed the guitar to Telecaster and started placing these decals on the headstock. The guitar now known as the Fender Telecaster was born.

With a transparent butterscotch finish, single ply 'Black Guard', Maple neck with Walnut back stripe, the Telecaster was set to become the most successfully mass produced electric guitar in history along with the Fender Stratocaster arriving in 1954.

Kerslake, Travis. "A 1951 Fender Telecaster". www.vintageelectric.com.au. Retrieved 7 July 2020.

The most interesting part of the invention of the Fender Telecaster is that it remains one of the very few industrially manufactured products in history where the initial design was considered to be at its very best upon first release. Although subjective, this point is evidenced by the continual reissue of the 1951 Nocaster and 1952 Telecaster in large numbers by the company to this day.

In 1951, Fender released the innovative and musically influential Precision Bass as a similar looking stable-mate to the Telecaster. This body style was later released as the Fender Telecaster Bass in 1968 after the Precision Bass had been changed in 1957 to make it more closely resemble the Fender Stratocaster guitar.

This double cut away style was the shape that influenced how the Fender Stratocaster was created. At the time Leo Fender began marketing the newly designed Stratocaster in 1954, he expected it to replace the Telecaster, but the Telecaster's many virtues and unique musical personality have kept it in demand to the present day.

1952

Now that Leo Fender was clear of any patent or naming infringements, by 1952, the Fender company began producing the Telecaster guitar in larger numbers. These early Telecasters would become known as Blackguards produced between 1950-1954. For further reading, Nacho Banos wrote an excellent book concerning these particular Telecaster guitars in 2005 called "The Blackguard : A Detailed History of the Early Fender Telecaster Years 1950-1954".

Construction

Leo Fender's simple and modular design was geared to mass production and made servicing broken guitars easier. Guitars were not constructed individually, as in traditional luthiery. Rather, components were produced quickly and inexpensively in quantity and assembled into a guitar on an assembly line. The bodies were bandsawn and routed from slabs, rather than hand-carved individually, as with other guitars made at the time, such as Gibsons. Fender did not use the traditional glued-in neck, but rather a "bolt-on" neck (which is actually attached using screws, not bolts). This not only made production easier, but allowed the neck to be quickly removed and serviced, or replaced entirely. In addition, the classic Telecaster neck was fashioned from a single piece of maple without a separate fingerboard, and the frets were slid directly into the side of the maple surface. The very design of the headstock (inspired by Croatian instruments, according to Leo Fender) followed that simplicity principle : it's very narrow, since it was cut in a single piece of wood (without glued "wings"): nonetheless, that headstock is very effective, as the six strings are kept straight behind the nut, keeping the guitar easily in tune. While this has changed over time with new reincarnations of the guitar, this was a highly unorthodox approach in its day as guitars traditionally featured rosewood or ebony fingerboards glued onto mahogany necks. The electronics were easily accessed for repair or replacement through a removable control plate, a great advantage over the construction of the then-predominant hollow-body instruments, in which the electronics could be accessed only through the soundholes.

In its classic form, the guitar is simply constructed, with the neck and fingerboard comprising a single piece of maple, screwed to an ash or alder body inexpensively jigged with flat surfaces on the front and back. The hardware includes two single coil pickups controlled by a three-way selector switch, and one each of volume and tone controls. The pickguard was first Bakelite, soon thereafter it was celluloid (later other plastics), screwed directly onto the body with five (later eight) screws. The bridge has three adjustable saddles, with strings doubled up on each. In its original design nearly all components are secured using only screws (body, neck, tuners, bridge, scratchplate, pickups to body, control plate, output socket), with glue used to secure the nut and solder used to connect the electronic components. With the introduction of the truss rod, and later a rosewood fingerboard, more gluing was required during construction. The guitar quickly gained a following, and soon other, more established guitar companies (such as Gibson, whose Les Paul model was introduced in 1952, and later Gretsch, Rickenbacker, and others) began working on wooden solid-body production models of their own.

A Telecaster in "Paisley Red" (originally released during 1968–69)

The Telecaster has always had a three-position selector switch to allow for different pickup configurations, as well as two knobs for controlling volume and tone. However, different eras had different functions for these controls. The original switch and knob configuration was used from 1950 to 1952. The first position (switch towards neck) activated the neck pickup with treble tone cut, which produced a muffled, bass-heavy tone (sometimes called the "dark circuit"). The middle position selected the neck pickup without the treble cut, giving it a fuller sound, and in the third position had both pickups together and activated the tone knob. On these models, the tone knob acted as a blending knob, with the "0" position using only the bridge pickup, blending to a 50/50 neck/bridge mix in the "10" position. The first knob functioned normally as a master volume control.

In late 1952, Fender made several changes to the circuitry of the guitar. First, a true tone control knob was installed, that could be used to alter the tone from bass-heavy (in the 0 position) to treble-heavy (in the 10 position). The first position stayed the same as before, with the neck pickup in "dark circuit" treble-cut mode. In this position, the tone knob was disabled. The middle position turned off the dark circuit, and turned on the tone control knob for the neck pickup. The third position selected the bridge pick-up alone, again with an active tone control knob. Although this provided the player with a proper tone control, the change also made it impossible to blend the signal from both pickups. In late 1967 Fender again modified the circuit. They removed the "dark circuit" from the first position, and installed what has become the standard twin pickup switching system: neck pickup alone with tone control in the first position, both pickups together with the tone control in the middle position and in the third position the bridge pickup alone with the tone control.

Typical modern Telecasters (such as the American Standard version) incorporate several details different from the classic form. They typically feature 22 frets (rather than 21) and truss rod adjustments are made at the headstock end, or the body end depending on the model (typically at the head-stock in newer models). The body end requires removal of the neck (the Custom Shop Bajo Sexto Baritone Tele was the only Telecaster featuring a two-octave 24-fret neck). The three-saddle bridge of the original has been replaced with a six-saddle version, allowing independent length and height adjustment for each string. The long saddle bridge screws allow a wide range of saddle bridge positions for intonation tuning. The stamped metal bridge plate has been replaced with a flat plate, and the removable chromed bridge cover (often called the "ashtray" for its secondary use) has been discontinued for most models; it improved shielding but prevented players from muting strings at the bridge and made it impossible to pick near the saddles to produce the characteristic Telecaster 'twang'.

During the CBS era in the 1970s, the Telecaster body style was changed to a new "notchless" shape, having a less pronounced notch in the crook where the upper bout meets the neck. The notchless body style was discontinued in 1982.

The short-lived Elite Telecaster of 1983 incorporated two specially designed humbucking pickups powered by an active circuitry that featured a "TBX" guitar expander and an MDX midrange booster with 12 dB of gain. Other features included a "Freeflyte" hardtail bridge and die-cast tuning machines with pearloid buttons. This guitar was among the latest CBS-era Fenders to feature a BiFlex truss-rod system, low-friction EasyGlider string trees and active electronics. After CBS sold Fender to a group of employees led by Bill C. Schultz in 1985, production ceased on the Elite Telecaster and other Elite models. Fender Japan made its own version of the Elite Telecaster in late 1984, which featured a 22-fret neck with medium-jumbo fretwire and a modern 9.5 inch fingerboard radius. Notable Elite Telecaster players include Johnny Hallyday, Dave Davies of The Kinks, Michael Houser with Widespread Panic, and Andy Summers of The Police.

The Telecaster sound

The Telecaster is known for its ability to produce both a bright, rich cutting tone (the typical Telecaster country twang) and a mellow, warm, bluesy jazz tone depending on the selected pickup, respectively "bridge" pickup or "neck" pickup, and by adjusting the tone control. This makes the Telecaster a versatile instrument that can be used for different musical styles and sounds, allowing performers to change styles and sounds without changing instruments. The bridge pickup has more windings than the neck pickup, hence producing higher output, which compensates for a lower amplitude of vibration of the strings at the bridge position. At the same time, a capacitor between the slider of the volume control and the output allows treble sounds to bleed through while damping mid and lower ranges. Slanting the bridge pickup also increased the guitar's treble response. The solid body allows the guitar to deliver a clear and sustaining amplified version of the strings' sound; this was an improvement over previous electric guitar designs, whose resonant hollow bodies made them prone to unwanted acoustic feedback when volume was increased. These design elements intentionally allowed guitarists to emulate steel guitar sounds, as well as "cut-through" and be heard in roadhouse Honky-Tonk and big Western Swing bands, initially making this guitar particularly useful in country music. Since this, Fender has developed even more in the way of pickups and tones for the telecaster, with changes from Alnico III magnets to Alnico V magnets. Its wide range of tonalities allows the Telecaster to be used successfully for many styles of music including country, pop, rock, blues and jazz.

Variants

The Telecaster has long been a favorite guitar for "hot-rod" customizing. Several variants have appeared throughout the years with a wide assortment of pickup configurations, such as a humbucker in the neck position, three single-coil pickups, and even dual humbuckers with special wiring schemes. Fender offered factory hot-rodded Teles with such pickup configurations, the US Fat and Nashville B-Bender Telecasters around 1998. The Deluxe Blackout Tele was also equipped with three single-coil pickups, a "Strat-o-Tele" selector switch and a smaller headstock than a standard Telecaster. Some also preferred tremolos on their Telecasters, installing a Bigsby on them. The most common variants of the standard two-pickup solid body Telecaster are the semi-hollow Thinline, the Custom, which replaced the neck single coil-pickup with a humbucking pickup, and the twin-humbucker Deluxe. The Custom and Deluxe were introduced during the CBS period and reissues of both designs are currently offered.

Telecaster Thinline

Main article: Fender Telecaster Thinline

Designed by German luthier Roger Rossmeisl, the Telecaster Thinline model first appeared in 1968/69. It is characterized by a body having a solid center core with hollow wings to reduce weight. The '69 version has two standard Telecaster single-coil pickups, string-through-body bridge, and a choice of an ash or mahogany body. Later a '72 version was introduced based on the Fender Telecaster Deluxe with two Fender Wide Range humbucking pickups. In 2011, Fender released the Modern Player Telecaster Thinline as a part of the Modern Player series. This guitar features two MP-90 pickups, similar to the Gibson P-90 and a mahogany body. The Fender Custom Shop has produced a variation referred to as the "50s Telecaster Thinline" with an ash body, maple neck and a Twisted Tele neck pickup matched with a Nocaster bridge pickup.

Telecaster Custom

Main article: Fender Telecaster Custom

The first edition of the Telecaster Custom was produced between 1959-1968, and featured a double-bound body but otherwise-standard configuration. While the guitar was known as the Telecaster Custom, the decal on the headstock read "Custom Telecaster". Later editions of the Telecaster Custom were popularized by Rolling Stones' guitarist and composer Keith Richards, featuring a Fender Wide Range humbucker in the neck position and a single-coil pickup in the bridge. To distinguish this model from the mid-1960s Custom with body binding, the market generally refers to the guitar as the "1972 Custom", indicating the year this model was released.

Telecaster Deluxe

Main article: Fender Telecaster Deluxe

This model includes two Fender Wide Range humbucking pickups and was originally produced from 1972 to 1981 and has since then been reissued. The Telecaster Deluxe sported a large headstock similar to the Stratocaster, maple neck and a contoured body, as well as a tremolo bridge option on models manufactured after 1973/74. This model also had 2 volume and 2 tone control knobs on the front of the guitar, rather than the usual 1 of each.

Telecaster Plus

Main article: Fender Telecaster Plus

Designed to restore Fender's reputation after a group of employees led by William C. Schultz took over ownership from CBS in the early 1980s. The pickups used in early models were dual humbucking Red Lace Sensors in the bridge position and a single Blue Lace Sensor in the neck position. Later models (post-1995 or so) used three Gold Lace Sensors or a Red/Silver/Blue set in a Stratocaster-like configuration, as well as low-friction roller nuts, locking synchronized vibrato bridge and tuners, and a bound contoured alder body with ash veneers. These instruments were discontinued in 1998 with the advent of the American Deluxe series. In 2011 Fender released the entry level Modern Player Telecaster Plus as a part of the Modern Player series. The guitar has a humbucker in the bridge, a Stratocaster style single coil pickup in the middle, and a Telecaster covered neck pickup.

Tele Jr.

Main article: Fender Tele Jr.

The Fender Tele Jr. is a variant of the Telecaster that the Fender Custom Shop produced in a limited run of 100 units in the early 1990s. It uses a Telecaster body shape, scale length, and electronics controls (albeit, with a reversed control plate). However, many of its construction and electronic features—for example its set-in neck and P-90-style pickups—are similar to those of a Gibson Les Paul Junior and Gibson Les Paul Special electric guitars.

J5 Triple Tele Deluxe

Main article: Fender J5 Telecaster

The Triple Tele Deluxe is Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie guitarist John 5's signature model. It is similar to the regular Telecaster Deluxe, in that it has 22 frets and a 3 way selector switch for the pickups, but it features three Fender "Enforcer" humbuckers and a chrome pickguard.

Cabronita

Main article: Fender Cabronita

The Cabronita (and Custom Shop variant La Cabronita) is a model that is distinguished by the use of Fidelitron or the more expensive TV Jones Classic humbucking pickups, which look like the original Gretsch humbuckers. The La Cabronita is an American-made, custom-built-to-order instrument. It typically has one TV Jones Classic pickup in the bridge position although being custom built, in can be ordered in any configuration. All Cabronitas can be distinguished by use of a smaller pickguard that covers the lower horn only, similar to the pickguard used in the original prototype for the Telecaster in 1949.

The versions built in Mexico offered either a solid body or Thinline body, with both featuring two Fender Fidelitron pickups, a volume knob and pickup selector. They both have maple necks, 25.5" scale, a 9.5 inch radius fretboard, "Medium C" profile and 1 5/8" nut width, common to many standard Telecasters made in Mexico, although the Cabronita comes with 22 frets instead of the more common 21. For a brief period, Fender offered an American made "Telebration Cabronita" that used two of the TV Jones pickups.

While "Cabronita" isn't a proper Spanish word, it roughly translates to English as "little bastard" or "little devil".

Modern Player Telecaster

The Modern Player Telecaster is offered in two distinct styles: a Plus model and a Thinline model. The Plus utilizes a pine body, a standard Telecaster pickup in the neck position, a reverse wound single-coil Stratocaster-style pickup in the middle position and a humbucker in the bridge position. It is equipped with coil splitting and a five way switch to provide seven different pickup combinations.

The Modern Player Thinline adopts a pickguard similar to the Deluxe models and a Stratocaster style bridge, without tremolo. It features a mahogany body, two P-90 style single-coil pickups, individual volume and tone controls and the three-way pickup selector in the upper horn position.

Both use the standard 25.5" scale on 22 fret maple necks that are unlike any other Telecasters in that they do not utilize an overhang to accomplish the 22nd fret, but instead use a longer, square ended neck that is not fully compatible with previous Fender parts.

Tele Sub-Sonic

The sub-sonic Telecaster was first made in 2002 and is still produced. It is made in the USA and was produced as a custom guitar. It has a 22 fret maple neck with an extended scale size (27"). It consists of a hum bucker in the neck pickup and a slanted single coil in the bridge position. There is a 3-way pickup selector switch and a volume and control knob as found on most telecasters.

Telecaster XII 12-String

This 12-string telecaster was produced from 1995 until 1998. It had 6 tuners per side of the headstock with the fender logo in-between. There were two options for the fretboard being maple, and rosewood; the necks were all maple. Pick-guards came in white or black and there was a 12 saddle bridge to accommodate the strings.

B Bender Telecaster

This Telecaster was produced from the year 1996 to the year 2000. The B-Bender device was used to change the B string's pitch to a C# at the press of a lever located on the guitar strap peg. The styles of music usually utilizing this device on their telecasters were country, and country-rock.

Models

In keeping with other models Fender distinguishes product lines manufactured in different locations.

• The moderately-priced Classic Vibe, Standard, Player, Vintera, Classic Player, Blacktop, Modern Player and Deluxe Telecaster models are manufactured in Mexico, Japan, China and Korea. Each of these instruments has a feature set that makes them more affordable.
• The American Professional, Professional II,, American Vintage, "American Original", American Elite, American Ultra, select Artist Series, Custom Shop, Acoustasonic, American Special, and American Performer model lines are manufactured in the United States.

The American Deluxe Telecaster (introduced in 1998; upgraded in 2004, 2008, and 2010) features a pair of Samarium Cobalt Noiseless pickups and the S-1 switching system. Models made prior to 2004 featured two Fender Vintage Noiseless Tele single-coils, Fender/Fishman Powerbridge piezo system and four-bolt neck fixing. Other refinements include a bound contoured alder or ash body and an abalone dot-inlaid maple neck with rosewood or maple fingerboard, 22 medium-jumbo frets, rolled fingerboard edges, and highly detailed nut and fret work. The HH model sported an ebony fingerboard, quilted or flamed maple top and a pair of Enforcer humbuckers with S-1 switching (discontinued as of 2008). As of March 23, 2010, Fender updated the American Deluxe Telecaster with a compound radius maple neck, N3 Noiseless Tele pickups and a reconfigured S-1 switching system for wider sonic possibilities. The new model now sports staggered, locking tuning machines, which provide a better break angle over the nut for increased sustain and improved tuning stability. The Thinline version has been introduced in 2013. Fender discontinued the American Deluxe series in 2016.

The American Series model used two single-coil pickups with DeltaTone system (featuring a high output bridge pickup and a reverse-wound neck pickup). Other features included a parchment pickguard, non-veneered alder or ash bodies and rolled fingerboard edges.

In 2003 Fender offered Telecasters with a humbucking/single coil pickup arrangement or two humbucking pickups featuring Enforcer humbucking pickups, and S-1 switching. These models were discontinued in 2007. As of 2008, all American Standard Telecasters came with a redesigned Tele bridge with vintage-style bent steel saddles, and a bridgeplate made of chromed brass instead of steel. In March 2012 the American Standard Telecaster was updated with Custom Shop pickups (Broadcaster in the bridge, Twisted in the neck); the body is now contoured for reduced weight and more comfort. In 2014 the American Standard Telecaster HH was introduced, sporting a pair of Twin Head Vintage humbucking pickups (open-coil with black bobbins in the bridge, metal-covered in the neck). Controls include a dual concentric volume pot for each pickup, a master tone and 3-way pickup switching.

The American Nashville B-Bender guitar is modeled after the personally customized instruments of some of Nashville's top players, featuring a Fender/Parsons/Green B-Bender system, two American Tele single-coils (neck, bridge), a Texas Special Strat single-coil (middle) and five-way "Strat-O-Tele" pickup switching. Ideal for country bends and steel guitar glisses, this Tele is available only with a maple fingerboard.

The American Series Ash Telecaster is based on the '52 vintage reissue. It features an ash body, one-piece maple neck/fingerboard with 22 frets and two Modern Vintage Tele single-coil pickups. Fender discontinued this guitar in 2006.

The Custom Classic Telecaster was the Custom Shop version of the American Series Tele, featuring a pair of Classic and Twisted single-coils in the bridge and neck positions, as well as a reverse control plate. Earlier versions made before 2003 featured an American Tele single-coil paired with two Texas Special Strat pickups and 5-way switching. Discontinued in 2009 and replaced by the Custom Deluxe Telecaster series models. The 2011 version of the Custom Shop "Custom Deluxe" Telecaster featured a lightweight Ash body with contoured heel, Birdseye maple neck, and a pickup set that included a Twisted Tele neck pickup and a Seymour Duncan Custom Shop BG-1400 stacked humbucker in the bridge position.

The Highway One Telecaster (introduced in 2000) featured a pair of distortion-friendly alnico III, single-coil pickups, super-sized 22 frets, Greasebucket circuit, satin nitrocellulose finish, and 1970s styling font(since 2006). A change over came in 2005/2006 with the line until 2011. Limited colors from previous years down to at least satin nitrocellulose Crimson Transparent, honey blonde, black, daphne blue and 3-color sunburst. The Fender Highway One series came in both maple and rosewood fretboards. The Highway One Texas Telecaster sported a one-piece maple neck/fretboard with a modern 12" radius and 21 medium jumbo frets, bone nut, single ply pickguard, round string guide, brass saddles, "spaghetti" style Fender font, solid ash body, vintage tuners, offered in two satin nitrocellulose colors, honey blonde and 2-color sunburst with a pair of Hot Vintage alnico V pickups.

In 2010, the American Special Telecaster was introduced. While retaining such features from the Highway One as jumbo frets, changing to a 9.5 radius neck, Greasebucket tone circuit and 1970s logo, the American Special also includes some upgrades such as a glossy urethane finish, compensated brass 3-saddle bridge and Highway One Texas Tele pickups (alnico III). In the Fall of 2013, Fender upgraded the pickups on the American Special line to Custom Shop Texas Special pickups. As of 2018 the American Special Telecaster is available in 3-color sunburst, lake placid blue, sherwood green metallic and vintage blonde.

In 2019, the American Performer Telecaster was introduced as the successor to the American Special. The American Performer retains most of the American Special's features, but with upgrades such as the Fender Yosemite pickups, Classic Gear tuners, and new colors. Also released is the American Performer Tele Hum, which features a Double Tap humbucker on the neck position, and a push-pull pot to split the humbucker to single coil.

Artist Series Telecasters have features favored by world-famous Fender endorsees James Burton, John 5, Muddy Waters, Jim Root, G. E. Smith, Joe Strummer and Jim Adkins. Custom Artist models are made at the Fender Custom Shop, differing slightly quality and construction-wise; their prices are much higher than the standard production versions.

In September 2010, Fender introduced the Mexican-made Black Top Telecaster HH, featuring dual hot vintage alnico humbucking pickups, a one-piece maple neck with rosewood or maple fretboard and 22 medium-jumbo frets. Other features include a solid contoured alder body, a reversed control assembly and black skirted amp control knobs.

In 2011, Fender released the Modern Player series, which featured the Modern Player Telecaster Thinline and the Modern Player Telecaster Plus.

The Acoustasonic Telecaster is a combination of an acoustic and electric guitar. First produced in 2010, this 22 fret guitar was then reintroduced in 2019 after some changes were made. They are made in Corona, California and come in 5 colors, (Black, Sonic Gray, Natural, Sunburst, and Surf Green).

The Acoustasonic is equipped with a Fender Acoustasonic Noiseless-TM pickup and uses Fender's Stringed Instrument Resonance System (SIRS) system to allow the guitar to still maintain a loud sound when it is unplugged, as an acoustic guitar would generally sound. The guitars are made out of a spruce top with an ebony fret board and a mahogany neck. The neck is bolt on and the fender logo is engraved on the head-stock next to the staggered-height tuners. There is a 5 way switch to select between sounds and a USB port for charging the electronics in the guitar.

Replicated Telecasters

A variety of Telecasters have been Replicated over the years.

*The '50 Broadcaster, reissued in 2020.
*The '50s American OriginalTelecaster (2018) 

• The '52 Telecaster, which was made in 1982–1984 and then 1986 to 2018.
• The '52 Tele Special made from 1999–2001, which had gold fixtures.
• The 50s Telecaster, a custom shop guitar that was made from 1996-1998.
• The 60s Telecaster Custom was made from 1996–1998; in addition, a '60 Telecaster Custom replica was made from 2003-2004.
• The '62 Telecaster Custom is still currently made, with production starting in 1999.
• The '63 Telecaster is a custom shop guitar produced from 1999 to the present day.
• The '67 Telecaster made from 2004 to the present day and is a custom shop guitar.

Squier models

Squier model Telecasters are sold by Squier, a Fender-owned import brand. These can bear the Telecaster name, since Squier is owned by Fender. Squier guitars, especially the Telecasters, have gained popularity and a good reputation amongst guitar players, since it has expanded its production of guitar models. Squier has a wide range of different Telecaster-type guitars available, from the entry-level Affinity Series to the better quality Standard and Classic Vibe Series. Also available are the Artist Series and Vintage Modified Series. Among other famous musicians, Sheryl Crow has occasionally used a Squier Telecaster for recordings and live performances.

Significance

The Telecaster was important in the evolution of country, electric blues, funk, rock and roll, and other forms of popular music. Its solid construction let guitarists play loudly as a lead instrument, with long sustain if desired. It produced less of the uncontrolled, whistling, 'hard' feedback ('microphonic feedback') that hollowbodied instruments tend to produce at volume (different from the controllable feedback later explored by Pete Townshend and countless other players). Even though the Telecaster is more than half a century old, and more sophisticated designs have appeared since the early 1950s (including Fender's own Stratocaster), the Telecaster remains in production. There have been numerous variations and modifications, but a model with something close to the original features has always been available. In a recent article for Music Aficionado, Alex Lifeson of Rush wrote "I bought a reissue 1959 Telecaster back in 1981, and that guitar has since become my primary writing guitar for all of these years, especially for the electric work. Every time I pick it up, it feels like an old friend. I took all of the finish off of the neck, so it's raw wood, and I feel very connected to it when I'm playing it. That is my number-one “go to” for writing new music."

Signature Telecaster players

Further information: List of Telecaster players

Country rock star Brad Paisley has been seen using a Fender Telecaster guitar in multiple performances. Paisley praises the Telecaster and even partnered with Fender's 'Artist Signature' series to release a "Brad Paisley Road Worn Telecaster."

Further reading

• Bacon, Tony (1991). The Ultimate Guitar Book. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. ISBN 0-375-70090-0.
• Bacon, Tony & Day, Paul (1998). The Fender Book: A Complete History of Fender Electric Guitars (2nd ed.). London: Balafon Books. ISBN 0-87930-554-1.
• Burrows, Terry (general editor) (1998). The Complete Encyclopedia of the Guitar: The Definitive Guide to the World's Most Popular Instrument. New York: Schirmer Books. ISBN 0-02-865027-1.
• Denyer, Ralph (1992). The Guitar Handbook. London: Dorling Kindersley Ltd. ISBN 0-679-74275-1.
• Kelly, Martin, Foster, Terry & Kelly, Paul (2010) Fender: The Golden Age, 1946–1970 London & New York: Cassell ISBN 1-84403-666-9.
• Freeth, Nick & Alexander, Charles (1999). The Electric Guitar. Philadelphia: Courage Books. ISBN 0-7624-0522-8.
• Wheeler, Tom (et al.), edited by Trynka, Paul (1993). The Electric Guitar: An illustrated history. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN 0-8118-0863-7.
• United States Patent No. D164227 Google patents
• Banos, Nacho (2005). The Blackguard : A Detailed History of the Early Fender Telecaster Years 1950-1954

External links

• Ten Terrific Telecaster Guitars – Descriptions, including the prototype (Archived version accessed 18 October 2006).
• [1] – The Fender Stratocaster VS Telecaster (Accessed 10th May 2019).
• [2] Telecaster Models That Have Humbuckers.