THE ICONIC | Strat & Tele

Looking at the Strat and the Tele, you can easily tell they are brothers. Born just three years apart, these two legends have helped shape music as we know it today. Creating legends and legends showing us the perks of having these axes in our arsenal.

The Stratocaster

Debuted in 1954, musicians were not that sure what to do with it. Having the Tele and the Les Paul a few years back, they were still trying to figure out this whole electric guitar thing. And then suddenly, here comes the Strat. Giving players three different pickups and a crazy lever that detunes your sound at will.

Now an endless guitar body template, the Strat’s three single-coil pickups and futuristic vibrato bridge - were completely new concepts. It was paradigm shifting new. However, it did take a number of artists, who were legends themselves, to make people accept this new paradigm.

To make a list would be ridiculous, but here are some legends rocking Strats.

• Jimi Hendrix
• Stevie Ray Vaughan
• Eric Clapton
• Jeff Beck
• John Mayer

Strat’s calling card.

• Neck pickup tone like no other. Glassy, round, silky. Use your adjective of choice.
• The 2 and 4 positions on the 5-way switch, sometimes called the quack tones.
• A vibrato bar that players can keep in their hands to articulate the sound in real-time.

The Telecaster

Leo Fender's Telecaster was the first solidbody electric guitar to be mass produced. To this day, it is still one of the most popular electric guitars in the market. Something has to be behind this enduring obsession.

At the end of the day, the Tele's strength is its simplicity, its place as the ground zero for all other solid body electric guitars. It can become anything you want it to be. It can be in any genre you want it to. But strength alone doesn't win hearts. It was there in the beginning and those early days of twang, bite and snap are still what define its legacy and earn our ongoing love for this beautiful instrument.

The Tele is an unavoidable, solid choice for nearly all kinds of music. Legends have either built their careers with the Tele or showed the world its hidden talents.

Again, to make a list would be ridiculous, but here are some legends rocking Teles.

• James Burton
• Albert Lee
• Keith Richards
• Bruce Springsteen
• Jimmy Page (early years)
• Brad Paisley

Tele’s calling card

• A bridge pickup tone like no other. Clean or Dirty, it does what you need it to do.
• Simplicity. Two pickups, two knobs, six strings. It makes you a better player.
• Versatility. The Tele is capable of an astonishing number of voices.

FEATURED GUITAR | Tagima Brazil T-930

Tagima Brazil's take on the HSS configuration of the Telecaster, the T-930, is the best choice for Tele and Strat lovers alike. The beautiful Tele body combined with the HSS pickup configuration, a two-point trem system, topped with a switch that combines the neck and the bridge pickups, Just the thought sends tingles down this writer's spine. But the pièce de résistance of this Tele is the fact that it's built by Tagima Brazil. Quality materials, quality craftsmanship for a price that won't break the bank.

SPECIFICATIONS
BODY: Cedar
ARM: Ivorywood with double action tensioner
SCALE: 22 frets
NUT: Bone
PICKUPS: 2 Tagima Alnico Blue and1 Tagima Silverbucker Alnico 5
CONTROLS: 5 way switch, 1 volume, 1 tone and 1 microswitch blend key to combining the bridge pickup with the neck pickup
BRIDGE: Chrome tremolo with 2 pivots
DRAWERS: Chrome and with locks
COLORS: Metallic deep orange, White, Honey burst
SHELL: Black, Pearloid White

FEATURED GEAR | Rattlesnake Cables

Rattlesnake cables are meticulously made for those who love tone and can't stand the fact of losing them because of low-grade cables. The milled wires are built to their specifications and use high-quality Oxygen Free Bare Copper. These low capacitance cables are milled, made and assembled in Missoula, Montana USA. With its polyweave protective outer braiding, the cables are well-protected and stay tangle-free. These instrument cables are built to last in live situations while providing great signal and tone in recording situations. High-grade Neutrik PX Series plugs are on both ends of these high-quality cables and their cable clamp system adds more protection for the cables by securing the plugs tightly with the cable.