Re: (TV) Odd Fenders

[Joe Hartley <jh@brainiac.com>]

"Michael Olcsvary" <olcsvary@icehouse.net> wrote:
> Re: The Fender Lead series - they were another attempt to be taken seriously
> by Fender in the Gibson-dominated market of the '70s - the only other
> notable users I can think of were Elliot Easton from the Cars and Al, the
> lead player in my sister's boyfriend's band, the Rockids. 

Weren't these designed to be cheaper/different than a real Strat?  I
think the big problem with Fender at the time was that they'd been sold
to CBS and the quality suffered.  Rather than realizing what they needed
was a well-built Strat, they came up with a marketing concept.

The Lead I had a single humbucker in the bridge position, while the
Lead II had 2 single-pole pickups at the neck and bridge positions (no
middle pickup).  According to the marketing hype:

"  Fender presents two totally new instruments - the Lead I and Lead II 
Rock 'n Roll guitars.
  For starters, the Lead I and Lead II *look* rock 'n roll.  We reshaped
the body for easier playing and restyled the head to match. (This meant
that the bulbous knob at the top wan't quite so bulbous.  BFD.)
  HOT STUFF.  Simply put, what we've done on the inside may just help
these new Fenders blow out any other guitar on the market.
  The Lead I arms you with a more highly explosive humbucking sound
than anything around.
  The Lead II brings that legendary Fender sound to a white heat.
  All of this is the result of super hot-rodded pickups, totally new ciruitry
and switching capabilities that open up an unduplicated range of sounds.

  FULL SCALE FENDERS. On each guitar, we've coupled a full-scale 25-1/2"
neck to a heavier ash body for perfect feel and balance.  Not that we set
out to add weight to these guitars -but because increased mass and density
are the logical coefficients of the Lead I and lead II's functions.
(Translation: we wanted to work on the sustain.)

   ( More hype nsipped, followed by this.)  And while the sound may be 
almost too hot to handle, you can definitely handle the price."

There's a picture of the formerly great Steve Morse (of the Dixie Dregs,
later the Dregs, then with Kansas and Deep Purple.  Wow.)

I got this off the back cover of the Sept. '81 Guitar Player.  I
kew I kept those around for a reason!


======================================================================
       Joe Hartley - UNIX/network Consultant - jh@brainiac.com
     12 Emma G Lane, Narragansett, RI  02882 - vox 401.338.9214
Without deviation from the norm, "progress" is not possible. - FZappa

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