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About This Listing
So then what happened was... Well, This is sort of a special 1952 blackguard Telecaster
For openers... it weighs noticeably less than 7 lb, has a nice big round neck, a handy impressively high threshold for feedback (that's very important) on both GREAT sounding all original/original windings pick ups, and it's cute, with original thermometer case, bridge cover, cord, and rare original blackguard strap. the brochure is a repro. all the other stuff is legit and is included.
But all of that isn't the thing... The thing is: all of that... combined with the clean and still attractive but very approachable nature of this one. I believe it to be the perfect sum of all considerations; It's nice enough to introduce to the family, but savage enough to blast away on like Scarface.
I bought it somewhat blindly, based only on the few words in this description "Graham Nash's 1952 Fender Black-Guard Telecaster Blonde Solid Body Electric Guitar, Serial # 4601. An all original and nice condition black guard Fender Telecaster owned and played by Graham Nash. The original tuners...are included but are not currently installed. This guitar has a neck date of 12-12-52 and a body date of EM 12-04-52. The wiring and electronics are all original and undisturbed. The ashtray/bridge cover is original and has the previous owners name and social security number scratched into the under side. This guitar comes with its original thermometer hardcase, strap and cord. COAs from Graham Nash..." it looked like it might be a cool guitar so I rolled the dice, hoping it might also be a good guitar...you know... an excellent instrument. I ended up being very very pleasantly surprised. I was immediately a very happy guy as I was picking it up out of the case for the first time. I could immediately tell it was very light and clearly under 7 lbs. Party! I'm loving it like McDonalds, just farting around with it, generally, and specifically grooving on it's crisp sharp original decal and that the name inside the original strap matched the name etched under the original Bridge cover; That's just cool. Then... I finally get around to plugging it in...
Just picture any Mike & Mike's Guitar Bar, or the like, description of the tone. Right? Suffice to say and without getting too far into it, I'll just tell you; It sounds EXACTLY the way you want a killer old blackguard to sound... neck pickup, TOO...like on one of those old live Roy Buchanan albums... Oh hell yes.
They missed one thing in the auction house ad; I guess they weren't looking for small frets; the guitar has handily been refretted with Gibson style (or for that matter, late 65/early 66 Fender style) large fret wire. The work is impeccable and the original fretboard finish is absolutely original and untouched... what a party! So, the tiresome small frets, which I guess were designed for playing actual music, have been supplanted by festive '59 burst (or Melody Maker...for that matter) style large frets... perfect for the dipshit five notes that most of us that like vintage electrics, play. That's cool with the original fretboard finish... We love it. I love it, anyway
And speaking of Roy... and such... 53 53 53 53 yeah, hey I get it... I was born in the Washington DC area and I still live here. I don't argue with the '53 thing. They're, generally speaking, a total joyride. I've had enough of them to build a picket fence. Jesus, I've high-wholesaled enough blackguards to Jay that he could build his own picket fence. That's not going to happen this time, not with this one. To "The Usual Suspects" To wit: "Hey Gilvis, Gil Baby, what's happnin'? This one looks cool... What's the me number on it? I just need a little room" Sorry, there is no you on this one. The number is $69,836. NOT looking for pen pals or offers. Thanks. This '52 is late enough to have the god-fearing tone knob circuit (you want that...I think) and can hang with any of the best blackguards I've ever owned. All that said... I think it's pretty reasonable at only $10,400 a pound. When I think about some of the boat anchor broadcasters I've owned over the years... Man, those things would be expensive.
also: another great-sounding/playing featherweight sweetheart old Fender electric ~ if you're interested: THE LAST GUITAR EVER PLAYED BY GRAHAM NASH with CROSBY STILLS AND NASH: a beautiful original 2-tone 1960 Fender Esquire Custom. it's complete, all original, and well under 3.975 million dollars. I like DSOTM (Pink Floyd) as much as the next guy, but do like guitars that are more than fragments
In early 1951, Fender renamed its only production solid-body guitar the Telecaster, replacing the short-lived Broadcaster moniker used in late 1950. The Telecaster quickly became the guitar of its age, propelling the status of the solid-body electric guitar from novelty to the defining instrument of popular music. Like most long-lasting guitar models, the Tele has seen its share of variations and specialty models come off the line since the early '50s. The standard no-frills Telecaster, however, has stayed largely the same, strutting two single-coil pickups, a slab body of Ash (or later Alder), and an unmistakable twang that helped shape the sound of country and rock music.
