With this Masterbuilt by Dennis Galuszka, Fender celebrates a true piece of Stratocaster history—which you can now own. This super rare and sought after guitar features a 1-piece Ash body finished in Black, with its nitro lacquer authentically aged to replicate the wear patterns from years of use and playing. The Flat Sawn Maple neck has a smooth, authentic, vintage feel with a 1954 U profile, a 7.25" radius, 21 frets and a 25.5"scale length. The Custom Shop hand-wound '55 single coil pickups deliver that undeniable classic Stratocaster tone with incredible responsive and unbelievable clarity.

And the story goes… “In 1955, musician Howard Reed Jr. walked into the McCord Music Company of Dallas, Texas and ordered a Stratocaster, with one special caveat—that it be black, instead of the standard 2-Color Sunburst. This request inadvertently made history, resulting in the creation of one of the earliest known black Stratocaster guitars and beginning a custom-color tradition that continues to this day. In 1958 Reed joined famous rockabilly group Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps, using his custom Strat onstage as his primary guitar. The sound of this black Stratocaster was heard all over Texas on “The Big D Jamboree”—a radio show on the local CBS affiliate.

Reed wanted to make sure audiences knew who he was, so he used stick-on letters to add his initials to the upper bout of the guitar, an act that seems to be something of a tradition among Texas guitarists. After Reed’s passing in 1981, the guitar was displayed at The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum from January, 1998 through May, 2013 and now resides in a private collection.”