LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Fender: Fender Stratocaster
built 243 days ago
For most collectors, pre-CBS (pre-1966) Fender vintage guitars and amps are the desirable ones. Although CBS purchased Fender (officially) on January 3rd 1965, it took some time till the guitars changed (though by mid 1964, six months before CBS bought Fender, things were already "on the way down"). By the end of 1965, the general look and feel of the Fender guitars had changed significantly. All collectors feel the quality of their instruments and amps suffered as CBS employed more "mass production" manufacturing processes to the Fender guitars. The "large peghead" (starting in late 1965) as used on the Fender Stratocaster was one example of the (bad) changes to come. The "custom contoured" bodies Fender was famous for no longer were as sculped and sleek.
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LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- On Nov. 5, Fender hosted a gala event in Las Vegas for over 300 Guitar Center store managers to celebrate the upcoming launch of the "Lenny" Stratocaster guitar. The celebration took place on top of the Rio Hotel at the Voodoo Lounge nightclub in Las Vegas. The event was highlighted by live music performances, video highlight packages and an appearance by Danny Mantle, son of baseball great and cultural icon, Mickey Mantle.
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The guitar, a white Stratocaster donated by instrument specialist Fender, was auctioned off earlier this year raising tens of thousands of dollars for victims of last year’s tsunami in Southeast Asia. Proceeds from the sale of the guitar will be used to build a new school in Thailand, one of the countries affected by the tsunami last December.
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[P]rivately held Fender Musical Instruments, which owns the name to history's most famous electric guitar--the Stratocaster--wants that to stop. Fifty years after the first Strat was sold, the company is claiming that the guitar's shape, as well as that of several other models, belongs to Fender. That's not going over well with its competitors.
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It's difficult to review the standard Fender stratocaster, as it seems to be the baseline from which all other guitars are judged. That said, it is a beautiful instrument, both to the eyes and the ears. The three single-coil pickups give you that nice, bright sound, and the 5-way switching offers plenty of room in terms of versatility. The neck is not overly large, bor is it anorexic. It's big enough to chord on, but is fast enough for.. well..
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Fender Stratocaster