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127th AES Convention Coverage (New York, NY Oct. 9-12)
Summer NAMM 2000
PRESS RELEASE
American Evolution
July 21, 2000
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Thirteen years after the American Standard series appeared and began the resurrection of Fender Musical Instruments, the popular line is being replaced by – or, as Fender's vice president of electric guitars, Mike Lewis, puts it, evolved into – the new American Series of Stratocasters, Telecasters, and Jazz and Precision basses. The American Series is a showcase for ideas both old and new. Strats and Teles borrow body shapes from their 1950s forebears; Strats once again have individual pickup routs – not the "swimming-pool" holes found on the American Standard. Machine heads are staggered, a design that eliminates one string tree and is meant to improve tone and tuning stability. Bodies are made of non-veneered ash or alder; necks have the contour of the popular American Deluxe Series. Electronics and cosmetic parts have also undergone subtle alterations and upgrades. But materials and design aren't the only changes. According to Lewis, Fender has refined the execution of the design as well, improving the cut of the nut, spending more time dressing the frets, and hand-rolling the neck to give the guitars a broken-in feel right out of the box. A quick hands-on audition was promising. As advertised, the Strat and Tele both felt slick and pliant, as though they'd been through an extra careful setup. For more information, visit their web site at http://www.fender.com/.
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There was plenty of Nashville vibe at Javelena Recording Studio on Thursday night. Twenty-year-old monster picker Johnny Hiland spun off chorus after slick chorus of country licks from the balcony overlooking the room where Perry Como, Elvis, and Shania Twain have all recorded, while onstage a group of guitars and basses sat silhouetted behind a giant American flag. The occasion: the unveiling of Fender's biggest redesign in over a decade.