Half a Century Story of Fender Stratocaster Guitars

Fender Guitar is the icon of the guitar industry. Architect of Fender, Leo Fender was working as a radio repairman and an accountant before getting into guitar manufacturing during the World War 2. Leo Fender started building Fender Stratocaster during 1953.

Leo Fender was successful with Tele before Strat previously known as Broadcaster. Novel design with the combination of perfect timing due to postwar prosperity and the popularity of the guitars, Stratocaster became a legendary guitar in the guitar history. Read more at Brief History of Fender.

The first Fender Stratocasters were available in 1954, a guitar purely for rebellious teens. While the guitar sold well at first, it didn't dominate the market until later. One of the first famous players was Dick Dale, who pioneered surf music on Strats in the early 60s.

Couple of Brits with bad hair, Lennon and Harrison, otherwise known as John & George made the Strat mainstream. They became popular around the world after Jimi Hendrix started playing it. There are many other famous guitar players who have played Strats besides Hendrix, such as; Eric Clapton, Buddy Holly, Richie Blackmore, Dick Dale, Kurt Cobain, Jeff Beck, etc.

The biggest downfall that Fender has ever faced came from Fender itself. Leo Fender and original partner Don Randall sold the company to CBS in the mid-60s, and the conglomerate eventually did what no one else could: make the Strat less powerful. As time went buy, new players bought Fender while experienced players turned to vintage Strats for the eternal brilliance of its design, combined with the understated remarkable versatility.

At the end, if the Strat is easy and fun to play, and creates a wonderful clean tone, why not use it for everything and just work out effects later?

Stratocaster had been copied by many guitar companies until 1985. It needed an overhaul, and the sale of the company away from CBS provided it. Fender improved production at its foreign plants first thing, giving a much-needed improvement to the lower end of its line. After that, Fender's own factory was built in Corona, CA, and another in Ensenada, Mexico for the lower-priced models.

With these changes, Fender decided to give the player more choices in new guitars. Instead of making the perfect tone entirely dependent on the guitar player. The company manufactured dozens of new and different Stratocasters within five years. Another exciting news for Strat Fans was the ability to order their custom Strats. Previously, Fender was offering custom guitars for only rich and famous customers. Everything had changed at the company but the clean and perfect tone of Strats has stayed the same.

After its rebirth, Fender has invested in acquiring guitar companies such as Sunn, Trace Eliot, and Guild as well as house brands Squier and DeArmond. Each company brought more expertise to Fender's team. By creating quality guitars, offering great service, and understanding their customers' needs, Fender became the world leader in guitar industry.