Fender Stratocaster 70 Years

Authoritatively written and lavishly illustrated, Fender Stratocaster® 70 Years is the officially licensed anniversary celebration of this legendary guitar.

Ever present in the music world, the Fender Stratocaster® guitar is also an icon of popular culture, its attractive lines and innovative features as forward-looking today as they were when Leo Fender introduced the guitar to the world in 1954.

In Fender Stratocaster® 70 Years, musician and guitar historian Dave Hunter traces Stratocaster® guitars across seven decades and into the present, beginning with Leo Fender’s triumph of mid-century design originating in his modest shop in Fullerton, California. From there, Hunter explores:
 

• Groundbreaking features of the new design in the context of the contemporary guitar market and Fender’s existing Telecaster® guitar.
• The Stratocaster’s solidbody three-pickup configuration, “tremolo” bridge, bolt-on neck, and contoured body, as well as the roles that country pickers played in the guitar’s early development.
• Design improvements undertaken throughout the Stratocaster’s first decade, such as the introduction of a rosewood fingerboard and Custom Color options to complement the initial Sunburst finish.
• CBS’s 1965 acquisition of Fender and its effects on company culture and the Stratocaster, as well as the 1985 acquisition of Fender spearheaded by a group of employees.
• The creation of the Fender Custom Shop and that elite group’s relationship to the Stratocaster over the years.
• Fender’s forward-thinking combination of vintage specs and materials with modern features in Stratocaster guitars that offer classic styling and current conveniences.