Nod to The Legend · The instruments · 1909–1991
Leo Fender
Telecaster, Precision Bass and Stratocaster
A radio repairman who never learned to play, Fender built guitars like appliances: bolt-on necks, easy to fix and mass-produce. The Telecaster (1950–51), the Precision Bass (1951) and the Stratocaster (1954) followed.
Still heard: The Precision Bass made the electric bass standard, and the Tele and Strat are still the guitars most copied.
Related legends
- The Ludwigs and the Drum Kit: William F. and Theobald Ludwig
- Laurens Hammond: Inventor of the Hammond organ
- Spring Reverb: Hammond and Fender
- Rupert Neve: Console and preamp designer
- Ernie Seeler and the SM57/SM58: Shure engineer
- Don Leslie: Inventor of the rotating speaker