My dad gifted me a Fender Telecaster back in the 80's God rest his soul. I have allot of guitars. But everytime I picked up that guitar I would call him and tell him how much I loved it. He has been gone a while now, but still when I pick it up and play it, I look up and say Thanks Dad. That guitar is a bona-fide Tone Monster.

Soooo… we just gonna ignore that you look fresher than the produce section at Whole Foods??

Teles. As a player, I believe that once you understand just what the telecaster can do you’ll be forever hooked on playing one. I have two Les Pauls, an SG, a 335. And for nearly 25 years,my main guitar has been a hot - rodded American Stratocaster, until I got my telecaster.

Hi Mike! I am a 74 year old guitar newbie (60 hours practice thus far) practicing 2-3 hours daily. I absolutely love your videos. Keep up the good work. Thank you.

The best description I've heard of a Tele is "it gives you nothing, but it's all there for the taking". If you know what you're doing, nothing is as versatile as a Tele. And if you don't, well, nothing is as painful or embarrassing as a Tele. I have been on both ends of that many a time. Glad you picked this guitar up and finally talked about it!

I have a Strat and thought was a strat guy for almost 20 years. Then I got a Tele and that neck pickup sound was actually the one I'd been missing all my life. And it, like you said, unlocked a usable bridge pickup.

That crossroads is my all time favorite. It’s glorious. Notice Keith doesn’t just play a Tele in that concert either. He starts on the 335 and also plays Strats. Doesn’t matter what guitar. He’s insane. I also loved the Duesenberg Mayer busts out at one point.

As a tele fanatic, you seriously lucked out with that one. Gorgeous sonically and visually.

When I was 18 we had a band that featured 3 guitar players. To differentiate myself from the other 2 guys, I started looking around at alternatives. At the time, I had a Gibson Custom Shop Explorer, a really good T-Style Peavy Generation with active pickups, a tremolo and humbucker at the bridge. Needing another guitar anyway, I was at a shop getting my amp head worked on when I just randomly picked a little crappy, inexpensive Mexican Tele off the wall to start noodling around with while I waited. IMMEDIATELY I was hooked! It felt perfect. It even changed the way I played, stylistically. I bought it & I've been a Tele player since I was 20 years old & I'll be 52 next month. Just wonderful guitars. The bridge pickup is my favorite pickup on any guitar. And it really sounds good distorted too. We played what we termed as "heavy blues". I bought MORE & they became the only guitar I played. Loved the video & your journey to getting a T-Style...sorry for the history of my experience 😄

Jimmy Page rocked a tele for Led Zeppelin I and some of II. The Stairway to Heaven solo was also recorded using a tele. A lot of old great players say the best Les Paul Bursts sound more like a telecaster on steroids than what you’d think a Les Paul should sound like.

I think that growing up in the 70's I didn't just place telecasters with country music. I watched the rolling stones on teles, little Steven and Bruce Springsteen, not to mention Saturday night live. Telecaster was everywhere, playing on everything for everybody. I saw Funk players, r&b players, rock, folk, country and blues. We didn't have music videos to influence by what we seen being played. But, glad to hear you got past it. Teles rock

My secret weapon guitar is a modified squire strat. Now the pickups I’ve put in it are nothing special or even the colours. It’s just such an easy to play guitar, the neck is so perfectly level and the action is low to a point where you hardly even need to put any pressure on the strings to get a clear note. It’s genuinely something special that I will always come back too

You did good getting a 357! I’ve played many of Martins builds and they are just fantastic. Not only is he a great luthier, he’s also one of the nicest dudes you could ever meet :)

Bro I have a Strat as my main for about 15 years now. Went for a 50's Tele late last year and since then, my Strat is placed on the wall as the prettiest art work ever made. I don't know if it's about how simple a Tele is but when you got it you got it, I never felt the same ease and joy to play in any other guitar

I've been playing teles for 14 years now. All my childhood heroes played strats and les pauls but those were their guitars. After years of playing every kind of imaginable metal guitar (Warlocks, Vs, MLs, etc) I went to buy my strat I saw the tele on the wall and asked to try it. I never bought the strat. The tele is by far the best guitar I've ever played, it suits me perfectly and I never sound like anyone else but me on it. To this day I've owned every thing from Squier teles to MIM teles, Fender Japan and US built teles. In my line of work I get to play custom shop gear too. But my all time fave tele is now my UK built Atkin Sixty Eight. Enjoy your new tele. They rock!

I’m 42 and I’ve been a Gibson guy up until the past two years or so. I’ve finally come to appreciate Fenders Telecaster. Such a perfect style and feel.

The tele is a versatile beast. Cut that tone back control like 1/4 to a 1/3rd and you can get into near humbucker territory. Honestly a great tele is all you need. Every other guitar feels like settling to me now

Mike Cole.. I just discovered you.. this video is so compelling! I couldn’t look away.. almost hypnotic. I’m an acoustic guitar player, and never really got along with electric guitars (I’m a rhythm player).. but now, I’m gonna pay some attention to Telecasters like never before.. and maybe improve my whole guitar playing life! Honestly, thank you.. keep it up.. I’m parking myself on your channel for awhile.

Guitarists and telecasters are like grumpy dads and cats. They say they don't want them but then a week later they're best friends.

Secret weapon guitar of choice: PJD Saint John. British guitar manufacturer who built the perfect guitar for my taste. I always wanted the simplicity of a telecaster (just two pick ups, fixed bridge, one tone and volume), the comfortable and balanced shape of an offset fender (just like a jag or jazzmaster) and the perfect pickup-configuration there is (P90 in the neck, humbucker in the bridge). I always hesitated to buy a PJD, as there are not many guitars sold outside the UK (I am from Austria and had to import one off of Reverb) and their guitars looked a bit cheap because of their finish. I saw that PJD Saint john with routed out cavities in the body to lose weight but without f-holes. That perfect pickup configuration and a gorgeus hand scribbled serial number with a sharpie on the headstock and I went for it. After paying a huge amount of import tax I finally got the guitar I bought without testing it. Since I bought the St John, I feel like playing in my very own style, not just copying my idols. The guitar does not force a genre, not force a specific style. It just acts like a valve for my thoughts and feelings, directly connected to my soul. I love how it is just a painted slap of wood with as few features as possible to not disturb the creativity and playstyle. I am now looking for more guitars of lesser known brands, because I fell in love with mine. Thanks for sharing, Mike! I like all of your vids. Keep em coming and please: keep on talking. I like your content orientated videos much more than the memes!

John Mayer and Brad Paisley did a Crossroads episode. Pretty cool, too. I was never a Tele fan until I started recording at home. A Tele is essential. I don't know what kind of magic is at play, but you can mix a Tele into any sound and it cuts through and enhances everything around it. It's crazy.

Hey man, your playing is getting so much more slick! More fluid and more fluent… also, great suit jacket

It bites, it growls, it spanks, it whispers, it sings. If a meteor hit my house the Tele would be buried in the rubble with a nice relic finish and will probably still be in tune. When I want simple versatility for playing different genres back-to-back, there's just nothing more cozy and familiar. My secret weapon is the PRS Piezo, though. That's the one that makes my guests' eyes pop out from the sound of blending the acoustic Piezo with the clear humbuckers.

That thing is sick, I can't believe you were hesitant. A Tele is for sure my next.

I had the distinct pleasure to work with Keith's crew and band a few years ago at a festival. There wasn't a person on that tour who wasn't an absolute monster.

I've always had a love/hate relationship with Teles pretty much along the same lines that you've expressed, Mike. I really wanted them to work for me but could never get there. I also originally thought they were strictly for country twang (which I enjoy listening to but have never been inspired to play...yet!) then I saw Prince rock some heavy solos and that set me straight in that regard.

That's the most Hendrix-y sound that has ever come out if a tele-style guitar. Great sound!

I -AM- a 1964 Gibson J-45 Slope Shoulder Dreadnought, bought for me by my Dad when I was 9 years old on my Birthday. Five excellent Luthers over Five decades have kept it studio grade, hidden pickups, bone saddle intonation perfection. Rings like a harp from God. I have been transfixed by this one instrument for more than fifty years. I own a few special beautiful instruments, but I -AM- only One. I understand Mike, I truly lifetime do! Great channel! Thank you!!!

My own "secret weapon" is also a tele. My first *real* electric guitar is this beautiful Mexican Telecaster in a metallic surf green finish and maple fingerboard. I call it my "baby" because I know that no matter what guitars I buy or sell this one is never leaving me ever.

Seeing you all dressed up made me think this was a “Will It Funk” episode for a second there 😂

My first electric was a 70's Tele with a Rockinger neck my dad gave me as a birthday present and this will be my last guitar as well. I do have some others, but if you told me I had to choose only one of them to keep, it'll be that one. "You can do it all on a tele" is not just any phrase but one of the few sentences I think are as true as words can be.

I had a similar experience when I saw a heard Prince perform on the Rock Hall of Fame show. I had never listened to any of his music other the Batman movie score. I was blown away buy his playing. Huge respect posthumously to Prince. I happened to see Kieth Urban live at a small venue in No Cal back before anybody had heard of him. I told my wife “this kid is going to be huge”…and you normally don’t say that based on guitar playing, but he was that good. I’m a fan of both T and S style Fenders.

Love your genuine attitude when it comes to gear, I feel like a lot of gear reviewers and stuff sort of lose that love or don't let it show. Teles are so comfortable, my first guitar and still my favorite kind!

My two current guitars are definitely "something special" to me. One acoustic nylon string from Cordoba called a Mini in mahogany (which they did a Pixar collab on so it has Coco carvings on it), and one Fender Stratocaster made in Mexico. Played a LOT of strats, but this one's just my favorite, beating several made in USA ones. I do however REALLY miss the Jazzmaster I once had and this Italian ES-335 from 1964, which was soooo smooth!

My background is hard rock, prog rock, metal playing primarily 7 strings but man when I pick up a Tele or a T-style it just speaks to me in no way any other guitar can.

Hi, I've been playing for 60 years. I recently bought an EART Tele copy and a Harley Benton, Mosrite copy. Both are Fantastic! Shalom/gw

Telecasters to me are the perfect guitar. Simple controls, unmatched dynamics and very stable! A tele bridge pickup is a massive part of my rhythm and lead sound. When I use humbuckers, p90s, strat single coils or any other type of pickup. I always switch back to my tele as they lack that signature growl! Also, teles seem to stay in tune more then any other guitar style. Something about the tele construction creates this tuning stability i’ve never seen before!

Honestly, if you're ever going to buy just one guitar, the Telecaster, or any Tele-clone is probably the way to go. Forget their associations, they are so versatile. Sure, you got your country dudes, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Dwight Yoakham, but you also have a lot of rock legends. George Harrison, Billy Squire, Keith Richards, Prince. There's a reason that the Tele has stuck around since 1952. It's just a great instrument.

1) I’m 66, been playing since I was 12, although I still stink. Back in the day, same as you until recently: “A Tele? I’m not Glen Campbell!” Wasn’t until my mid-40s that I saw the light. The appropriately outfitted Tele can handle any genre there is, and the most comfortable style to hold and make love to. I now own 6. 2) Your model there is a thing of beauty. Doesn’t get any better. Sound is AWESOME!

I love your channel man! I am a huge Telecaster guy. My favorite position for 90% of Tele torture is middle.

You are an amazing storyteller

Tele + Vox is a great combination! Throw a RAT pedal in the chain, you’ll love it

My secret weapon guitar.... it's a handmade acoustic grand auditorium from Vietnam, but fitted with a b-bender. That kinda stuns a lot of people because nobody ever seen a b-bender or even know how to use it, until I play unforgiven 2.

I did something similar, I thought a tele would box me in sound wise. So i had a strat, but i sold it after playing an orange tele and seeing the light. My go to is a a custom tele i built for all purpose use. A humbucker neck with push pull coil split, 5 way switch and a push/pull reverse phase, engaged the bridge it gives albert collins. The neck gives peter green. Its like my swiss army knife, since i dont have much room for more than it and an acoustic. But i can dial up whatever tone i want blues, soul/r&b, jazz, country, and it get crazy with high gain heavy distortion if needed.

Had a very similar experience with a Chad Underwood t-style at Sam Ash. Been a Les Paul guy my whole life, saw this underwood t-style sitting up front with a K-Line and LSL...picked it up and the game had been changed. Left the store only to obsess over it for days, went back in and bought it. Ron Ellis pickups, nitro finish, perfect neck....cannot be beaten. Happy you found yours!

I just bought a fender player series in butter scotch yesterday. Man it’s beautiful and sounds amazing. You get the good pickups in the player series. No ceramic magnets. My older strat MiM has ceramic magnets in it but it actually sounds good and I’m happy with those. But I definitely prefer a Tele now over anything else. And I used to really not like the look of a Tele.

I used to see Keth Urban before he got famous around town here in Nashville at gigs and songwriter nights. He had a Rock Band called "The Ranch". He's a killer guitar player and Teles are WAY Cool. My main guitar is a Tele Custom w/ 2 P90s.

3 years ago I purchased an American 91 Fender Telecaster at a yard sale for $350. I don't think I'll ever find another deal that good for the rest of my life. The guitar plays and sounds like a dream. My low key best guitar is my Rivolta Combinata with P90s.

Hi Mike. I play country and Western music. But as a working musician, you’ve got to play every thing. The fender telecaster is the workhorse of any music you want to play. It’s always about the player not the guitar so much even though the telecaster is comfortable, I can’t imagine being without one.

Dude this makes me smile so much. My friend in school showed me because i was a KEITH URBAN fan, and that crossover got me into John Mayer.

YES. Immediately knew what you were talking about when you described the JM and KU gig.

Teles are fun! Dean and Charvel make versions with humbuckers too if you’re interested! My secret weapon guitars are Hamer Sunbursts. They’re like Gibson Les Pauls but without the weaknesses associated with Les Paul’s. They have high fret access, lighter weight, and better headstocks. I also love using the Yamaha Pacifica in church since it’s got the playability of a strat without being a strat. Too many church guitarists use Strats nowadays. On another note, I find that 80’s style superstrats like Jackson’s and Kramers are also extremely fun! Especially with the Floyd Rose system! You should get one and try it out!

My #1 son was auditioning a friend's shop for his first guitar. While he was running through everything close to his budget, I spotted an interesting Strat. It was a MIM FRS HSS, gloss black with chrome tuners, bridge, even chrome markings, and an engine turned single-layer pickguard. I played it for a bit, went into a practice room, and played it with a good amp. The more I played the more I liked it, but I wasn't there for a guitar for me that day. #1 picked a very nice Squire Tele, and we went home. That night, I was remembering the feel and sound of the Strat, so different than my 75 335. The next two days, I dithered about going back for another look. Finally, I couldn't stay away, mumbling to myself "I hope it's still there. Turns out my friend offered it to me at cost. It had been in inventory two years and was taking up space without any interested buyers. He pointed out the Fender anniversary Medal inset in the headstock, the Telecaster knobs, and showed me the Fender Short Run catalog he'd spotted it in and impulsively ordered it from. It went home with me, and three payments later, it was all mine. Ten plus years , the only electric I've kept. I've got Tak, and Ovation electro acoustics, Fender, Ibanez, Taylor, Teton, and Tak acoustics... but that HSS Strat is the only electric I need. BTW I'll be 70 in a couple months, been playing since 1966. I've tried a few other guitars along the way.

My go to guitar is my build tele with mahagony body, maple neck with bird inlays, it has 5 way switch and it can litteraty play any song and sound awesome. I love it (the cost of the build was about 600-700€ including shipping+ work)

I’d love to see a video from you on Nashville Telecasters. Like “a strat player’s perspective on a Nashville teles”. My main guitar is a Nashville and it’s been great to me.

My "secret weapon" is a Gibson Les Paul copy. It´s a Santana, but every time I play it, it just sounds better than my original American-made Strat. and the playability is just top-notch!

Man. I’ve had so many teles. Thinline Super Deluxe with dynasonics, MIJ Midnight Tele, FSR silverburst, the GC QMT Tele with ebony fretboard… and now I have an American Pro II with a P90 neck and Dynasonic bridge and I dig this one.

My brother in christ, that outfit is rendering me speechless. My own tele tale - I resisted for years. Over and over I'd hear a record and go "dear lord, that tone is unreal." So then I'd hit up Google - *insert guitarist name* rig, like we all do. Every damn time it was a telecaster. Spoon's latest record put me over the edge last spring. I am now a strat AND tele man.

My favorite Tele is a parts mongrel I assembled from a random Ebay pine body made up from 9 pieces of wood that I got for $25 due to a tear out on the back of the body on the horn. A coat of clear satin lacquer, a good Squire ‘51 neck I leveled and crowned, a GFS Tele pickup in a compensated 3 brass saddle bridge, and an old Carvin blade single coil in the neck, it just has my sound. Love it, and I’m a lifelong Les Paul/ Gibson guy.

I got a tele on a whim and it just fought me and fought me. Debated selling it 1000 times but 3 years later I’m so glad I kept it. You come to love it and it’s versatile tone. IMO no collection is complete without a true blue tele and learning to work with a tele is a great lesson in and of itself.✌️

Bought a $93 Telecaster style guitar. I installed aftermarket pick-ups. When I plugged it in it had become a tone monster. I could not believe how fantastic it sounded. The only problem I have is my fingers. I have Gibson neck sized hands, but the Tele neck is a little too chunky for me. I can play it but not as well as I would like.

My "Go-To" Guitar is a conglomeration of parts that I put together over time. The body is a '57 Fender Starcaster that I had forgotten they even made. I put the "David Gilmour" active electronics that came mounted in a white pearloid pickguard on it. I didn't care for the neck. I had a LINE 6 Variax guitar that had a neck I Loved, so I switched the necks. It plays and Sounds Wonderful.

When I was younger the Les Paul was my "holy grail" guitar, so one day I was finally able to buy a 1978 L.P. Standard... Flash forward 25 years after also owning 2 Strats I didn't play the Paul as much but felt the calling and ended up with a custom built daphne blue Tele... I quickly realized what I had been missing! One year later I traded my beloved Les Paul for an 0-18 Martin and have never looked back!

A tele partscaster I assembled with solid ash body , 4 way selector, Kinman pickups and gold hardware. Flipped the switchplate around to do swells and wha tone bending.Heaven.

2015 squire strat with monster energy graphics. Given to me by my son who won it at the AFEES store on Ft. Hood, Tx. I play it through my Yamaha Clavinova AUX input and a couple of efx pedals. Gives me everything I ask.

What a nice coincidence that your video popped up when I was looking around about Teli's and others. As you explained in your video, The Teli, was to you as I, an old reliac that is associated with country and twangy. Though, very aware of players like Joe Walsh who made his Teli do things that will ring in our heads for decades to come. Then, one day, listening to Joe Satriani on ear bud's while mowing the lawn, I heard this amazing playing of quitar and style that I had not ever heard. I stopped, took my phone out of my back pocket to see who and what this was, "Duke Levine" playing Wild Mountain Thyme. I was taken aback by the ability Duke Levine wielded his guitar in so many soft to aggressive tones coupled with double stops and more, all on the bridge setting. I was hooked and had to have one, Teli. Now, for my 60th birthday, I have just that guitar, plus two PRS's and Schetter Solo II, and my old acustic since 11. Like the suite coat Mike, actually is refreshing to see rather than a tee shirt with a band insignia on it, not that I don't have a few of them, just a nice change. Look forward to more, Cheers!

unironically this the most gas video i’ve ever seen you are criminally underrated

Dude. You made 100% the right decision. You can get a 1,000 of those PRS ones. This Tele. Keep it forever. This is ole faithful. When all else fails, this thing is going to keep going. It’s like owning a Honda civic. Probably every session guitar player to ever live had a Telecaster. Like a chameleon it can do pretty much anything.

Not a 347 , but I got so obsessed with a shell pink that i needed to have one . One day scrolling on ebay i found the Fender Baja Telecaster pink shell a custom shop design limited edition. Straight away i went to Facebook market and by lucky i found the same guitar in there for sale . For few days i was so afraid that someone else would buy it as i needed to wait few more days for my pay day at work to get the guitar . Lucky nobody showed interested , i was so excited that i knew that guitar would be mine . I drived for two hours and i couldn't believe how gorgeous the guitar was and how amazing sounded, with one plus surprise , a Porter t9 bride pickup and the original Fender custom shop pickup as spare included. Today is my baby and it's a guitar , like many others i have , that i will never open hands of . I love Telecasters they are so versatil guitars and great to play

I was a strat guy for the longest time. But 4 years ago, got a gibson les paul junior and that has been my go to guitar since. Always wanted one, actually for 15 years. Then when I got it, it blew me away!

I was in the Strat box for years. I was at a friends house for a little jam and He took out a Korina V and I fell in love, I would stay up nights think of this guitar and how it felt and it made me sound. I was able to pull a master trade to get this guitar and it has become my secret weapon. Never thought a V would be that guitar for me, when it calls out you just got to go with it.

I was never a huge Tele fan, until I was jamming at 3 am with some buddies in a garage. That beat up old neck on a cheapish MIM tele felt like water trickling over my hand. Took me a few years but I bought a similar one, not too expensive, and have never been scared to mod it, upgrade pick ups, add in a treble bleed, and a push-pull pot (that i hated and quickly removed lol).

Can we take a moment to appreciate the honesty, how every video this guy makes goes like “yeah, this one time I was a smooth brain, sounded like a dumb asshole in front of my friends, and boy was I wrong!” As a fan of humility and vulnerability, I love it.

Former Tele guy who now plays the Godin Stadium HT (Havana Brown). Love the bridge pickup...

I love the Tele sound, and yours certainly has it, Mike. It looks great too! Thank you for sharing.

I never seen teles as a country guitar as I grew up with Radiohead and Johnny Greenwood’s tabaco burst tele. My “tele” is a G&L ASAT and it makes me very happy as a player

My "52" re-issue Tele has stollen my heart over my Les Paul & my 2 Strats. It's my Deserted Island, if I could only have one guitar. I own 12 guitars & it is always the one I pick up first to play. Love my black guard Telecaster !!

The Telecaster is Leo Fender going for a cheap electric guitar. It's as basic as it can get. A slab of wood with a bolted-on neck, with a skinny headstock so it would fit in a shipping tube if it needed to be replaced. The controls are all on a small panel. And it still sounds fantastic, all these years later.

My special guitar is a 1980 Hamer Standard. If you do not know what that is Hamer was the first large scale boutique handmade guitar company in the USA starting in the Chicago area in the early 70's. If you like light weight les pauls they made some great DC versions and one called Monaca that was the SC version. You can still find USA made Hamer guitars. They are going up in price daily but those models can still be bought under 3 grand and often under 2 grand. I have one of the Caddies which is an explorer copy and those go into 5 digits currently on the market in good condition. They are great hand crafter guitars. that is all I can say but worth looking into depending on what you prefer. Like the tele though do not let it be misrepresented. Try it your self. You WILL buy a USA Hamer if you mess around little trying them I promise. so don't bother if you want to keep your money.

Congrats, you are lucky the guy still wanted to trade. I've had 4 different Tele's, and have have kept one, a 60'sCV Deluxe, I installed Fender Custom Shop Nocaster pickups with a high quality loaded switchplate with a four way switch. I'm just a hobbyist but this is the guitar I pick up when the others don't seem to sound right. It just always seems to work for me. I even built a parts caster, but had to sell, I regret that one. Looks like you found a real nice one there, it sounds great.

I have a T style partscaster made by a builder in my hometown. It'll run laps around a Custom Shop tele and it cost me less than a new production fender. Local builders are the way to go

My secret weapon is an American Series Tele, 3 color sunburst with a maple fingerboard, and 2 single coils. I tried so many different guitars for so many years. Then, I found "Her". I'd slip into depression without her.

The pure simplity of the Telecaster is deceptive , Leo Fender's earliest design is still today one of the most recognizable in sight and sound . I've had a lot of good guitars and loved them all , but my first pick is still my Tele . Great chops and a interesting story thanks .

Wife bought me my first tele this past Christmas. Absolutely love the guitar.

I think my "secret weapon" is an epiphone dot 335 John Lee Hooker signature model. One morning before work I saw it on reverb and shot a lowball offer at it not ever thinking it would be accepted. Well after I got out of the shower I had a new guitar and have been loving it ever since.

wait, you convinced someone to give you a squirrel for a bulbasaur??! highway robbery! They got SCAMMED!! Well done, Mike. Well done.

Even though this guy is a John Mayer fan, I still think he has some of the best guitar videos on KZfaq. Amusing humor, engaging delivery, and some real fun pickin’.

Important to note that the Esquire, Broadcaster and Telecaster were never intended to be specifically Country music instruments. Leo and George simply had the goal of producing a solid bodied Spanish style electric guitar. Leo Fender was not a musician, he was an Engineer. The Telecaster is a very versatile instrument that can produce a wide range of tones and is well suited to a wide range of musical styles.

I get it. It’s a connection that one has with a certain instrument. I got a 1982 Gibson Explorer back in the early 90s. I still have it to this day. It looks worn out, but still satisfies. The feel of it it’s really comfortable so much back in 2017 I went out and got another. They both feel related. Grandpa and grandson are and have been in my family for good.They both ROCK! 🤘🤘

I’ve got a reissue of a ‘69 Thinline and… Tele’s are just special, no frills, just you and the guitar.

Dude, that's some really nice playing. You two were clearly meant for each other!

The bridge on a Tele….perfection, Leo nailed it right outta the gate

That guitar sounds awesome

Welcome to the club. I am a Tele guy who bought Strat style guitars during the pandemic. My best guitar buddy is a Strat guy so I decided to put together a Strat Partscaster (Seymour Duncans Twang Banger/ Alnico ll Pro (reverse wound)/ Five Two) with CTS pots and Switchcraft jack. Love it, needs a bit more work but will be awesome once all is said ans done. So Joe Strummer and Bruce Springsteen are two major players in my world. Was not a fan of the looks either but my heroes had to know something I did not. Right now I own five Tele makes, mainly imports with mods I am doing myself. My main Tele is a Partscaster (one in my pic) where its a two piece Swamp Ash Warmouth body, MIM Fender neck, a real Filtertron in the neck and a Quarter Pounder in the neck. To me I feel naked without owning one. I woukd say that the surprise guitar for me came in my early twenties and I did not like the way it looked or the types of.players who played them. I am talking about a mid Ninties Epiphone Sheraton. But once I sat down and played it, it felt great and it had mojo. Had to sell it but wish I still had it. Great guitar and will get another one down the road.

Wow that Telecaster sounds awesome. I've got a Harley Benton Tele, it's pretty good but my best guitar is a Gibson Les Paul Studio with locking tuners and a Düsenberg tremolo, the best trem I've ever got and that sustain is so good.

Secret weapon? I Always return to my 16” hollow body with TV Jones Super’trons. I have a Tele’. Every guitar player should have one. They scratch that itch. But, I’d take a hollowbody with Super’trons over anything, if I could only have 1 guitar. Run that straight into a good amp at breakup or put a distortion+ in the chain & you have yourself some sweet toneage

For those who can't afford both a T and S guitar, you can get a "Nashville" Telecaster which has the 3 pickups. Of course you can put whatever pickups you like in it but for me, If I could only carry ONE guitar it would be a Nashville Tele with a 12 string simulation pedal and a really good acoustic simulator pedal. (Hotone)

Can you do a can’t stop lesson, by the Chili-peepers, or explain it?

I have a Jet shell pink Tele that I reliced. I also hand made a steel pickguard for it. Freaking love it. Hated Telecaster style guitars for so long, but then I tried one. Wow was I wrong! (I also have a bigsby loaded modded Les Paul, a J Mascis Jazzmaster, a Jet Srat style, and a Jet HH Jazzmaster style guitar.) Love the look, feel and sounds of them all!

Tone searching is like exploring for a feeling you know is still out there !