50th Anniversary Fiesta Red

[dave robinson]

Hi Martyn, the top one of the pair is the '59, if you look closely it has a single ply scratchplate and the Brazilian rosewood is darker than the rosewood on my 60s reissue, which has a triple ply scratchplate. You can also see the 'chips' on the '59, though there aren't too many of them as this guitar is in quite good nick for it's age. The pickups are to die for, the closest to their sound that I have is on the 50th Anniversary Masterbuilt Strat, followed by the 60s reissue. It isn't a massive difference but I can hear something, especially when listening quietly and using the volume pots.

[Martyn]

Hi Dave,
Yes, I meant to say the earlier guitar of the two (got sixties in my head because that's when I owned my 58/59 strat ).
I have to confess mine wasn't a very good one and didn't sound any better than the cheaper ones we can buy today. I'd buy it back if I got the chance, purely for nostalgic reasons, not the quality of build or its sound. I know we can buy CS59/62s etc trying to match the sounds of that period but do we know what pickups were actually fitted to the early strats - were they all pretty much identical standard issue - the then equivalent of the 59/62s we see today?

Nice to be reminded of the colours back then by your photos.
Cheers,
Martyn