Offset asymmetrical double cutaway solid body. This Custom Color Taos Turquoise, Brazilian Rosewood Fretboard "1959" Stratocaster was specially built by master luthier Todd Krause at the Fender Custom Shop in April 2010. This very beautiful guitar weighs just 7.70 lbs. and has a contoured 'select' solid alder body. Quartersawn maple neck with a nut width of just under 1 11/16 inches and a wonderful medium-to-thick profile. Brazilian Rosewood fretboard, with 21 medium '6015' frets and inlaid white composite dot position and side dot markers. Headstock with 1954-60 style 'Spaghetti' logo with "Fender" in gold with black trim, "Stratocaster" in black and "With Synchronized Tremolo" in black beneath. Single "butterfly" string tree. Individual 'no-name' Kluson Deluxe tuners with oval metal buttons. On the back of the headstock there is a black 'Custom Shop' decal with "Todd Krause" in black. Four-bolt neck-plate with serial number "R 55406" stamped between the top two screws. Three-ply (white/black/white) plastic pickguard with eleven screws. Three Fender Custom-Shop 'Fat 50s' Stratocaster pickups with outputs of 6.48k, 6.59k, and 6.72k. Three controls (one volume, two tone) plus five-way pickup selector switch. Stratocaster white plastic knobs with ribbed sides and gold lettering. Fender combined bridge/tailpiece with six saddles and through-body stringing. The underneath of the neck is marked in pencil "04 - 10 / Todd Krause" and the end of the neck is also marked in pencil "10688617-30". The neck pickup cavity is stamped in blind "TK". This guitar is in mint as new (9.50) condition. Complete with the original bridge cover, tremolo arm, Fender Custom Shop Certificate of Authenticity signed by Todd Krause (dated "7/28/10") and all the original case candy including black leather strap, guitar cord, polishing cloth and instruction manual.   Housed in the original Fender 'Custom-Shop' black hardshell case with black plush lining and black leather ends (9.50).

We have no idea how many Taos Turquoise guitars have been made by the Fender Custom Shop - but as this is the only one we have ever seen we assume that the number is certainly on the small side. What we do know is that Fender are not producing any more guitars with Brazilian Rosewood fretboards. (DJB)

This Custom Shop creation is based on a late '59 Stratocaster with some modern modifications. As an NOS (new old stock), it has the totally unblemished look as if the guitar was purchased new in 1959 and that had been recently discovered tucked away 'under-the-bed. It has a select alder body with a truly beautiful finish of Taos Turquoise. The maple neck has typical '59 "C" back-shape. The 10" radius Brazilian Rosewood fretboard has tall, narrow 6105 jumbo frets. The pickup used are a trio of Fender Custom Shop 'Fat 50s' Stratocaster single-coils that give you all the classic Strat tones including "in between" without the hum.

To call Todd Krause the "Builder to the Stars" would be a vast understatement. He maintains and builds guitars for Fender signature artists Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Stu Hamm and Roscoe Beck. Further, he has built custom instruments for Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Bob Dylan, Roger Waters and Gene Simmons, to name only a few.

Krause's guitar-building apprenticeship began in March 1981 at Jackson/Charvel guitars. He started working at Fender in 1991 and quickly donned many hats, including that of a one-off builder, R&D model maker, woodworking machinist, and, eventually, master builder.

Single cutaway solid body. This Gibson Custom Shop Historic reissue of the "First Version" Les Paul Custom weighs 10.10 lbs. Solid carved mahogany body finished in black nitro-cellulose with seven-ply binding on the top and five-ply binding on the back. One-piece mahogany neck with a nut width of 1 11/16 inches and a really thick '54 profile. Single-bound ebony fretboard with 22 medium jumbo frets and inlaid pearl block position markers. Headstock with five-ply binding and inlaid pearl "Gibson" logo and pearl five-piece split-diamond inlay. Two-layer black on white plastic truss-rod cover with "Les Paul Custom" engraved in white. Individual Grover Rotomatic tuners with kidney-bean style metal buttons. Serial number "4 6129" inked in white onto the back of the headstock. One 480 Alnico 5 single-coil pickup in the neck position with an output of 8.65k and one P-90 single-coil 'Soapbar' pickup in the bridge position with an output of 7.84k. Five-layer black over white plastic pickguard. Four controls (two volume, two tone) on lower treble bout plus three-way selector switch on upper bass bout. Black plastic bell-shaped control knobs with metal tops. Two "Bumblebee" capacitors. Gibson Tune-O-Matic retainer bridge with metal saddles and separate stud tailpiece. All hardware gold-plated. Complete with the original Gibson Gold Warranty, truss-rod adjuster, case key and various hang-tags. This eight year old guitar is in as new (9.50) condition. Housed in the original five-latch Gibson Custom black shaped hardshell case with maroon plush lining (9.50).

This is a truly amazing guitar with amazing tonal variation and its own very special sound. The 480 Alnico 5, originally designed by the legendary Seth Lover, produces a warm 'jazzy' sound that just cannot be believed unless you hear it. Between 1954 and 1958 these pickups were only used on the very 'top-of-the-line' Gibson models and can give a full variation between a warm creamy sound and a stinging 'sweet-bite'.

The Les Paul Custom was first introduced in 1954 and just over one thousand examples were shipped between 1954 and 1957. The first reissue of this iconic guitar appeared in 1972 as a limited edition (Custom 54 Ltd Edition) of coincidentally just over one thousand examples. In 2006 Gibson began to offer (in very limited numbers) a 'second' accurate reissue of the original '54. Our guitar is one of the first of the 'second' reissues.

Asymmetrical double cutaway with rounded horns. This exceptionally beautiful Burgundy Mist Stratocaster was specially made in or around June of 1992 for for Pearl Jam rhythm and lead guitarist Stone Gossard by two of the great Fender Custom Shop Master Builders, Art Esparza and Herbie (Bert) Gastellum. The top of the guitar is signed in black marker by Eddie Vedder, Stone Gossard, Jeff Ament and Mike McCready.

The guitar weighs 8.10 lbs. and has a nut width of between 1 5/8 and 1 11/16 inches and a scale length of 25 1/2 inches. One-piece alder body, one-piece 'flamed' maple neck with a typical "10/'56 "Boat Neck" Shape," and 'flamed' maple fretboard with 21 Vintage Style 'jumbo' frets and black dot position markers. Headstock with Fender 'Spaghetti' logo in gold with black trim. The tuners have been replaced (by Mike McCready?) with Fender� Schaller� American Series DeLuxe tuning machines with chrome half-moon shaped buttons. The back of the headstock has the gold oval decal of the Fender Custom Shop. Four-bolt neck plate with serial number "V059055" stamped between the top two screws. Three specially wound 'vintage-style' black bottom pickups with balanced outputs of 8.38k, 7.32k, and 7.11k. Three-layer white/black/white plastic pickguard with eleven screws. Three controls (one volume, two tone) plus five-way selector switch, all on pickguard. White plastic knobs with gold lettering. Fender American Standard combined bridge/tremolo unit with special 'graphite' saddles. The potentiometers are all stamped "R 137 9109" (CTS March 1991). The bottom of the neck has the red "Custom Shop / Fender USA" stamp with "10-56" in red marker and also the red stamp of "Art Esparza". It is also stamped in black "H. Gastellum" and it is also signed in black by him. The end of the neck is stamped in black "May 15 1992". The neck pocket also has the same two red stamps and is signed in blue marker "Art Esparza / 6-92". The pickup and control cavities have been specially shielded with gray paint to reduce hum. The underside of the foil shielding on the pickguard is marked "LO".

Stone Gossard, apparently, had the control cavities specially 'shielded' and at the same time replaced the standard tuners with Schallers and the 'string-tree, the nut and the bridge saddles with 'graphite' versions. This guitar is in mint (9.50) condition. Housed in the original G and G Vintage style light-brown tolex hardshell case with brown leather ends and red plush lining (9.50).

A photograph of Stone Gossard playing - or should we say, playing with - this guitar can be found in Pearl Jam's VS & Vitology deluxe collector's set, within the Notebook on page nineteen. In profile, he, as if performing a vaudeville novelty act, appears to have ingested its neck halfway down; he's a guitar-swallowing sword swallower. The classic Fender headstock goes down smooth but don't try this at home, kids - you don't want to get a tuner caught in your tonsils.

An as new copy of Pearl Jam's Vs & Vitology deluxe collector's set is included with the guitar.

Rolling Stone editor David Fricke believes that Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard and Mike McCready were erroneously excluded from the publication's 2003 feature "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" (Rolling Stone, April 21, 2006).

Signed in black marker pen by Mike McCready, Eddie Vedder, Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament with various comments and doodles. This guitar was sold in March of 2001 by 'The Guitar Broker' in Florida. His (2001) description reads as follows "5421 STRATOCASTER Pearl Jam autographed Custom Shop issue, 1995 [sic 2], cool burgundy mist finish, super flamey hard-V neck, ultra rare as all the boys from Pearl Jam have autographed it, Eddie palyed it, as you know Pearl Jam doesn't sign anything anymore, here's your chance to own a real piece of rock'n'roll history, n.mint, hsc." His original description together with the original 1991 Fender Custom Shop brochure are included.

Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, guitar), Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), and Mike McCready (lead guitar). The band's current drummer is Matt Cameron, also of Soundgarden, who has been with the band since 1998. Since its inception, the band has sold over thirty million records in the U.S. and an estimated sixty million worldwide. Pearl Jam has outlasted many of its contemporaries from the alternative rock breakthrough of the early 1990s, and is considered one of the most influential bands of the decade. Allmusic refers to Pearl Jam as "the most popular American rock & roll band of the '90s."

Luthier Art Esparza joined Fender in the early sixties and became one of the Master Builders in the Custom Shop. One of the last guitars that he built was a Stratocaster specially built for Buddy Guy for his eightieth birthday. The guitar was specially painted by Costa Mesa artist, Jim Doody and was featured at the 2003 NAMM Show.

Herbie (Bert) Gastellum joined Fender in 1961. Like Abigail Ybarra, he moved around a bit within the factory before finding his area of expertise. Gastellum began buffing guitar bodies, spent a little time in the spray booth, and then settled in as a neck shaper, the job he holds now at the Custom Shop.

Single cutaway solid body. This super rare 13-inch-wide, electric solid body TV Junior weighs just 7.10 lbs. Solid mahogany body with the original 'TV' light-washed mahogany finish on body and neck. One-piece mahogany neck with a nut width of just over 1 11/16 inches, a standard Gibson scale length of 24 3/4 inches and a wonderful thick 'baseball-bat' profile. Brazilian rosewood fretboard with 22 original thin frets and inlaid pearl dot markers. Black-faced headstock with "Gibson" logo and "Les Paul TV Junior" silk-screened in gold. Single-layer black plastic, bell-shaped truss-rod cover with two screws. Three-in-a-line Kluson Deluxe 'single-line' 'no-name' strip tuners with oval white plastic buttons. Serial number "510528" inked-on in black on the back of the headstock. Single-layer black plastic pickguard with three screws. One P-90 pickup (in the bridge position) with an output of 7.73k. Black plastic pickup cover stamped on the underside "UC - 450-1 / 2". Two controls (one volume, one tone) on lower treble bout. The potentiometers are stamped "615 2632 518" (ROC, May 1955). Original "Grey Tiger" capacitor. Black plastic bell-shape "Bell" control knobs. Original combination wrap-over bar bridge/tailpiece with two intonation screws. There is some overall finish checking and a few surface marks and indentations, mainly on the top, the edges of the body and the back of the neck. When we removed the truss-rod cover on this guitar we noticed that the nut on the end of the truss-rod had sheared off. We sent the guitar to our expert luthier Scott Lentz who has professionally restored the truss-rod to full working order. Overall this all original fifty-nine year old, very rare Les Paul TV Junior is in exceptionally fine (9.00) condition. Housed in the original Gibson three-latch softshell 'Aligator' case with brown felt lining (9.00).

"The first variant is characterized by a single cutaway thick body, but the specifications of early sample may differ in terms of wood and finish. The very first TV models were built with either a mahogany or a maple body, and whilst most of them were released with a limed finish, some were also issued in natural. By 1955 the TV specs were crystallised and limed mahogany became the norm, although mention was subsequently made of a natural or limed oak finish in Gibson brochures." (A.R. Duchossoir. Gibson Electrics. The Classic Years. p. 123)

There are two examples of this rare finish featured in The Early Years of the Les Paul Legacy 1915-1963 by Robb Lawrence (p. 181). "Two extremely rare 1955 Les Paul TV models with the unique light-washed "natural" finish."

Single Florentine (pointed) cutaway. This 17-inch wide, just over 3 3/8 inch deep (at the rim) archtop weighs just 7.60 lbs. Two-piece book-matched, carved spruce top with a one-piece flamed maple back and flamed maple sides. Three-piece book-matched flamed maple neck with two mahogany strips, a nut width of just under 1 5/8 inches, a scale length of 25 1/2 inches and a very fast medium-thin profile. Multi-bound ebony fretboard with a small, graceful point at the end, 20 jumbo frets, inlaid pearl block position markers and black dot side markers. Nine-ply binding on the top of the guitar, five-ply binding on the back, and single-bound f-holes. Multi-bound headstock with inlaid pearl "Gibson" logo and pearl "L-5" flowerpot inlay. Three-layer black over white plastic bell-shaped truss-rod cover with "Custom" engraved in white, secured by two screws. Black-painted headstock rear face with widow's peak. Individual Kluson Sealfast tuners with bell-shaped metal buttons. Serial number "896490" stamped in blind on back of headstock. Two early Gibson patent-number humbucking pickups (with the "L" toolmarks on the feet still clearly visible) with rectangular black labels with "Pat No 2,737,842" on the underside and outputs of 7.33k and 7.84k. Black plastic pickup surrounds stamped on the underside "MR 491 / M-69 7" and "MR 490 / M-69 8". Four controls (two volume, two tone) on the lower treble bout, plus three-way pickup selector switch on the treble horn. Gold plastic bell-shaped knobs with metal tops. Original multi-bound tortoiseshell pickguard. Gibson Tune-O-Matic retainer bridge with nylon saddles on rosewood base and gold-plated flat plate tailpiece with engraved "L 5" and small hole at the bottom center (for allen wrench tension adjustment). All hardware gold-plated. Style number "L5-CESN" and serial number "896490" written in ink on the orange oval printed label inside the bass f-hole (no made in USA on label). The guitar has been expertly re-fretted with the correct gauge fretwire. There is a small amount of crystallization on the pickguard just by the bridge pickup - but the pickguard is quite sound and does not need any attention. There is some very light tarnishing to the gold-plated pickup covers. There are two small surface marks on the bass side of the top, a few very small surface marks on the treble edge of the top and an additional strap-button hole on the back just by the neck heel. With all that said, this prime example is in exceptionally fine (9.00) condition. Housed in it's original Gibson four-latch black 'Lifton' hardshell case with orange plush lining (9.00).

"The eighth model L-5CES (later 1960 through mid-1969), was equipped with the sharp Florentine body cutaway. It was bound at the pointed edge of the cutaway with celluloid material, much like that used to bind the top and back except that it was made of a single piece of plastic. These guitars were braced internally the same as the earliest L-5CES guitars, but they utilized a somewhat longer neck block because the cutaway was so deep and ran parallel to the neck for a longer distance. Otherwise, most appointments for the guitar remained the same as those in the L-5CES guitars from 1958 through 1960. The top-hat knobs of 1959-1960 were replaced in 1961 with the "dished-top" knobs with the metal insert in the tops. These knobs were utilized for tone and volume controls until about 1967, when the black top-hat knobs were introduced... The pickups in these guitars were initially PAF humbuckers, which were replaced by the patent-number humbuckers in approximately 1963. Just 601 'Florentine' cutaway L-5CES's were produced between 1960 and 1969.

"Timeless elegance. A jazz icon. The inspirational archtop guitar. These are just a few of the descriptions that fit Gibson's L-5. Add to those a historical antecedent: the L-5 in various forms has been in constant production since late 1922, longer than any Martin, Gretsch, Epiphone, or National model... Originally conceived by acoustic engineer Lloyd Loar, the L-5 was the first guitar with design principles incorporated from carved instruments of the cello family. It represented a complete break from existing guitar design. Sporting simple appointments such as dot fingerboard inlays and a dark sunburst finish, the guitar was elegantly finished with a pearl 'flower pot' inlaid in the headstock below the Gibson logo, and a karat at the end of the fingerboard. The timing of the L-5's introduction was nearly perfect since the guitar at that time was growing in popularity, but had yet to graduate from being just an instrument of vocal accompaniment to use in ensemble and orchestra settings...Certainly by the early '40s the L-5 was a staple in jazz band and orchestral settings. At 17" across the lower bout, it was a perfectly sized instrument. Loud enough for orchestral use, but not so large and difficult to handle as Gibson's Super 400 or the Epiphone Emperor, the L-5 was extremely popular among musicians in jazz, country and western, and large orchestras" (Eric C. Shoaf, "Gibson L-5: Loyd Loar's Timeless Masterpiece").