Fender Esquire - The Esquire From 1951 To Present

The Esquire From 1951 To Present

Following the renaming of the dual pickup Broadcaster, production and promotion of the single pickup Esquire was briefly discontinued. It was reintroduced with a truss rod in January 1951. The only external differences between these second generation Esquires and the Broadcasters and Telecasters of 1951 are the lack of a neck pickup, and the Esquire label on the head. Although the Esquire had only a single pickup, it retained the three-way switch of the two-pickup guitars. This switch modified the tone of the pickup by making it bassier in the forward position, while enabling use of the tone control knob in the middle position. With the switch in the rear position, these tone controls were bypassed entirely for a "hotter" lead tone.

Use of the Fender Esquire by several country musicians is popularly credited for the creation of one of the most distinctive and recognized sounds in American music history. In 1954 Luther Perkins played a slightly modified Esquire, recording the first Johnny Cash songs "Wide Open Road" and "Hey Porter". This guitar can also be heard on all records before "I Walk The Line", for which Luther played an Esquire. All through his career (which ended with his death in a house fire in 1968) Perkins used Esquires in Blonde, White, Black, Red and Sunburst colors. Even though he was given the new Jazzmaster and Jaguar guitars from Leo Fender personally, Luther Perkins always returned to the guitar that had made possible the creation of the legendary "Boom Chicka Boom Sound" that identified Johnny Cash's music.

Like the two-pickup guitar, these Esquires had a routing cavity in the neck pickup position. Thus, with the purchase of a neck pickup and replacement or modification of the pickguard, players could upgrade their instrument to a guitar identical to the Telecaster in every respect except for the model decal. Bruce Springsteen, for example, has long played an Esquire modified in this way. Springsteen has claimed that the guitar he is pictured with on the Born To Run album cover is, in fact, a hybrid of two guitars, a Telecaster body and Esquire neck. However, it is a first-generation Esquire with two pickup routs. The Esquires had Esquire pickguards to cover the neck pickup hole. His guitar has a neck pickup installed, but not connected. In 1966, Paul McCartney purchased a 1964 Fender Esquire model with a sunburst finish and rosewood fretboard: McCartney bought this guitar, a right-handed model which he restrung and played "upside-down," during the Revolver sessions. Also used on "Good Morning, Good Morning," "Helter Skelter", and "Maybe I'm Amazed," among other cuts from his solo career.

Syd Barrett, the original leader of Pink Floyd, was another prominent Esquire player. His successor David Gilmour, while not as prominent a user as Barrett, used an Esquire with an added pickup (as Springsteen did) on several songs, including "Dogs", "Run Like Hell" and his work on Paul McCartney's album Run Devil Run.

On the single, "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf, guitarist Michael Monarch played a single bridge pickup version of the Fender Esquire.

The initial rationale for reintroducing the single pickup Esquire in 1951 had been to offer a more affordable option for musicians who could not afford the two-pickup guitar. However, with the introduction of cheaper student models such as the Mustang, the more expensive Esquire became a less attractive option, and it was sold in smaller and smaller quantities. Consequently, Fender discontinued the Esquire in 1969.

In 1986, Fender Japan began producing the Esquire, based on the 1954 version. It featured threaded saddles and a white pickguard with either a butterscotch blonde or metallic red finish. Some people report that there was also a blackguard version, and a sunburst was also available. These Esquires were imported to the USA, and were incredible guitars in terms of fit and finish. The necks, in particular, were especially nice. Overall, many players prefer this era Esquire to the more recent Mexican-made reissues.

Fender currently offers several '50s Esquire reproductions in their online catalogue. The company considers the Esquire to be a member of the "family of Telecaster guitars." These Esquires are part of the MIM (made in Mexico) series. The Fender Custom Shop also manufactures a 1959 Esquire reproduction as part of its "Time Machine" series, a model distinguished by its top-loading bridge design. It is also notable that the Avril Lavigne Telecaster sold under the Squier by Fender brand resembles an Esquire since it only has a single pickup.