Joe Strummer Telecaster Review

Designed in cooperation with the Strummer estate, the guitar has a highly distressed “road-worn� treatment that emulates the worn-to-the-wood layers of gray auto primer and flat black spray paint he made famous. It also features a “Revolution Rock� engraved neckplate and a limited edition art customization kit that includes Strummer-inspired stencils, stickers and graphics by designer Shepard Fairey.

Features:	9
Sound:	8
Action:	9
Reliability:	8
Impression:	9
Overall rating:	8.6
Users rating:	8.1
Comments:	52

Reviewed by: unregistered, on november 13, 2007

Price paid: $ 1280.9817

Features: What can I say, it's a Joe Strummer Signiture Telecaster made in 2007. From what I can tell it's a replica of a Standard '60s tele, alder body, 21-fret rosewood fretboard, C shaped neck, Vintage Tele pickups, Vintage Fender tuning heads and road worn finish on hardware and body, all the borin stuff! It also comes with a travel case and a really cool customisation kit. Mint! // 9

Sound: This guitar is perfect for the music that I play, punk. The frets are chunky so they are perfect for playing chords but it's a bit difficult for playing lead style (but I'm shit at that anyway). I play it through a Fender FM212DSP amp with no effects. This guitar pretty much sounds like a Standard Tele so, with distortion, it has that perfect bright twang to cut through the bass, but it also gives a deep crunch with the neck pickup. It also plays well on a clean setting but I don't play it clean often. Not much in the way of versatility. // 8

Action, Fit & Finish: Now the fun bit, The setup was perfect from when I took it out of its box. The strings provided were crap so I put some ernie ball super slinkys on and it sung. The pickups are perfectly positioned. The finish on the body and neck is amazing. If you've seen the pictures of it on the net, it looks the same but is so much more beautiful in person. The wear on the neck is fantastic! And is worn were your fingers are actually placed when playing the chords. Even the hardware on it is aged and rusted, I put a brown leather Vintage style strap on it and aged that as well and it looks the part. If you've ever seen pics of Joes actual guitar you'll know that this is just the basic guitar without any stickers or stencils, that's where the customisation kit comes in. It has replicas of the stickers actually on joes guitar and I think that in skilled hand this guitar can be made to look even better, especially if the pickguard is resprayed black (instead of the mint green one put on the guitar itself). But I think it looks good without the kit as well. // 9

Reliability & Durability: I'd use this guitar Live without a backup any day. I'm inbetween bands at the minute and I haven't actually used it Live before but I will deffo use it as my main axe onstage. It's very solidly built and is actually lighter than the Standard tele so I deffo think it'll withstand anything that comes it's way. It's already very aged so any scrapes or dints can only add to it looks. And just imagine walking onstage with that guitar round your neck! // 8

Impression: This thing is perfect for what I play and looks the part too. I've been playing guitar/bass for bout 4 years and I also own a Fender Mike Dirnt P-Bass, a Fender Standard Telecaster (my baby and backup), an old Court acoustic and the before mentioned amp. If it was lost/stolen I wouldn't even think about getting another, it would be an automatic reaction! But to summarise the guitar is a fantastic looking, playing rhythm machine. And it provides access to the relic Fender instruments at a steal of only £700! I short buy it (or don't 'cause I want mine to be the only one). // 9

Comments

[kfong03]

first!

[muso_ chris]

that looks awesome. but you said it was mint. isnt the point of the guitar that it isnt mint?

[voidSkipper]

first!

You must be proud, being the first of three comments.

[disillusia]

^ lol niceone

[nathhan]

its looks awesome but i think id rather a american standard for that much - nice review!

[Nazi zaschzi]

i'd rather buy a normal telecaster and then thrash it

[RagefromNirvana]

Yeah i played one of these. If you guys dont know, its not beat up at all, its painted to look beat up. The rust on the bridge isnt, its just painted yellow. I think it is the ugliest guitars ive ever played. I dont think Joe Stummer would like it at all.

[Darkage]

Dudes the guitar looks really bad. Its hell ugly. I dont think any1 with eyes is gonna like it. Its not worth the price.

[zapatista89]

comercialist bull shit
ive got a jap 62 reissue tele for £500 and theres no difference

[Frusciante30]

Telecasters are for men with small packages!

[shakysam]

Frusciante30 wrote:

Telecasters are for men with small packages!

John Frusciante has been known to play a telecaster, please never speak again.

In any case, I think that selling a pre-trashed version of a guitar that embodied DIY punk is obscene.

[kaptink]

"So you think its funny, turning rebellion into money!"

[ss311]

kaptink wrote:

"So you think its funny, turning rebellion into money!"

Hear hear

[TJ1991]

Frusciante30 wrote:

Telecasters are for men with small packages!

Do you realise how many people you've just dissed there..?

And lol at your username when slagging telecaster players off!

[OMGitsPinkFloyd]

Price paid: 1280.9817

uhmm....
how did u pay for that decimal?

[dgme92]

Frusciante30 wrote:

Telecasters are for men with small packages!

ahhh... nah? Telecasters rock! You like John Frusciante, judging by your username? Frusciante uses them, along with Strats!

[FlambeauX]

I think it looks pretty righteouss, it'd be cool to play live.

[TJ1991]

OMGitsPinkFloyd wrote:

Price paid: 1280.9817


uhmm....
how did u pay for that decimal?

I imagine that was the exchange rate at the time. either that or someone's been cutting pennies up again...

[Dopey_Trout]

I imagine that was the exchange rate at the time. either that or someone's been cutting pennies up again...

those damn penny cutters lol

[LastAuramancer]

I think it's rediculous to charge over 1k for this guitar. I remember when they first released it, they said it was based of the tele he bought in london for 200 Euros

[LastAuramancer]

I think it's rediculous to charge over 1k for this guitar. I remember when they first released it, they said it was based of the tele he bought in london for 200 Euros

[rock_guitargod]

Frusciante30 wrote:

Telecasters are for men with small packages!

hmm nice username..i believe he uses one?

[Aziraphale]

What exactly makes this guitar any different from any other tele? Paying a thousand dollars for a factory-thrashed guitar, oh how rock that is.

[Shiner]

Telecasters are great, but you should earn your own used look instead of buying into someone else's.

[dinosaur sr]

I love this guitar....

and the clash and joe strummer


too bad its so expspensive

[SkyValley]

What the F? Why would you pay 1200$ for a beat-up guitar with rusty hardware and chipped paint? That thing looks like it's been through hell about 9 times. Is Joe Strummer like some homeless guy or something?

[blaze2thekings]

why not buy your very own american tele then sandblast it or something? part of the fun is trashing, AKA breakin it in, by yourself.

[TJ1991]

LastAuramancer wrote:

I think it's rediculous to charge over 1k for this guitar. I remember when they first released it, they said it was based of the tele he bought in london for 200 Euros

Very good point, hadn't thought of that.

And I have a totally mashed Telecaster, puts that thing to shame tbh, and I did it myself for a couple of hunded quid...

[Ranger01]

Reminds me of a saying in the Hot Rod Kulture, "If you didnt build it, Dont Cruise it." For guitars it should be "If you didnt bruise it, Dont use it!"

[Dnalrafcmb3]

that is the coolest looking old guitar I have ever seen!

[freshtunes]

shakysam wrote:

Frusciante30 wrote:

Telecasters are for men with small packages!


John Frusciante has been known to play a telecaster, please never speak again.

In any case, I think that selling a pre-trashed version of a guitar that embodied DIY punk is obscene.

It is obscene, Fender needs a good slap. Guitars should be worn down by the player because of their love for the instrument, not for the look.

[Findingemo1993]

i agree with shakysam. its like buying a pair of pants already ripped. its one thing if they rip from being worn but buying them like that is stupid. the guitar should be worn from use, not already worn

[im not mental]

i tried one out in guitar center.

didn't really like it that much.

[Under_The_Oath]

Ahaha very cool.

[fenderboy20]

i think signature guitars are more of a collectors item than a guitar. sure id definitly like one, but it just makes me feel more like a fan than a musician

[emery01]

SkyValley wrote:

What the F? Why would you pay 1200$ for a beat-up guitar with rusty hardware and chipped paint? That thing looks like it's been through hell about 9 times. Is Joe Strummer like some homeless guy or something?

Joe Strummer is dead.

Fucknugget/

[burndttoast]

I wouldn't pay for a Telecaster that's "road worn." If I really wanted my guitar to look like it's been through a war or something, I could emulate that myself. But I guess it's cool if you want it as a collectors item.

[eldoplaysguitar]

sounds awesome is there like any catches to it like slow action or crap like that?

[nosaj89]

as a collectors item, maybe. but I wouldn't be caught dead at a punk show with this guitar.

[legoflamb]

what's next to come out... copies of Willie Nelson's guitar? the tele's definitely a cool collector guitar, but I don't have money to waste right now.

[the.spine.surfs]

The pictures of this guitar are decieving. It's actually not reliced or worn, it's painted/printed to look work. Lame.

[punkrox101]

it cost more in england. here in the US the starting price was 699 and then the price increased to 899. good guitar collection though.

[monsterfreak204]

a do this a do that

[slf10]

SkyValley wrote:

What the F? Why would you pay 1200$ for a beat-up guitar with rusty hardware and chipped paint? That thing looks like it's been through hell about 9 times. Is Joe Strummer like some homeless guy or something?

i cant believe u dont know who joe strummer is. call yourself a guitar player?!
twat

[curtbob]

I'm w/ SkyValley? It's just crazy to pay $1,200 for a beat uo guitar w/ rusty hardware. I saw one at GC for $900 & thought that was too high. For $300, I could buy a used Standard Tele & leave out on the porch the to get the hardware rusty. The knuckleheads at work would ding it & grafitti it for kicks. Bada bing, bada boom-- my own "homemade" (though unofficial) Joe Strummer Tele.

Good review though.

[teledaddy]

To me the point of the guitar is to draw attention to the legacy of Joe Strummer and what he was about. I think it is a great tribute and it made me look more into the history of this guy. It is horrible to look at but beautiful to play and hear. I was repulsed by the first look (and the second and third!) but by the third time I played it I couldn't put the thing down. Now I own one and I still feel the same way. It helps me remember Joe and all who dared take the rock stage with the attitude, "Screw it! I don't care if you like me or not!". I don't think that it matters if it makes fender money or not just like I don't think it mattered if the clash made money or not. They got noticed, therefore they communicated to the world!

[teledaddy]

By the way if you don't like my comments you can...See, I've already been influenced for the better!

[teledaddy]

To me the point of the guitar is to draw attention to the legacy of Joe Strummer and what he was about. I think it is a great tribute and it made me look more into the history of this guy. It is horrible to look at but beautiful to play and hear. I was repulsed by the first look (and the second and third!) but by the third time I played it I couldn't put the thing down. Now I own one and I still feel the same way. It helps me remember Joe and all who dared take the rock stage with the attitude, "Screw it! I don't care if you like me or not!". I don't think that it matters if it makes fender money or not just like I don't think it mattered if the clash made money or not. They got noticed, therefore they communicated to the world!

[IRISH_PUNK13]

Frusciante30 wrote:

Telecasters are for men with small packages!

DUDE SHUT THE HELL UP AND HOW WOULD YOU KNOW IF DUDES WITH TELES GOT SMALL PACKAGES ARE LOOKING

[prt1990]

Frusciante30 wrote:

Telecasters are for men with small packages!

... I guess that would explain my choice of guitar then...

LastAuramancer wrote:

I think it's rediculous to charge over 1k for this guitar. I remember when they first released it, they said it was based of the tele he bought in london for 200 Euros

I very much doubt he payed for it with Euros.

[burdenedangel]

why not just buy a standard tele, then buy a large chain and thrash it?
or if you've got an AK-47, bullet holes look epic on a guitar.

[-sparkrock101-]

im sure its great to play (like all fenders) but why would you pay so much for a rusty bet up telecaster??