Re: Thoughts on the Brad Paisley Tele?
The problem with the Brad Paisley Tele is that it doesn't really fit those roles. It is a roadworn model, yes, but that is not the point of the guitar, there are plenty of better options in a similar price bracket if that's what you are going for. Another odd choice is that they chose this particular guitar to be his signature model, as it is not his most famous guitar. His most well known guitar is his pink paisley Tele. Finally, the only boxes it ticks under "interesting" are Paulownia wood and a custom neck profile.
There is no "problem" with the guitar. I own one and love it. This guitar was designed by Fender
and Brad Paisley himself and isn't the embodiment of just one of his guitars; but the culmination of three. If you watch him, he goes in phases. He'll play one guitar for much of a tour then move to another one. One of his main guitars; and one of the guitars that was used to model the Fender signature Tele is his 63 that was refinished to silver sparkle. It, however, has a rosewood fretboard. If you want to get a guitar that's closest to what Brad plays, buy a Crook. The body is an "oreo" body. Spruce top and back with Paulownia in the middle. I and built a couple of Teles with Paulownia bodies and I like them; not necessarily for their weight, or lack thereof; but their tone. Tone and sustain just blooms from them. The BP sig is no different. The neck is a soft V shape and fairly chunky; but not super-huge. 9.5' radius with medium-jumbo frets. Say what you will about the relicing. It's not for everyone. Usually, I'm not a fan. This relicing works for me. I played this guitar in the store and it played, sounded, and felt like I had owned it for 20 years; really spoke to me. Pickups are Twisted Tele in the neck and 64 in the bridge. I don;t know if the 64 model is a standard production pickup. It's a little louder and fatter than a standard 50s/60s bridge pickup; very usable for many genres besides Country.
Yes, I have always been a big Brad Paisley fan. I don't really like signature model guitars through. I have owned a few; guitars that I really liked that did or didn't matter if they were signature models. One of my very favorite Telecasters is owned by Matt Rae; a player in New England. It's a Custom Shop gold sparkle. I don't go out of my way to look for sparkle finishes; when, actually, pastels (daphne blue, surf green) are my favorites. I did change out the paisley pickguard to a 1964 type 3-ply parchment with no neck pickup screw holes. I didn't like the paisley' but I wanted to put my own little spin on the guitar.
As far as price, yes it's at the top of the price list for a MIM guitar; but the the Mexican factory uses the same necks and bodies and the Cali factory does. I love the vintage type hardware and that's mostly the same as the US hardware too. I did install a set of Dunlop Straplocks; but I do that on every guitar.
So, bottom line for me is that I love this guitar. It feels like I have owned it and played it for several years. Could they have done some things better? Yeah, but that's with
every guitar.
