Happy seventy fifth

EbM7b5, Db7/9, C

Many happies Keith and keep on rockin'. Hey! whatca doin' with that beautiful Super 400.. taking up jazz?

More Tele abuse spotted.

They come and they go.

Fender are certainly the best at doing limited runs of average quality, usually Mexican made models. Many of these instruments are actually concept copies. As an example.. think back a few years to the La Cabronita. This was a hybrid Telecaster with either a single or a pair of Gretsch pickups. This was a concept directly from the guitar modding community, the hobbyists that keep us interested in new things. Fender blatantly stole the concept and did a minimum production of identical instruments. Was this an exercise in sales or in (perhaps) creating future collectable guitars?

The correct headstock

So here we go again with a limited run of hybrid Strat/Telecasters. This particular concept has been around for years known as the Nashville Stratocaster. This one popped up from the Fender Custom Shop (collectables) and now it's a standard US release.. 2018 Limited Edition Whiteguard Strat

Only a week or so ago there was an offset Jazzmaster/Telecaster shown in the Fender catalogue, it seems to have been replaced by the Strat.

Both these Tele hybrids have come from the hobbyists and are NOT Fender concepts. I personally don't have anything against the designs other than the fact that Fender aren't being faithful to THEIR original iconic designs. I see these concepts are either a Strat with Tele hardware and electronics or a Jazzmaster with Tele hardware and electronics. So the question is WHY does the Strat/Tele mutant have a Strat body but has a Tele neck (headstock). Likewise for the Jazzy mutant. For the credibility of these design classic's why are Fender creating these mix'n'match versions?

Eric: "Maybe the guitar is over?"

Maybe the guitar is over?

So what is it that is killing guitar sales? Could it simply by greed from the instrument industry? Gibson lost a packet so much so that they have closed their Memphis factory and moved their archtop manufacturing to their solid body plant in Nashville. Fender are just going nuts in desperation to stay on top of it.

Gary Rush: tells his story in a Podcast

Gary, back in them days.

Sprintcar pioneer and multi Australian champion Gary Rush tells his story in the Catting With Sturat podcast.

Click here to listen now.

Speedway: the best kept secret in motorsport.

A nice action shot from MDR Photography QLD

Apart from a few meets in the top-end during winter, speedway is a dry sport, a summer thing. Every Saturday night in practically every small town throughout the country some form of speedway is happening. I know several years ago I heard that speedway was the most attended spectator sport in the country. Perhaps they forgot the footy in that but it may well have the biggest motorsport patronage.
If we think bitumen racing has a heap of classes then speedway literally has dozens. Some classes only run at their one little home town track. So tonight I thought I would spread the love to include a class of cars we haven't touched before. In fact I have never seen these cars race in the flesh. It's the AMCA Nationals.