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I find that the secret to the Tele is that it is usable sounds across the range of both the volume and tone knobs. Perhaps its a fatter bridge pickup (than a typical Strat) coupled with a less dynamic neck pickup (again, than a Strat) that creates a platform to tweak with the knobs.
I have gotten a lot of variety out of a Les Paul, but can't recreate the snap of a good Tele.
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11-06-2014 08:16 PM
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You've spent too much time with archies because those guitars don't sound anything a like. I love my 335, but during my working days my tele ended up replacing my 335 as my go to guitar. A humbucker can't substitute for a single coil and vica versa.
Originally Posted by ArchtopHeaven
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Humbuckers definitely have there place but for clarity, especially with chords, nothing beats a single coil pickup. If I ever buy another Les Paul it will have P-90s. Originally Posted by ArchtopHeaven
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Single coils only sound good if you have decent electrical wiring -- which my house doesn't. My Tele (a '72 custom RI) has a WRHB in the neck and a Seymour Duncan lil 59 in the bridge. I can't really do P-90's at home either for the same reason. I'd love a Charlie Christian PU in a guitar, but afraid to go there because of the noise . . .
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The wiring or the lights? Originally Posted by Longways to Go
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As I stated in my earlier post, I've had great results with shielding and grounding the pickup cavities. Originally Posted by Longways to Go
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Yeh don't get me wrong, I'm not saying a hum-bucker is better (although I did say that), what I meant was, for a cheap guitar, to get a warm deep jazzy tone, a hum-bucker is the preferred choice., usually down to ease and practicality.
Absolutely there are some great single coils and when done right, they sound fantastic.
I also wasn't meaning to say an SG or 335 are the same, they are not but they all should be just as capable at jazz, if not more so, than a Tele and thus back to my point, the Tele is popular because it cheap and redly available, not because it has special properties for jazz (imo).
anyway I will let you Tele fans get on.
Nice thread Mr B
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For me they have a distinctive clarity - either by themselves or within an ensemble.
And for an archtop player, it still feels substantial to me ( general shape and in my case, fat neck and weight)
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I like teles, and usually return to them regularly, because they are versatile and I love clubby necks. The Nocaster on the right is light as a feather and it can be played gently or completely abused and it remains true. The bender to the left, equipped with Keith banjo tuners on the two Es (a la Clarence White/Marty Stuart) weighs a ton but the SD's and a very chunky 53 neck give it a nice tone.
Have no idea why the pic looks this way, so kindly tilt your computer.
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I did the shielding thing on a tele once & it was OK. I also had a tele with an EMG active noiseless pickup system -- which sounded clean but sort of lifeless to me. I traded it off after a while. I really like the idea of a tele, but when it comes down to a workhorse guitar for me, I'm happy with my Sheraton or Ibanez AFJ85. so my Tele custom is playin' backup for now.
Basic design of a telecaster is my favorite solid body guitar. I had a couple of LP's but never could get along with the body shape somehow. It's hard for me to see strats in a jazz context -- pretty much the same for PRS models -- though I think they all look & play nice.
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Sheratons are easy be happy with.
When I was working in Nashville, I used a 1969 Sheraton for a couple of years when I was in a band where the other guitarist played a Tele. That's the only time since 1982 where I haven't played a Tele full time.
I've got a Tele that I put a Duncan Li'l 59er in the back and a Duncan Rhythm Stack in the front with push-pull pots that's a bit thicker tone-wise but still has plenty of snap.
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I somewhat agree with ArchtopHeaven (no, I'm not a heroin addict), Tele's have no special properties and that's exactly their special property! They are not made with this, or that sound, or application in mind, they are just two pieces of wood bolted together, as good as possible. The rest is up to user. You have no highlighted qualities to jump off, but no restrictions either.
When I bought my first Tele, which was my 2nd electrc, I actually wanted a strat with humbuckers, but strats were too expensive, for that matter all Fenders were, that's why I got my self a Squier Tele, back then in 1987. It is still my main guitar, out of two, I did not have other guitar before 2010, or so, which is Squier Hollowbody, only today it looks like this, my MIJ Squier Tele (for the sound you can go to my Youtube, at signature):
Detail:
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Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
So what do you all think? Why does the tele, in whatever incarnation, succeed as a “jazz guitar” better than just about any other plank out there? I have some hunches and suspicions, but I’ll wait to hear from others who know more than I do first.
And feel free to post lots of pics
I think it's a bit like taking your clothes off in public. The people that have done it swear by it!!
By which, of course, I mean.....
Jazz is complex. It's not easy and there is a lot to learn. So many threads on "What's the best amp?" or "guitar for jazz?". So much time consumed trying to work out why your sound isn't what you want. Is it the guitar, the amp, the strings? How do you answer a problem when you don't understand why the ingredients aren't working together? I believe you need to simplify the problem to learn to reach the answers.
The tele. That single coil pup is never muddy. Even if you fit a humbucker it still sounds like a tele. Clear and bright. You can hear every note, every tiny change within a run of chords. There is no acoustic sound to hide behind. It isn't really a jazz guitar or a jazz pickup. It's not going to sound jazzy unless you learn how to make it jazzy. The clarity helps you listen deeper into the relationship between the notes. It teaches you that a tiny movement of the tone or volume knob can take you from "ordinary guitar" to "jazz guitar". This is a revelation at first and then later you wonder why you hadn't always understood this. The Tele is a brilliant teacher. No clothes to hide behind. Naked.
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Well put, I like that thought. Originally Posted by Chimera1to1
I also like this.....
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I think the guitarist that had the biggest influence on my desire to own a Tele was Danny Gatton. On a single song he would play the Tele in multiple styles with various tones from chick'n pick'n to rockabilly to swing and jazz. Both Danny and the Tele were amazing. Originally Posted by ArchtopHeaven
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I keep hoping one day Fender (or someone else) comes out with a good T-style guitar with a HB in the neck position and a SC hard by it. The best of both worlds! Originally Posted by ArchtopHeaven
(I know some people like to split HBs, but the result isn't as good as your favourite SC, is it?)
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Your right, they always try to find work arounds for hum buckers to singles but the more they try, the less each on its own sounds like it should. Originally Posted by BigDaddyLoveHandles
If you want a hum bucker get a hum bucker, if you want single coil, get a single. Getting a split, or a Lace is a nice try but doesn't quite cut it.
Thats my thought anyway and I gather your inclination as well, from what I read?
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I will just set this here and show myself the door.
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I was originally influenced by the late, great Roy Buchanan. Roy could play just about anything on his Telecaster. As a teenager in Washington, DC, I knew of Roy (and Danny Gatton)--you couldn't be a gigging guitarist in the DC area and not be someone who navigated in the boat chop of Buchanan, Gatton, AND Nils Lofgren. Those guys were awesome players.
Later on, in the 90s, I saw Danny Gatton several times. I had the good fortune of getting to know him a bit in the period before his untimely death. He was a staggeringly good guitar player on any instrument he played. However, he sure could make a Telecaster sound bluesy, jazzy, or whatever.
Whereas Buchanan was influenced by Barney Kessel, Gatton was bitten hard by Grant Green, Kenny Burrell, and Wes Montgomery. Gatton could make his Telecaster do the Blue Note bebop thing with comparative ease. The deaths of both gentlemen were great losses to the guitar world.
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Yes, but I'm happy with the SC pickup on my ASAT Special. It's fairly fat (hi-fi?) without being muddy. Originally Posted by ArchtopHeaven
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That is a GREAT picture! It is from the period when both Kessel and Ellis were in the studios. Everyone was expected to play a Telecaster--it was THE requested sound. Kessel, Ellis, Roberts, Tedesco, etc., all had a Telecaster that they employed on studio dates. They also all had Danelectro "tic-tac" bass guitars like the one you see on Kessel's left. It doubled the upright bass and gave the bass note top end definition. Everything from California featured three guitarists, a tic-tac bass, and an upright bass--until Carol Kaye came along and used a pick on the Fender Precision. Originally Posted by SamBooka
I will just set this here and show myself the door.
I can still hear all of the TV and movie soundtracks that employed the guys in that picture, as well as the jingles and pop tunes. Just think of the opening theme to the TV show "The Wild Wild West."
As far as irony goes, I don't know? The Big T.N.T. Show was a rock and roll review--sequel to the TAMI Show. That's Phil Spector, the musical director, for the show, directing the "rock and roll" musicians--I guess that's ironic, but not really. Those guys are the ones who actually cut most of Spector's rock/pop hits. Kessel, Ellis, Pittman, Tedesco, and others (along with Leon Russell on piano) backed up most of the T.N.T. acts in the studio.
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Here's Tim Lerch talking about a recent tele acquisition of his. Maybe this will help shed some light on why they're so popular as jazz guitars. Tim talks about nut and neck width, string spacing, neck radius, etc. as factors that make tele's his favourite guitar.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dTY1KbLeFs&list=UUC0eq_e51FB-_BIbtd9NGTw
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I love Tele's and have had a few of them. But I'm not crazy about the way they balance when using a strap. It just seems they don't hang in as natural a playing position as some other guitars. Maybe that's just me.
Love the versatility of tone. Depending on the player, I've heard some of the sweetest and also some of the most unpleasantly piercing sounds. Gotta use that tone control!
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I outfitted my mexi tele with a Fender N3 noiseless neck pickup. Didn't bother with the bridge as I have no use for it. The N3 gets rid of the hum and still has the single coil clarity. With some heavy flatwounds it really sounds great for jazz. And I don't worry about someone knocking it over on a gig or having it stolen(at least compared to my archtop).
Great guitars. Utilitarian.
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I remember seeing Nils Lofgren at the Crazy Horse in Georgetown, the man did a back flip while playing his Strat. Originally Posted by Greentone
Sorry, now back to the original Tele love subject.
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