Not to mention singing the way he did while playing the way he did. Have you ever tried to play Grace or just tried to figure out the chords? A lot of those Tele heroes you mentioned in your round-up would have a hard playing some of his songs. And the man could definitely compose AND play. "Personally, that showed me that the best all-round guitar you can have when you are playing clean sounds is not a Strat but a Tele. "He was a musician's singer/songwriter, going on Terry Gilliam'ish musical trails of thought in the middle of songs, playing jazz, punk, metal, progrock and whatnot before going on with the show, which just shows the eclectic influences that inspired his music. "How could you not mention Jeff Buckley? He had a fantastic sound, and he penned some fantastic chord/riff driven songs that where imensely influential, and he was as influential in exposing the world to the New York music scene as Nirvana was in exposing the Seattle scene to the world.
"Jeff Buckley - witness his version of Strange Fruit." (From Adam via Facebook, thanks) "The other legendary Tele Player would be the wonderful Jeff Buckley, who before he decided to grace us with his amazing voice, plied his trade as an axeman for hire." (Thanks, ojc) "Already said, but come on, where's Jeff Buckley? This is a man who on 'Live at Sin-e', just had a blonde Tele he'd borrowed off a mate, an amp with a bit of reverb, and a mic, and showed that this is all you need to make fantastic music. "A truly unforgettable experience." Your votes: However, the guitar was eventually returned to Ms Nicholls following the star's untimely death, where it has remained mostly untouched in its broken case.ĭutch radio producer Botte Jellema is one of a tiny few privileged enough to see it, let alone play it: "I noticed that Jeff had adjusted and tweaked the instrument to perfection, as it played with ease and delight," writes Jellema. Cue worldwide mourning for the loss of a nascent talent, posthumous release overkill (including his spine-tingling cover of Hallelujah) and the story behind the tool of Jeff Buckley’s unmistakable sound and tone: his Fender Telecaster.Īctually, the Blonde 1983 USA top loader Tele wasn’t ‘his’ at all: Buckley borrowed it from a friend, Janine Nicholls, after his valuables were stolen from his LA apartment. Jeff Buckley was recording demos for his second album, My Sweetheart The Drunk, around the time when he was found dead in the Mississippi River in 1997. (Image credit: Nicola Dill/Corbis) Jeff Buckley His pixies and solo records have Telecasters all over them." (Thanks, jtc720) Next: Jeff Buckley Prev of 13 Next Prev of 13 Next How he's not in the original list is beyond me." (Thanks, loftandlost) "What? No Frank Black? What? Am I missing something? (Thanks, loftandlost) "My suggestion would be Frank Black (Pixies)." (Thanks, jfarrar) You can listen to MusicRadar's podcast with frank Black here. Even if we do have to drag him in kicking and screaming… Regardless, anyone capable of making some of the best albums of all time (and inspiring Kurt Cobain to write Smells Like Teen Spirit in the process) is more than welcome in this list. I tend to play vintage guitars now - I have these piezo pickups that create a faux acoustic sound.” In fact, he only chose a Tele in the first place because “I found a Telecaster for $400… a Japanese-made Fender Telecaster from the early 1980s that had humbuckers. Even if he is a reluctant endorsee of the latter: “I ended up at a Tele and it’s probably appropriate but I don’t know if I gave it much thought,” Black told MusicRadar from a darkened tour bus in 2009.
Pixies frontman and prolific solo artist and producer Frank Black (sometimes known as Black Francis, only known to Wikipedia as Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV) is as much an alternative rock icon as he is a Telecaster-wielding legend. We asked, you answered, and this is a gallery of the results: the top 13 unsung Telecaster legends as voted for by you. But what about the unsung heroes who’ve been bearing that Tele-shaped torch without the recognition they deserve? MusicRadar’s gallery of 28 Telecaster legends tips a hat to Leo Fender’s pioneering debut solidbody and the Tele-playing stars who helped to create and nurture the guitar’s iconic status. (Image credit: Salvatore di Nolfi/epa/Corbis) Frank Black