u/fuzzmedic

New to me is this gorgeous 1980 Country Gentleman. I’ve gotta say, for all the negatives you read about the Baldwin/ Arkansas built stuff this is a true gem. the pickups sound great and have all the twang, chime, and crunch I need. It plays effortlessly and the bigsby is buttery smooth and pretty stable. Being 46 years old its got a nice warm patina throughout and feels like a worn in baseball mitt. All of this for less than the cost of a modern Japanese reissue.

From left to right: 2016 Gibson ES-335, 2023 Rickenbacker 360 OS, 1980 Gretsch Country Gentleman

It’s a pleasure to own these two anniversary guitars: the first and most recent models made to honor the Stratocaster. It’s also fun to compare how much they differ while recognizing the significance of the 1979 model despite its inaccuracies. I’ve gone on before about this, but I purchased the 70th anniversary CS strat shortly after I had the opportunity to play a handful of legitimate vintage examples while they were fresh in my mind. In my opinion they truly nailed the feel and sound of a true 50’s Stratocaster with this model. But with that said the ‘79 is a truly wonderful guitar in its own weird 70’s way and nearly 50 years old itself at this point. I love how the finish has aged to a greenish gold color, and after a refret and pro setup it plays as well as my CS. A big bonus is it weighs 8.9lbs which seems to be unheard of with this specific model, as many that I’ve seen listed online are 10+ lbs.

Fresh back from a refret and setup is my 1979 25th anniversary strat. Otherwise stock and weighs in at 8.9lbs which seems to be a featherweight for this model. It has a nice full sound and is a wonderful guitar despite the reputation the 70s stuff has. They aren’t all gems but I’ve got a few nice ones so they’re out there.

Just picked this up and put it through its paces last night. I’m absolutely in love with it. It’s in crazy good condition considering it’s nearly 50 years old too. Not overly heavy (9.4lbs), super comfy neck, and very versatile. The sustain is unreal. With the tone wide open it is as bright as you’d expect, but roll the tone back to 7ish and you’re in tele territory. I’d say it’s the most useful tone control I’ve ever used, it truly just fattens things up without making them muddy. We were working on a crazy horse cover last night and with my DRV the thing screams.

My 70th anniversary CS ‘54 along side my ‘78. Love them both.

I recently visited Nashville and stopped by Carter Vintage (a big reason I went in the first place). Not only is their inventory absolutely insane, but the staff was incredible! While I was walking around the high end vintage room one of them came in as asked if I wanted to plug anything in. I replied that there wasn’t a thing in the room I could afford, to which he replied “me neither, but you can play whatever you want anyways”. To make a long story short I played a pair of ‘63 strats, a ‘69’paisley tele, and a remarkable ‘57 strat. All through a black panel deluxe reverb.

The ‘57 was living rent-free in my head for weeks after. I decided I needed to find a maple board two-tone strat of my own. After some searching I found a killer deal on a 2024 70th anniversary ‘54 strat in journeyman relic. I was blown away with how authentic it felt compared to the ‘57. The finish sunk into the wood grain, the checking, the feel of the neck, all very reminiscent of the legit vintage I fell in love with for a much more palatable price. Plus it has vintage tall frets and a compound radius for ease of playing, and a 5 was switch so there’s no balancing between positions needed.

Below my new strat is my 2009 1960 Strat. This was the first high end guitar I bought years ago. I bought it new and have played countless gigs with it and it’s on every recording I’ve done since. The two compliment each other well; the sunburst having that quintessential scooped mids bell-like thing going one, whereas the fiesta red has a throaty midrange that sounds amazing with some drive. M very fortunate to have this pair of Strats amongst the rest of my collection I’ve acquired through the years.