April 13, 2004
Fender Stratocasters in the News
In light of 2004 being the Stratocaster's 50th anniversary, it's no surprise that the instrument has been featured in a large number of stories on the news wires. A very large number. While most of the articles focus on the anniversary, with some mild seasoning thrown in for taste, every now and then a Strat story comes along that stands out in the crowd.
Here are two such stories.
From The Toronto Star:
'A hunk of wood and some magnets'
How an underdog guitar, the Fender Stratocaster,
became the soul of rock 'n' roll
by GREG QUILL
Entertainment Columnist, The Toronoto Star
"There's no sensation like it ... when you switch on a Fender amp and hear that characteristic `thop' sound, and the whispering hum of the pickups waiting to make a noise ... and then the crisp, bright, deep tone of the low E string, so vibrant, so masculine, and you see heads turn and the crowd start to draw close.
"That's a great feeling."
Toronto rocker and veteran guitarist Danny Marks is putting into words what he feels every time he sets his machine — he calls his favourite Stratocaster "Daddy's little moneymaker" — in motion.
And from The Tennessean:
Guitarist won't let Parkinson's rob him of his rocker spirit
by TIM GHIANNI
Senior Writer
A finger on his left hand jerks to a frozen point. His leg kicks toward the ceiling. The guitar player whose smooth blues vibrato helped flavor Southern rock twists violently in his chair, staring, momentarily, at the fish tank beside him.
Jimmy Nalls' wife, Minni, hurries to his side and helps prop him squarely in his chair. The battle with Parkinson's Disease is not one that the guitarist faces alone.
By Tom Watson