Five Decades of Fender

The Los Angeles Times reported that Rolling Stones' Keith Richards accepted his induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with this statement, Thank God for Leo Fender, who makes these instruments for us to play. Indeed, Leo's contribution to making music compares to what Henry Ford did for driving and Levi Strauss did for dressing. Fender created and inspired modern electric guitars and amplifiers, the ubiquitous instruments now played in all styles of popular music. His pioneering, innovative, innovative companies - Fender, Music Man, and G&L - armed a music revolution's foot soldiers with affordable products designed and manufactured to exacting standards of durability, tone, and performance. Virtually everyone has heard the forthright, jet-age tone of Fender electric guitars. Lawrence Welk's generation enjoyed Buddy Merrill, Alvino Rey, and their assortment of Fenders. Country music stars like buck Owens, Merle Haggard, and Ricky Skaggs owe their twang to Leo's Telecasters. Now part of the unofficial rock & roll dress code, Fender instruments have shared stages with Elvis, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen. Current-day grunge musicians wear Fenders like flannel - Nirvana's Kurt Cobain* plays Leo's student-model Mustang. Leo Fender's immeasurable impact on music still reverberates throughout the industry. As a friend and volunteer tester for Leo, I witnessed and admired his tireless work for musicians. In contrast to his music revolution, he was a quiet man. He chose his words carefully and used vivid metaphors to describe what he saw and heard. His rare ability to rethink and solve musician's problems shaped the sound of the Twentieth Century music more than any single inventor. Defining the music of at least two generations born after World War II, his guitars will continue influencing musicians for years to come. *Statement written prior to the death of Cobain This exhibit conveyed the scope of Leo Fender's life and legacy over five decades and into the future. We chose a decade by decade approach to illustrate the relationship between Leo's guitars, the evolution of music, and social change. Fender instruments, engines of change, bridge generations, music cultures, and styles. Leo's work has brought everyone closer through music, one of the great pleasures of life. this exhibit celebrated the musical instruments that started in a small radio shop four blocks away from the Fullerton Museum Center. Fifty years later, those instruments truly make sounds heard around the world.