Fender '83 "Jeff Buckley" Telecaster

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The 1983 Fender Telecaster
Telecaster
Manufacturer Fender
Used -
Body type Solid
Neck joint Bolt-on
Body covering Butterscotch Blonde paint
Wood Body: Unknown
Neck: Maple
Fingerboard: Maple
Bridge Fixed
Electronics One volume, one tone, three-way pickup selector
Pickup(s) Neck: Standard Telecaster single-coil
Bridge: Stacked Telecaster single-coil
Special circuits None

Background

Bought by Bellamy in May 2020, the guitar is the infamous "blonde Tele", used by Jeff Buckley himself, both live and in the studio. It's known for the worn and scratched custom mirror Carvin pickguard. Ever since Buckley died, the guitar was owned by his close friend until 2011, when he decided to sell it. It was acquired by Dan´s Chelsea Guitars from New York and was sold again a year later, bought by London guitar shop, before it was on sale again a few years later and acquired by Matthieu Lucas of Matt's Guitar Shop in Paris. Lucas remained the guitar's owner until Bellamy noticed it in his shop several years before and eventually purchased it. Ever since Buckley died, the guitar has only been used live once by Alter Bridge's Myles Kennedy, when he covered "Hallelujah" at their concert in L'Olympia in Paris, in 2019. The guitar was lent to him by Lucas.[1]

According to Matt, he had a team of people making sure this was the right guitar and not a counterfeit copy, even interviewing Buckley's family. In an interview with Guitar World, Bellamy said he planed to use it on the upcoming album, saying "I haven’t bought it to hang it on the wall with a picture of Jeff saying, ‘‘I’ve bought it to actually attempt to use it and integrate it, and keep this guitar part of music. I’d like to believe that’s what he would have wanted."[2]

Commenting on the sound of the guitar, Matt said “It sounds so weird - it doesn’t sound like any other Telecaster, I’ve had all the electronics analysed - nobody’s changed anything - but the pickups, they think the neck pickup was a mistake by the manufacturer because for some reason it’s slightly out-of-phase, and there’s also something weird about the wiring." This prompted the team over at Manson Guitar Works to investigate the inner workings.

Touring and studio

While the guitar almost certainly won't be used live, the guitar has been used in the studio numerous times by Matt since he acquired it, most notably during the recording of Will of the People.

Songs used for

Fender 1983 "Jeff Buckley" Telecaster Gallery

References

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