With all due respect to Jerry Garcia and Fender Custom Shop the price tag is just crazy.(20k$) This is just a guitar for rich guys that will get it just to showcase it. Do a production model with the the stickers optional in the case like you did with the Jimmy Page Mirror Telecaster. A guitar that is more accessible and that will be played by fans.

@BrandonMobley614

Жыл бұрын

Same with the Mike McCready stratocaster they released last year.

@jakobmorningstar

Жыл бұрын

Yeah kind of goes against what Jerry and the Dead were about eh

@multardthegreat4561

Жыл бұрын

It's not for low level humans

@joshlapoint9993

Жыл бұрын

@@multardthegreat4561 I hope this was sarcasm because if not you may have more money then me but I guarantee I can take my cheap squire and play circles around you dude

@riceflatpicking4954

Жыл бұрын

Yeah

If you ever feel stagnant in your playing, listen to Jerry Garcia and you’ll have inspiration for days. One of the greats.

@MysteryZenSide2

5 ай бұрын

exactly~ the ' Good Cheerful Spirit' prevails- everytime

I’m glad Daniel Donato got to demo it. He’s awesome. One of the highlights was at the end when the Tech told the Master Builder “now let’s go use to to bat rocks outside.” : )

So good to hear the stories from Big Steve. ☮❤💀

Wasn't Susan Trucks just playing the real one the night before last? Edit: YES SHE WAS! She and David Hidalgo of Los Lobos played it at Berkeley. Mr Topdogger has the vid up on his channel!

I've been a DeadHead since the mid 1970s and saw probably 150 live Dead shows...and while I appreciate all the work that went into replicating this beautiful, one of a kind instrument, a 20K price tag seems a bit unreasonable. It makes it highly out of reach for those of us who would appreciate it the most. I think 7K to 8K would have been a much better price point. Fender still could have made money on it I'm sure. That aside, the tone Jerry got from that gem during the Europe '72 Tour was the Holy Grail of tone in my opinion. That guitar sounded like no other before it or since. That piece of wood had real life inside of it and Jerry made it sing, wail, cry, moan while took us all on a musical ride for the ages. He really connected with it and knew how to get everything out of it. I wish he would have played in the 1980s as well. Nobody sounded quite like Jerry, Nobody. Great to see Steve Parish again. I got a chance to meet him a couple times many years ago...👍

SO glad you got Daniel Donato back to play for this! Perfect choice! ❤️

@topperluciani9252

Ай бұрын

Hes great but plays like hes never heard a lick of jerry in his life.

Tadeo Gomez was a worker at Fender Musical Instrument Manufacturing Company in Fullerton, California in the 1950s. He has become famous amongst players and collectors of electric guitars for the high quality of his work and his habit of signing his name or initials on the guitars he helped to craft. His initials appear on famous guitars such as Eric Clapton's Brownie.

@909One92

Жыл бұрын

Fullerton! God’s country.

@seangrexa4707

Жыл бұрын

TAG was his tag right?

Steve has a wonderful show on SiriusXM Grateful Dead channel where he takes calls and tells all the fun ,wild stories of all of the tours and traveling with Jerry and the Dead. Great Guy

It's not the size of the wand, it's the magic of the magician !!!

All great and fun, it’s a beautiful guitar. Love Jerry and all, what I don’t love is the 20k for it lol. This is one for the collection like the Terry Kath Tele. It will be purchased by most likely showcasing its beauty and not played. To me, everything should be played.

@ia5662

Жыл бұрын

same with the Andy Summers Tribute Tele - though that was 10K at the time, I SO want Fender to do a Road Worn of that. I would purchase in a heartbeat!

@WhiskeySam1

Жыл бұрын

I don’t either, but in the pantheon of iconic player recreation guitars, this one probably justifies it’s price more than say a Gibson Jimmy Page Signature Les Paul. This fender is so unique, and so many unique hand-made parts had to be recreated and fabricated by hand. This is a masterwork by the Fender Custom shop. And damned if it doesn’t sound right!

@dallastoto3189

Жыл бұрын

Sad that it’s us small venue gig players that would really love to own something like that but, the dudes that can afford it.. they ain’t playing it. It’s gonna hang in a case on the wall and never sing it’s beautiful song. ☮️

@phillipallen3879

Жыл бұрын

Lol imagine Jerry hearing this is 20k. He's rolling over in the river Bobby dumped him out in lol

@petercyr3508

Жыл бұрын

Hell you can get a copy of Stevie Ray's Strat online for a few hundred bucks.

Europe 72 was a great time for the band, and the sound was amazing at that time. The Doug Irwin designed custom Wolf guitar came after this and that was also a very legendary guitar. The reason Jerry customized guitars, and then went to custom built guitars is because he didn't like what he could buy from companies like Fender. Not sure if Fender realizes that this guitar is a monument to that fact. I guess anything to monetize and commercialize the legacy of Jerry Garcia is okay now.

@gloomsdoom649

Жыл бұрын

Very true! The irony!

@KeithKemp

Жыл бұрын

This guy

@mikem668

11 ай бұрын

I just watched a KZread interview with Jerry. Pretty sure I have this right, but please correct me if I'm wrong. Wolf was co-designed by Jerry and Doug. Jerry essentially told him what he wanted, though they worked together figuring out the specifics. Later Jerry asked him to design a guitar for him and do whatever he wanted. Five years later the guitar showed up. At the time of the interview he'd just gotten it, loved it, but it changed the way he played. So he was both getting used to it and seeing what new things were possible. The time frame was just as Brett joined the band. The interview was on WMMR in Philly.

@arizjones

11 ай бұрын

@@mikem668 Yea, that second Irwin Guitar was called Tiger. It was made of exotic tropical hardwood Cocobola, Maple, and padauk. It was named Tiger because of the Tiger inlay on the body. He played it from 1979 to 1989. In 1989 Irwin gave Garcia the next one called Rosebud. Those were one of a kind works of art.

I love how when he plays the subtitle says “funny guitar lick”

If I had to pick, Alligator gets my vote for best Jerry tone of all time. That clean tone (Twin/McIntosh?) - pure heaven but the slide solo on Hurts Me Too off 72 is SMOKE, CREAM and a pure slice of nice!

@cosmonaut9942

Жыл бұрын

I agree, but I can't decide if I like the tone of his Travis Bean better. I'm not crazy about the Doug Irwin built guitars.

I got to play the real jerry alligator earlier this year. There is some kind of magic in that guitar that I NEVER EVER Have felt before and I own a vintage guitar store. It is supposedly the lightest strat in existence weighing in around 6.5 pounds even with all that brass and one piece of ash which is unheard of. But there’s something about old dehydrated wood, tons of play wear, and a touch of grey, that makes this guitar transcend all other guitars and truly plays for you

@RadicalR0nnie

Жыл бұрын

how beat up is the original?

@12345b67

Жыл бұрын

@@RadicalR0nnie it’s in great shape, aside from forearm wear and the burn marks it looks great

@RadicalR0nnie

Жыл бұрын

@@12345b67 oh true. i’d imagine the headstock was beat up because of the modifications

Daniel Donato is the perfect dude to play that guitar! Sounds great. Wish I had $20,000

Austin MacNutt one of the Master Builders with most experience and taste I know

This one needs an artist model for around $2K or less. That I would be interested in.

@bluehole6019

Жыл бұрын

Exactly. I REALLY hope they end up doing this.

@genehooligan8605

Жыл бұрын

20k is ridiculous, I could build my own Alligator and still have 15k leftover. But if they made something more affordable, it would be hard to ignore as my next guitar purchase.

You guys Made My Day!!!! All those memories come rushing back in a whirlwind!! 💥🧨💥🧨💥🎶🎶🎶

oh myyyyy gooooodnessssssss!!!! this is just AWESOME. thank you for doing these, Fender.

always a treat when Daniel is playing

I love the detail of the burn marks in the headstock, where jerry would stash a lit cigarette

As soon as I heard about this guitar, I knew they would need Daniel to play it, the dude is a killer

More Daniel Donato demos!!

Oh my God the bridge set up on this thing is absolutely amazing!

Best part of the video is Daniel killing it in the background.

Nicely done Austen!. Great story Steve. Daniel nailed the Garcia style, melded with his own amazing playing!

You can ALWAYS rely on Mr. Steve Parish to give you the real story and great info about Jerry and his Guitars. He was there man. The Fender Strat Alligator Guitar, WOW.

Well done, Austin! ❤🤘 incredible work... best wishes from Germany 😊

Man Daniel was just killin it .

Perfect guy to demo this guitar.

This and rocky are two of my favorite strats ever

real cool, glad ya got big steve to talk about it. What a treat

Man, this is awesome. Terrific job by all involved.

My Squier classic vibe 50s strat with some basic mods gets this early 70s dead sound verrrry well

@lenny3804

Жыл бұрын

I got the same guitar. What kind of mods did you do?

@KeithKemp

Жыл бұрын

Also interested in hearing about the mods

Can't beat a good quality sticker

Great now I’m going on a Jerry binge

Looks sweet! A lot of history in that guitar. 😎

amazing build, the attention to detail goes above and beyond. and Jerry's actual guitar tech!?!? man, that Steve is quite the character, I bet he has the most amazing and wildest stories to tell, I could go for a full 2 hour interview with him!!

@genehooligan8605

Жыл бұрын

He has a weekly show on XM where people call in and he talks about his life with Jerry and the band. It's amazing

@wgbearden7776

Жыл бұрын

Also his book home before daylight is great

been waiting for the custom shop to do something like this for YEARS. I gotta get me one of these

@arizjones

Жыл бұрын

Do you have $20,000?

fantastic.....thank you!!!!!!!

Can't believe, they didn't even mention that bridge?!

Alligator is my favorite Jerry guitar. What it has to do with this $20k strat copy, I couldn’t tell ya.

That thing is SWEET!

Oh hell yeah, thought I heard some Daniel Donato in there. Way to go Cosmic Cowboy! Love it....beautiful guitar, Austin is a master.....

Awesome video!!! In my mind, that hammered brass part undoubtedly was originally fabricated from an old cracked cymbal, because like the man said. On the road and in-between shows, they'd do what they had too, use what was available to make repairs and ensure the show would go on! That guitar has incredible tone.

This makes my heart smile

Fantastic!

Magnifico.

Cool they had Steve Parish.

Supercool guy Great Guitar Great Guitar Builder

Maybe, if I had a $20K budget.... I'd buy the Eric Johnson Thinline & keep the change!!!

As a kid who grew up in Florida, always loved the Dead, and only ever played strats, idc price this is hands down the sexiest guitar imo. Dream guitar. Guitars are timeless playable art that you can pass down to family. So what’s a heavy price tag for an eternal piece?

THANK YOU SO MUCH 💚🌹

Holding guitar in front of face... reminded me of reflections album cover

Awesome!!

Awesome 🎸✌️⚡️🎶

Wow, Very nice Austin, great collaboration and finally a nod to Jerry, beautiful! $20k!?! Thanks Fender for once again squashing my dreams.

@ramencurry6672

Жыл бұрын

I’m sure you can get a similar sound just as good with a normal Strat but with vintage style pickups installed. There’s no real magic formula, it’s mostly within the playing technique

Daniel getting to demo was the ONLY call to make. I just wish I could have one but it'll be 20k. Prices are OUT OF CONTROL!!!

Amazing work!

This is a sweet one! Nice!

Awsome!

Very cool!

sounds great! amazing collector piece. but 20K :) come on :) Still love you fender

This is a beautiful thing

Runnin back to Saskatoon to crash in my Nash thank u graham and Mr Gomez

Jerry's Strat tone is his best

@lingeringlead

Жыл бұрын

I’m partial to the Bean, but I most definitely celebrate all tones Jerry.

Big Steve! This is beautiful. NFA 🌹 💀

I really hope I can get one of these one day. Beautiful recreation of a guitar and a tour I adore.

@miket.220

Жыл бұрын

Just get a Classic Vibe Strat, or other vinatge-spec Strat copy, and add a booster circuit to it. Or just get a clean boost pedal. Done. And you saved $15000.

@imanalien2222

Жыл бұрын

@@miket.220 as a multiple Strat owner and a JG fan, there’s a bit more to it than that. Yes the blaster is important, but the brass harmonica bridge, hard tail, brass tailpiece, rosewood base plate, etc, all of which are not Fender designs play a large role in the way it feels and sounds/resonates uniquely from a standard Strat …even with proper pups and wood. It’s all these things they bring the price tag up so high. Even a more affordable players version would have to leave important stuff out for it to be priced “right” for the player/non-collector.

I feel like they wanted to get a interview from Daniel too but he didn't stop playing haha

I noticed the original Gator was being transported in a Calton case, smart move! Darned cool guitar!

Incredible video and informations ! I put pickups that sound exactly like the Quarter Pound (Quarter Tone from Malagoli pickups), and the construction of the body wood was in a single piece of Louro Freijó handpicked by the Lutheria Peace Custom Shop in Brazil (Brazilian noble wood that is equivalent to American ASH), all Gotoh hardware and hardware. No shield, straight-on-wood pickups like Jake E. Lee's Charvel Strat that he played on Ozzy Osborne's The Ultimate Sin tour.

Man, Fender has been killing it one after another with all these signature models.

IIRC Rick Turner commented that Jer did not prefer the final version of this guitar, which is how this is setup. It was mostly due to the rosewood plate/riser under the tailpiece. His preferred config was the prior version with a simpler brass tailpiece. Note photos of the setup in the 1972 tour. Turner also commented that these pickups were not standard but rather extremely low wound, hence the always on boost circuit. The covers were painted on the inside with conductive paint and grounded, also.

@hessex1899

Жыл бұрын

Also: RIP Rick Turner.Who always had time to chat on social media with a random nobody (me) with nerdy questions about guitar construction and electronics design.

Very nice

Parish. Freakin awesome.

Austin nice work

Awesome guitar. I dont know how jerry would feel about it, but very cool.

@J.G.M.Jr.

Жыл бұрын

he would not like it. And you knew that already.

I met Daniel Donato at a phish show in Alpharetta, GA last year. He was such a cool down to earth guy (even though I accidentally interrupted his conversation 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

Ooh a heavy Fender🤤

Yesss

Donato is a serious player. Makes that guit sing.

@johnlear313

Жыл бұрын

Probably so but maybe not the best hired gun to simulate jerry tone with the chicken pickin'

That is a cool guitar

Nice surprise Donato in there

I want one

Super fun video! And great to hear Steve and his stories. My only disappointment was - Daniel doesn't know any Dead songs? Scarlett? Anything?

Trogly needs to buy this, please Trogly

I will never be able to afford this, but man was this video a treat. Steve and Daniel both give this such life in their own ways. Cool guitar!

This is amazing, love it!! ♥

@Sound_Groove_of_America

Жыл бұрын

My dude! Love your videos.

@WeepingWillowGuitarLessons

Жыл бұрын

@@Sound_Groove_of_America Thanks, man! Really appreciate it!!

Fender is REALLY digging now…

So cool! Great video! Interesting, contrary to what Jerry has said, the pickups were not changed every year to brand new pickups.

@seangrexa4707

Жыл бұрын

I've read that more than once regarding the DiMarzios. Where did you hear different?

@Skyhawk472

10 ай бұрын

I think those early guitars never got the pickup changes like the irwin guitars later on@@seangrexa4707

He says Haight Ashbury @2:49

Shaun White is a solid guitar player.

Daniel rips it :)

Damn I just want to listen to that dude jam

The subtitle at 2:51 says "indistinct", he said "Haight-Ashbury", a neighbourhood in San-Francisco

@jakollee

Жыл бұрын

I caught that too.

1973 box set Spring Summer and 1972 LA

what I don't understand (besides the $20g price tag) is that they relic'd it but left the fretboard looking brand new. Anyone looking for an affordable Alligator copy can usually find one on Reverb.

@Chrispypullen

Жыл бұрын

This is for rich folks who don't have that knowledge. I feel bad for buyers of this frankly, they're getting milked by Fender.

if only, if only.... i would spend for this

Fender you guys should do a showcase with Ernie Isley and check out his ZEAL strat!