An Amazing John English Burgundy Mist Maple-Cap '69 Stratocaster…

This unique Burgundy Mist, Maple-Cap Fretboard with all Gold Hardware "1969" Stratocaster was specially built by master luthier John English at the Fender Custom Shop in April 2004. This highly unusual guitar weighs just 7.70 lbs. and has a comfortable nut width of just over 1 5/8 inches, a medium-to-thick neck profile and a scale length of 25 1/2 inches. Highly figured maple neck with highly figured maple-cap fretboard, with 21 medium frets, inlaid black dot position markers and side dot markers. Headstock with Fender 1969 style decal "With Synchronized Tremolo / Pat. 2,741,146 3,143,028". Single "butterfly" string tree. Individual Fender "F" closed-back with octagonal metal buttons. On the back of the headstock there is a gold decal "Custom Built / J.T. English / Fender U.S.A." Gold-plated four-bolt neck-plate engraved "NRG309 / Custom Built / For / Norman's / Rare Guitars". Three-ply (white/black/white) plastic pickguard with eleven screws. Three Stratocaster pickups with outputs of 6.10k, 6.15k, and 6.28k. Three controls (one volume, two tone) plus five-way selector switch. Stratocaster white plastic knobs with ribbed sides and gold lettering. Fender combined bridge/tailpiece with six saddles and through-body stringing. The underneath of the neck is marked in pencil "V1651710" and the neck pickup cavity is stamped "J. E." All of the hardware is gold-plated and although John English has personally relic'd this amazing guitar we still have to give it a mint (9.50) condition. Complete with the original gold-plated bridge cover and gold-plated tremolo arm Housed in the original Fender black hardshell case with dark orange plush lining (9.50). With the original Fender Custom Shop Certificate of Authenticity (with a picture of this actual guitar) signed by John English and dated April 2004, original black leather strap, Custom Shop catalogues, owner's manual, polishing cloth and case-key (all unopened).

Senior Master Builder John English who passed away last June at the early age of 57 was raised on ‘50s and ‘60s rock ’n’ roll. He joined Fender in 1970, working alongside company pioneers such as Freddie Tavares and Bill Carson, and was a driving force in the early days of the Fender Custom Shop, helping to define the creative environment that continues in the shop to this day. One of the original Custom Shop builders, he was internationally renowned for his custom, concept and art guitars. He was a guitarist, drummer and artist who worked in the United States and Europe, and was a true original whose creations used exotic woods, metals, plastics, stones and bone, and were inspired by music, art, architecture and nature. He built custom guitars for countless musicians and collectors, ranging from Eric Clapton to President George W. Bush. His collaboration with surf guitar king Dick Dale resulted in one of the first Fender Custom Shop signature model guitars; he created Fender’s first Japanese signature guitar with Michiya Haruhata, and his trio of concept guitars created with art phenomenon Shag caused quite a sensation at the 2003 NAMM show.