It is the Telecaster’s 75th anniversary, and Fender is keeping them coming, the latest finding Jim Root’s signature Tele refinished in Shoreline Gold. And he loves it.
“Fender guitars have been a cornerstone of my rig since the earliest days of Slipknot and continue to be today,” he says. “Seeing my signature model in Shoreline Gold gives it a completely fresh character. It’s the same guitar I’ve relied on for more than two decades, but this new finish makes it feel exciting all over again.”
Yes, of course, he does. Because Root is nothing if not a traditionalist, and Shoreline Gold is one of the truly old-school custom colour finishes from the Fender paint room, one of some 14 colour offerings in the 1960 custom colour chart (alongside the now familiar Daphne Blue, Sonic Blue, Olympic White, et al).
Spend any time with Root talking about guitars and he will invariably start talking about Persol sunglasses, Levi’s, Marlboro… And so on. Classic brands. He loves it. And the Telecaster fits in with that ethos.
His signature model, however, has had some modifications. This is not a 1951 Blackguard. We’ve got a mahogany body for starters, with a slightly sculpted neck heel, a belly cut for comfort.
The neck is maple, bolted to the body, kind of traditional in that sense, and yet it is carved into a slim Modern C profile, topped with a 12” ebony fingerboard – the kind of fingerboard you’d more regularly associate with a Gibson Les Paul Custom if it weren't for the more subtle dot inlays. Also, this comes with 22 jumbo frets.
The pickguard is black, single-ply, but look at the controls. There’s only one volume control, a skirted black plastic Strat-style knob, a three-way pickup selector, and they don’t sit on a metal plate as they do on traditional Telecasters.
Traditional Telecasters also don’t have active EMG humbuckers, like the 81/60 at the bridge and neck positions here. Or the six-saddle string-through bridge. Or locking tuners. Or the Bi-Flex truss rod that is adjustable at the headstock.
Wait, what was that about Jim Root being a traditionalist? This is quite far removed from the kind of thing James Burton played. But then James Burton didn’t play Psychosocial for fields full of people who self-identify as maggots. You need something a little more agricultural for that.
Previously available in white, this looks the part in Shoreline Gold.
Available now, for a limited time only, the John Mayer-approved Jim Root Telecaster is priced £1,599/$2,099. See Fender for more details.
