Jimmy Page unveiled four new “clones” of his famous “Mirror” and “Dragon” guitars that he made in collaboration with Fender yesterday. The instruments are based on the Led Zeppelin guitarist’s 1959 Fender Telecaster, and their release is timed to the 50th anniversary of Led Zeppelin, on which he played his “Dragon” telecaster. The Fender Custom Shop will be releasing two high-priced models, which its calling the Limited Edition Jimmy Page Telecaster Set, in March and two other models will come off Fender’s regular production lines and be available in the spring or summer. A video that Fender released with the announcement chronicles the history of the instrument. Jeff Beck gifted Page the ’59 Tele in 1966 when both guitarists were playing in the Yardbirds. Page added eight round mirrors to the instrument in February 1967 and by the middle of the year he stripped it down and painted its now-famous “dragon” design on it. You can hear Page playing the guitar on the live album Yardbirds ’68. “The story of the instrument is the whole journey of it — from Jeff having it, to passing it on to me with such good spirit,” Page said in a statement. “It’s a lot of love in that gesture and the journey of it through the Yardbirds and how it was used on the first Led Zeppelin album … the journey all the way through here today. Now, it’s been restored back to its true beauty and we’ve actually been able to sort of clone it.” The Fender Custom Shop versions are each priced at $25,000; the company will produce only 50 copies of each and will provide certificates of authenticity for them. The Fender production line “Mirror” Telecaster will be going for $2,499.99 and the “Jimmy Page Telecaster” will have a price tag of $1,399.99. Mark Keraly/Fender “Jimmy actually invited us to his house in London to spec the guitar out,” Fender Custom Shop Master Builder Paul Waller said in a statement. “More than a year later, we’ve managed to bring this guitar and the evolution of Jimmy’s career back to life. As the guitar evolved, so did Jimmy’s career. As the Dragon is born, he moves in and Led Zeppelin is born as well. It’s a pivotal moment for the guitar and music.” Page played his original ’59 Tele from his time in the Yardbirds through the recording of Led Zeppelin. When he returned from a tour in 1969, he discovered that a friend of his had stripped the body and painted over the dragon. This modification changed the sound of the instrument and rendered only the neck pickup usable. He took the neck off the instrument it and put it on a brown string bender Tele. He has subsequently restored the original body.<doc-sep>Want to own a piece of rock n’ roll history? Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page teamed up with Fender to recreate his original 1959 Dragon Telecaster guitar that he played throughout the band’s first album released 50 years ago. It’s the guitar that brought to life legendary songs like “Communication Breakdown,” “Dazed and Confused,” and “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You.” It’s the instrument that Page played from his early days in the Yardbirds to the career-defining first album, Led Zeppelin I, that would solidify him as one of Rock n’ Roll’s most iconic guitar players of all time. The 75-year-old guitar player hasn’t played in public since he performed “Whole Lotta Love” at the 2008 Olympics, according to Business Insider. One of his current hobbies? Painting. One of the key elements of the new Dragon Telecaster features that other artistic inclination with the remake of the psychedelic red, orange, green, and blue painting (meant to evoke a dragon) that Page painted onto his Telecaster in mid-1967. He topped it off with a clear-plastic pickguard-protecting shimmery foil. Before that, Page had decked out his guitar in circular mirrors before stripping it to make way for “The Dragon.” Two models—the early mirrored version and the hand-painted Dragon—will be produced in the Fender Custom Shop and will be sold as the “Limited-Edition Jimmy Page Telecaster Set.” A set of 50 of each version priced at $25,000 a piece will be available to collectors. Created by master builder Paul Waller, the mirrored guitars will have a Fender tweed case while the Dragon will come with a special display case, a violin bow (one of Page’s favorite tools), and a white seat belt strap and an extra-long leather strap. Both come with Hecro picks, a coiled lead, and signed certificates of authenticity. Additionally, two production line models will be made available in spring/summer of 2019 for fans and collectors. A pearly white version of the early original, which the company has dubbed “White Blonde” ($2,500), and another version of the dragon ($1,400). If you’re hoping to one day get your hands on the original Dragon, we have bad news. When Page went on tour with Led Zeppelin in 1969, leaving the Telecaster behind that year, he found that a friend had stripped the body and painted over the dragon. It compromised the wiring and the only working part left was the neck pick up. Page salvaged the neck and put it on his brown string bender Telecaster, which he has since re-stripped and restored. So you are bent on riding the Dragon, you may have to opt for a Page-approved remake of the original.<doc-sep>Legendary Led Zeppelin founder and guitarist Jimmy Page approached Fender to recreate his "dragon" Telecaster from the band's early years. Working with Fender master builder Paul Waller, Page matched the original artwork, which he painted in the late 1960s. Page played the original 1959 Telecaster when he was in the Yardbirds and on the first Led Zeppelin album, released 50 years ago. To celebrate the anniversary, 50 dragon Teles will be manufactured, as well as 50 recreations of an earlier Page modification to his '59, with mirrors applied. All will bear Page's signature and come with special cases and accessories. Jimmy Page hasn't played guitar much in public since Led Zeppelin's reunion concert in 2007, at London's O2 Arena where the band celebrated the legacy of Atlantic Records co-founder Ahmet Ertegun. There was a rendition of "Whole Lotta Love" at the 2008 Olympics closing ceremony and a lovely stint on the acoustic at Roy Harper's 70th birthday concert in 2011. But otherwise, the 75-year-old musician has been content to refine Led Zeppelin's considerable legacy in other ways. Fender master builder Paul Waller didn't see Page play last year when the musician visited the company's Custom Shop and factory in Corona, CA. But he saw something altogether rarer. He saw Page paint. The occasion was Page checking out a special project with Fender to mark the 50th anniversary of the release of Led Zeppelin's first album in 1969. For generations of fans, Page will be forever associated with the sunburst 1959 Gibson Les Paul that he bought from Joe Walsh. But the guitar that he wielded in pre-Zep days with the Yardbirds and on Led Zeppelin I was a Fender Telecaster. And not just any Tele. The 1959 model came to Page as a gift from Jeff Beck when the pair were in the Yardbirds (the band also launched the career of Eric Clapton). In the fashion of the psychedelic times, Page had modified the guitar twice. First, he first added circular mirrors. Then in mid-1967, he stripped the guitar's finish himself and, art student that he was, hand painted a red, orange, green, and blue motif that evoked a dragon. He finished it off with a clear-plastic pickguard protecting shimmery foil. Master builder Paul Waller collaborated with Page on the limited-edition guitars. Fender Enter the dragon This "dragon" Telecaster was Page's weapon of choice for the first appearances of Led Zeppelin, after the guitarist assembled the lineup of fellow session veteran John Paul Jones on bass, vocalist Robert Plant, and drummer John Bonham. The quartet was briefly called the "New Yardbirds" before switching to Led Zeppelin. Page once said that the Tele was a more demanding instrument than the Les Paul he'd later deploy to great effect in Zep's live performances through the 1970s. But he also lauded its rewards, and anyone who's ever turned up the volume on the proto-punk riff of "Communication Breakdown" knows what he's talking about — it's pure Telecaster attitude and bite. The dragon Tele, sadly, was done in, the story has it, by a Page friend who eliminated the dragon artwork. Page then saved the neck and used it for a brown B-bender Tele that he has pulled out periodically (the B-bender has a special apparatus that enables Page's Tele to mimic pedal-steel tones). According to Waller, Fender wasn't thinking about reviving the dragon design. "Jimmy approached us," Waller said in an interview with Business Insider. "That was an exciting day for me." The new dragon Telecaster. Fender Waller labors at Fender's famous Custom Shop, where he builds coveted takes on Fender's guitars for professional musicians and discerning collectors. But working with Page over the course of the year set a new standard. Page is an exacting steward of Led Zeppelin's legacy, and the new dragon Telecaster introduced Waller to the guitarist's scrupulous process. "He provided a formula for each color," Waller said. "He had spent months mixing them. That made the project quite a bit easier." But the nearly eight-month undertaking, commencing last February, wasn't a breeze by any estimation. With Page in London and Waller in southern California, samples of Telecaster bodies had been sent back and forth. "I provided many in the beginning," Waller said. What was tricky was matching the grain of the wood, which on the original instrument was distinctive. The dragon design was worked out using what Waller described as a "paint by numbers" template. "It took me hours to do the first couple of guitars," he recalled. Page played the dragon Telecaster with a bow on "Dazed and Confused" from Led Zeppelin I. Getty Images/Jorgen Angel Waller wasn't really able to move forward until he'd gotten feedback from Page, which could take a few weeks. "He knows what he wants," Waller said. He has something complete in his head. He's like an artist envisioning a painting." Faithful recreations of the original Page Teles Reviving Page's Tele wasn't merely about the visuals. The Telecaster was Leo Fender's first proper solidbody guitar, revolutionizing jazz, country, and blues and kicking off rock 'n roll; it was preceded by a more basic design, the Esquire. It's a simple thing, intentionally — a cutting board with a neck, tuners, pickups, and strings. The bridge pickup is an icepick, while the next pickup is mellow. In the middle position, the Tele can imitate an acoustic guitar. Waller knows his instruments from this period. "We've probably made more '59 Teles than they did in 1959," he joked. One peculiarity of the Page Telecaster was its toploaded bridge. A Tele with this bridge can be strung through body holes, or the strings can be anchored at the bottom of the guitar's "ashtray" bridge plate. Page's '59 had three saddles, a rosewood fingerboard, and with a toploaded string job, Waller said, Page could use "slinkier," easy-to-bend strings, achieving a less sharp tone than the Tele was known for. (Page is also famous for his massive note bends.) Two packages will be available for the 50 dragon Teles and the 50 mirror Teles, called "Limited Edition Jimmy Page Telecaster Set."<doc-sep>NAMM 2019: So, here they are. They're not a surprise, given that Fender announced they were collaborating with Jimmy Page on a series of four Telecasters last year, but this is our first glimpse of the hotly anticipated quartet, timed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Led Zeppelin's seminal debut album, in the flesh. Page played the famed 'Dragon' on that album, and Fender's four releases - comprising two limited Custom Shop models and two full production guitars - pay homage to the guitar in its various iterations. The 1959 Telecaster was originally a 1966 gift from legendary guitarist Jeff Beck, sporting a tidy factory White Blonde finish, as cloned in the production line 'Mirror' release below. The true Mirror incarnation, now given the full Custom Shop replica treatment (and price tag), was born when Page added - yes - mirrors, in February 1967. Finally, by mid-1967, the guitar had been stripped and repainted in its final 'Dragon' livery, which it retains to this day. A recreation of this final beast will be available in both Custom Shop and production line guises. Jimmy Page Dragon Telecaster - £23,259 Image 1 of 4 Image 2 of 4 Image 3 of 4 Image 4 of 4 “The story of the instrument is the whole journey of it – from Jeff having it, to passing it on to me with such good spirit,” Jimmy Page said. “It’s a lot of love in that gesture and the journey of it through The Yardbirds and how it was used on the first Led Zeppelin album…the journey all the way through here today. Now, it’s been restored back to its true beauty and we’ve actually been able to sort of clone it.” Jimmy Page Mirrored Telecaster - £23,259 Image 1 of 3 Image 2 of 3 Image 3 of 3 The Fender Custom Shop models feature an off-center-seam, two-piece ash body; a pair of Fender Custom Shop Hand-Wound ‘58 single-coil pickups; a tinted maple “Oval C” neck matching the profile of Page’s original instrument; Clear and White Vinyl pickguards on the “Dragon” and mirror models, respectively. ; ‘59 top-load Tele® bridge; 7.25”-radius rosewood fingerboard matching the specs of the era, right down to the 21 vintage-sized frets. The “Dragon” model also includes a custom hardshell flight case, white seatbelt-style strap, super-long white leather strap, red coiled cable, violin bow, rosin, Herco® guitar picks and Page-signed Certificate of Authenticity. The Mirror model, meanwhile, includes a vintage-style tweed hardshell case, black coiled cable, Ace “Stained Glass” fabric strap, Herco guitar picks and Page-signed Certificate of Authenticity. Jimmy Page Mirror Telecaster - £2,349 (production model, available Spring 2019) Image 1 of 2 Image 2 of 2 “Jimmy actually invited us to his house in London to spec the guitar out,” said Fender Custom Shop Master Builder Paul Waller, who Page worked closely with throughout the process, assuring every detail was accurately recreated. “More than a year later, we’ve managed to bring this guitar and the evolution of Jimmy’s career back to life. As the guitar evolved, so did Jimmy’s career. As the Dragon is born, he moves in and Led Zeppelin is born as well. It’s a pivotal moment for the guitar and music.” Jimmy Page Telecaster® - £1,259 (production model, available Summer 2019) Image 1 of 2 Image 2 of 2 The four Jimmy Page Telecasters will be released through 2019, starting in March. For much more detail on the original guitar and the inception of these stunning replicas, visit fender.com. –––––––––––––––––––––––––– NAMM 2019 - all the news The dust is settling, but our ears are still ringing. You'll find all the stories that counted in our massive news hub. Below, enjoy our editors' findings as we regrouped at the end of the show.<doc-sep>
NAMM 2019: Back in October, it was announced that Fender had teamed up with former Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page to recreate the 1959 Telecaster that he used to record the band's self-titled debut in 1968. Now, after three months of anticipation, the company has finally unveiled the new line of electric guitars in advance of the NAMM show. Two models—dubbed the Limited Edition Jimmy Page Telecaster Set—will be produced in the Fender Custom Shop, while two additional models will be made on Fender’s production lines. The Limited Edition Jimmy Page Telecaster Set will be available beginning March 2019, while the two production line models will be released in Spring/Summer 2019. “The story of the instrument is the whole journey of it – from Jeff having it, to passing it on to me with such good spirit,” Page said of the guitar. “It’s a lot of love in that gesture and the journey of it through The Yardbirds and how it was used on the first Led Zeppelin album, the journey all the way through here today. Now, it’s been restored back to its true beauty and we’ve actually been able to sort of clone it.” Page originally received the Telecaster in 1966 from Jeff Beck, who gifted it to Page for recommending him to the Yardbirds. Through the years, the Telecaster took on several looks and personas, as Page customized it aesthetically and sonically. When he first received it, the guitar was undecorated in its factory white blonde finish and remained that way until February 1967, when he added eight circular mirrors to the body. Page played his mirrored Telecaster only briefly in the final years of the Yardbirds, and by mid-1967 he was ready to change the look. He removed the mirrors and completely stripped and repainted the instrument himself, this time hand-painting a mystical dragon on the body. When Led Zeppelin was formed in October 1968, the Dragon Telecaster became Page’s go-to instrument and he played it on stage and in the studio until 1969. It was also the main guitar used on the Led Zeppelin album. Among the four Artist Signature models will be two highly collectible, limited edition Fender Custom Shop versions built by Fender Custom Shop Master Builder veteran Paul Waller—one with mirrors and the other with the painted dragon. Each of these guitars, mind you, won't come cheap. At a cool $50,000, the set will be available for local authorized showcase dealers to purchase and then sell together or separately (for $25,000 each) to consumers. Beginning March 2019, only 50 units of each Fender Custom Shop model will be made available. They will include Page’s personal touches, such as a handwritten signature on the headstock of the mirror model, as well as hand-painted flourishes on the guitar body’s dragon artwork and personally-signed Certificates of Authenticity for both models. Fender Jimmy Page Custom Shop "Mirror" Telecaster (Image credit: Fender) “Jimmy actually invited us to his house in London to spec the guitar out,” Waller said in a statement. “More than a year later, we’ve managed to bring this guitar and the evolution of Jimmy’s career back to life. As the guitar evolved, so did Jimmy’s career. As the Dragon is born, he moves in and Led Zeppelin is born as well. It’s a pivotal moment for the guitar and music.” In addition to personal touches from Page, the Fender Custom Shop models feature an off-center-seam, two-piece ash body; a pair of Fender Custom Shop Hand-Wound ‘58 single-coil pickups; a tinted maple “Oval C” neck matching the profile of Page’s original instrument; Clear and White Vinyl pickguards on the “Dragon” and mirror models, respectively; a ‘59 top-load Tele bridge; and a 7.25”-radius rosewood fingerboard matching the specs of the era, down to the 21 vintage-sized frets. The “Dragon” model includes a custom hardshell flight case, white seatbelt-style strap, super-long white leather strap, red coiled cable, violin bow, rosin, Herco guitar picks and Page-signed Certificate of Authenticity. The mirror model includes a vintage-style tweed hardshell case, black coiled cable, Ace “Stained Glass” fabric strap, Herco guitar picks and a Page-signed Certificate of Authenticity. Fender Jimmy Page Custom Shop "Dragon" Telecaster (Image credit: Fender) In addition to the Fender Custom Shop models, Fender will roll out both mirror and painted versions from its production lines.