08/28/2024
Now available on our site! A beautiful, all original 1957 Fender Esquire that comes with its original Koylon red-interior case.
The Fender Esquire was a solid-body electric guitar manufactured by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation of Los Angeles. It was the first solid-bodied guitar marketed by the company, and made its debut in 1950.
Production and promotion of the single pickup Esquire ceased briefly after the arrival of the Telecaster. It was reintroduced in January 1951 equipped with a truss rod. The second generation Esquires resembled the Broadcasters and Telecasters of 1951, except for the “Esquire” label on the headstock and the absence of a neck pickup, and although having only one pickup, retained the three-way switch of the two-pickup guitars which allowed players to modify the pickup tone.
These Esquires, like the two-pickup version, had a routed cavity in the neck pickup position, which allowed the instrument to be upgraded to Telecaster specifications by adding another pickup and pickguard. Bruce Springsteen plays an Esquire modified in this way. He says the guitar he is pictured with on the Born to Run album cover is a hybrid consisting of a Telecaster body and Esquire neck, but it is actually a first-generation Esquire with two pickup cavities. Springsteen’s guitar has a neck pickup installed, but not connected.
The Esquire was reintroduced in 1951 to provide a less expensive option than the two-pickup version, but its popularity declined as cheaper student models like the Mustang entered the market. Fender discontinued production of the Esquire in 1969.
