1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Discussion of vintage Jazzmasters, Jaguars, Bass VIs, Electric XIIs and any other offset-waist instruments.
User avatar
welshywelsh
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 369
Joined: Sat Aug 11, 2018 11:58 am

1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by welshywelsh » Sat Nov 24, 2018 8:25 am

It's apt that my first post in this section relates to all the things I have a problem with: offset Fenders, rare things and over priced items I can't really afford.

I had dipped my toe in the Jazzmaster scene with a second hand Squier J Mascis, which financially was about as small a risk as you could make at £260. Being a bit of a badge snob, I'd never genuinely entertained the idea of a Squier before, but the internet kept telling me how wonderful it was and the internet never lies.....right?

Fast forward a few weeks and it was the only guitar I'd play, pushing my more expensive Jaguar and Telecasters away. How can the pickups be both clear AND dark AND take pedals so well?! And the neck: chunky, easy to play and all part of a full scale offset. If a Squier Jazzy is this good, how good must a 'proper' one be? With that the Jazzmaster obsession began and within days I was a self confessed expert, ok, bore. "Did you know that the custom colours only really began post-CBS and these were the colours initially available...." Yep, I'm now that guy.

Now I knew my history and had bonded with the model like no other guitar, there was only really one dream to have; own an original 1958/59 gold guard Jazzmaster. Chances of finding one nearby to try were slim to none, being able to afford and/or justify the price was never going to happen either. So I did what all good guitar obsessives do, I scoured Reverb, eBay, Google and Gumtree just hoping to find one, let alone buy it.

I was met with the occasional advert description along the lines of "Completely original, 1958 Jazzmaster! Only things that aren't original are the pickups and neck, the body has been re-finished and the switches don't work. A real investment, £7,000. Also, 4,500 miles away". Hmmm, I'll pass.

During this time, my gramps passed away which was hard, but he left me a little cash with strict instructions to buy something fun and lasting. No holidays, no car stuff; fun and long term. He was an extremely generous man and it was clear how to remember him and put the cash to good use.
So the search carried on, religiously, knowing that now I'd be closer to a Jazzmaster than ever before. Yet they were all too far out of reach either in mileage terms or the size of the financial shortfall I still had.

Until THE DAY.

Shopping locally, I did my usual of boring the family with a quick trip to look at guitars, pressing myself up against the glass cabinet with all the super good stuff hidden behind its reflective sheen.

And there it was, a 1959 Fender Jazzmaster

"Excuse me, is this a hideously over priced Custom Shop?" I asked the guy.

"Nope, 100% original gold guard with original case, January 1959"

Image
Image

Oh crap. So I did the only thing a sane person would do and ran away. For a month. I could actually afford it, but could I justify all my inheritance on a piece of wood? More research, I phoned a few shops, who wanted to know where the guitar was at that price (not likely pal!) until I settled on what I already knew - I had to go back.

I slung my pedal board down, plugged in the '59 and opened up a vortex of shimmering delay, swirling reverb and nearly 60 years worth of vintage magic. Everything was just so incredible. The feel of the neck, the sound from those pickups, the patina, the bridge (somehow!) was solid, the gold guard was still very much gold and the clay dots were just one of the super cool vintage touches you can't reproduce properly. Time seemed to slow whilst playing and it wasn't my delay malfunctioning. You can't go back to normal after this. So I did the only thing a sane person would do and ran away again.

Only until the next morning this time, when my long-suffering girlfriend told me to stop overthinking it, heed my gramps' instructions and just buy it. Back to the shop, a further £500 off the price (I know!) and it was mine. Five minutes later I'm surrounded by 8,000 sticky, screaming children who have just left a Paw Patrol event at the same time I'm trying to sneak the guitar through town, unnoticed. One final hurdle, overcome.

Yes, this story could have been: I had some money, I bought the Jazzmaster I wanted from a local shop and it's good, but so much of what we love is the wait, the search, the excitement of playing it for the first time and finally owning the guitar of your dreams, that if anything, I should have written more.

Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

Welcome to the family.

Image

User avatar
Paul-T
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 225
Joined: Mon Jun 11, 2018 4:41 am
Location: London

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by Paul-T » Sat Nov 24, 2018 8:55 am

Yay, great story, and a wonderful thing to spend your gramp's money on.
"classic marked down to 20 pence bargain bin fodder'

User avatar
PorkyPrimeCut
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 24464
Joined: Tue Nov 28, 2006 7:46 am
Location: Leipzig
Contact:

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Sat Nov 24, 2018 10:08 am

What a beautiful guitar!! Welcome to Club '59 :)
You think you can't, you wish you could, I know you can, I wish you would. Slip inside this house as you pass by.

User avatar
bterry
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1351
Joined: Sun Oct 11, 2009 8:53 am

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by bterry » Sat Nov 24, 2018 10:21 am

looks great, congrats!

User avatar
zhivago
Mods
Mods
Posts: 21926
Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 6:18 am
Location: London, UK

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by zhivago » Sat Nov 24, 2018 11:12 am

Very cool guitar! Sounds like it was meant to be :)
Resident Spartan.

User avatar
Embenny
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 10363
Joined: Tue May 24, 2016 5:07 am

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by Embenny » Sat Nov 24, 2018 11:40 am

"Fun and lasting" - wise words, and is say this fits the bill perfectly.

Congrats. It's as perfect a guitar as you could ever find.
The artist formerly known as mbene085.

User avatar
blacktiger
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 4125
Joined: Sun Nov 12, 2006 7:05 pm
Location: banned in DC

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by blacktiger » Sat Nov 24, 2018 4:09 pm

Beautiful!

FYI: I’ve never had a problem with a vintage JM bridge. Once they get a little age (and rust) on them, they more or less sort themselves out.
Thread killer

User avatar
Ursa Minor
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 5892
Joined: Sun Mar 14, 2010 8:26 am
Location: Chicago

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by Ursa Minor » Sat Nov 24, 2018 8:29 pm

Great story and even better '59! That burst is perfect. Good for you for showing some restraint vs. jumping in head first. If its meant to be, its meant to be. In this case it definitely was. :)
The artist formerly known as kosmonautmayhem.

User avatar
PorkyPrimeCut
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 24464
Joined: Tue Nov 28, 2006 7:46 am
Location: Leipzig
Contact:

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Sun Nov 25, 2018 12:33 am

blacktiger wrote:
Sat Nov 24, 2018 4:09 pm
Beautiful!

FYI: I’ve never had a problem with a vintage JM bridge. Once they get a little age (and rust) on them, they more or less sort themselves out.
Agreed.
You think you can't, you wish you could, I know you can, I wish you would. Slip inside this house as you pass by.

User avatar
kapepper
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 326
Joined: Thu Dec 22, 2011 11:51 am

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by kapepper » Sun Nov 25, 2018 7:38 am

Beautiful!!! Congratulations and enjoy!!

User avatar
painted wood
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1378
Joined: Wed Jun 27, 2007 4:15 pm
Location: FL

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by painted wood » Sun Nov 25, 2018 5:56 pm

Whoa, dude.

User avatar
carron
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 178
Joined: Fri Sep 11, 2015 8:10 pm

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by carron » Sun Nov 25, 2018 7:06 pm

That is a dream guitar, and it looks stunning. Much jealousy.

User avatar
zepset
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 70
Joined: Wed Aug 02, 2017 7:21 pm

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by zepset » Sun Nov 25, 2018 10:11 pm

You got a good one, gold guards are special. Love the burst on yours. How are the frets? They actually look original, if dressed a bit low.

Congratulations, and watch your knuckles on that middle case latch.

User avatar
welshywelsh
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 369
Joined: Sat Aug 11, 2018 11:58 am

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by welshywelsh » Mon Nov 26, 2018 6:22 am

Thanks for all the kind words. As a few have said, I really like the burst as it's quite a subtle one. Very similar to the one on the 60th Anniversary, so Fender agree too I guess. It's funny, sunburst would usually be way down my list as a colour choice, but there's something about aged burst, especially with the gold guard and the history that tops everything for me.

It's 100% original, including the frets. They are low but it plays great; the guy at the shop knows what he's doing and the setup is spot on. Obviously a bit of a dilemma as the more I play it the closer to a re fret I'll be, but it sounds too good to sit in a case, hidden away. They are meant to be used!

User avatar
Jazzmastervsjaguar
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 780
Joined: Mon May 28, 2012 7:37 am
Location: Silver Spring, MD (Burbs of DC)
Contact:

Re: 1959 Jazzmaster - settle in for story time (pic heavy!)

Post by Jazzmastervsjaguar » Mon Nov 26, 2018 6:27 am

That's about as close (If not perfect) as perfect can be. Beautiful guitar and a great story. Congratulations!

Post Reply