![Fender Launches Telecasters to Celebrate 75th Anniversary]](https://backingtracksfullcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Fender-Launches-Telecasters-to-Celebrate-75th-Anniversary-758x406.jpg "Fender Launches Telecasters to Celebrate 75th Anniversary] 1")
Where would popular music be without the Fender Telecaster? The world’s first mass-produced electric guitar changed everything, and given that it turns 75 this year, it would be remiss of Fender not to mark the occasion with some limited edition models.
And so, here we go, five 75th Anniversary Telecasters – not to be confused with the 75th Anniversary Telecaster from 2021 that marked the birthday of Fender itself – that present five very different takes on the guitar that became a rock ’n’ roll machine, the ultimate blues guitar, a great – and often underrated – guitar for jazz, for country, indie, you name it. It even makes a good metal guitar. Just ask Jim Root or John 5.
The 75th Anniversary Collection comprises electrics that reference all eras of the Telecaster’s evolution, and presents a twist on each. There is a super-modernistic American Ultra II in a Liquid Gold metallic finish, a guitar that doubles up on the S-1 switches for the player who likes options (session players with an eye for bling will love this, not least because the AmUltra II platform is arguably the most playable Tele you will get your hands on). It is priced at £2,899/$2,999.
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The 75th Anniversary American Professional Classic Cabronita Telecaster is an iconoclastic take on the Tele. Like the Cabronitas before it, this switches out the usual complement of Tele single-coil pickups for a pair of TV Jones Classics.
Other touches we really, really like include the cut-down white pickguard against that Ice Blue Metallic finish, the stripped-down controls (just a three-way pickup selector switch and a volume knob), and the pearloid buttons on the Deluxe die-cast tuners.
It has an alder body, a Modern C neck profile, a maple fingerboard, a real vibe. Note: this special edition Cabronita is also available in Candy Apple Red if you want to dial up the heat. It’s yours for £1,799/$1,999.
Those who like a more dressed-up take on the Telecaster would do well to turn their attention to the American Professional Custom in 2-Tone Sunburst, which not only gives us that Fort Knox vibe with all the gold hardware (locking tuners, too), but we have that ‘burst finish making the most of the figured maple top on its solid alder body.
Factor in the double-bound body and it’s a chef’s kiss, the archetypical workhorse transformed into a bona-fide high-end electric guitar (and at £2,499/$2,799, it isn’t a cheap date either).
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Ironically, one of the most aesthetically pleasing Telecasters in this anniversary run is the most affordable, with Fender dressing the 75th Anniversary Player II Telecaster up in Diamond Dust Sparkle and a 4-Ply Aged White Pearl pickguard.
It will offer a very contemporary ride, with the six-saddle bridge easier to intonate than the old-school Teles, the Modern C neck being totally mainstream and playable, and topped by a 9.5” radius rosewood fingerboard with the edges rolled off for that played-in feel.
Last, but not least, and one for the purists, we have an ash-bodied Vintera version of the 1951 blackguard, complete with a Road Worn nitrocellulose finish, vintage tall frets, bone nut, and the 7.25” radius maple fingerboard. A pair of Pure Vintage ’51 Single-Coil Tele pickups will give it that signature Tele sound.
This is the kind of primitive rock ’n’ roll machine that Mike Campbell is talking about when he says, “The Telecaster is like the heart and soul of rock and roll music”.
That’s another even that will make the 75th Anniversary, a Talk Tele series with artists – that will feature Tele players – such as Campbell – talking about their love for the instrument. Sheryl Crow is another. And, given Gina Gleason from Baroness is in the promo materials putting them through their paces, we’d expect to hear her on the record, too.
This anniversary is a big deal. As Max Gutnik, chief of product at Fender, says, the Telecaster is “more than a guitar”.
We’re not just marking a milestone – we’re telling the ongoing story of this instrument and the artists who’ve shaped the world with it
“It’s the backbone of modern music, and 75 years later it continues to inspire players in ways Leo Fender could have only imagined. The 75th Anniversary Telecaster Collection is our way of honouring everything that has made the Tele an enduring icon,” says Gutnik. “From the vintage authenticity of the Vintera Road Worn to the boundary-pushing versatility of the American Ultra II, each model reflects the full spectrum of what the Telecaster has meant to generations of players.
“Paired with our Artists Talk Tele series, we’re not just marking a milestone – we’re telling the ongoing story of this instrument and the artists who’ve shaped the world with it. This is just the beginning, and I can’t wait for players everywhere to experience what we have in store.”
The 75th Anniversary Telecasters are available now. See Fender for more details.
