Talk:Leo Fender

Most influential / popular

The P-bass is wonderful, but it is probably hyperbolic to say it was Leo's most influential musical instrument. 60% of electric stringed instruments sold today worldwide are either Fender Stratocasters, or unauthorized clones of that instrument.

I've changed the text slightly to eliminate this controversial statement, while preserving the deservedly panegyric tone that even the most neutral of commentators must needs adopt when discussing this titan of 20th century music. -Ikkyu2 05:41, 31 October 2005 (UTC)

Early life? Sale of the company?

There seems to be very little biographical information about Leo Fender in this article. There is nothing about his early life or about his years making amplifiers and other electronic equipment with Kaufmann & Fender (K&F). There is nothing about the illness that caused him to sell the company to CBS, nor about the cure he bought with the money he got from CBS. It is as if the man was nothing but the instruments and equipment. Respectfully, SamBlob 05:37, 9 December 2006 (UTC)

Indeed. Someone really arrogant and stupid hijacked this from about the fifth word. Are we supposed to go to Britannica to find this information? For I'm sure a responsible organisation as theirs has it. Hey maybe that's a good idea in general: stop donating wasted money to Wiki Pee and buy the hard cover EB.

This page looks more like an article on Fender made guitars than on the man itself. Is there anyone willing to enter some info of a more bibliographical nature? Leo Fender was more than just his guitars.130.13.24.207 (talk) 11:31, 21 May 2008 (UTC)

like I said beneath in the Biography subject, there's a lot more information on the Dutch article, maybe someone coul translate little or a liitle much? I don't have time myself (making speech for english now) but maybe there are other Dutch users? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wiki nieuweling01 (talk • contribs) 14:13, 26 February 2010 (UTC)

Who has ever heard of Clarence Leonidas Fender?

The founder of Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (as it is now known) and the amazing electrical engineer and lateral thinker behind the creation of the Telecaster, Stratocaster, Precision Bass, Bassman, and other revolutionary products, deserves this article. In fact he deserves an article better than this one. However, in almost every publication, the person so described is referred to as Leo Fender. Apart from this article, I have never seen him referred to as Clarence Leonidas Fender, although I have read a book (The Ultimate Guitar Book, written by Tony Bacon and published by Dorling-Kindersley) in which the refer to him as Clarence Leo Fender once or twice and as Leo Fender throughout the rest of the book.

Is it not usual for articles about noteworthy people to be titled with the name by which they are most widely known rather than their full given name in cases where the two are not the same? The articles for Lee Iacocca, Ed Cole, and Gus Grissom are not titled "Lido Anthony Iacocca" "Edward Nicholas Cole" or "Virgil Ivan Grissom" respectively.

Because he was most widely known as "Leo Fender", I believe that should be the title of the article about him. Respectfully, SamBlob 15:59, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

Images please?

I think this needs one or two pictures of leo fender...? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 218.215.198.236 (talk) 11:31, 5 April 2007 (UTC).

Fender Wikiproject proposal

I have proposed a Wikiproject for articles relating to Fender. If you are interested, please add you name here. Izzy007 Talk 21:28, 3 September 2007 (UTC)

WikiProject class rating

This article was automatically assessed because at least one WikiProject had rated the article as start, and the rating on other projects was brought up to start class. BetacommandBot 16:37, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

See also: Gibson?

Should Gibson really be listed first under the category of "See Also"? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.177.39.250 (talk) 06:10, 22 February 2008 (UTC)

nope not really, just fixed it —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.84.142.167 (talk) 10:44, 28 February 2010 (UTC)

Don Randall link

Esquire
Don Randall, who managed Fender's distributor

The link goes to an Australian politician, who has no part in the Fender saga.

There is a picture of the "right" Don on Fender's site: http://www.fender.com/news/index.php?display_article=204 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 165.230.87.131 (talk) 21:33, 7 July 2008 (UTC)

Where is the Comanche section?

When Leo Fender sold the Fender Guitars trademark he retired from guitar making. Years later, fed up with the drabness of retirement he began designing a series of guitars named Comanche, which he claimed to be an improvement over his other guitars. Does anyone with more encyclopedic knowledge on these issues care to pick up the mantle and fill in that section? There is not even a wiki on Comanche Guitars in wikipedia. Cheers! Philosopher2king (talk)

Do you mean the guitar they speak of in this set of reviews: http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/product/G&L/Comanche/10/1 ? That Comanche was made by G&L Musical Instruments and is included in their list of electric guitars in that article. Respectfully, SamBlob (talk) 09:59, 14 December 2008 (UTC)

Biography

Is this a biography article or Fender company article? I think given that it's a Leo Fender article, the company should factor prominantely, but there is nothing about where he was born, his parents, his schooling, i.e., his life beyond what he did for guitars. The article almost reads like you can drop it entirely into the Fender company article with little changes.--RossF18 (talk) 01:57, 16 August 2009 (UTC) For instance take a look at Les Gibson's page. It has a lot about his involvement in the music - most of the article in fact, but it's in the form of the biography - not in the history of the Fender company form. As a side note, the in text citations should really be end of text endotes.--RossF18 (talk) 02:02, 16 August 2009 (UTC)

this is no article about Leo fender, the only onfo that i got in this article was his full name and that he didn't play guitar, it's all about the compagnie, I'm doing this speech for english and I'm totally stuck here, i needed info, luckily I'm actually Dutch, so I looked on the Dutch page, maybe someone else should to, there's information about leo fender on the Dutch article, coulkd someone please add some onformation aout Leo himself on this page??

thank you, Wiki nieuweling01 (talk) 14:09, 26 February 2010 (UTC)

I added a bit of info on his religious affiliation for starters(he was a God-fearing Christian as anyone who knew him would tell you)Invisible NoiseΩ 06:39, 24 March 2010 (UTC)

=========

Surprisingly little here about the Fender amplifiers, which as equally iconic as the guitars... anyone? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.62.75.193 (talk) 19:16, 3 June 2010 (UTC)

Who says so?

"Leo Fender is regarded as one of the most influential figures in the development of electric instruments in the 20th century."

Who, exactly, regards Leo Fender as such? Need I remind editors of Wikipedia:Verifiability?

"The development of electric instruments" is far different from the popularization of them. The only real developments Fender made were the mass manufacture of guitars and the invention of the bass guitar. Just about everything else that was novel on Fender's mass-produced instruments had been done before by Paul Bigsby.

Besides which, "electric instruments" includes a *lot* more than just guitars, basses, and amplifiers. Was Fender really more influential in the development of electric instruments than Robert Moog, inventor of the Moog synthesizer? How much of the inventory of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop had any roots whatsoever in Fender's work?

Sincerely, SamBlob (talk) 02:09, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

The quoted phrase doesn't actually mean anything exactly and certainly doesn't mean that Fender was more influential then Robert Moog or anyone else, just that Fender was up there among the top few dozen. 81.86.119.232 (talk) 14:05, 22 September 2011 (UTC)

Not much point discussing a subjective and unverified statement that has already been removed from the article. Sincerely, SamBlob (talk) 22:28, 22 September 2011 (UTC)

re: "who says so", I'd say the seventy odd patents granted to Leo over the years, for things like the individual pole piece electro-magnetic guitar pickup - which is THE standard design style for virtually all modern electric guitar and bass pickups -, the Fender Stratocaster guitar - the most copied electric guitar design in the history of modern music - The Fender Precision Bass, an instrument which by itself invented an entirely new class of players and styles, and the Fender Rhodes electric piano (the forerunner of every portable electrified keyboard and still a fully viable tone in today's music scene) are more than adequate recognitions that Mr. Fender was not only an industrial giant in the manufacturing milieu, he was an essential player in the developmental phase of 20th century electric instruments. But nevermind the facts - go on living in your "Leo stole everything from Paul Bigsby" fantasy land. — Preceding unsigned comment added by CoolBlueGlow (talk • contribs) 22:39, 31 January 2012 (UTC)

Thank you for your opinion. Get back to us when you can cite documentary evidence to back it up.

Then again, I will repeat my earlier statement: "Not much point discussing a subjective and unverified statement that has already been removed from the article."

Sincerely, SamBlob (talk) 01:56, 1 February 2012 (UTC)

Leo Fender was also a amateur radio operator W6DOE

Shouldn't this be mentioned? BrianDGregory (talk) 14:09, 22 September 2011 (UTC)

It might be notable as part of the scope of his interest, or it might not. Apart from that. though, is there a reliable source that states this? Sincerely, SamBlob (talk) 22:28, 22 September 2011 (UTC)

Fender: The Inside Story, Backbeat Books, 1994, page 4. --Cqdx (talk) 18:14, 26 December 2012 (UTC)

@Briandgregory @SamBlob @Cqdx This suggestion either never got added or got added and than was removed from the article. If the source provided above is reliable, I think would be an interesting addition. - Wil540 art (talk) 01:23, 30 October 2024 (UTC)

Why the Fender Corona neck plate?

Why is the picture of this neck plate in this article? The Fender (company) plant was moved to Corona long after Leo Fender's association with the company. Not only does this picture seem to be out of place, its presence with no explanation whatsoever is simply confusing. Unless there are any objections, I will remove it. Mark Froelich (talk) 05:32, 17 October 2017 (UTC)

Steel guitars not mentioned ???

Fender created lap steel guitars, and was a pioneer in developing this instrument. He had prominent steel players of the day visiting his fledgling factory, e.g, Noel Boggs, Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant. A section on this would help the article. Eagledj (talk) 21:42, 30 November 2020 (UTC)

There is some mention of lap steel guitars in the Early_life_and_education section. If there are reliable sources on this, I encourage a section on it. - Wil540 art (talk) 01:26, 30 October 2024 (UTC)