Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC) and the Fender Custom Shop today announced the Limited Edition Mike McCready 1960 Stratocaster in the artist's first-time collaboration with the iconic guitar brand. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame alum partnered with one of Fender's world-renowned Master Builders, Vincent Van Trigt, to disassemble his famous vintage Stratocaster® in order to account for every spec, detail and iconic scratch. With 2021 marking the 30th anniversary of Pearl Jam's debut album TEN, the limited 60-piece run celebrates the impact of the legendary rock band. The collector's edition promises Pearl Jam fans a nearly exact replica of the guitar McCready has used to wow audiences for decades.
"Once I could afford a quality guitar, I immediately went for the vintage Stratocaster®. It was my dream guitar because of my love for Stevie Ray Vaughan, and as my musical aspirations were coming true I had to have it," said Mike McCready. "It was the first significant guitar that I bought, never thinking I could ever own one before Pearl Jam happened. My favorite feature is the playability of the neck. It's so worn in and easy to play. It's got the best neck and fretboard of any of my guitars. I also love how light it is. I actually picked up the prototype thinking it was the original a couple of times which shows me how meticulous and caring Master Builder Vincent Van Trigt and the whole Fender team has been throughout this process."
McCready's purchase of the original vintage guitar was inspired by his idol, wanting to get his hands on Vaughan's 1959 Stratocaster. His love for the model went so far as getting the year memorialized with a tattoo on his wrist. In deconstructing the guitar, Van Trigt uncovered a long held secret kept from McCready - his beloved '59 Strat was actually constructed in 1960. It was discovered decades ago by Pearl Jam's long-time luthier after working on the guitar and finding date stamps on the neck. Recognizing McCready's pride in the specific model, the luthier and Pearl Jam's equipment manager let him believe for 28 years that it was built in 1959, only revealing the secret in order to create the perfect Fender guitar replica.
Mike McCready Limited Edition 1960 Stratocaster | Fender Custom Shop | Fender
"It was an honor to deconstruct and recreate Mike's vintage 1960 Stratocaster" said Vincent Van Trigt, Master Builder at Fender Custom Shop, "He plays an esteemed model, and the unique story behind its history gives even more character to the road-worn guitar we aimed to recreate." Complete with a lacquer finish, flat-sawn flame maple neck and flat-lam rosewood fingerboard with 21 vintage frets, the well-loved guitar became a centerpiece for McCready's iconic solos on tour and was used to record classic Pearl Jam hits like Daughter, In My Tree, Nothing As It Seems, and Superblood Wolfmoon. The custom hand-wound pickups wound by Josefina Campos herself, "treble bleed" tone capacitor and synchronized tremolo with Callaham bridge block allow for McCready's signature blues and classic rock sounds to shine through, inspired by his music idols like Jimi Hendrix, Pete Townshend and Keith Richards.
"Mike McCready is a bonafide rock n' roll legend, and it was a privilege to recreate his all-time favorite guitar," said Mike Lewis, VP of Product Development at Fender's Custom Shop. "When considering the partnership, we knew we had to get Vincent Van Trigt on the case. He worked on the Vaughan Brothers 30th Anniversary Strat set, so he was the natural choice to create an exact copy of Mike's time-worn Strat for his fans to collect and enjoy. Pearl Jam has been inspiring us at Fender, and not to mention audiences around the world for 30 years, and we couldn't think of a better way to honor the legacy of this legendary rock guitarist."
For more information:
Fender
- Album Review: Pearl Jam's "Lightning Bolt" | Premier Guitar ›
- Interview: Mike McCready on Mad Season Reissue and New Pearl ... ›
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Last August, metalcore giants Poison the Well gave the world a gift: They announced they were working on their first studio album in 15 years. They unleashed the first taste, single “Trembling Level,” back in January, and set off on a spring North American tour during which they played their debut record, The Opposite of December… A Season of Separation, in full every night.
PG’s Perry Bean caught up with guitarists Ryan Primack and Vadim Taver, and bassist Noah Harmon, ahead of the band’s show at Nashville’s Brooklyn Bowl for this new Rig Rundown.
Brought to you by D’Addario.Not-So-Quiet As a Mouse
Primack started his playing career on Telecasters, then switched to Les Pauls, but when his prized LPs were stolen, he jumped back to Teles, and now owns nine of them.
His No. 1 is this white one (left). Seymour Duncan made him a JB Model pickup in a single-coil size for the bridge position, while the neck is a Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound Staggered. He ripped out all the electronics, added a Gibson-style toggle switch, flipped the control plate orientation thanks to an obsession with Danny Gatton, and included just one steel knob to control tone. Primack also installed string trees with foam to control extra noise.
This one has Ernie Ball Papa Het’s Hardwired strings, .011–.050.
Here, Kitty, Kitty
Primack runs both a PRS Archon and a Bad Cat Lynx at the same time, covering both 6L6 and EL34 territories. The Lynx goes into a Friedman 4x12 cab that’s been rebadged in honor of its nickname, “Donkey,” while the Archon, which is like a “refined 5150,” runs through an Orange 4x12.
Ryan Primack’s Pedalboard
Primack’s board sports a Saturnworks True Bypass Multi Looper, plus two Saturnworks boost pedals. The rest includes a Boss TU-3w, DOD Bifet Boost 410, Caroline Electronics Hawaiian Pizza, Fortin ZUUL +, MXR Phase 100, JHS Series 3 Tremolo, Boss DM-2w, DOD Rubberneck, MXR Carbon Copy Deluxe, Walrus Slo, and SolidGoldFX Surf Rider III.
Taver’s Teles
Vadim Taver’s go-to is this cherryburst Fender Telecaster, which he scored in the early 2000s and has been upgraded to Seymour Duncan pickups on Primack’s recommendation. His white Balaguer T-style has been treated to the same upgrade. The Balaguer is tuned to drop C, and the Fender stays in D standard. Both have D’Addario strings, with a slightly heavier gauge on the Balaguer.
Dual-Channel Chugger
Taver loves his 2-channel Orange Rockerverb 100s, one of which lives in a case made right in Nashville.
Vadim Taver’s Pedalboard
Taver’s board includes an MXR Joshua, MXR Carbon Copy Deluxe, Empress Tremolo, Walrus ARP-87, Old Blood Noise Endeavors Reflector, MXR Phase 90, Boss CE-2w, and Sonic Research Turbo Tuner ST-200, all powered by a Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 Plus.
Big Duff
Harmon’s favorite these days is this Fender Duff McKagan Deluxe Precision Bass, which he’s outfitted with a Leo Quan Badass bridge. His backup is a Mexico-made Fender Classic Series ’70s Jazz Bass. This one also sports Primack-picked pickups.
Rental Rockers
Harmon rented this Orange AD200B MK III head, which runs through a 1x15 cab on top and a 4x10 on the bottom.
Noah Harmon’s Pedalboard
Harmon’s board carries a Boss TU-2, Boss ODB-3, MXR Dyna Comp, Darkglass Electronics Vintage Ultra, and a Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 Plus. His signal from the Vintage Ultra runs right to the front-of-house, and Harmon estimates that that signal accounts for about half of what people hear on any given night.
