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Post by langford on Dec 5, 2022 13:13:40 GMT -5
One of these popped up on consignment in my local guitar shop: An MIJ knock-off of the old Fender Lead II. I remember when the originals came out. I was in high school and recall that we eyed them with a bit of suspicion. They looked like an alternative for those of us who wanted a Fender but couldn't afford at Strat or a Tele, and I remember kind-of liking them (though I already had a second-hand Tele of my own by then). But more generally, I recall they were looked down upon, so I was surprised to see a knock-off that seems to be reasonable quality. I'd love to know what year this is. caskmusic.ca/collections/electric-guitars/products/deacon-lead-ii-copy-mij-used |
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Post by Larry Madsen on Dec 5, 2022 18:01:45 GMT -5
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Post by langford on Dec 5, 2022 20:44:40 GMT -5
Nice!
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Dec 7, 2022 17:46:30 GMT -5
I'd love to know what year this is. Probably 1981 or 1982. I suspect that timeframe because the Lead series didn't last long in Fender's production (mid-79 through early '83), and being a new model in Fender's line, the copycats were trying to get a slice of that market at the time. The only big-name player I remember slinging a Lead back then was Elliott Easton of The Cars. |
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Post by langford on Dec 7, 2022 19:34:10 GMT -5
I didn't know Elliot used them. He's a great guitar player. In other news, I've think I've found a bit of info on the Deacon brand. There's not much out there, but folks on various forums say that Deacon was a house brand for the Scottish Musical Instrument Retailers Association (SMIRA) back in the day. Apparently, SMIRA would contract with Asian manufacturers and so members could offer low-cost alternatives to the big brands. There isn't a lot of source material for this (most posts reference use the same source, though not all), but it seems reasonable.
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Post by reverendrob on Dec 7, 2022 20:17:50 GMT -5
Yea, I wouldn't be paying a premium for that era clones honestly.
What does an actual Lead go for these days?
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Dec 7, 2022 22:14:18 GMT -5
I didn't know Elliot used them. He's a great guitar player. In other news, I've think I've found a bit of info on the Deacon brand. There's not much out there, but folks on various forums say that Deacon was a house brand for the Scottish Musical Instrument Retailers Association (SMIRA) back in the day. Apparently, SMIRA would contract with Asian manufacturers and so members could offer low-cost alternatives to the big brands. There isn't a lot of source material for this (most posts reference use the same source, though not all), but it seems reasonable. That's some good intel! Thanks. Check this out (notice Hawkes counting time on his fingers): I've always thought this was hilarious and totally cool: Easton also recalls the time he borrowed a guitar string from a bathing-suit clad Neil Diamond, after learning the songwriter’s parents lived opposite his junior high school band’s rehearsal space, in Massapequa, New York. “We could see this yellow Lincoln Continental [in the drive opposite] so we knew Neil was there visiting his parents. So this was a Sunday, I broke a string on my guitar, ‘Where are we going to get a string?’ ‘Oh, Neil’s home!’ His parents lived directly across the street, so I crossed the street and knocked on the door and Neil answers in a bathing suit! I’ll never forget it. “We were like, ‘Uh, Mr. Diamond, you wouldn’t happen to have a guitar string...we broke a string and we’re having our band practice…’ He goes, ‘Sure I do!’ He goes over to the trunk of his car, opens up his guitar case and gives me a Gibson Sonamatic string. I kept the envelope. I still have it.” |
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Post by langford on Dec 8, 2022 10:24:43 GMT -5
Nice find with the vid, PG. Very cool to see Elliot playing a Fender Lead on television. I think that would have raised their status at my high school a nudge or two. Also, great Neil Diamond story.
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mroulier
Wholenote
Chemo'd and Radiated!
Posts: 155
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Post by mroulier on Dec 8, 2022 11:39:14 GMT -5
And Fender re-issued these just recently. I had a Lead II that I bought from my cousin Mike. It was pretty decent but I sold it to buy a backup bass for gigs. I think Mike's dad paid like $300 new and I sold it in 1998 on EBay for.... $375. Woohoo...return on investment! New ones are $799, or $829 for a Lead III. www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/LeadP2BK--fender-player-lead-ii-black |
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mroulier
Wholenote
Chemo'd and Radiated!
Posts: 155
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Post by mroulier on Dec 8, 2022 11:49:40 GMT -5
And here's probably the only other video to feature a Lead II:
"China" by one-hit wonders the Red Rockers:
The guitar looks teeny when wielded by the tall guitarist!
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Post by langford on Dec 8, 2022 12:23:18 GMT -5
@wholenote... I feel sorry for those Red Rockers. That's a nice bit of pop-music songwriting... but, oh man, the '80s styling has not been kind to them!
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Post by reverendrob on Dec 8, 2022 18:50:59 GMT -5
And Fender re-issued these just recently. I had a Lead II that I bought from my cousin Mike. It was pretty decent but I sold it to buy a backup bass for gigs. I think Mike's dad paid like $300 new and I sold it in 1998 on EBay for.... $375. Woohoo...return on investment! New ones are $799, or $829 for a Lead III. www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/LeadP2BK--fender-player-lead-ii-black Yea, I checked the used market - can get a modern reissue used for cheaper than the cheapie MIJ. I'd likely go with the modern all day long, even if I had to buy new. |
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