Fender Custom Shop 1962 Jazz Bass Journeyman Relic Surf Blue Burst

Introduced in 1960 as Fender’s new “deluxe” bass guitar model, the Jazz Bass featured a sleek offset body, a notably slim neck, two pickups and controls that provided a wealth of tonal options. Gorgeous and versatile, it was an immediate bass hit. The Jazz Bass has continued to change over the years, but for many, stepping back to how it was done in the 60's is the way to go.  The Fender Custom Shop excels at recreating the look, feel and sound of these instruments, often with special tweaks.  That's where we decided to go with this one.  

As part of a close partnership with the Fender Custom Shop, Truetone Music cooked up an exclusive run of guitars, going for colors never seen before.  In this case, it's Surf Blue Burst, one of the coolest and most eye-catching finishes that we've dones.  It's not even shown in the list of Custom Shop colors - this is because it never existed before.  We had done a Surf Green Burst, and from that, we created Surf Blue Burst. 

We chose to do this one as a Journeyman Relic to accent the vintage vibe.  With that comes heavy checking, some light wear, and a totally "broken in" feeling neck.  We specifically asked the Custom Shop to wear the finish off of the back of the neck, making it super comfortable to play.

 

This Custom Shop '62 Jazz Bass is a testament to their ability to pull off vintage recreations with modern playability.  It features a period correct 60 "U" neck shape (quartersawn maple), classic vintage-voiced pickups, and a mostly otherwise traditional design.  We went with a 9.5" radius and Narrow Tall (6105) frets - this is one of the most common and popular modifications to vintage-styled instruments out of the Custom Shop.   So, you get a modern feel on a vintage style bass.  

For the pickups, we kept it real, going with the base model Custom Shop Vintage Jazz Bass pickup set.  These recreate the sound of a classic mid-60's Jazz bass and are versatile enough for a variety of styles of playing.  Other features include a 4-ply tortoise shell pickguard, vintage clay dots, a vintage bridge and tuning machines, old school metal covers, and a bone nut.  It also includes a Custom Shop hardshell case, strap and certificate of authenticity.