This guitar is brand new from Fender and carries the usual Fender two year warranty. It has a couple of minor imperfections. There is a tiny mark where the neck joins the body (picture 8). The holes in the back have not been drilled perfectly which has meant very minor imperfections around the holes (Picture 9) and lastly the case has taken a knock which means when you run your hand over it you can feel a dent (picture 10 but not really visable with the naked eye)
NILE RODGERS 'HITMAKER' STRATOCASTER®
Having written, produced, and performed on recordings that have sold more than 500-million albums globally, Nile Rodgers always had his beloved 1960 Stratocaster along for the ride. Affectionately dubbed the Hitmaker, this guitar features unique modifications and an unmatched pedigree that helped create decades of legends.
CUSTOM CONTOURED ALDER BODY
Featuring a unique alder body, slightly smaller and more contoured than a standard Stratocaster, this detailed recreation of Niles original Hitmaker provides a comfortable playing experience.
OLYMPIC WHITE LACQUER FINISH
Originally a sunburst model, Nile chose Olympic White lacquer to refinish the Hitmaker. Fenders Olympic White lacquer finish offers vintage-accurate looks that will age gracefully and allow the wood to breathe, letting the instruments true character shine.
CUSTOM NILE RODGERS HITMAKER SINGLE-COIL PICKUPS
Voiced to replicate the vintage single-coils in Niles original Hitmaker, these custom Strat® pickups deliver the quack, chime and bell-like clarity needed to get Niles famous tones.
CHROME-PLATED BRASS PICKGUARD
The Fender Nile Rodgers Hitmaker features a chrome-plated brass pickguard, delivering stand-out looks to match the original.
HARDTAIL STRAT® BRIDGE
An uncommon feature in vintage instruments, the hardtail string-through body bridge delivers tight, solid tones with extra body and sustain perfect for funk rhythm.
SPERZEL LOCKING TUNERS
Like the original Hitmaker, this model features Sperzel locking tuners for quick string changes and improved tuning stability.
Innumerable session, writing, production, arranging and film music credits commenced in the 1980s and continue today, with Rodgers making essential contributions to work by David Bowie (Let's Dance, 1983), Diana Ross (Diana, 1980), Debbie Harry (Koo Koo, 1981), Madonna (Like a Virgin, 1984), Mick Jagger (She's the Boss, 1985), Al Jarreau (L is For Lover, 1986), Steve Winwood (Back in the High Life, 1986), B-52's (Cosmic Thing, 1989), Michael Jackson ("Money," 1995) and many others.
More recently, Rodgers and the Hitmaker contributed to 2013 blockbuster albums True by Avicii and Random Access Memories by Daft Punk, including the latter's Grammy-winning smash, "Get Lucky."
Its a challenge to keep up with just how many songs he's impacted by now, but what is known is most of the songs in his vast catalogue were created with the help of the "Hitmaker," a unique 1960 Stratocaster with a 1959 neck that Rodgers fortuitously happened upon in a Miami Beach, Fla., in 1973.
I didn't really think of myself as a hitmaker, but I think of my guitar as having the sound to give any track that I play on a better than even shot of being a hit, Rodgers said.
THE EARLY YEARS
Rodgers grew up in New York (the Bronx, Alphabet City, Greenwich Village) with jazz records permeating the walls.
He also had an interest in classical music and became a proficient flute and clarinet player in the school orchestra before he finally decided to pick up the guitar in earnest as a teenager and teach himself how to play through a Beatles songbook.
By the time he was 19, Rodgers was working as a session guitarist and had scored a gig with the Sesame Street touring band. But it was joining the house band at Harlem's famous Apollo Theatre that truly elevated his game.
There, Rodgers encountered the world's biggest R&B artists Aretha Franklin, Betty Wright, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Maxine Brown, Ben E. King and many others. It was there where he also met bassist Bernard Edwards, with whom he would form Chic in the mid-1970s.
RISE OF THE HITMAKER
Not only did Rodgers and Edwards change the game with CHIC, they also became the hottest producing team after bringing Sister Sledges 1978 album, We Are Family, to the top of the charts.
Of course, we all know now that Rodgers and his Hitmaker have never stopped since.
To pay homage to Rodgers indelible contributions to musical history and the exciting projects he undoubtedly has coming in the future Fender is releasing a faithful recreation of the Hitmaker.
Featuring a lacquer Olympic White finish that accurately mimics the colour he sprayed on it himself in a tribute to Jimi Hendrix. Its custom 59-profile one-piece maple neck boasts a 9.5 radius fingerboard, medium jumbo frets and satin finish, while Nile Rodgers Hitmaker single-coil Strat pickups are voiced to accurately replicate the quack, chime and bell-like clarity of the original instrument.
For an artist who has a top billing amongst the influencers of modern music, this guitar is the only one to recreate his signature sound.
Everybody who's playing a Strat, their Stats have a certain vibe, he said. My Strat plays I don't know how to explain it. I've bought more than 200 of these things trying to find one, and the only way I could find another one is Fender had to make it.
BODY
Body Material
Alder
Body Finish
Gloss Nitrocellulose Lacquer
Body Shape
Stratocaster®
NECK
Neck Material
Maple
Neck Construction
4-Bolt Standard
Neck Finish
Satin Nitrocellulose Lacquer Finish with Gloss Headstock Face
Neck Shape
1959 "C"
Scale Length
25.5" (648 mm)
Fingerboard Material
Maple
Fingerboard Radius
9.5" (241 mm)
Number of Frets
21
Fret Size
Medium Jumbo
Nut Material
Bone
Nut Width
1.625" (41.3 mm)
Position Inlays
Black Dot
Side Dots
Black
Truss Rod
Vintage-Style Butt Adjust
Truss Rod Nut
Vintage-Style Butt Adjust
ELECTRONICS
Bridge Pickup
Hitmaker Nile Rogers Strat®
Middle Pickup
Hitmaker Nile Rogers RWRP Strat®
Neck Pickup
Hitmaker Nile Rogers Strat®
Controls
Master Volume, Tone 1. (Neck Pickup), Tone 2. (Bridge/Middle Pickup)
Switching
5-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup, Position 3. Middle Pickup, Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup, Position 5. Neck Pickup
Configuration
SSS
HARDWARE
Bridge
6-Saddle Strings-Through-Body Strat® Hardtail with Bent Steel Saddles
Hardware Finish
Nickel/Chrome
Tuning Machines
Sperzel® Locking
Pickguard
11-hole Chrome Plated Brass
Control Knobs
White Speed
Switch Tip
White
Neck Plate
4-Bolt Serialised with Custom Hitmaker Logo
MISCELLANEOUS
Strings
Fender® USA 250L Nickel Plated Steel (.009-.042 Gauges), PN 0730250403
Legal Notice
ACCESSORIES
Hitmaker Hard Case
Deluxe Limited-Edition Hardshell with Embroidered Hitmaker Logo
Included Accessories
Deluxe Hardshell Case and Certificate of Authenticity.
Weight on this guitar is 7lb 9.9ozs / 3.458 Kilos
