Fender and Guitar Center Celebrate Stevie Ray Vaughan "Lenny" Guitar at Las Vegas Gala

Press release
Source: FMIC

On November 5, 2007, Fender® hosted a gala event in Las Vegas for over 300 Guitar Center store managers to celebrate the upcoming launch of the “Lenny” Stratocaster guitar. The celebration took place on top of the Rio Hotel at the Voodoo Lounge nightclub in Las Vegas. The event was highlighted by live music performances, video highlight packages and an appearance by Danny Mantle, son of baseball great and cultural icon, Mickey Mantle.

In a historic collaboration among Fender®, Guitar Center® and the Stevie Ray Vaughan estate, the Stevie Ray Vaughan “Lenny” Stratocaster® guitar has been commissioned by Guitar Center to be reproduced in a limited edition by the Fender Custom Shop. As part of Fender’s Tribute Series of guitars, “Lenny” will be produced in a limited quantity, with 185 guitars offered for sale in the United States, made available exclusively through Guitar Center. Guitar Center stores throughout the United States will introduce the guitar on Dec. 12, 2007, and will offer them to customers for $17,000 (U.S.).

This storied addition to the Custom Shop Tribute Series features an intricate reproduction of “Lenny” down to the smallest of details—from the reflective “SRV” stickers on the body to the battered headstock, the autograph that Stevie himself etched into the neck plate, and even an autograph from legendary baseball great, Mickey Mantle who notably autographed the guitar during a chance meeting with Stevie in Houston in 1985.

“Stevie Ray Vaughan and my father had a lot in common. Both men were the perfect craftsmen with their instruments—Stevie with his guitar and my father with his bat,” said Danny Mantle during comments to the crowd. “The Mantle family is honored to be associated with this amazing project.”

The original “Lenny” guitar is a universally recognizable 1965 Fender Stratocaster, named after Stevie’s wife at the time “Lenny” Vaughan and used to write and record the namesake love song. One of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s favorite instruments, the guitar itself has an almost mystical heritage that can be traced back to the very beginning of Vaughan’s rise to stardom. Throughout his career, the “Lenny” guitar traveled with Vaughan almost everywhere he went, and it was Guitar Center, the world’s largest musical instrument retailer, who purchased the original guitar for $623,500 at a 2004 Christie’s auction that benefited the Crossroads Centre, Antigua, a charitable organization founded by Eric Clapton. More information on the guitar’s journey can be found at www.fender.com/lenny and www.guitarcenter.com/lenny.

About Guitar Center:
Guitar Center, Inc. (NASDAQ: GTRC) is the leading United States retailer of guitars, amplifiers, percussion instruments, keyboards and pro-audio and recording equipment. Our retail store subsidiary presently operates more than 210 Guitar Center stores across the United States. In addition, our Music & Arts division operates more than 95 stores specializing in band instruments for sale and rental, serving teachers, band directors, college professors and students. We are also the largest direct response retailer of musical instruments in the United States through our wholly owned subsidiary, Musician's Friend, Inc., and its catalogs and websites, including www.musiciansfriend.com, www.guitarcenter.com, www.wwbw.com and www.music123.com. More information on Guitar Center can be found by visiting the Company's web site at www.guitarcenter.com.

About Fender Musical Instruments Corporation:
Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC) is the world’s leading guitar manufacturer, and its name has become synonymous with all things rock ‘n’ roll. Iconic Fender® instruments such as the Telecaster®, Stratocaster®, Precision Bass® and Jazz Bass® guitars are known worldwide as the instruments that started the rock revolution, and they continue to be highly prized by today’s musicians and collectors. FMIC brands include Fender®, Squier®, Guild®, Gretsch®, Jackson®, Charvel®, SWR®, EVH®, Tacoma®, Olympia® and Brand X®. For more information, visit www.fender.com.

Since 1987, the Fender Custom Shop has been known as a “dream factory” for guitarists and collectors throughout the world. The skilled craftsmen in Fender’s Corona, Calif., Custom Shop are known worldwide for their artistry in making guitars that range from the fine to the fantastic. Whether it’s building a new custom instrument from the ground up or modifying an existing one, Fender’s finest is the world’s finest. Fender Custom Shop instruments have been crafted for and with the input of the world’s finest players—names like Clapton, Beck, Burton, Cray, Gilmour, Townshend and Vaughan, to name just a few.

Trademarks/Service Mark:
Mickey Mantle and Mickey C. Mantle, stylized, (the “Mickey Mantle Signature”), are each a trademark and/or service mark of the Mickey Charles Mantle Marital Trust II and are administered and licensed under the authority of Mantle IP Holdings, Inc. ©2007, Mickey Charles Mantle Marital Trust II and Mantle IP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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