List of Telecaster Players - Q-Z

Q-Z

• Will Ray (born 1950) has been part of the Telecaster trio the Hellecasters from 1993-on. He is known for extensive use of the B-Bender and finger-mount slide on his Telecaster. In recognition of the Hellecasters' contributions to the Telecaster, Fender has produced more signature models for the group than for any other group, including two Will Ray signature models: the Jazz-a-Caster and the Mojo-Tele.
• Don Rich (1942–1974) made the bassy rhythms and "chicken pickin'" of his custom sparkle-finish Telecaster an indispensable part of the Bakersfield sound while playing with Buck Owens & The Buckaroos.
• Keith Richards (born 1943) has composed many classic riffs with The Rolling Stones using a variety of Telecasters. His main axe is a '52 Tele named Micawber, which features a 5-string open G tuning and a humbucker in the neck position.
• Robbie Robertson (born 1943) of The Band, used a Telecaster from 1958 to 1974. His trusty Telecaster can be heard on many of the Band's recordings.
• Jim Root (born 1971) of Slipknot, Stone Sour, now plays Fender Telecaster and Stratocaster, after trying other brands like Charvel
• Francis Rossi (born 1949) of Status Quo, "one of Britain's longest-lived bands," is a faithful Tele player.
• Arlen Roth (born 1953) has been a respected artist ever since his first solo album won the Montreaux Critics’ Award for Best Instrumental Album of the Year in 1978. He was Guitar Player Magazine's top columnist from 1982 to 1992. He has performed with such diverse artists as John Prine, Rick Wakeman, and Paul Simon. He is a Telecaster enthusiast, and has written the book Masters of the Telecaster, which details the licks of many famous Tele players.
• Bruce Springsteen (born 1949) has long played a 1952 Esquire upgraded with a Telecaster neck pickup. The guitar appears on the cover of his 1975 album Born to Run.
• Mike Stern (born 1953), one of the few Tele-playing jazz musicians, played the guitar with Miles Davis in the early 80's before going solo.
• Joe Strummer (1952–2002) of The Clash was "the most visible Tele player" in late 1970s punk, using his famous stickered instrument throughout his career, up until his death.
• Marty Stuart (born 1958) has been a career-long devotee of the guitar. The Fender Custom Shop makes a Limited Edition Marty Stuart Tribute Telecaster which blends features from his favorite historical guitars, as played by Buck Owens, Don Rich, Mick Ronson and Clarence White. Stuart is also the owner of the original Parsons/White prototype B-bender Telecaster originally owned by Clarence White and given to Stuart by the White family. Stewart also owns Don Rich's silver metal-flake Telecaster that was given to him by Buck Owens.
• Andy Summers (born 1942) of The Police almost always used his '61/'63 Telecaster Custom, which was customized with a Gibson neck humbucker, a preamp and a phase switch. Fender now make the Andy Summers Tribute Telecaster.
• Tommy Tedesco (1930–1997), veteran L.A. session guitarist, used a white Telecaster as his workhorse electric guitar for most of his career.
• Pete Townshend (born 1945), though famous for his Tele smashing in the 1960s with The Who, spared his favorite guitar, a 1952 vintage Telecaster.
• Keith Urban (born 1967) regularly plays Telecasters, one of which features decorative binding and three pickups.
• Redd Volkaert (born 1958) was a successor to Roy Nichols in Merle Haggard's backing band, and is "among the country’s top Telecaster guitar slingers."
• Muddy Waters (1913–1983) helped build a bridge between the blues and rock with his "walls of electrified sound," played on his red '57 Telecaster. Until 2010, Fender sold a Muddy Waters Telecaster, one of the guitars in its Signature series.
• Clarence White (1944–1973) of The Byrds, along with drummer Gene Parsons, invented the B-Bender device for the Tele for emulating pedal steel guitar effects.