Above the Fold

A digital 'zine by Original Fuzz about creativity and making stuff.

★  Mar 28, 2024  ★

The Telecaster Is the Greatest Guitar of All Time

Banner for the Telecaster, which won our March Madness of Guitars tournament

No surprises here. The Telecaster sailed to victory in our March Madness of Guitars hereby taking the throne as the Greatest Guitar of All Time of 2015 and assuming the mantle of responsibility that winning the John Mayer Memorial Trophy entails.

It was a fun tournament. We had some interesting match ups in the Sweet 16 and Elite 8, but other than a really close Final Four showdown between the Tele and the Les Paul, the Telecaster coasted through the tournament. It's what we all expected. What can you say, the Tele is a standard with which we measure all guitars.

Now more importantly, Eric from West Monroe, LA is taking home a new Fuzz Bag. Thanks to everyone that participated. If you're really curious you can see the aggregate ratings of every guitar in the tournament here.

The Results

The brackets were too big to fit into one webpage so we've broken the results down here.

North Regional

Results of the North Regional in our March Madness of Guitars

East Regional

Results of the East Regional in our March Madness of Guitars

South Regional

Results of the South Regional in our March Madness of Guitars

West Regional

Results of the West Regional in our March Madness of Guitars

Semi-Final 1

Results of Semi-final 1 in our March Madness of Guitars

Semi-Final 2

Results of the Semi-final 2 in our March Madness of Guitars

Championship

Results of the champsionship in our March Madness of Guitars

The Seeds

Here are the original seeds. The Melissa Etheridge Ovation never stood a chance.

North

  1. Fender Stratocaster ('54)
  2. Gibson SG Custom (’66)
  3. Gibson J-45 (’42)
  4. Gibson SJ-200 (’38)
  5. Rickenbacker 360/12VP 12-String (’61)
  6. Gretsch Country Club (’56)
  7. Fender Telecaster Thinline (’72)
  8. Danolectro DC ('66)
  9. Ibanez RG2620-CBL (’87)
  10. Bourgeois DS-260 (’97)
  11. Reverand Reeves Gabrels (’15)
  12. National Style O ('30)
  13. Parker Fly Deluxe (’92)
  14. Kay Value Leader (’61)
  15. Peavey Predator AX (’95)
  16. Ovation Melissa Etheridge Signature W597-MEII (’12)

East

  1. Gibson ES-335 (’58)
  2. Fender Jaguar ('62)
  3. Martin D-28 ('34)
  4. Gibson Advanced Jumbo (’34)
  5. Gibson Firebird V (’65)
  6. Guild BM01 ('93)
  7. Gibson EDS-1275 (’62)
  8. Fender Coronado II Antigua (’66)
  9. Fender Squier Bullet ('85)
  10. G&L F-100 (’80)
  11. Blueridge BR-163 CE (’12)
  12. Pure Salem Tom Cat (’15)
  13. Dobro 1 (’35)
  14. Dean “Dimebag” Tribute ML (‘10)
  15. Harmony Rocket III (’62)
  16. Martin Backpacker (’92)

South

  1. Fender Telecaster ('52)
  2. Fender Jazz Master (’58)
  3. Gibson L-O (’18)
  4. Gibson Explorer ('58)
  5. Martin D-18 (’20)
  6. Epiphone Casino (’65)
  7. Fender Mustang (’66)
  8. Gretsch 6121 Chet Atkins (’57)
  9. Fender Jag-Stang (’95)
  10. Jackson DK2 Dinky (’84)
  11. BC Rich Mockingbird ('76)
  12. Fano Alt de Facto GF6 (’15)
  13. Vox Phantom ('62)
  14. Yamaha FG73OS (’02)
  15. Mosrite Ventures II (’66)
  16. Baby Taylor (’10)

West

  1. Gibson Les Paul Standard ('59)
  2. Rickenbacker 360 (’60)
  3. Gibson Melody Maker ('61)
  4. Gibson Flying V (’58)
  5. Fender Broadcaster (’50)
  6. Steinberger L-Series ('80)
  7. Gibson Blueshawk (’98)
  8. Taylor 710 CE (’95)
  9. Fender Toronado (’99)
  10. D'Angelico NYL-2 ('38)
  11. PRS Custom 24 (’85)
  12. PRS McCarty Hollowbody II (’95)
  13. Kramer Frankenstrat ('83)
  14. Silvertone 1448 Electric (’64)
  15. Airline Hutto Montgomery (’62)
  16. Peavey Raptor (’92)