So, here are some rare photos. Pretty much everybody associates the Shadows with either 1) matching fiesta red Strats and P-Bass ('61-'63) or 2) matching white/tort-guard Burns signature guitars ('64-'68). But there was a one-year transitional period between those two eras during which the Shadows switched from fiesta red Fenders to white Fenders. It began in early-to-mid '63 and went into '64, when they started using the Burns guitars.

Intially these white Fenders had white pickguars, at least Hank's and Bruce's Strats did - Licorice's P-bass came originally with a tortoiseshell pickguard. At some point in '63 they switched the Strat pickguards to tortoiseshell ones - maybe because they liked how Licorice's P-Bass looked? Interestingly enough, that was the color scheme adopted for the Burns Marvin/Shadows guitars right after they used these Fenders.

There doesn't seem to be many photos or video footage of the Shads with these white Fenders, though they were almost certainly used to record big hits like Atlantis, Shindig, Theme For Young Lovers, possibly also Geronimo (though that could have already been a Burns of some sort), and some chunk of their third album, "Dance with the Shadows". They also appeared with these guitars in the 1964 Cliff Richard movie "Wonderful Life", though the band was shown only 'in the shadows' when appearing with the guitars, sadly.

Either Bruce and Hank (I don't remember now) later said that there seemed to be something wrong with the necks on these Strats (or at least one of them), leading to tuning problems which almost drove Bruce to a nervous breakdown and to quitting the band! I kid you not! It was also supposedly one of the reasons why they decided to start working with Burns on their signature guitars.

Just like the matching fiesta red Fenders, nobody seems to know what happened to these white Fenders. It appears that they were not actually owned by the band but were just lent to them by the British Fender distributor, so when they switched to Burns guitars, they returned the Fenders to the distributor, and who knows what happened to them at that point. A damn shame - even if they didn't play a huge role in the Shadows story, these are still iconic guitars. Anyway, I hope you enjoy these photos and this story!

This next one is from April 21st, 1963, the NME Poll Winners Concert - the first time the Shads performed with the white Fenders. (Courtesy of Martin Cillia - thanks, Martin!)

Ivan
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Last edited: Feb 24, 2016 14:25:57

Funny timing on this post Ivan. Yesterday I ordered a white swamp ash body for my latest strat project. I also ordered a 3-ply white/black trim PG and the guitar will have white pups. This guitar will have two Dimarzio Virtuals PAFS in it. It's not being built for surf but it is going to look very cool anyway!

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I always liked the look of a tort guard on an Olympic White Strat. Here I am playing the one I had at one of the last gigs I played with The Surge! before the third tenosynovitis ("trigger finger") episode ended my live playing career later back in 2012.

That was a great Strat, a Custom Shop 1960. Probably should have kept it.

Jack Booth
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Last edited: Feb 23, 2016 21:24:46

Love the "Apache" Gibson J200 (owned by Cliff but often used by Bruce)

Seeing those photos, does anyone think Licorice Locking has been overlooked as a Shadows bassist compared to Jet Harris and John Rostill?

Thanks Ivan; another piece added to the history. This is great stuff. I'm pretty much a NOT white pg guy for a white Strat unless it's some blonde-ish tone really so there's contrast - but pure white on white doesn't work. I have Parchment on mine right now but if I ever changed it I think Tort looks awesome on white, Strat, Jag, or JM.

Wes
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DISCLAIMER: The above is opinion/suggestion only & should not be used for mission planning/navigation, tweaking of instruments, beverage selection, or wardrobe choices.

fosco, that's a GREAT book! Bruce is painfully honest in there, and I believe that it actually caused a years-long rift between him and Hank, sadly. But it makes for a hell of a reading, especially that parts about his lengthy relationship with Olivia Newton John and his suicide attempt when he found out about her affair - yikes!

Wes, clearly the Shadows agreed with you since the white guards didn't last very long at all! I think about four months. Still, on my FB page we have Mike AKA morphball talk about how that's his favorite combination on a Strat! Different strokes for different folks...

Clarry, I have to say that Licorice does seem the weakest of the three bass players. Jet had the rock'n'roll attitude and a wild and ompletely unique style. John Rostill was definitely the most musical and sophisticated bassist the Shadows ever had, the guy was simply amazing. Licorice by comparison was very basic and simplistic. His tone tended to be very mild and even weak, and his bass lines rarely stood out (Dance On being an exception). But I saw him play at the '03 Shadowmania North America in Toronto, and he surprised me by how good he was at that point! Maybe he developed further as a musician since then, or those old recordings didn't really do him justice, I don't know. Nobody would argue that he was BY FAR the NICEST bass player the Shadows had in the '60s!

bripaw wrote:

Just curious but does anyone know the story about the bandage/wrap on Hanks picking hand in the top 3 photos?

I have no idea what's going on there, but it couldn't have been that bad if he was still playing. Maybe he just overworked it?

da-ron wrote:

yeah, it seems he was recording with an injured hand?

Well, those shots are definitely not from a recording studio. It looks like they were just practicing, there are no mics anywhere. Could have been primarily a photo session, too, though all the amps seem to be plugged in, so probably a rehearsal of some sort

Great pictures. The older I get, the more I appreciate The Shadows.

The older I get, I still love them as much as I ever have! I've heard all those songs literally thousands of times by now, and I still hear new things each time I hear them again.

Jack, that CS white/tort Start is a BEAUT! A shame you no longer have it.

Ivan
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