Fender Jazzmaster

Offset comfort, floating vibrato, and wide single-coils that spanned surf to shoegaze.

Introduced in 1958 for jazz but adopted by surf players, the Jazzmaster's offset waist and rhythm/lead circuits offered versatile tones. It fell out of favor in the 1970s before indie bands rediscovered its chime and expressive vibrato, sparking today's offset renaissance.

Introduced: 1958 (Fullerton factory)
Signature traits: Offset body, floating tremolo, soapbar single-coils
Notable players: Elvis Costello, Kevin Shields, J Mascis