Used as an attempt by Fender to offload a bunch of B stock parts from Musicmaster, Bass V and Maverick models, the Swinger was marketed as a short-scale student model upon release in 1969, but failed quite miserably – and understandbly so. It’s a pretty weird looking little unit, and while we’re sure many would approve of Fender recycling old parts instead of giving them the Gibson treatment nowadays, the late ’60s definitely weren’t kind to the poor little Swinger, and it fell into the chasm of cult appeal.
Fender Japan, however, have realised the allure of the guitar, and subjected it to a limited, Japan-only reissue for this year. They’ve improved on the design of the original (not hard to do) by adding another single coil pickup, a master volume and tone control and a three way switch, similar to Fender’s recent Duo-Sonic and Mustang reissues. The three saddle, hardtail bridge of the original Swinger remains, as does the 22 fret short scale neck, while the new guitar will be available in five finish types: Black, Burgundy Mist Metallic, Dakota Red, Olympic White and Sonic Blue.
Head to Fender Japan to find out more about the Swinger reissue today.
