This week’s video is the one I’ve been waiting to make — my Fender American Vintage II 1966 Jazzmaster in Lake Placid Blue. If you’ve been watching the channel for a while, you know this one’s been a long time coming, and it’s kind of a follow-up to the video I did with my friend Chris Moore and his black Jazzmaster.

Chris’s guitar is a made-in-Mexico model he bought to look like the one Nels Cline plays — black body, matching headstock, nitro finish, a limited edition. It’s his main electric, his first real high-end guitar, and every time he brings it over I’ve been jealous. I wanted one of my own, but I also knew I was only going to have ONE Jazzmaster in the collection — so it had to be exactly right.

The non-negotiables: a nitro finish (you can feel the difference), Lake Placid Blue, a bound fretboard, the matching headstock cap — and the traditional rhythm circuit. That last one mattered more than anything. I’ve been chasing a specific sound for years: Carl Wilson’s solo tone on the Beach Boys’ “She Knows Me Too Well” — clear as a bell, no harshness, all warmth. I’ve tried to get it on other guitars and never quite nailed it. The Jazzmaster’s rhythm circuit rolls all the treble off and gets me there without fighting the amp. A lot of the new ones don’t even have the rhythm circuit anymore, but I use it, and I’m glad it’s there.

I found this one on clearance at Guitar Center one night — walked in with the family just for fun, saw it on the wall, and knew. It was in great shape for a wall-hanger, and after some back-and-forth with the salesman I brought it home. There was a small finish ding on the corner that almost killed the deal — which turned out to work in my favor.

What I love about the details: the block inlays have a silvery swirl you don’t see on modern Fenders, the plastics — knobs, switch tip — have that ’60s Bakelite vibe, the off-white pickguard, the bridge cover, and the crushed-orange interior of the case. Even the waterslide headstock decal, which has always looked a little amateurish to me, feels right because it’s vintage-correct.

And it plays. It’s light, the rounded C neck is right in the sweet spot — not too skinny, not too fat — and the fit and finish are wonderful. When Chris comes over to rehearse he’ll grab it instead of his own guitar, and he always says the same thing: “Boy, that thing plays really nice.” After a full show it’s a completely different experience from one of my Gibsons.

The video ends with a full playing demo, so stick around for that. This one’s a keeper — it’s going to be my live Jazzmaster for years.