I'm Nihei, in charge of electric guitars!
Fiesta Red first appeared as a Fender custom color around 1958.
Although Fender had been accepting custom color orders from customers since 1954, these colors weren’t officially listed in the catalog until 1956, and there weren’t many options available at the time.
In 1958, in addition to Fiesta Red, other custom colors such as Lake Placid Blue Metallic and Olympic White were introduced, broadening the range of what people generally think of as “custom colors.”
Returning to Fiesta Red, it’s said that George Fullerton originally wanted a red guitar and asked a paint shop to create a color to his liking.
The color created at that time was Fiesta Red!
So does that mean Fiesta Red is George Fullerton’s signature color? Haha
What’s more, it seems the guitar painted in Fiesta Red at that time was a Jazzmaster.
Since Fiesta Red and the Jazzmaster were both introduced in 1958, it’s quite possible that the very first Jazzmaster in the world to feature a custom color—Fiesta Red—is the one owned by George Fullerton!!
See you next time!
Nihei