CHARVEL PRO-MOD DK22 SSS 2PT CM £1,119
This Mexican-made Dinky-body bolt-on has all the key points of the ‘progressive’ guitar, from its graphite-reinforced caramelised maple neck, Gotoh Custom 510 vibrato, Seymour Duncan pickups and Luminlay side dots. Its relatively flat compound radius fingerboard suggests it’s just built for speed, but it’s surprisingly good in a cleaner world, too.
FENDER AMERICAN PERFORMER TELECASTER HUM £1,299
This oddly named model takes the standard Performer Tele and replaces its neck single coil with a covered DoubleTap humbucker that offers a single-coil mode, widening the tonal scope significantly. Tradition and modernity are balanced elsewhere between the three-brass-saddle bridge design and Fender’s ClassicGear tuners, which look and perform superbly.
GORDON SMITH GATSBY FROM £1,299
Taking things in a different direction, the Gatsby is Gordon Smith’s first offset guitar. The relatively small body is chamfered front and rear, while the neck fits like a glove, with butter-like playability. A
