So, what's all this compression about anyway?

Just Nick explains it, using his wonderful seafoam green Telecaster.

"You Were Probably Going To Mod It Anyway"

So, I was on TDPRI, looking around, and someone posted that he was thinking about getting an Esquire.

An Esquire is in essence a Telecaster with no neck pickup. It was wired with three setting: a bassy setting to cover the the low-end (not really a common position), a standard volume-and-tone setting, and one where you bypass the tone knob and go right to the jack. This is a bit of a hot-rod wiring.

My suggestion was to get a Squier Classic Vibe '50s Tele and mod it, because TDPRI is all over these things as being very good early Tele repros for not much money, so you can get solid standard hardware and change what you want.

I'm not really in the market for that, but I'm always curious, so I started searching and saw this:

Sweetwater created the FENDER® Sweet-Mod Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster® to give you a hot-rodded Fender experience right out of the case. We start with the tried-and-true Fender Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster®, supercharged with DiMarzio Area T stacked humbucking pickups for big, fat, aggressive tone. You get the iconic look and feel of the Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster, with a seriously upgraded sound courtesy of Sweetwater's factory-authorized guitar workshop. You were probably going to do these modifications anyway, and our expert guitar techs have already done the work - for less than your local guitar tech would likely charge. No other retailer has the Fender Sweet-Mod Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster, and it's made to pack an amazing sonic punch. 

"You were probably going to do it anyway."

There's a number of different choices. Teles get either Fender Noiseless or DiMarzio Area Ts. (Stratoblogster can tell you the Strat options. That's his job!) No Esquire options (because you'd have to swap out the pickguard, too, I think). I must say, I'm wanting.

Double Stops from Scotty Anderson

Scotty Anderson is easily the best guitarist you haven't heard of. Or, maybe you have heard of him. Lucky you, then. This is taken from Arlen Roth's old Hot Licks video series, which included two great mindbenders from Danny Gatton.
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New Pedal on my X-Mas List

I've wanted to get a Fernandes Sustainer or similar unit in my guitar for a while, just so I could do that sort of thing. This is a big reason why I want a Moog guitar or lap steel, too. Or, at least an eBow.

For the record, those are still on my wish list, too, but from the looks of things, if I had a Fender Runaway, it could do most of what I'd want all that for. I'm not sure how it works, but it seems like a variant of compression and likely to want to be at the front of my pedal chain, toward the right side (not just because of the way guitar pedals go, but also because I'm right-footed and would rather have wah, volume and this right next to each other in front of my right foot, no matter what way things are wired.

These aren't in stores yet, as far as I can tell, but I'm waiting with decreasing patience for them to show.

Choisir le Poulet

iowa91 is a picker from just outside Paris (and not Paris, Texas), and she certainly has some licks down. 

Vegas, Baby! Or, Is Chicago, Is Not Chicago

This is a Fender FSR Classic Series '72Telecaster Deluxe in Vegas Flake, as seen in Chicago Music Exchange. It wanted to come home with me, but alas, it had to stay.

They also have a Supro 8-string lap steel that's a dead ringer for my 6-string (on the table in this post). And a  James Trussart SteelCaster in rasta colors and a number of surprisingly affordable Squier Jazzmasters which don't seem to be on the site. And the B-Bender, and an FSR Black Paisley Tele, and so many others.

Chicago Music Exchange is one of the cooler guitar stores I've ever been in.