The Fender Mustang is a solid body electric guitar produced by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. It was introduced in 1964 as the basis of a major redesign of Fender's student models, the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic. It was produced until 1982 and reissued in 1990.

In the 1990s, the Mustang attained cult status largely as a result of its use by a number of alternative rock bands, in particular grunge bands, most notably played by Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain.

The Mustang features two single-coil pickups, an unusual pickup switching configuration, and a unique vibrato system. It was originally available in two short scale lengths: and .

History

The Mustang has an offset waist, reminiscent of the Jazzmaster, but its overall styling closely followed the existing student models the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic, the slight waist offset being the main change. After the release of the Mustang, the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic were redesigned using the Mustang body. The new versions were branded the Musicmaster II and Duo-Sonic II, but the decals were not consistently applied.

All three Mustang-bodied models (Mustang, Musicmaster II and Duo-Sonic II) were offered with the option of two necks: a 21 fret, 22.5-inch (or 3/4 scale) neck, or a 22 fret, 24-inch neck. The 24-inch version was overwhelmingly more popular, and the 22.5-inch scale examples are rare. This paint scheme was heavily influenced by the Shelby Mustang cars of the late 1960s.

In 1982, Fender discontinued both the Mustang and the Musicmaster II. These were the last of the offset student models to be made. Fender replaced the Mustang line with the short-lived Fender Bullet line of guitars and basses before relegating production of their student guitars to their Squier division.

Re-issues since the 1990s

thumb|right|140px|A Japanese Mustang.

In 1990, Fender reissued the Mustang, largely as a result of the vintage movement prevalent at the time. Among grunge and punk rock guitarists, Fender's discontinued models (budget models such as the Duo-Sonic and high-end models such as the Jazzmaster and Jaguar) had become extremely popular. Such models had Fender quality, but were less expensive secondhand than vintage Stratocasters and Telecasters.

The reissued Mustang is made in Japan and available in only the 24-inch scale. While the original Mustangs used mostly poplar wood for the body (with some rarely documented cases of mahogany), MG-72 Mustang reissues are made of the similar basswood, and the newer MG-65 reissues revert to the original poplar. The natural-finished MG-77 reissue is made of ash.

In 2011, Fender released a new Mustang model in the Pawn Shop series, called the Mustang Special. The model features an offset Mustang body shape and a 24-inch scale neck, but with humbucking pickups and a hard-tail Stratocaster bridge.

In 2012, Fender announced a Kurt Cobain Signature Mustang. This model is based on Cobain's modified Mustangs that he played during the In Utero Tour. Instead of having two single-coil pickups, it had a Seymour Duncan JB humbucker in the bridge and a normal Mustang single coil in the neck. It also had an angled Fender adjusto-matic bridge instead of the standard Mustang bridge. Originally, finish colors included Fiesta Red, Sonic Blue and Dark Lake Placid Blue with Competition Stripe, however, by 2015, the Kurt Cobain Mustang was produced only in Sonic Blue. It is the first Mustang model to be sold in Europe in both right-handed and left-handed versions.

In 2012, Squier released a new Mustang in the Vintage Modified series, with similar specifications to those of the original version, but using more modern materials. There was also a double-humbucker version introduced as a Bullet model.

In 2013, Fender released the Modern Player Mustang, a newer take on the old student model. It featured two Fender MP-90 pickups, which are similar to the P-90. It has a modern 9.5" neck radius, and was offered in Daphne Blue and Honeyburst.

In 2013, Fender introduced the American Special Mustang, the first production Mustang made in the United States since the original run was discontinued. The American Special Mustang is significantly different from vintage models, and eliminated many unconventional features of the original Mustang. It retains the traditional Mustang shape and scale length, but has two Fender Atomic Humbuckers with conventional three-way wiring, a more conventional Adjusto-matic bridge and a fixed tailpiece.

In 2016, Fender released two versions of the Mustang: the Mustang (with two single coil pickups in Olympic White, Black and Olive) and the Mustang 90 (with two MP90 pickups in Olympic White, Torino Red and Silver), both in a 24" scale. They have a string-through-body hardtail 'Strat' bridge (no vibrato system as was found on previous Mustangs), with vintage-like bent-steel saddles. These guitars, and a re-introduced Duo-Sonic range, form the 'Offset Series' and are made in Mexico. The bodies are alder while the necks are maple, with maple or rosewood fretboards. The rosewood fretboards were replaced by pau ferro in 2017, in response to new CITES restrictions on the trading of rosewood. Two colors were also introduced: Shell Pink for the Mustang and 2-Color Sunburst for the Mustang 90.

In 2018, Fender introduced an American Performer variant of the Mustang with an updated version of the original style vibrato system, Tim Shaw designed Yosemite pickups, and a three way selector switch instead of the original's on-off and phase switches above the pickups.

In 2021, Fender announced the Ben Gibbard Mustang as part of their Artist Signature series, designed to Death Cab for Cutie frontman Gibbard's specifications and inspired by the 1970s Mustangs he uses on tour. The guitar features several unique features including a chambered ash body, custom pickups, modified hardtail bridge, and simplified controls.

Electronics

The Mustang has two angled single-coil pickups, each with an adjacent on-off-on switch, and a master tone and volume control.

It also meant that, as both pickups were floating with respect to ground, it was possible to modify the wiring to put the pickups into series either in or out of phase without excessive noise.

Notable players

  • Kurt Cobain (Nirvana)
  • Adrian Belew (King Crimson, Frank Zappa, David Bowie, Talking Heads)
  • Tom Price (The U-Men, Gas Huffer)
  • Liz Phair
  • Theresa Wayman (Warpaint)
  • Blixa Bargeld (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Einstürzende Neubauten)
  • Bilinda Butcher (My Bloody Valentine)
  • Matty Healy (The 1975)
  • Todd Rundgren (Utopia, solo, producer)
  • Rory Gallagher
  • Ryan Jarman (The Cribs)
  • Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth)
  • John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
  • Omar Rodríguez-López (The Mars Volta, At the Drive-In)
  • Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie)
  • Nick Allbrook (Pond)
  • Fernando Perdomo (The Echo in the Canyon Band)
  • Damon Albarn, (Blur)
  • Simon Tong (The Verve)
  • NOAHFINNCE (Noah Finn Adams)
  • Molly Rankin (Alvvays)
  • David Byrne (Talking Heads)
  • Norah Jones