Rodriguez Full Nelson MPH

The Full Nelson MPH is an extraordinary mash-up of an early 50s Fender P-Bass and a Strat. Yes, that's a very cool thing.

The Rodriguez MPH (named for session ace and design mastermind Matte Henderson) might look oddly familiar in that deja vu sort of way. "Now where have I seen this design before?"

There are a few answers to that question, starting with the original Fender P-Bass. Giveaways are the slab body (think Telecaster), distinctive pickguard, two knob control plate, maple neck w/a Tele shaped headstock, and single coil pickups sans covers.

Folding these specs into a Stratocaster format is one of the cooler ideas we've seen in a while (if you've been at this guitar thing for a long time, you'll remember that Robin guitars made similar guitars). With regards to the playing experience, it really comes down to the sum of the parts / ideas. Yes, for all intents and purposes, this is a Strat - but - it has a different feel in hand. Like chunky necks? You'll love the early '50s Nocaster-like carve. The soft V carve and 10" radius no doubt factor into the comfort equation.

Tonally? Phenomenal. The sassafras body pairs beautifully with the custom spec'd Fralin single coils. Eric Johnson fans will note the use of sassafras here (EJ's Virginia model features the same wood). It's very resonant wood and on this MPH features a silly amount of sustain.

The Fralin single coils are clear, beautifully compressed, and ultimately very inspiring whether played clean or overdriven. Fantastic stuff here (to be expected in our experience).

As you can probably tell, we're really impressed with this guitar. So much so, it has a few of us reaching for our wallets. Work hazards, right?